Short people

Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
alright so on our high school team there is a freshmen that is4'8" he wants me to help him get better. I have no idea how to though. I really have no clue. Like his reach is low, he isnt the fastest, one of the slowest on our team. And one of the weakest.
The only piece of advice I can give him is buying a 28 inch racquet maybe?

Can anyone help me on this?
thanks
 
Jonny S&V

Jonny S&V

Hall of Fame
Larrysümmers said:
alright so on our high school team there is a freshmen that is4'8" he wants me to help him get better. I have no idea how to though. I really have no clue. Like his reach is low, he isnt the fastest, one of the slowest on our team. And one of the weakest.
The only piece of advice I can give him is buying a 28 inch racquet maybe?

Can anyone help me on this?
thanks
Click to expand...

How long has he played? It's hard to teach height (nay impossible), and it doesn't sound like he's the most physical of specimens, so I would work with him on perfecting technique if anything. That and keeping the ball in play, this alone will win many high school matches.
 
Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
He said that he has hit around before. Yeah as sad as it may sound I was thinking about teaching him about moonballs and pushing. My freshmen year I noticed that was how most people played and it suprissed me on their success. well at the lower spots. The 1 and 2 spots are useally more....tradional style? If that is what you call baseline rallies.
 
Jonny S&V

Jonny S&V

Hall of Fame
Larrysümmers said:
He said that he has hit around before. Yeah as sad as it may sound I was thinking about teaching him about moonballs and pushing. My freshmen year I noticed that was how most people played and it suprissed me on their success. well at the lower spots. The 1 and 2 spots are useally more....tradional style? If that is what you call baseline rallies.
Click to expand...

Hit around before? Ah, one of those. I've taught quite a few of those kids. The kind of kid that'll work hard at tennis during the season but put it on the back-burner during the off season, right? With those kids, I teach them how to push and never miss. Typically they're pretty athletic kids and will only be playing tennis as a hobby and not a lifestyle (wow, I'm getting in deep here...). I teach them the basics and make sure that their technique won't hurt them, but I don't take the time to teach them how to hit a windshield-wiper, inside-out forehand since they don't want to take the time to learn simpler ideas. Is my out there assumption right?
 
Recon

Recon

Semi-Pro
give it to him raw. hes short, this game is now about big power, big serves. Hes at a disadvantage meaning if he wants to become a good tennis player he has to focus on what he CAN attain. Short players fitness is usually TOP NOTCH. Arnuad Clement for example, tell him he has to be the fastest kid on the team, make sure he develops a good slice serve as flat isn't really a big option for him and be sure to emphasize defense in his game. Show him videos of chang/clement and any other short pro, this will give him a template and belief that he actually can become a good player despite his size. Also 28in racquet, better believe he should be using it, I would recommend a babolat plus version - easy power, light weight and always room for customization after he becomes ripped.
 
Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
Yeah I think his speed is what will screw him over in the end. A friend of mine on the girls team is about 5' but she was able to become a power player this year because of great footwork and speed. So I think I can help him win. But he must meet me half way. Or about 3/4 of the way
 
ManuGinobili

ManuGinobili

Hall of Fame
Give this advice right out of the gate: he will have to work twice as hard as the other kids.

one general advantage of being short: lower center of gravity thus better balance on both shots and movement.
 
crash1929

crash1929

Hall of Fame
one word; rochus. sp?

Charlie Hollis said to Rod Laver, "Short blokes like you can't hit flat. Big men don't need spin, but little runts like you do"

Make your friend see it as personal challenge. Test his will. You'll find out quickly if the games for him.
 
N

Nellie

Hall of Fame
I play with fellow who tops out about 5 feet - sucker hits everything deep and with slice, including his serve that stays about 12 inches off the ground. Nothing is fast, but he makes you work for the points, and you feel it in the back the next day.
 
Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
Nellie said:
I play with fellow who tops out about 5 feet - sucker hits everything deep and with slice, including his serve that stays about 12 inches off the ground. Nothing is fast, but he makes you work for the points, and you feel it in the back the next day.
Click to expand...

yeah I was watching some 10ispro's videos on the tube and he's not big but he can still work you.
 
darthpwner

darthpwner

Banned
Short guys should hit with more western grips because the ball is naturally higher. He should become a grinder/counter puncher a la Chang. He should just hit spin serves because his flat bombs will never clear the net.
 
Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
darthpwner said:
Short guys should hit with more western grips because the ball is naturally higher. He should become a grinder/counter puncher a la Chang. He should just hit spin serves because his flat bombs will never clear the net.
Click to expand...

western grip. Never thought of that one. And you explained why. And it has perfect reasoning behind it. Thanks.
 
S

sheets

Rookie
As a fellow highschool player, I played against a kid that was pretty short under 5 feet and he was pretty good, had a pretty big serve with lots of action nice ground strokes and a decent volleyer. Helped he was fast and he was consistent. I would preach consistency and intelligence. Used a babolat pure drive.
 
C

charliefedererer

Legend
Tell your friend about Agassi.

