justballtennis
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Do you struggle technically? Or tactically? Or both? It would be interesting to see if there’s a pattern amongst players out there. As a National Performance coach hopefully there are some tips I can give you....
That’s totally understandable Hitting 20 ohb’s is a great idea if you want to really break the shot down and practice it deeply, as long as there is an intention! In order to make it feel more “real”, try and involve some decision making. For example, you’re practicing your forehand from the baseline, are you going to hit it high if you’re out of the court to allow you time? If you’re inside the court are you going to increase the pace? The ball is never the same in tennis, so even if you’re drilling the same shot, try make it more real. The shot you’ve received should make you decide what you’re going to do with the ball. Hopefully that will help you’re variety and with your shot sequences.Both. I find that my practice has given me a lot of shots, but when I practice, I drill on one shot. Like a driving range, i.e. I hit 20 ohbh against the wall or a machine and I can only partially reset. So I end up grooving the swing. In live ball rallies I tend to struggle with a changing shot sequence. I focus a lot on the mechanics of selecting and preparing for a stroke, that I don't have a strategy. Reacting to the ball is the best way to send it back down the middle no matter where I'm positioned. Often making me scramble while the other guy stands and delivers.
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Try and change your mindset. In training, don't allow yourself to hit hard and unleash, enjoy rallying and grinding players down. Try and use the court accordingly, if you're up the court, by all means, play aggressively, however if you're behind the court you may need to change your shot choice. Being inpatient isn't necessarily a bad thing, its knowing when to do it and when not to!Tactically. I can't wait for the opportunity and unleash too soon, because I get bored with rallying if nothing "happens". I would win a lot more if I was patient enough to play with more margin.
Great question! There are many options as it can vary every time, however as a general rule, it would be more beneficial and easier for you to move FORWARD after hitting the ball on the service line. Moving forward is faster than moving backwards. Also, if you hit and then retreat you will actually find yourself in no mans land (where all angles are open for your opponent). Although you may hit a poor shot on the service line and you follow it up at the net, just by being at the net can create a forced error from your opponent.Hey, I have a question. Would you ever (well, unless lobbed) fall back to the baseline after playing a ball at around service line? Say it was a low short ball, possibly slice, to bounce twice inside the baseline, and you barely reach it, not able to effectively attack it or even hit a decent neutral shot? Should you still continue forward to the net?
Yes, thank you, this mostly matches my feel. Anticipation is what I might struggle with. Some shots are like - I give him a nice, but neutral CC ball, he makes a full-looking swing, but the ball flies low and slow, lands short and barely bounces making me scramble it to not let bounce in NML. Another case, I hit a good I/O FH, but not very sharp, and not expecting it to be super-hurting. I was 2 steps behind baseline. Opponent slices it back defensively, and the ball goes short bouncing inside service box. I get to the ball, but it's a bit to low to successfully spin it CC.Lastly, try and anticipate your opponents weak service line shot. Do this by recognising the quality of your own shot. Lets say you hit a powerful shot into the corner and your opponent is scrambling, odds are your opponent will then hit short. If you can anticipate the short ball, you will have more time to hit a better approach shot into the net. Hope that answers your question.
I would consider watching a player who moves incredibly well. In this case, watch a Murray match but don't watch the match or even the ball, just watch Murray himself, and you will notice how after each ball he will recover, but he may also move slightly in or slightly out. In the case you've stated, you've hit your IO FH to your opponents backhand. You should notice that your opponent is going to slice (as its technically and visually different) and at this point move slightly inside the court. Your opponent may hit a deep slice but remember you've only moved inside the court just a little. However it will make a big difference for your anticipation. The same works if you are defending, you've hit a weak shot so you may drop back. Practice moving in diagonal movements not lateral or linear. Lastly, if you feel the ball is too low to pick up, don't hesitate in slice approaching. Its easier to slice off a slice. your opponent will be under pressure, especially if you slice to his backhand and move into the net.Yes, thank you, this mostly matches my feel. Anticipation is what I might struggle with. Some shots are like - I give him a nice, but neutral CC ball, he makes a full-looking swing, but the ball flies low and slow, lands short and barely bounces making me scramble it to not let bounce in NML. Another case, I hit a good I/O FH, but not very sharp, and not expecting it to be super-hurting. I was 2 steps behind baseline. Opponent slices it back defensively, and the ball goes short bouncing inside service box. I get to the ball, but it's a bit to low to successfully spin it CC.
