Evolution of my game (incl. old set with @zill)

[ACT]

Thought this would be a fun little post

I trained a bit as a junior but I was pretty garbage until 15 years old, when things started to show a little - but by then i stopped training often. After high school i hadn't really played much at all for 8-years, then picked it back up casually / recreationally. My technique only started to take a big change after COVID, so all of it was just basically just self taught, but i did have a reasonably solid base in terms hand eye cordination of striking a ball, but my technique was heavily flawed as you can see

At this stage i still didn't really have a backhand a

t all. I grew up using two hander, but never was taught properly how to hit one, by the time i was strong enough, i switched to a one hander but i stopped training by that time, so i only hit by instinct, and as I got better at it, i could only hit it during the hitup, but would rarely do it in a match unless forced into a position to

Found this dug in the archives - Dec 2020 had a set with the @zill himself, coming off my double ankle grade 3 ligament tear, still a little ginger at this stage - aside from that, what rather what stands out is the ugly ass footwork and movement, snappy western grip forehand and the randomness of the backhand swing which was more like i was just hitting it for the sake of it, rather than knowing what i was doing - but i digress in that the forehand was very effective against some really good players, just didn't look great - also my serve i couldnt push off my ankle for another 2 years properly, so i stayed relatively grounded

Video last February where for first time maybe 6-7 years i felt overall quite healthy - dealt with a line of injuries of the years, wrist, knee, and the ankle aforementioned, which turned itself into achilles tendonitis which was completely debilitating for a few years

And finally a more recent video of some points i played - no backhands in this clip but by this time, but now my one hander in hit up can be more consistent and reliable than my forehand, and although still considered more the weak side of my groundstrokes, i am probably getting a similar amount of winners off this side now, coming over the ball instead of slicing as much as i used to (which was like 98% of the time)

 

[zill]

Found this dug in the archives - Dec 2020 had a set with the @zill himself, coming off my double ankle grade 3 ligament tear, still a little ginger at this stage - aside from that, what rather what stands out is the ugly ass footwork and movement, snappy western grip forehand and the randomness of the backhand swing which was more like i was just hitting it for the sake of it, rather than knowing what i was doing - but i digress in that the forehand was very effective against some really good players, just didn't look great - also my serve i couldnt push off my ankle for another 2 years properly, so i stayed relatively grounded

During that match, I already had the knee injury, wrong fh, wrong bh (obviously as 6 months later switched to a 2hb and have kept it since), wrong serve as well.

But you are a good player @ACT Good strokes on both sides. Reminds me of Lajovic overall not just the bh.

 

[ACT]

We're both injury ridden lol - but whilst your technique was not textbook, you have very good striking ability regardless, before or after technical changes

 

[Curious]

@ACT
How did you find vcore 95 on your backhand? What are you currently using?

 

[ACT]

@ACT
How did you find vcore 95 on your backhand? What are you currently using?

Flows very nice and natural for one hander - if you get decide to get one , i would string maybe 45lbs or lower if you are used to something bigger, that will generally get rid of the idea that the 95 is too unforgiving. It still won't be the easiest racquet to use out there of course, but I think a nice low tension will negate alot of it being "too hard to use" in terms of a sweet spot - power wise yes, low powered, needs a good swing, but overall is a really nice racquet

 

[onehandbh]

@ACT
Your forehand looks much smoother and better now with better rhythm timing. Before you sort of took it back and then waiting to take a big swing.

How did you hurt BOTH of your achilles at the same time?

 

[ACT]

@ACT
Your forehand looks much smoother and better now with better rhythm timing. Before you sort of took it back and then waiting to take a big swing.

How did you hurt BOTH of your achilles at the same time?

