I didn’t play tennis until I was 17. At that age, my mom wasn’t going to invest in tennis lessons. I had to learn from reading books and magazines or watching videos and studying skilled players. When I decided to become a coach, I did the same thing, only bigger. I went to the best … More Effortless Effort, A Critical Component to Elite Performance
5th in a series on countering styles Big serve attackers build their game around holding serve – by hitting aces or big serves followed by short return put- aways. Their mindset is on pressuring the opponent by not getting their service games broken . This way they only need to break serve once per set … More Big Serve Attackers
4th in a series on countering styles There are two types of attacking styles in tennis: Net rushers and Big Servers. Net Rushers apply pressure by going to the net as often as possible. They get to the net by serving and volleying, coming in off 2nd serves ,or short balls. They rely on the … More Net Rusher Attackers
3rd in a series on countering styles Big forehand baseliners like to dictate rather than react. They are always looking for a short ball to attack. They do this by running around the backhand to hit big forehands. They usually have good serves, and some have good backhands, but they prefer to win points with … More Big Forehand Baseliners
Second in a series on Countering Styles The heavy topspin player will wear you down until you lose patience looking for quick winners or attacking the net without rushing or unbalancing him first. Most of them like to camp out in the backhand corner hitting big forehands. They usually hit with a lot of spin, … More HEAVY TOPSPIN BASELINERS
In this week’s post I show you how you should use Zone 3 to challenge your opponent by either making them move or attacking their weaknesses. Don’t forget, if you have any questions or suggestions, post them in the comments below.
Just like it’s important for you to understand your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, you also need to understand your own. Don’t try to do what you’re not capable of doing. If you’re incapable of hitting a power serve, why try it? If your backhand is much weaker than your forehand, run around it. If your … More Strategy, the Fourth Foundation: You
Learning the foundation of awareness of the other side of the court is a key ingredient to becoming a good player. Once the match starts, most of your attention should be on your opponent’s side of the court. The greatest tool for exploiting your opponent is the utilization of the Two Opposites. There is a … More Third Foundation: Opponent Awareness
Hard courts The basic strategy on a hard court is related to the speed of the surface. The slower the hard court is, the more you follow clay court strategy. If the court is fast, the points last fewer shots. The chances of exploiting an opponent’s weakness are therefore less on a hard court. It’s … More Court Awareness: Hard Courts and Grass Courts
The surface you’re playing on and how that affects your decision making is another important aspect of court awareness is . This week we’ll look at clay courts. Clay courts grip the ball so that it bounces up slowly, which favors a steady baseline style. Topspin is more effective than backspin or flat balls on … More The Second Foundation: Court Awareness and Clay Courts
Rhythm & Flow Tennis 