Love your passion! Try serving into the corners rather than with pace.At 60 I rarely stress about my game. Technically speaking my serve is more difficult to execute than when I was younger but there are go arounds that help sometimes. Also joints (knees) don't always cooperate and limit my ability at times. I play tennis now for enjoyment, and yes to do reasonably well given my limitations that particular day. I view this as one of life and age's gifts and try to make the most of each day playing or hitting. Ken
ps I am overall a very competitive person despite what I said above, however, I pick my times more selectively to be competitive as I get older
Thats understandable and its the same for the pros. Having a weak serve can result in tension, therefore resulting in you focusing more on the return. To release some tension, try and take some pace off your 1st serve and focus on placement rather than speed. A well placed to serve to an opponents backhand can be just as effective as a powerful serve and not only that, your serve percentages will rise which will mean you wont have to rely on your second serve as much. Also, practice the 2nd serve, using different spins such as kick and slice to help you gain a little consistency. Take your time when you're serving and build a routine so you aren't tense and are relaxed for when the point starts.By the way, I would say that often I find that when I get confidence in my serve going in, all other aspects of my game seem to improve as well as a result. If I'm unsure about whether my 2nd serve is going to land in or not, I get tense and playing becomes much more mentally stressful because I'm probably losing my serve a lot and having to do more on return games.
Positioning is difficult as theres never one ball you receive that the same! Focus on footowork patterns such as moving into the ball (left/right) or moving back (right/left) and master the split step and its timing.Positioning. Lots of reasons why it happens, and some are just out of my control, but I always look to improve my footwork so I can be in position early to execute properly.
Injury rehab is so tough on the mind let alone the body. Keep working your way into it slowly, and hopefully it will come. Try and practice with just the racket. Visualise yourself hitting the ball and reaching high and eventually ease your way back into full speed with a ball.my serve as of late. Now that Im playing alot more again and serving more since strengthening my shoulder Im having to keep telling myself that I need to extend my racquet arm through the ball instead of pulling down. Im doing it because mentally im worried about my shoulder when I shouldnt be
Appreciate where you are on the court and set your own rules. For example, if you're behind the baseline, you may want to hit with height and depth, if youre inside the baseline maybe you want to increase the pace. Set yourself simple rules such as these and try to stick to them. Its great hitting winners but it will only get you so far. Lastly, breathe out at contact, the length of the swing should emulate the length of the breathe (volley = short breath, big forehand = long breath etc).tensing up before contact, impatient during a rally, going for too much, occasional stupid shot selection.
Injury rehab is so tough on the mind let alone the body. Keep working your way into it slowly, and hopefully it will come. Try and practice with just the racket. Visualise yourself hitting the ball and reaching high and eventually ease your way back into full speed with a ball.
I hope the rehab goes well for you. Funnily enough I have also just had shoulder surgery (labrum) and haven't swung a racket for 8 weeks. I am also doing lots or resistance bands. However developing my mind is going to be the hardest! Best of luck to you.I usually do, when I workout shoulders its always light weight(5-8Ib DB) and resistance band strengthening work. I also practice my serving motion holding a light DB(3-5IB) and slowly mimic my serve motion focusing on going from trophy pose and extending my arm to help build strength.
It's a long process but finally getting around to the point where my mind and body are stronger and my shoulders are almost back to normal
Sounds like you have really stuck to you rehab which is so important. I feel after my surgery, I will do a lot of ROM training with a coach. Been advised not to hit for another 6 weeks! A racket and string change is always a good idea. I feel low gauge poly tends to work better than a thick gauge such as RPM. Best of luck to the both of us!I fractured my clavicle in my right shoulder almost 2 years ago probably from stress and overuse in the weight room. It didn't need surgery but alot of rehab and time off from weight training(almost 8 months). These days it's gotten better but I have to keep working on ROM and light weight for the motion, I dont lift heavy shoulders anymore and always focus on rotational strengthening movements.
Also in the process I've switched racquets and been trying to find the perfect string setup which I think I have found and will stick with. There are still days where if I sleep on it wrong I wake up and its sore or it is just tender but it is part of life and I'm used to it.
Hopefully your recovery goes well and after labrum surgery it's definable something to not rush into jumping back in to play and risk re injuring
Sounds like you have really stuck to you rehab which is so important. I feel after my surgery, I will do a lot of ROM training with a coach. Been advised not to hit for another 6 weeks! A racket and string change is always a good idea. I feel low gauge poly tends to work better than a thick gauge such as RPM. Best of luck to the both of us!
Thankyou so much for your kind message, makes it all worth it! Its important to share the Tennis love! Have a beer on me! JBTYo JBT.
