Volleyball Strategy

Volleyball Strategy
Through time, volleyball has developed to involve common techniques of spiking, passing, blocking, and setting, as well as specialized player positions and offensive and defensive structures. Because many plays are made above the top of the net, vertical jumping is an athletic skill emphasized in volleyball. This article focuses on competitive indoor volleyball, which is carefully regulated and played indoors.

Player specialization
There are 5 positions filled on every volleyball team at the elite level. Setter, Outside Hitter/Left Side Hitter, Middle Hitter and Opposite Hitter/Right Side Hitter and Libero/Defensive Specialist. Each of these positions plays a specific, key role in winning a volleyball match.

•    Setters have the task for orchestrating the offense of the team. They aim for second touch and their main responsibility is to place the ball in the air where the attackers can place the ball into the opponents’ court for a point. They have to be able to operate with the hitters, manage the tempo of their side of the court and choose the right attackers to set. Setters need to have swift and skillful appraisal and tactical accuracy, and must be quick at moving around the court.

•    Liberos are defensive players, who are responsible for receiving the attack or serve and are usually the players on the court with the quickest reaction time and best passing skills. Librero means ‘free’ as they have the ability to substitute for any other player on the court during each play. They do not necessarily need to be tall, as they never play at the net, which allows shorter players with strong passing and defensive skills to excel in the position and play an important role in the team’s success. A player designated as a libero for a match may not play other roles during that match. Liberos wear a different color jersey than their teammates.

•    Middle blockers or Middle hitters are players that can perform very fast attacks that usually take place near the setter. They are specialized in blocking, since they must attempt to stop equally fast plays from their opponents and then quickly set up a double block at the sides of the court. In non-beginners play, every team will have two middle hitters.

•    Outside hitters attack from near the left antenna. Since most sets to the outside are high, the outside hitter may take a longer approach, always starting from outside the court sideline. In non-beginners play, there are again two outside hitters on every team in every match.

•    Opposite hitters or Right side hitters carry the offensive workload for a volleyball team. Their primary responsibilities are to attack the ball from the right side and to put up a well formed block against the opponents Outside Hitters. This player hits the most balls on the team. He/she is set from the front row and the back row. Sets of the opposite usually go to the right side.