you do know that it takes essentially the same type of racket position to put the ball cross court or down the line with a volley or a ground stroke. if you are behind on a volley you will miss-hit just as you would on a ground stroke, except for the fact that you have a much shorter time to react to the ball.
If you hit the ball w/perfect timing (your feet in the right position as well) it's going wherever you've directed it.
even less room for error when it comes to volleys.
Good lord dude. I can't believe you think more skill is involved w/a net game. Why do you think the crappy players just rush the net? BECAUSE IT'S EASY TO HIT.
case in point is andy roddick. if he was able to put his serve together with a great net game, something that he has been struggling with his entire career, and has never been able to do it, he would be competeing with federer, or at least challenging him more.
crappy players rush the net and can't finish what they started. players like sampras, becker, and laver all had great net games and dominated with it.
as far as federer goes, he has that touch, he just plays a much more balanced game because he doesn't quite have the forehand or the blasting serve that those other players had.
and for nadal, he is an an athletic freak who is fast enough to get any ball on the court, along with get himself into position to hit great shots.
i think sampras, in his prime, would beat both nadal and federer. especially against a game like petes that highlighted his strenghts and took away opponents defenses. in fact i think sampras has played federer since he has retired and beaten him. even though it was during some charity outing or something.