No questions at this time. Just wanted to say I've been impressed with the quality and relevance of your contributions so far.
Good stuff, and hope your rehab comes along well. Keep on keepin' on.
Maybe. Last night the first 2 games i was amazed that every serve was different. Some were platform some pinpoint. Lol. It was all pretty lame. I would also admit defeat if i switched. Its a messIs it not possible for you to go back for the serve you used to have, Shroud? I mean I know it can be a bit complicated, but I think my main struggles with serve right now is just that I stopped working on it and the reliability immediately started to go away (although the power I had gained stayed), so err... More practice?
Thanks so much for your kind words! Ive trained for a many years so it might as well be usedJbt thanks for being a great example of how coaches should interact on these forums! Some would do well to follow your example.
Mine are the following:
1. I am a serve and volleyer who is too slow these days to play that style or seem to not get to the net after good approaches. I hate being at the back court and "constructing points". Tennis these days bores the crap out of me with all these baselining rallies. Overall i am absolutistic. Either i am crushing the net and hearing the lamenting of the women or i am totally defensive at the back court getting run around or swinging for the fences.
2. My serve is dreadful. It used to be solid and would setup the net game. But i stupidly listened to these boards and changed from pinpoint to platform. It has not gone well as i have lost all kind of power and spin. Also i have lost all kind of movement into the court so its even tougher to get to the net. Now my serve that did ok is getting destroyed. Guys who i could hold against are now camping on the service line and taking the net away from me.
3. This is tied to #1. I have no middle ground. I should be hitting comfy at 6 or 7 but i cant seem to do that. Its either 9-10 or 2-3. If i just get the ball in i get moved around or winners just get hit against me. If i go for it the errors seem to pile up. Nothing seems to work these days.
Anyhow here is a very unflattering vid where i am playing a player at least 1 NTRP point higher than me and well I should lose terribly and was happy to get the few games i did. But i think the vid really shows what i am struggling with. Let me know anything that can help. I am in the green hat
Do you have a pre point routine? Such as....The emotion of having a big lead and losing the lead and then losing the game
Shroud, on the serve - I'd suggest you move your toss more over your right shoulder, more into the court, and a tad higher. With the current position of most of your tosses you're reaching up over your head to hit the ball. That toss position puts your arm in an awkward position where it's difficult to produce power. More over your right shoulder and more into the court will help that a bunch. A little more height would allow you a bit more time to get your legs more involved.Jbt thanks for being a great example of how coaches should interact on these forums! Some would do well to follow your example.
Mine are the following:
1. I am a serve and volleyer who is too slow these days to play that style or seem to not get to the net after good approaches. I hate being at the back court and "constructing points". Tennis these days bores the crap out of me with all these baselining rallies. Overall i am absolutistic. Either i am crushing the net and hearing the lamenting of the women or i am totally defensive at the back court getting run around or swinging for the fences.
2. My serve is dreadful. It used to be solid and would setup the net game. But i stupidly listened to these boards and changed from pinpoint to platform. It has not gone well as i have lost all kind of power and spin. Also i have lost all kind of movement into the court so its even tougher to get to the net. Now my serve that did ok is getting destroyed. Guys who i could hold against are now camping on the service line and taking the net away from me.
3. This is tied to #1. I have no middle ground. I should be hitting comfy at 6 or 7 but i cant seem to do that. Its either 9-10 or 2-3. If i just get the ball in i get moved around or winners just get hit against me. If i go for it the errors seem to pile up. Nothing seems to work these days.
Anyhow here is a very unflattering vid where i am playing a player at least 1 NTRP point higher than me and well I should lose terribly and was happy to get the few games i did. But i think the vid really shows what i am struggling with. Let me know anything that can help. I am in the green hat
Forehand.Do you struggle technically? Or tactically? Or both? It would be interesting to see if there’s a pattern amongst players out there. As a National Performance coach hopefully there are some tips I can give you....
Hang in there. My fh has gotten much better in the last few years and before it was a liability.Forehand.
Just can't hit one.
Fcuking beyond me.
Its like my body can't articulate itself to turn and uncoil properly. Gone backwards fast lately. And i use too much wrist which makes racquet face inconsistent at contact
Actually my whole game sucks.
Most frustrating sport on earth.
Hang in there. My fh has gotten much better in the last few years and before it was a liability.
i share your pain on this being frustrating. I said to my hitting partner last time we played: "When did tennis turn into golf?"
KFC withdrawal is up there with heroine for sure (still think thats the secret ingredient). Maybe its the wall. Try not doing that and seebeen hitting against the wall alot lately, and am left wondering yet again whether it is the culprit in my slump. I was hitting against the wall alot last time my game went to total and utter crap too.
