Hitting with my brother (video)

[pudelko]

Hello all,

Over the summer I filmed myself playing with my brother a bunch of times.

I decided to edit one of these videos and put it up on youtube. I took out all the down time and a few points that were really short, just to increase the amount of actual hitting in the video.

http://youtu.be/X732jInrMJ4

Any analysis, tips, words of encouragement would be great!

It has been a huge help to record these and watch them, implementing fixes is another story

Some things that I have noticed myself:

-Way too casual (lazy) approach to most shots. It doesnt seem like it when where actually playing, but watching the video makes it apparent that a lot of the time we arent getting into a proper position for the shot, preferring to attempt to hit everything with as little footwork as possible.

-Serves seem mediocre at best on film, especially second serves.

-shot selection is poor, I must admit that sometimes I dont think where im going to hit it, I just go for whatever feels natural at the time I guess. On serves I very rarely try to aim at a certain spot in the box.

Some background info if you care to read:

The age difference is significant 25 vs 15. I have been playing off and on with lessons up until 2004 (the end of High school). Then quit playing completely.

I started playing again with my brother in Sept. 2008, Which was when I started teaching him from scratch. He took lessons throughout the last winter season and now is starting to beat me 60-70% of the time.

I am scared of what will happen in the next few years unless I improve significantly along with him. I dont think I will be winning anymore soon

 

[rufusbgood]

I agree with the observations you've made of your current form. I'd add that you seem to be very tall and have a pretty natural looking serving motion. I like your motion better than your brother's. It's a shot that you should hone into a weapon. Only way is practice. With your reach you should also be looking to get to net but you have neglected your volleying skills.

BTW, that is one ugly court.

 

[shazbot]

You are so nonchalant when you play, to the point where it is actually annoying to watch you hit. Move your feet, stop reaching for the ball, get into correct hitting position.

I mean jeez, you are wearing cargo shorts lol....I can never take anyone seriously when they go to play a match and or hit if they have cargo shorts on.

I played a guy in USTA that wore cargo shorts to a match one time...I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but as soon as I saw him I thought, this guy must be terrible and he was. So I tend to think wearing cargo pants to play tennis gives the wrong vibes

 

[LeeD]

Wow, some different things seen that I saw.
You chicken wing service motion is really weak looking, and inconsistent, even though you can hit a moderate speed flat serve pretty well. You gotta learn to control your arms on the prep to your serve, so it comes from the same place every time.
Your little bro has a cleaner motion, but he doesn't hit it flat like you, so it goes slower. Well, he hasn't played long enough to groove a service motion along with this groundies...and sloppy careless backhands.
You guys spend a lot of time hitting topspin to each other's forehand. Nice you DO come to net, but you charge straightahead, susceptible to body shots and lobs. You gotta STOP and splitstep at the service line, then respond in accordance to your bros shots.
Good solid recreational playground tennis, both of you are going to improve and get solid, if you kept score.

 

[highschoolertennis]

So much cross court and many times the court was left wide open

 

[gmatheis]

#1 video makes the ball seem slower, so serves don't look as good etc ... don't worry about that.

#2 It almost seems like you guys are fooling around ... play a serious match and keep score, you will see more of what you need to work on.

 

[Argentinaten]

Nice to see videos of brothers playing together.

I miss my brother who's in New York now.
In the past, we play and the looser will have to do something for the winner.(ex. boy something from the store, cook the meal.etc)
I always won.

Back to your video,

I think your brother(topless) is better than you on everything.(serves, groundstrokes and specially footwork)

My advice is just try not to be lazy and try to hit with purpose.

BTW, i love your video description. "Footage was edited to increase the entertainment value."

 

[NLBwell]

I think a lot of it is just Wanting to move to the right spot. Also, practice a lot on hitting balls on the rise so you can take higher deeper balls close to the baseline at a comfortable height. You won't have to move as much and you can be more aggresssive with less effort.

As far as strokes, your brother had more lessons and has cleaner strokes, so will improve more. If you want to keep up, you'll have to work on your strokes themselves.

Do you hold the racket with the end of your hand off of the grip?

 

[chrischris]

The lack of intensity as stated before is obvious.
You need to move in halfcircles more to get movemnet and momentum and power into your groundies. Right now , you are asking to be dominated.

 

[hawk eye]

Some nice moonballing going on there.
Add some intensity (yeah I'm about the 9th) and you can make it work like some spanish guy proved in recent years.

 

[papa]

I think both of you guys have many of the basics down but need a few on court tips/lessons on stroke mechanics and playing points. I think within a fairly short period of time, both games could be elevated considerably but its just not a tip here and there that's going to make a huge difference.

Tennis is an easy game to play but difficult to play well - it takes a lot of practice, playing and help which can come in many forms.