When he was 12, and your friend's height, he and his dad made a $10,000 bet he could beat the recently retired Jim Brown, the all-time NFL leading rusher, great athlete, and new tennis addict. (Agassi's Dad worked at Caesar's Palace in Vegas, and Jim Brown saw that scrawny little kid hitting tennis balls there, not missing very much, and got bated into the bet.)

Agassi beat James Brown, and tennis players all over the country who towered over him, because he already had a lot of practice.

His Dad made little Andre hit at least one million tennis balls a year from their ball machine in addition to other practice and match play.

So if your friend wants to get better, he'll have to hit a lot of tennis balls (if he doesn't have a hitting partner or ball machine, find a wall), and he'll have to outrun his taller opponents, so he better be in great shape.
 
L

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Problem here is that shortguy has LESS tennis experience than his taller rivals, he runs slower, he changes directions worse, and he probably doesn't play any ball sport well.
Long tough roe to hoe here.
Once he plays MORE than his rivals, he can be competitive even with inferior speed and less reach and height, but he'd have to always play his best and can't cruise thru matches against equal level players.
NOBODY want to LOSE a match to a shorty.
 
goran_ace

goran_ace

Hall of Fame
Let him know that his success (or lack of it) has nothing to do with his height and just like for everyone else his success will have everything to do with his commitment to the sport.
 
T

troytennisbum

Rookie
charliefedererer said:
Tell your friend about Agassi.

When he was 12, and your friend's height, he and his dad made a $10,000 bet he could beat the recently retired Jim Brown, the all-time NFL leading rusher, great athlete, and new tennis addict. (Agassi's Dad worked at Caesar's Palace in Vegas, and Jim Brown saw that scrawny little kid hitting tennis balls there, not missing very much, and got bated into the bet.)

Agassi beat James Brown, and tennis players all over the country who towered over him, because he already had a lot of practice.
.
Click to expand...


I would also argue that Agassi beat James Brown and all those other players "who towered over him" because Agassi simply had superior overall tennis/athletic genetics than everyone else. You see height is only one genetic, physical factor in this game. The other physical factors are coordination (both body and hand/eye), raquet acceleration, and speed. These physical factors play a more dominant role in tennis then height alone. And it is why Agassi could school these taller guys in tennis. Even though they were born with more height, Agassi was born with more coordination, speed, etc, etc. Aside form his work ethic, Agassi is an incredible, natural born athlete. It is one of the reasons why he was able to outlast his peers in pro-tennis.

Interestingly, with regards to this thread, in my last tourney I just witnessed a much shorter guy wipe out a taller guy in a 5.0 tennis match because he ( the shorter guy) was simply a much better overall athlete. They both seem to be using similiar techniques.

EOM.
 
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L

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Yeah, but the "shorter" guy was not sub 5'.
Most "shorter" guys around 5'9" or so can play tennis at pretty high levels.
Much tougher for the 5'6" guys, like Barrasetchi, or the just taller Solomons/Changs.
And those guys move better than anyone taller than 6'3", move faster, and can change directions quicker.
 
T

troytennisbum

Rookie
LeeD said:
Yeah, but the "shorter" guy was not sub 5'.
Most "shorter" guys around 5'9" or so can play tennis at pretty high levels.
Much tougher for the 5'6" guys, like Barrasetchi, or the just taller Solomons/Changs.
And those guys move better than anyone taller than 6'3", move faster, and can change directions quicker.
Click to expand...

Actually, the "shorter" guy that I saw at the tourney was around 5'5 and the taller guy, who he beat, was somewhat over 6 feet.

The shorter guy won because he was a little quicker, but more importantly, he won because he just never missed a shot ! And his raquet head accerleration seemed faster.
Both players were using the same basic tennis techniques.

Also, at a state college nearby (in southern Cal.), the number one female singles player was around 5'1. Everyone else on her team towered over her. But, she was very quick and she could slam her ground strokes with precision and never miss.

EOM
 
S

SuperDuy

Hall of Fame
I hate being short. Im only 5'7 and I have a friend who is 6'2 and I can still serve harder than him. If only I was his height..... But I still have 6 years left to grow(men stop at 21 I think)
 
P

Panic492

Rookie
Talk to his parents about getting him on a strength and agility program (think Michael Chang) He will likely hit a growth spurt in the next 2-3 years. The best thing you can do is enourage him to love tennis and include him just like one of the guys. Teach him good technique and strategy, and make sure he is in camps all summer and after school in the off season. I bet he contributes before he graduates.
 
Larrysümmers

Larrysümmers

Hall of Fame
Panic492 said:
Talk to his parents about getting him on a strength and agility program (think Michael Chang) He will likely hit a growth spurt in the next 2-3 years. The best thing you can do is enourage him to love tennis and include him just like one of the guys. Teach him good technique and strategy, and make sure he is in camps all summer and after school in the off season. I bet he contributes before he graduates.
Click to expand...

yeah we have been doing some major running. In my opinion he's strong enough at this stage, I just want him to get more agile. You have to get to the ball before you can hit it
 
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