I haven't had KFC in a few days though, maybe it is KFC withdrawal undermining me.
Technical game leading to mental issues!Mental game leading to technical issues
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KFC withdrawal is up there with heroine for sure (still think thats the secret ingredient). Maybe its the wall. Try not doing that and see
A poll is a great idea. I’ll look into it.If you're interested in seeing "if there's a pattern amongst players out there", why don't you add a poll to this thread? If I recall correctly, you can do it anytime by editing the original post.
That said, for me that would definitely be mental, as that aspect affects all the others for me.
In the past, I've lost countless sets by 7-5 by blowing a 5-2 lead. I thought it would have gotten better with experience; instead, I started regularly getting an early break and losing every game since (say, 3-6 0-6 from 3-1 in the first).
My technique is in my opinion affected because I usually start most matches with like 12 staright first serves in (while not holding back, which actually seems to make my swings less smooth thus lowering my percentages instead of increasing them), then, as the first serve lands out, I become a Double Fault machine. The irritating part of it is that some years ago I had a pretty nice second serve: aggressive yet consistent (most of my First Serve Faults happened due to me hitting the net rather than sending the ball long, so in most cases I adjusted by hitting the Second Serve with more purpose and it seemed to work).
The way my tactics are affected is pretty common, I think. Basically I'm not too awful on that point of view and I generally have a clear vision on where and how the ball should be hit to give me a higher chance of winning the point. As long as I'm sitting in my comfortable armchair, that is. Ok, actually this drags along until I'm at the baseline or its proximity, ready to serve or return. Then I get caught in the heat of the moment and either play too instinctively making bad choices or straight up overthink on every shot.
Also, I used to be pretty good at net (relatively to my competition and to my own baseline game, obviously), and that was good, because having a game built on variety and energy saving it was ideal for me to press forward fairly often. Plus, it felt more natural to do so even back when I wanted to be a defensive baseliner. However, lately I'm losing the point about four times every five approaches (I'm not keeping track of the actual number, it's just a rough impression). I think the causes are mainly two. The first would be that I developed an atrocious net coverage, as years ago I could get away with rushing to hug the net right off the serve and now my competition apparently learned how to put a short angle in with some sort of consistency. I know the general rule is "split step the moment your opponent makes contact", but what I don't know is how to stick it in my damn head during the point. The second cause is my attitude. As I said, I started off as a defensive baseliner, so, when I changed my tastes and decided I'd be the master of my own fate, the though was like "Whether I stay back or go in, I'll lose the point, so whatever: I'll lose it my way". This kind of "whatever, it will go wrong anyway" is generally remarked as negative and detrimental, but it actually helped me in most parts of my life. As a matter of fact, I won points at net much more often than expected. Now, knowing that I can actually do pretty good at net but also that I don't win points as often as some time ago, whenever I approach it's like I need to show myself that I can still do a decent job up there, so I put a lot of useless pressure on myself. As a side note, my volleys are still pretty good (and by far the best aspect of my game) in drills, but they just won't get in while playing points. I know the passing shots I get in matches and the fed balls I get in drills are in completely different worlds, but so do rally balls.
Sorry for the long post, but I thought of listing my main issues to underline in how many ways a bad mentality can affect a player. I obviously have technical, tactical and physical issues too, but this is the biggest thing to fix in my opinion.
Loved your comment! Made me laugh more than once! What’s your grip? “Too much” wrist is good in some areas of the court such as creating angles yet may not be as effective when, let’s say volleying for example. Try not to see it as too much but try to figure out when it’s good to use lots of wrist and when it’s not. With regards to coiling? Is it a timing issue or can simply not do it? The term is called a “unit turn”. May be worth you checking out YouTube if you’re unsure? JBTForehand.
Just can't hit one.
Fcuking beyond me.
Its like my body can't articulate itself to turn and uncoil properly. Gone backwards fast lately. And i use too much wrist which makes racquet face inconsistent at contact
Actually my whole game sucks.
Most frustrating sport on earth.
Nothing wrong with a wall but the wall isn’t trying to beat you!been hitting against the wall alot lately, and am left wondering yet again whether it is the culprit in my slump. I was hitting against the wall alot last time my game went to total and utter crap too.
I haven't had KFC in a few days though, maybe it is KFC withdrawal undermining me.
In what way? Focus on your strengths and improve your weaknesses. Beat players by playing on your strength and build from there!Technical game leading to mental issues!![]()