Having a good volley can be the difference between being a good player and a multiple-time Grand Slam champion.
Pat Cash recently claimed tennis players have got worse at volleying since his era, especially as someone who used serve and volley to help him win Wimbledon in 1987.
Andy Roddick is the last American man to win a Grand Slam, but he has admitted that volleying is not something he was particularly comfortable with.
Roddick has now backed up Cash’s point once again by naming the player whom he thinks is the greatest volleyer in women’s tennis history.
Andy Roddick claims Martina Navratilova is the greatest volleyer in women’s tennis history
Roddick was speaking about the best volleyers in WTA history on his ‘Served with Andy Roddick’ podcast, and named Martina Navratilova straight away.
Navratilova was not the only player on Roddick’s mind, with multiple-time Grand Slam doubles champions Gigi Fernandez and Lisa Raymond also in his shortlist.
Roddick then went on to speak about active women’s tennis players, naming Jessica Pegula, Taylor Townsend and Sara Errani.
Navratilova was the player that Roddick concluded with, and he also spoke about some of the ATP players he thought were the best at volleying including Rafael Nadal, John McEnroe and Stefan Edberg.
“You are going to get Navratilova on the women’s side more often than not,” said Roddick. “My mind goes to Gigi Fernandez, who I was watching at the Hall of Fame last month doing clinics and it was so much fun. I am not a natural volleyer, I suck at it.
“Lisa Raymond was amazing. Jess Pegula is really good now, great racket control. Townsend and Errani are fantastic.
“On the men’s side the ones which rip off first. McEnroe, as far as creativity, artistry, feel and how to float the ball, pacing, and how to knock it down vs give you time to get back. Edberg as far as crisp, classic, what you want to see. [Pat] Rafter. All these guys are elite 12/10 athletes and movers, running to spots and coverage.
“Nadal was a great volleyer. One of the best volleyers I have ever seen who doesn’t get enough credit is Lleyton Hewitt. Again, Nadal is one of the greatest movers of all time and so is Hewitt.
“If you had [Pete] Sampras doing volley drills he would have been great, add in his athleticism and his ability to run to a spot and create power off of power, it changes everything. The fact you couldn’t lob him, you had to hit such a good lob to get it over Sampras. There are no slow guys who are great volleyers when we are talking about singles.
“But Navratilova or any top player on Earth who played before 1985 is a great volleyer. But the best of all time, you take Navratilova how she volleys and layer on top of the physicality and ability to cover spots.
“So if you come in you hit a slice, it’s tougher to lob off that, and are charging forward and you can shrink a space. You are hitting a passing shot and trying to pick a spot to hit it and they make the lane feel so small.
“Just crisping a volley is something a lot of people can do. But you have to be able to cover a lot of ground and your tennis IQ has to be through the roof. Navratilova on the women’s side is the best I have ever seen. The total package. Men’s side you have some more options.”
Martina Navratilova’s Grand Slam doubles record supports Andy Roddick’s claim
Not only was Navratilova an 18-time Grand Slam singles champion, but she also won 41 major titles in doubles where having a good volley is essential.
This means that Navratilova has won a combined 59 Grand Slams, which is more than any other player in Open Era history.
That is not the only record that Navratilova has in doubles, as she actually won a huge 177 total titles in women’s doubles.
Even in the final match of Navratilova’s career, she showcased her volleying skills and won the US Open mixed doubles title at 49 years old.
Although Townsend and Errani are two of the highest ranked doubles players, Roddick did not actually name current world number one Katerina Siniakova.
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