The balls in your court.
Banned
You can take all the lesson you want...hit the most beautiful strokes in the world. But the cold hard truth is that if you can chase anything down and get the ball back over and over again then thats all that matters.
Speed is more important than strokes.
- Thread starter The balls in your court.
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wyutani
Hall of Fame
sounds like ur describing a pusher mate'.:neutral:
The balls in your court.
Banned
I played this division 1 guy the other day. This guy could run absolutely everything down...even let cords. It was amazing.
I have a big serve. He couldn't do anything with it except block it back...but then what could I do??? No matter where I hit it he was there!
Now I know what Fed feels like when he is playing Nadal.
wyutani
Hall of Fame
sounds like the div 1 guy is michael chang in disguise. haha. Ok, so this guy has speed, so you mix ur game up. slice, topsin, lob, moonball. aim the ball towards him (yeah, its like reverse physchology). the trick is to make him think, make ur shots unpredictable.
anyway, you still NEED ur strokes. its like going to war without guns or swords, the only thing you can do is run (kinda remind me of a lousy NES game i used to play) sigh.
Tim Tennis
Professional
I'll take a high level of skill anyday
There is no substitute for "skill." Skill being defined as being able to place the ball anywhere you want on the court, knowing where you should place it, being able to apply the right spin and pace on the ball depending on the situation, understanding your strengths and being able to apply it to your opponents weaknesses, knowing which points are most important and playing them accordingly.
Sure on the lower levels speed can make up for lack of skill but as you progress to the higher levels, you have to improve your skill level. I doubt you will be able to run much faster.
Best regards,
Ed
Tennis Geometrics
http://www.tennisgeometrics.com
There is no substitute for "skill." Skill being defined as being able to place the ball anywhere you want on the court, knowing where you should place it, being able to apply the right spin and pace on the ball depending on the situation, understanding your strengths and being able to apply it to your opponents weaknesses, knowing which points are most important and playing them accordingly.
Sure on the lower levels speed can make up for lack of skill but as you progress to the higher levels, you have to improve your skill level. I doubt you will be able to run much faster.
Best regards,
Ed
Tennis Geometrics
http://www.tennisgeometrics.com
D
Deleted member 23235
Guest
Fortunately having speed is not "more" important that any other skill. The reason I love tennis is that there are so many ways to be good. It's also probably one of the reasons I gravitated towards tennis. Aside from the strategy and mental game, if I just looked at the "physical" aspects of tennis...
If I was the fastest person, I might have run track. Presuming I didn't have any speed, if I had the best arm speed, I might have tried to be a pitcher in baseball. Presuming I had no speed, if I had the best eye hand coordination I might have played baseball (eg. designated hitter). If I had great endurance, I might have run xcountry/cycling/etc... You get the picture...
Obviously getting to the ball is an important criteria, but there are so many other areas that you can excel (or combination of areas), that might help you dominate someone who excels in retreiving (eg. very fast person). While I'm not the fastest person on the court, nor the hardest hitting, nor the most accurate, etc..., I do have enough "+'s" in each category to be a decent player, and beat folks that might be faster, harder hitting or more accurate (or might be "-er" in any category)
my $0.02
If I was the fastest person, I might have run track. Presuming I didn't have any speed, if I had the best arm speed, I might have tried to be a pitcher in baseball. Presuming I had no speed, if I had the best eye hand coordination I might have played baseball (eg. designated hitter). If I had great endurance, I might have run xcountry/cycling/etc... You get the picture...
Obviously getting to the ball is an important criteria, but there are so many other areas that you can excel (or combination of areas), that might help you dominate someone who excels in retreiving (eg. very fast person). While I'm not the fastest person on the court, nor the hardest hitting, nor the most accurate, etc..., I do have enough "+'s" in each category to be a decent player, and beat folks that might be faster, harder hitting or more accurate (or might be "-er" in any category)
my $0.02
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Bungalo Bill
G.O.A.T.
A player after my own heart!
Overall court movement which encompasses:
1. Footwork patterns
2. Footspeed
3. Directional movement
4. Quickness
5. Balance
6. Strength
7. Power
Is also IMO thee most important aspect a tennis player can work on. In many cases, it is the aspect of a players game that can provide the most dramatic impact on their level of play.
Dont get me wrong technique is important, but lower body movement and all the encompasses is thee most important aspect to include in your training for tennis. It is your foundation and without it, pretty strokes wont do jack.
IMO, speed is a critical part of being a successful singles player (and movement is a huge part of both singles and doubles), but it is only part of the puzzle.
I don't know that you can claim that speed is more important than having match-tough strokes, but your feet are a big part of match-tough strokes, as it won't matter if you can groove forehands all day if you can't get in proper position.
A lot of what you're talking about can also be attributed to anticipation. If you're able to read your opponent and are able to start moving before they are making contact with the ball, you're going to seem "faster". This is something I've noticed hitting with high level players - they have seen enough tennis that they can make educated guesses on your strokes, and it allows them to get to balls that would otherwise be tough to reach.
I don't know that you can claim that speed is more important than having match-tough strokes, but your feet are a big part of match-tough strokes, as it won't matter if you can groove forehands all day if you can't get in proper position.
A lot of what you're talking about can also be attributed to anticipation. If you're able to read your opponent and are able to start moving before they are making contact with the ball, you're going to seem "faster". This is something I've noticed hitting with high level players - they have seen enough tennis that they can make educated guesses on your strokes, and it allows them to get to balls that would otherwise be tough to reach.
The balls in your court.
Banned
Could be...but these division 1 guys are just soooo fast. I blows my mind that the pros are even faster.
Guys like Chang never had that many great strokes...but they were sooo fast.
Chang had solid strokes - you don't make it to that level of tennis without solid strokes. He may not have had the strokes of an Agassi or Sampras, but he was without a doubt a great player.
I hit with a very good player from time to time, and it's humbling how many shots he can get to. He's fast, but he also anticipates well. I'd imagine in part, that's due to watching how I set up. I think I've hit maybe 1 winner against him in 4+ hours of hitting.
Bungalo Bill
G.O.A.T.
I think what the poster meant was that Chang didnt have strokes that could dazzle or overwhelm his opponents. However, his legwork could.
origmarm
Hall of Fame
It helps a lot but only in combination with other things. I would take a big serve over movement any day, especially at amateur levels. I can barely move compared to a lot of guys and I still win a lot of matches with placement, power and a big serve.
I would say that I think it's the element that most players can improve on dramatically though in terms of having the biggest impact on their game.
I would say that I think it's the element that most players can improve on dramatically though in terms of having the biggest impact on their game.
The balls in your court.
Banned
I would take speed. I have a big serve as well....but if its bloced back...in other words if you do not hit an ace ...then what??? Where are you going to hit the ball?? You can't hit a winner....and even if you do he will chase it down and dare you to hit a second , third and fourth winner.
In the end....in the battle between you and a wall....the wall always wins.
HappyLefty
Professional
Maybe you are opening the court and he loves running for every ball. In other words, you are helping him to exploite his potential. Did you try to hit balls to his feets just to evaluate his motion in short spaces?
nadalswedgie
New User
I'd say you are making a logical error. That its either speed or technique. Of course it's both. And if I had to choose, I'd take Nalbandian's strokes over Hewitt's speed any day.
The balls in your court.
Banned
I can't answer you because I am still laughing at your tag. Dude that is hialrious.!!! Good one!
