Change your game with this one move
Small shift, major payoff for your game
I was playing with Marty last weekend and kept wincing as he ran straight to the kitchen line and got burned — over and over. He thought charging forward was being aggressive. Problem was, he never did a split step, that little hop to stabilize yourself as your opponent is about to hit the ball. He just had to react and that left him flat-footed, and apologizing. Once he added that tiny prep hop, everything changed, quicker reads, better balance, and a bunch fewer burned points. I could practically hear his brain relax.
Why the split step matters
For intermediate players who can rally but have trouble getting to the kitchen, or trouble when they get there, the split step is the simplest, most impactful tool you aren’t using enough. It’s a compact hop timed with your opponent’s swing and ball contact that gets your feet “on alert.” Land ready, knees soft, weight centered on the balls of your feet, and you can move forward, back or sideways in a blink. It’s not sexy, but it’s what separates scrambling from responding.
How to do it:
Time it: jump as the opponent makes contact, or even just as they start their swing. Too early and you wait; too late and you’re already behind.
Keep it small: it’s a small hop, called the split step, not the split leap. Big jumps waste time and make landing unstable.
Land light: balls of the feet, knees bent, weight balanced. From there you can move in any direction.
Make it a reflex: don’t think “should I split-step?” It should be automatic when the other player hits.
Drills that actually help:
Shadow partner: partner hits; you hop on their contact and move to the ball.
Toss-and-react: partner tosses to different spots — split step on their hand clap, then move.
Serve-return routine: split step at the server’s contact, then move to hit the return and run to the kitchen.
Final thought
Make the split step a warm-up habit. Practice it like brushing your teeth, boring, dependable, and it makes everything else work better. Marty learned it in one match; you will too.
