drop shot

American  

noun

1. (in tennis, badminton, etc.) a ball or shuttlecock so softly hit that it falls to the playing surface just after clearing the net.

2. (in squash, handball, etc.) a ball so softly hit that it falls suddenly to the ground just after striking the front wall.

3. shot made in a shot tower.

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drop shot British  

noun

1. 1. tennis a softly-played return that drops abruptly after clearing the net, intended to give an opponent no chance of reaching the ball and usually achieved by imparting backspin

   2. squash a similar shot that stops abruptly after hitting the front wall of the court

2. a type of shot made by permitting molten metal to percolate through a sieve and then dropping it into a tank of water

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Etymology

Origin of drop shot

First recorded in 1630–40

Example Sentences

"He's brought in the drop shot a little bit, which is good to get the opponents moving forward to backwards, not just side to side."

From BBC

In the second set, with Alcaraz hampered by a hamstring injury which required strapping, Sinner began to use more drop shots and it was notably one which saved a break point in the seventh game.

From BBC

Even when Sinner tapped into his normally impenetrable return game, Alcaraz found more variety, mixing in feathery drop shots and flicking balls off his shoelaces.

From The Wall Street Journal

The dizzying mix of slices, drop shots, and wild angles, backed up by booming groundstrokes, gave Alcaraz a completeness that Sinner struggled to cope with as he racked up errors.

From The Wall Street Journal

"I didn't make one serve-volley, didn't use a lot of drop shots, and then you arrive to a point where you play Carlos and have to go out of the comfort zone," Sinner said.

From BBC