Thank you sir - i worked on changing my grip from western to semi western or sometimes extreme semi western, and then lengthening the stroke completely with alot more extension in the preparation as well as the contact point

Nah not both, just the right - the ankle injury turned into achilles tendonitis after COVID lockdowns - thought the break would help heal the body but instead it made me too physically inactive and then once we opened up, i rushed back to the courts and immediately overdid it

 

[FuzzyYellowBalls]

i would string maybe 45lbs or lower

100% good advice

 

[ChaelAZ]

Thought this would be a fun little post

I trained a bit as a junior but I was pretty garbage until 15 years old, when things started to show a little - but by then i stopped training often. After high school i hadn't really played much at all for 8-years, then picked it back up casually / recreationally. My technique only started to take a big change after COVID, so all of it was just basically just self taught, but i did have a reasonably solid base in terms hand eye cordination of striking a ball, but my technique was heavily flawed as you can see

At this stage i still didn't really have a backhand a

t all. I grew up using two hander, but never was taught properly how to hit one, by the time i was strong enough, i switched to a one hander but i stopped training by that time, so i only hit by instinct, and as I got better at it, i could only hit it during the hitup, but would rarely do it in a match unless forced into a position to

Found this dug in the archives - Dec 2020 had a set with the @zill himself, coming off my double ankle grade 3 ligament tear, still a little ginger at this stage - aside from that, what rather what stands out is the ugly ass footwork and movement, snappy western grip forehand and the randomness of the backhand swing which was more like i was just hitting it for the sake of it, rather than knowing what i was doing - but i digress in that the forehand was very effective against some really good players, just didn't look great - also my serve i couldnt push off my ankle for another 2 years properly, so i stayed relatively grounded

Video last February where for first time maybe 6-7 years i felt overall quite healthy - dealt with a line of injuries of the years, wrist, knee, and the ankle aforementioned, which turned itself into achilles tendonitis which was completely debilitating for a few years

And finally a more recent video of some points i played - no backhands in this clip but by this time, but now my one hander in hit up can be more consistent and reliable than my forehand, and although still considered more the weak side of my groundstrokes, i am probably getting a similar amount of winners off this side now, coming over the ball instead of slicing as much as i used to (which was like 98% of the time)

Look to moving good and hitting strong. Gotta feel good on court.

 

[StringSnapper]

Thought this would be a fun little post

I trained a bit as a junior but I was pretty garbage until 15 years old, when things started to show a little - but by then i stopped training often. After high school i hadn't really played much at all for 8-years, then picked it back up casually / recreationally. My technique only started to take a big change after COVID, so all of it was just basically just self taught, but i did have a reasonably solid base in terms hand eye cordination of striking a ball, but my technique was heavily flawed as you can see

At this stage i still didn't really have a backhand a

t all. I grew up using two hander, but never was taught properly how to hit one, by the time i was strong enough, i switched to a one hander but i stopped training by that time, so i only hit by instinct, and as I got better at it, i could only hit it during the hitup, but would rarely do it in a match unless forced into a position to

Found this dug in the archives - Dec 2020 had a set with the @zill himself, coming off my double ankle grade 3 ligament tear, still a little ginger at this stage - aside from that, what rather what stands out is the ugly ass footwork and movement, snappy western grip forehand and the randomness of the backhand swing which was more like i was just hitting it for the sake of it, rather than knowing what i was doing - but i digress in that the forehand was very effective against some really good players, just didn't look great - also my serve i couldnt push off my ankle for another 2 years properly, so i stayed relatively grounded

Video last February where for first time maybe 6-7 years i felt overall quite healthy - dealt with a line of injuries of the years, wrist, knee, and the ankle aforementioned, which turned itself into achilles tendonitis which was completely debilitating for a few years

And finally a more recent video of some points i played - no backhands in this clip but by this time, but now my one hander in hit up can be more consistent and reliable than my forehand, and although still considered more the weak side of my groundstrokes, i am probably getting a similar amount of winners off this side now, coming over the ball instead of slicing as much as i used to (which was like 98% of the time)

nice videos. i've played Zill so know his shots are heavy, but you hit on the rise really well and were hitting many of your forehands powerfully and accurately.

what got you over the issue of the ankle / tendonitis in the end? did you have a surgery?

 

[StringSnapper]

Flows very nice and natural for one hander - if you get decide to get one , i would string maybe 45lbs or lower if you are used to something bigger, that will generally get rid of the idea that the 95 is too unforgiving. It still won't be the easiest racquet to use out there of course, but I think a nice low tension will negate alot of it being "too hard to use" in terms of a sweet spot - power wise yes, low powered, needs a good swing, but overall is a really nice racquet

i use 95 for my one hander. i dont get why people say its harder to use or more unforgiving... i use it because i play better with it overall. maybe i'm just used to it though.

