Please provide feedback

[andrehanderson]

Returned to tennis 6 months ago after 20 years away from it. Played varsity and local tournaments for 5 years then quit for 20 years. Please let me know hat glaring errors im making, as well as a rough estimate on my NTRP rating (which I know is probably difficult without seeing my entire game in match play).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grhOgx68ptU

Thanks so much!!!

[johndagolfer]

Hard to tell your NTRP since you're just hitting rather casually. Based off of what I see I would say between a 3.5 and a 4. I am just not sure because you're not in a competitive situation and there are a few things that I see in your strokes that could cause that to fall either way.

You have a decent forehand, but there are a few things that I do not like.

You are very armsy. It seems you're trying so hard to achieve a windshield wiper form that you forget to use the rest of your body. On quite a few shots it seems like you try to gain power my just flipping the head over with your hands and without shoulder or lower body movement.

There are also a few times in your video where you seem to be trying to guide the ball instead of stroking through it. This causes your to lose acceleration into the ball causing a weak hit.

Overall, not bad. But an accurate assessment of your rating is difficult without seeing some competitive points

[andrehanderson]

Thank you very, very much. I'm struggling with my forehand because I am really trying to pick up the modern forehand to replace the old school way I learned. My backhand feels more natural.

I really appreciate the feedback.

[andrehanderson]

Any further tips or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much to anyone who takes the time to weigh in.

[anubis]

I second john's advice. you have to use the rest of your body, form a kinetic chain. But the problem is, once you get the rest of your body involved, you're adding a lot more power than you're probably used to. A lot of your shots are going pretty deep as it is. With added power, a lot of those shots are likely to sail long.

to counter that, make sure to:
--remove any lead tape on your racquet if you have any
--switch to 17g strings if you're using 16g
--tighten your strings, they may be a little loose

you'll get a lot more control with a tighter stringbed, more spin with smaller gauge strings. Extra lead gives you extra power, which you don't need.

[andrehanderson]

Thank you!

I can't tell if my ground strokes are powerful--what I mean is that they feel powerful and seem to be relatively fast--though perhaps a bit flat--but when I watch 5.0+ players practicing on YouTube they seem to be hitting much harder.

I guess what I'm asking is whether or not my shots are powerful enough for the 3.5-4.0 level, or if I should still try to add power?

Actually, using the kinetic chain more properly will probably resolve my problem and give me more power and control.

I don't have any lead tape on my racquet (prestige s) but perhaps I need to tighten the strings a bit.

[LeeD]

Both of you can play 4.0, but might need to try a little bit harder. Both have the strokes, both just pushing the ball back and forth.
Varsity high school ball is usually 4-4.5 level, in the top singles.

[andrehanderson]

Thank you so much for the reply!

Im going to need to start playing earlier in the day or at night because the heat here in Brasilia is scorching and the climate is dry so you feel like you´re playing in the middle of the desert. It makes it hard to really go for it, though some days we pull it off.

I appreciate the feedback! Im really open to any technical advice anyone cares to share. This is a great forum and Im so happy I found it.

[vil]

I'm not a qualified coach but I think it's quite visible that you were playing much better tennis (before the break). You have the grooves despite some lazy or clumsy footwork at times. If I was to criticise at least one thing, it would be your sliced backhand. There's something fundamentally wrong with it. It looks like you had a wrong grip.

[andrehanderson]

Thanks for the feedback. You definitely might be right about the slice. I use the same grip I use for my topspin backhand...which would you recommend?

[vil]

Continental (hammer) grip is the most common, even if some disagree. You don't have to do any wrist adjustments, just go through the ball. I would stay away concentrating on heavy under spin, start hitting balls deep and low. Once you get the feel of it you can maybe experiment with a slight grip variation for more spin. One thing that helped me years ago were words of a friend of mine that still echo in my head. He said, keep the angle between your arm and the racket constant and don't drop your wrist, otherwise you'll lose the control of your shot.

[andrehanderson]

Thanks! I'll give those adjustments a try! I really like that tip regarding the angle between wrist and forearm. I'm definitely doing a kind of drop shot movement when I'm slicing.

[andrehanderson]

Can anyone link to some specific videos of techniques or drills that you think would help me develop my game?

Thanks in advance!

[LeeD]

Go to U tube, watch Federer or DJ forehands. Ferrer and DelPo, or any pro not named McEnroe or Connors.

[andrehanderson]

Thanks Lee...will do. I will try to browse some videos containing drills as well so I can add more explosiveness to the practice.

[Kam2010]

Enjoyed watching the vid, good angle and some good hitting..

I would suggest at that warm up level 3.5 only because it seems as though when it mattered to actually go for hit think I seen it once or twice you hit it long..

I think when you record a vid and have like a tie break to 10 and you will see then how much different it is and people will be able to give more accurate rating..

That court does seem to be fast or is it just me?

Enjoy the tennis

[sunof tennis]

Originally Posted by andrehanderson

Thanks Lee...will do. I will try to browse some videos containing drills as well so I can add more explosiveness to the practice.

I reviewed your video as well. I think your strokes are pretty solid (except for the slice backhand which you need to drive though more and agree with the suggestion above). It does look like with your forehand than you are trying to meld the old school with the modern forehand. You might take a look at a video I believe it is called Lock and Roll tennis. Pretty good instruction on the modern forehand. You probably could pick up a couple of pointers which would turn a nice forehand into a weapon.
Finally, if you are dying in the heat, why are you wearing dark colored clothing? Take it from someone who does play in the desert, only light colored clothes in the sun.

[andrehanderson]

Thank you so much for the responses. Just as a point of reference, here is a video of my first couple of months or so back, playing some points. It gets a bit better about half way through the video, but its pretty ugly. Im encouraged by how much of my game has come back since then, but to be honest I was primarily a serve and volleyer as a kid (the 80´s) and now Im playing much more at the baseline (like everyone else). I still like to approach the net, but I dont have the hand speed and hand/eye coordination I once had.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpgfW3POWhI

[andrehanderson]

Originally Posted by Kam2010

Enjoyed watching the vid, good angle and some good hitting..

I would suggest at that warm up level 3.5 only because it seems as though when it mattered to actually go for hit think I seen it once or twice you hit it long..

I think when you record a vid and have like a tie break to 10 and you will see then how much different it is and people will be able to give more accurate rating..

That court does seem to be fast or is it just me?

Enjoy the tennis

Thank you very much for the feedback!

Ill record a tiebreak video this week for sure. Thanks again!

[andrehanderson]

Originally Posted by sunof tennis

I reviewed your video as well. I think your strokes are pretty solid (except for the slice backhand which you need to drive though more and agree with the suggestion above). It does look like with your forehand than you are trying to meld the old school with the modern forehand. You might take a look at a video I believe it is called Lock and Roll tennis. Pretty good instruction on the modern forehand. You probably could pick up a couple of pointers which would turn a nice forehand into a weapon.
Finally, if you are dying in the heat, why are you wearing dark colored clothing? Take it from someone who does play in the desert, only light colored clothes in the sun.

Thanks for the video recommendation (lock and roll). I will take a look at that one again. I remember it being a very good video.

Im about 30 pounds over my normal weight right now and I guess Im self-conscious so Im wearing a lot of black this year. lol

If I have a heatstroke Ill deserve it for being so vain.