To play great defense you need the ability to read the opponents attack and position yourself ready to dig or move to play the ball.
Good defensive positioning heavily depends on the placement of the set ball and the formation of the team block.
Here are 5 volleyball tips for making great defensive plays.
1. Watch Placement of the Set Ball If the volleyball is set tight to the net, the defender needs to be ready to play a ball that can be hit at a downward angle into the court. The defender should also watch the path of the ball to make sure the ball isn't coming over the net. The worst thing that could happen is to have the volleyball fall to the ground onto your teams side of the court with nobody making a play on it.
2. Watch the Volleyball Hitter Approach The defender should be aware of the direction the hitter is approaching, the direction the hitters shoulders are squared up, the hitters armswing, and where the hitter contacts the ball. All these are factors influence where the ball will be hit.
During the approach, notice the direction the hitters shoulders are facing. If the hitter is swinging, it is likely they will hit the ball the direction they are facing.
Notice if the hitter is forced to speed up their approach or take steps sideways due to a low or poor set. By noticing these details of the hitter approach you are more likely to anticipate where the ball will be hit.
3. Watch the Volleyball Hitter Armswing Watch the hitter armswing and be ready not only for a hard hit, but also an off-speed hit, roll shot, cut shot, or tip.
Often, if the set is too high the hitter will adjust their approach. If the hitter adjusts their approach watch the angle of the armswing. Often on high sets the hitter will contact the ball back behind the head. If the contact is made back behind the head be ready for a deep volleyball hit. If the contact isn't solid, be ready for a short shot.
If the set is too low the hitter will often speed up their approach and make contact with the ball out in front of the body. Hitting the volleyball out in front of the body will likely make the ball be hit more at a downward angle into the court.
If the volleyball is set off the net, the defender should be ready to move to play a much easier off-speed shot or tip.
4. Understand Your Volleyball Team Blocking Strategy Before playing defense, you must communicate with your blockers and devise a defensive strategy. Obviously, whatever space your blockers don't take away with their block, the defensive players on the court need to cover.
A basic blocking strategy is to have the blockers take away the line and angle hit while the baseline defender covers the middle baseline area. This is called playing base defense. A more advanced defensive strategy involves the baseline defender to rotate over to cover the hit down deep line. This is called rotation defense. Rotation defense is used primarily when the opponent has a really good line shot that can't be defended by blockers.
Often holes appear in the block that can't be closed. As a defender, help defend this area by lining up around the block. It is likely your team defensive strategy will change throughout a match as you discover the best way to defend your opponent.
5. Be Ready to Defend the Volleyball Tip Defenders should train to read hitters. Reading the hitter is especially important for covering tipped balls. A hitter may tip for many reasons. Usually a tip is done on a poorly set ball. If the ball is hard for the hitter to get to, the hitter may decide to tip the ball because tipping is a much easier way to control the ball. For this reason, defenders need to be ready to play tips on poorly set balls. Also, if a hitter hasn't been hitting well they may decide to try the tip shot. If a hitter doesn't take a full approach to hit, this is usually a dead give away that a tip is coming.
Understanding these game situations allows you to be more prepared and ready to anticipate your opponent to make great volleyball defensive plays.
Dennis Jackson is a volleyball player, coach, and referee that provides expert advice on all aspects of volleyball training. For more tips on defense along with strength and conditioning, designing drills, executing skills, and rule interpretations visit:
http://www.strength-and-power-for-volleyball.com.
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