 

[ACT]

nice videos. i've played Zill so know his shots are heavy, but you hit on the rise really well and were hitting many of your forehands powerfully and accurately.

what got you over the issue of the ankle / tendonitis in the end? did you have a surgery?

Appreciate it, yeah @zill is a very good ball striker, hand eye co ordination has always been top notch for as long as i've known him

I rehabbed as much as i could with the ankle because they were legitimate full tears, and i couldn't walk for a few months - took maybe 1.5 years for the ankle to really heal up on its own, but always had a lingering issue where no matter what physical activity i did, my ankle would swell, whether it was tennis or even rehab exercises

Achilles tendonitis was real annoying, could not run or play most sessions at all for almost a couple years, on and off - tried rehabbing but it was insertional achilles tendonitis which is the much more difficult one to get rid of, so even with rehab it was not going really anywhere

What seemed to help the most was premium tennis shoes, the right support, the right fit, the right cushioning - because of the ankle injury i wore braces alot and because of that i would wear half a size up, not realizing that once i got rid of them, i was moving around in the shoes too much - causing instability and heel slippage

Now i wear very tight fit, almost perfect fitting so theres no movement, and no heel slipping, i think heel slipping is probably a huge culprit

I also notice that i can immediately feel when the foam wears out on the shoes as well, achy knees and ankle etc, much sooner than the durability of the sole is used up - so i change them out for the sake of maintaining healthy knees and achilles, even though its damn expensive

 

[ACT]

i use 95 for my one hander. i dont get why people say its harder to use or more unforgiving... i use it because i play better with it overall. maybe i'm just used to it though.

Most 95s tend to be on the thinner end, so they move alot faster and is normally very helpful for OHBHs, just need to use them for an extended period of time - i think its more the old school 95s that will be more difficult for people, something very heavy and low powered, tight pattern. New 95s like the VC95 or Dunlop CX Tour are finding a really nice balance for modern game, even if still considered more on the advanced end mostly due to needing more self generated power

 

[Jono123]

Great video and an impressive journey. Your dress sense has improved too

 

[onehandbh]

Appreciate it, yeah @zill is a very good ball striker, hand eye co ordination has always been top notch for as long as i've known him

I rehabbed as much as i could with the ankle because they were legitimate full tears, and i couldn't walk for a few months - took maybe 1.5 years for the ankle to really heal up on its own, but always had a lingering issue where no matter what physical activity i did, my ankle would swell, whether it was tennis or even rehab exercises

Achilles tendonitis was real annoying, could not run or play most sessions at all for almost a couple years, on and off - tried rehabbing but it was insertional achilles tendonitis which is the much more difficult one to get rid of, so even with rehab it was not going really anywhere

What seemed to help the most was premium tennis shoes, the right support, the right fit, the right cushioning - because of the ankle injury i wore braces alot and because of that i would wear half a size up, not realizing that once i got rid of them, i was moving around in the shoes too much - causing instability and heel slippage

Now i wear very tight fit, almost perfect fitting so theres no movement, and no heel slipping, i think heel slipping is probably a huge culprit

I also notice that i can immediately feel when the foam wears out on the shoes as well, achy knees and ankle etc, much sooner than the durability of the sole is used up - so i change them out for the sake of maintaining healthy knees and achilles, even though its damn expensive

Do you do a good warmup for your legs/ankles before playing tennis?

How is your calf, quad, hamstring, and glute flexibility? Do you stretch the bottom of your foot? I have found stretching and increasing flexibility helps to reduce stress on my achilles. I also use a lacrosse ball to massage muscles sometimes.

 

[ACT]

Great video and an impressive journey. Your dress sense has improved too

Lol i just used to wear whatever i could, tennis gear is expensive

Do you do a good warmup for your legs/ankles before playing tennis?

How is your calf, quad, hamstring, and glute flexibility? Do you stretch the bottom of your foot? I have found stretching and increasing flexibility helps to reduce stress on my achilles. I also use a lacrosse ball to massage muscles sometimes.

At the time, the more i rehabbed and did pre-warmup routines, the faster I would flare up - these days it will help in general for sure since i'm not having the same issues anymore, for the most part i'm pretty good now. I do foam rolling, massage gun and some stretches at home