 

[RoddickAce]

On your forehand, you left arm is passive after your backswing. To improve your shoulder rotation and power, you should bring your left arm up towards your chest. I believe this lets you use your chest muscles to put power into your shot.

For example, look at Djokovic's forehand:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8AJYfkJ4hc&feature=related&t=0m10s

His left arm position is high and on his left side while your arm is in a "hugging yourself" position.

On your serve, again with the left arm. You could point your left arm higher to maximize your shoulder rotation.

If you look at Roddick and Federer, there arms are pointing upward, perpendicular to the ground (Roddick's arm is past that even), while your arm is pointing out at around 30 degrees from your body.

Roddick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGWdoNobnCM&feature=related

Federer:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZbxKuLEP_o

 

[RoddickAce]

Also, you seem to have trouble adjusting to balls that land short. There isn't really much I can say except to practice hitting these short balls, so you know when a short ball is coming, and move in to punish the ball.

Oh and you can check fuzzyyellowballs for a video on the "inside step", works very well for moving up and hitting short balls.

 

[5263]

I think your self appraisal was excellent and the lack of position on the ball may lead to most of your deficits. Keep working a moving earlier to get better position!

I also saw a lot of good aspects to your play!

 

[Limpinhitter]

Hello all,

Over the summer I filmed myself playing with my brother a bunch of times.

I decided to edit one of these videos and put it up on youtube. I took out all the down time and a few points that were really short, just to increase the amount of actual hitting in the video.

http://youtu.be/X732jInrMJ4

Any analysis, tips, words of encouragement would be great!

It has been a huge help to record these and watch them, implementing fixes is another story

Some things that I have noticed myself:

-Way too casual (lazy) approach to most shots. It doesnt seem like it when where actually playing, but watching the video makes it apparent that a lot of the time we arent getting into a proper position for the shot, preferring to attempt to hit everything with as little footwork as possible.

-Serves seem mediocre at best on film, especially second serves.

-shot selection is poor, I must admit that sometimes I dont think where im going to hit it, I just go for whatever feels natural at the time I guess. On serves I very rarely try to aim at a certain spot in the box.

Some background info if you care to read:

The age difference is significant 25 vs 15. I have been playing off and on with lessons up until 2004 (the end of High school). Then quit playing completely.

I started playing again with my brother in Sept. 2008, Which was when I started teaching him from scratch. He took lessons throughout the last winter season and now is starting to beat me 60-70% of the time.

I am scared of what will happen in the next few years unless I improve significantly along with him. I dont think I will be winning anymore soon

I think your groundstroke technique looks good. What you need to work on is your footwork and shot preparation. You can also fix a few technical defects in your serve.

You recognize your biggest weakness - your footwork and shot preparation. Your footwork is slow and you not properly set up on many shots. You should try to be loaded up and ready to hit the ball before it gets there, every time. By loaded up I mean a wide stance, bent knees, back turned to the target, racquet back and ready to swing. First, you are standing too tall. Bend your knees more and use a wider stance during, and in between, shots. Second, take smaller "adjustement" steps when you are about to hit the ball. Your steps are long, slow and you are getting caught having to hit the ball in the middle of a long stride which is hurting your balance and timing.

Your serve technique is also very good. But, there are a few things I would change. First, you are moving your left foot back when you toss the ball. I'm not sure why you are doing that, but, it can't be doing you any good. And, it is an unecessary variable that might be causing problems I can't see from your video such as making your toss erratic. Second, your toss technique needs to be fixed. You are releasing the ball too soon and throwing it rather than placing in. Toss slowly and deliberately from the shoulder with a straight arm with the ball in your finger tips. There should be no elbow, wrist or hand involvement. The only thing your fingers do is release the ball. More importantly, extend your left arm up and point straight at the ball after the ball leaves your hand while you are in the trophy pose, and hold it up as long as you can. The reason for this is that it facilitates the next element missing from your serve. Third, your shoulders are level with the ground when you are in the trophy pose. Rather, your left shoulder should be as high above your right shoulder as you can get it. The toss technique I explained will help with that. In addition, you should push your left hip toward the target when in the trophy pose. This will not only get your shoulders tilted, it will tilt your spine around which you employ upper body rotation. You already have excellent shoulder turn. Add shoulder tilt facilitated by the proper toss position in the trophy pose and by pushing your left hip to the target and your serve will develop in to a major weapon.

To summerize, in the trophy pose, you want your left arm pointing straight up at the ball, your left hip pushed toward the target, your shoulders tilted and turned.

Good luck!

 

[2ManyAces]

For BH take-back I see your racquet face opening and pointing skyward, and then whipping down and on top of the ball. Keep the left elbow bent and up and this will then close the racquet face. This will give you more spin.

Good hitting