Ball Pockets, do I need them???

[kfarring]

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and fairly new to tennis! I've been playing for around 8 or 9 months now and have stuck with it sufficiently long enough to justify spending money on some proper tennis clothes

I'm looking at a lot of the adidas gear and confused about ball pockets. As a great deal of my serves still hit the net (that's another problem!) I like to have a spare ball or 2 in my pockets but all of the skorts I like don't have those built in upside down pockets. If I don't have these, will I have nowhere to put a ball? All of the separate little shorts for wearing under dresses and normal skirts have the pockets and it seems weird to me that the skorts don't!

Thanks in advance for your advice!
Kate

[Inga]

dear heart! you put the ball between your leg and the tight shorts of the skort!

[Lara Richards]

if you're comfortable playing with a spare ball in your pocket then that would be fine.

[theyhatethecans]

My mom always told me 2 things when leaving the house:

1. wear clean underwear
2. if playing tennis, always have the ability to hold an extra ball

It does frustrate me a little when my partner (man or woman) can hold a second ball when serving

[theyhatethecans]

Originally Posted by theyhatethecans

My mom always told me 2 things when leaving the house:

1. wear clean underwear
2. if playing tennis, always have the ability to hold an extra ball

It does frustrate me a little when my partner (man or woman) can hold a second ball when serving

Dang it. Can't edit my posts yet. mean't "can't" not can

[Ronaldo]

Originally Posted by kfarring

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and fairly new to tennis! I've been playing for around 8 or 9 months now and have stuck with it sufficiently long enough to justify spending money on some proper tennis clothes

I'm looking at a lot of the adidas gear and confused about ball pockets. As a great deal of my serves still hit the net (that's another problem!) I like to have a spare ball or 2 in my pockets but all of the skorts I like don't have those built in upside down pockets. If I don't have these, will I have nowhere to put a ball? All of the separate little shorts for wearing under dresses and normal skirts have the pockets and it seems weird to me that the skorts don't!

Thanks in advance for your advice!
Kate

Guy with small hands and tight shorts used these clips on his waistband. http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Gamm...AMMA-LOVE.html

[scotus]

Originally Posted by Ronaldo

Guy with small hands and tight shorts used these clips on his waistband. http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Gamm...AMMA-LOVE.html

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario used to play with one of those. Looked completely ridiculous.

Here's a message to all the female pros:

--Use the ball boys/girls. You don't need to keep an extra ball under your skirt. Trust me, you look much better without one.

[Angle Queen]

Kate,

Welcome to tennis! Like you, I futzed around with it (on my return after not playing for 20 yrs) before investing in some proper gear.

10 yrs ago, skorts were still kind of a newish thing but I really liked the built-in shorts. And my first real tennis skirt was from Prince, had the built-ins...and a REAL pocket on the built-in. Both sides! Over the next few years, I scoured the internet to get one in each of the seemingly requisite colors: white, black and navy.

But alas, Prince no longer seems to make that style anymore and I am SOL when these wear out. To their testament, they've survived for quite some time with strenuous play and washing (but no dryer-drying!).

A few years ago, I found a Reebok skort with an outside pocket (only on the left side) that didn't look dorky. I should've gone back to do the same color regime but am now stuck with just the black I bought. Oh well.

Wish the tennis gods, manufacturers would make stuff for us recreational hacks rather than the goddesses that play for pay. They have ball kids and rarely have to hold the second (or third, in doubles).

Still, most of us just tuck the balls between the short/built-in and our thighs. Can get dicey if it's a hot, sweaty kinda day. But I try not to let the image/thought get in the way.

Those upside down pockets...are useless. They're too tight to use quickly and with just one hand (since you're usually holding your racket in the other).

Anyhow, there's an old column of Jon Wertheim's where he asked for and got some good answers on why women tuck the balls under their skirts. You'll have to scroll down towards the end under the "New Balls, Please" heading...but they are some interesting replies.

[Cindysphinx]

Originally Posted by scotus

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario used to play with one of those. Looked completely ridiculous.

Here's a message to all the female pros:

--Use the ball boys/girls. You don't need to keep an extra ball under your skirt. Trust me, you look much better without one.

No, don't use the ball kids! Keep a ball in your shorts like you have done your whole life before you were a household name. Having to turn to some kid every time you are going to hit a second serve has a certain "Peel me a grape!" quality to it.

I don't like waiting for any pro to fiddle around between first and second. Be like the guys. Miss your first serve, pull a ball out and serve already!

[Cindysphinx]

To add to what AngleQueen said . . .

When I am doing a practice session, I hold four balls between my compression shorts and my skirt. All on the left side, two up higher, two down lower. They actually stay put, although it is probably not a good look.

Two snaps up for Bolle compression shorts!

[aimr75]

Originally Posted by Cindysphinx

Be like the guys. Miss your first serve, pull a ball out and serve already!

but then theres guys like nadal, pull out a ball and spend the next 20 seconds going through a routine.. which is just as painful to constantly watch.. would be nice for the tv stations to not focus on the server each and every point so we dont always see their routine

[Cindysphinx]

Yes, true. Nadal is getting ridiculous. I watch most tennis matches via my DVR. It has a setting to let you skip 30 seconds. When a Nadal point ends, I can hit the skip and I still won't miss his first serve. Imagine how much worse it would be if he also had to get a ball from the ball kid!