PLAGUED by unforced errors

[mona999]

As the title says, I've literally been killing myself with these. I was doing really well up until the last month or so. I started getting into a general slump - didn't workout as often and started playing only like 3 times a week instead of 5+. Anyhow, I've been getting back into shape, but still, in the last 2 weeks, I've been losing matches to people I would normally beat.

They honestly did not hit a single winner off me, or even force me to make my UE. I would just hit long, hit the net, return their services to the net, turn my body too much and hit the ball off to the side. No joke, it's getting crazy. I have a lesson tomorrow and hopefully just getting focused again with my coach will help...

Last time I approached him with this similar concern, his feedback was that i was inconsistent most likely b/c of the following:
-footwork/positioning: not knowing when to move forward on a shorter ball (attacking it) vs. staying back and hitting open stance

-not looking at the ball and keeping my head steady

-just not being 'there' and being mentally ready for each shot

Has anyone had a similar problem? Is it a lack of stamina/mental/fitness? The thing is, when I'm just rallying the ball in practice, my consistency is much better.

 

[skiracer55]

See what I have to say...

...in the following threads:

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showt...ht=grind+drill

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showt...rgetting+curve

 

[SilverBullet]

As the title says, I've literally been killing myself with these. I was doing really well up until the last month or so. I started getting into a general slump - didn't workout as often and started playing only like 3 times a week instead of 5+. Anyhow, I've been getting back into shape, but still, in the last 2 weeks, I've been losing matches to people I would normally beat.

They honestly did not hit a single winner off me, or even force me to make my UE. I would just hit long, hit the net, return their services to the net, turn my body too much and hit the ball off to the side. No joke, it's getting crazy. I have a lesson tomorrow and hopefully just getting focused again with my coach will help...

Last time I approached him with this similar concern, his feedback was that i was inconsistent most likely b/c of the following:
-footwork/positioning: not knowing when to move forward on a shorter ball (attacking it) vs. staying back and hitting open stance

-not looking at the ball and keeping my head steady

-just not being 'there' and being mentally ready for each shot

Has anyone had a similar problem? Is it a lack of stamina/mental/fitness? The thing is, when I'm just rallying the ball in practice, my consistency is much better.

For the first one, move up when the ball bounces inside the service line up to about half way of the baseline, for the last half of the baseline you should stay back, but this depends on your playing style, so this is just generally. You can also move up when you pull your opponent wide with a hard shot or when you hit a topspin lob from the baseline. As for the second one, try to look at the number on the tennis ball, on most balls there will be a number from 1-4, try to see the number on the ball before you hit the ball, it also works better when you call it out loud to your coach or something. For the third one, I don't really know what you mean, but I guess trying to practice more would help(like always).

btw Reading the number on the ball thing is impossible(unless it is moving that slow), so don't feel bad if you can't see the number before you hit it.

 

[Al Van Vliet]

As the title says, I've literally been killing myself with these. I was doing really well up until the last month or so. I started getting into a general slump - didn't workout as often and started playing only like 3 times a week instead of 5+. Anyhow, I've been getting back into shape, but still, in the last 2 weeks, I've been losing matches to people I would normally beat.

They honestly did not hit a single winner off me, or even force me to make my UE. I would just hit long, hit the net, return their services to the net, turn my body too much and hit the ball off to the side. No joke, it's getting crazy. I have a lesson tomorrow and hopefully just getting focused again with my coach will help...

Last time I approached him with this similar concern, his feedback was that i was inconsistent most likely b/c of the following:
-footwork/positioning: not knowing when to move forward on a shorter ball (attacking it) vs. staying back and hitting open stance

-not looking at the ball and keeping my head steady

-just not being 'there' and being mentally ready for each shot

Has anyone had a similar problem? Is it a lack of stamina/mental/fitness? The thing is, when I'm just rallying the ball in practice, my consistency is much better.

Are you playing the court, or are you playing your opponent in your matches?

What's different when you are practicing, compared to when you play? Do your intentions change?

In practice, we often work on giving our partner specific types of shots (hitting relative to your partner) and then we start playing a match and we start hitting the ball to the court.

If you stand on the baseline and look into your opponent's court, you will notice that you have to look through the net to see it. Obviously, the net is in the way and if your intention is to bring the ball down into the court you are playing a very difficult game. That's not your job, gravity takes care of that for us.

The ball is in the air 99.9% of the time. Learn to control the ball flight first, and the rest will take care of itself.

To me, what matters the most is not where the ball hits the court, it is what the ball is doing in the vicinity of your opponent (e.g. high backhand, low forehand) and so on.

If your play is relative to your opponent (as it often is in practice) it will help you get a good feel for the type of ball flight, and thus what type of stroke you need each time you hit the ball.

Good luck!

AL

 

[Trinity TC]

Has anyone had a similar problem? Is it a lack of stamina/mental/fitness? The thing is, when I'm just rallying the ball in practice, my consistency is much better.

It's a very common problem. Things start to go wrong for any number of reasons and then you naturally overcompensate which makes things gets worse and the next thing you know you're in a slump. It's human nature.

Not to worry, hopefully your coach can settle you down and help you get your confidence back. It's his job. Hang in there and tell us how the lesson goes. It's how you bounce back from these slumps which make you a better player.