In tennis, a soft shot hit high to arc over an opponent is a lob.
A lob sends the ball high—usually deep into the opponent’s court—so it travels over a player positioned near the net. It can be defensive, buying the hitter time to recover, or offensive, forcing the opponent to retreat while making a difficult return.
The shot is especially useful against serve-and-volley players or doubles teams crowding the net. Topspin can make an attacking lob dip sharply inside the baseline, while slice or backspin can change its flight and bounce. A lob that is too short or too low, however, may be easy to attack.
A lob is commonly confused with a drop shot. A drop shot is deliberately short and low, designed to land near the net; a lob uses height and depth. The opposite response to a weak lob is often a smash, a forceful overhead shot. Tennis lore credits Frank Hadow, Wimbledon’s 1859 champion, with introducing the lob as a tactic against Spencer Gore.