Hey Slicepong,
Glad you enjoyed the video on the half long on the backhand side. You can definitely take the ball earlier but it is higher risk. Taking the ball earlier gives your opponent less time to, so this is good. If the ball lands 1/2 on your side it pretty much means its long and you can go for your normal open up shot. I would say spend a lot of practice in this area so you get more comfortable. Multi ball drills are good with your feeder mixing up the ball from half long to long, this will help you improve your judgement and give you more confidence in this area of the game.
Hope this helps 🙂
