ive lost my game

[fischer]

Ive played tennis from 10 -14 at county level and i took a year out from the game and now im back , however my game has totally gone i cant hit a clean topspin shot anymore.
I think its because i have been playing squash for a year and ive messed up my rhythm for tennis.
Ive been playing for 3 months now and my feet get caught up now and everything feels horrible i just hit a clean ball, im panicking because i want to play colledge tennis in america and im not even playing at a high club level at the moment.

Im so cautios of what im doing on the tennis court now and now left foot comes round on my forehand and it feels awful.
Im worried i wont find my game and play with these bad habbits forever.

I should never of messed around with my naturalbtennis technique

this is a major slump and i cant even enjoy playing anymore, has anyone here ever gone through this, whats the best way to get out of it?
im playing like a club hacker

 

[Camilio Pascual]

Get a coach for about 6 - 12 lessons and he'll pick out what you are doing wrong.

 

[Kobble]

I have gone through it, and I still find flaws that creep into my strokes. I just keep battling it, but unlike you, I have no tennis career on the line. It is really just a battle against changing conditions, and many people struggle with it. I have known many top level athletes and competitors in precision games, and most will agree that any kind of change that disrupts your successful muscle memory should be avoided. Just as an example, I knew a guy who was an elite air-pistol shooter who said that the most important thing in shooting is to not flip-flop disciplines. You never compete in both air-pistol and rifle competitions. Squash is like the rifle compared to air-pistol, and should be avoided when trying to dial in your strokes. Ping Pong is another thing that can screw with your strokes, because of the light paddle and short dimensions of the court. Also, have you ever notived how so many golfers get more out of shape as they get older. It is not due to as much to laziness as it is fear of their finely tuned swings being disrupted. Look what happened to David Duval, he changed his body too much and the slow decline began. Even the ones who are in to fitness are careful about what upperbody movements they perform. This is just one of those things that comes along with sports based on precise movements, and you always have to aware of how you train your body.

I would suggest you avoid all racquet sports except tennis until you regain your old form. If you have old tapes of yourself you should refer back to them and try to copy what you used to do. If you know of a good coach in your area bring him the old tapes and tell him you want to get your old strokes back.

 

[fischer]

im playing worse and worse and i cant cover the court at all like i used to, should i carry on playing like this and hope one day it comes back or should i take a longish break from the game , like 2 months or something.

 

[Bungalo Bill]

im playing worse and worse and i cant cover the court at all like i used to, should i carry on playing like this and hope one day it comes back or should i take a longish break from the game , like 2 months or something.

Well if you have lost your confidence, covering the court is like trying to climb Mt. Everest.

Once the mind goes the feet follow. Your mind is preoccupied with what you might not be able to do and what your not doing now. So what happens is you operate in peripheral vision.

Time to get back to the basics. Fixed wrist, steady head at contact. say HIT BOUNCE HIT to get the cobb webs out of the brain. stayin the moment not in the past.

If you messed around with your technique by playing another type of racquet sport it will take time to regain lost ground. It is time to practice.

Do some shadow tennis by teaching the brain to move the feet properly. Use the 45 degree angle to your benefit. Let the ball come into the width of your feet more for timing. Slow down the pace to get your natural stroke back.