TACTICS.

When playing matches, if you were to limit your options in certain situations, you will become a more decisive player.

During your practice lessons, if your coach gives you instructions before you play a point and feedback afterwards, and guides you on how to create winning shot combinations, you will find this very helpful. You should review ‘Patterns of Play’ in this connection.

However, there is no substitute to learning how to win points in a real set of tennis and your aim is to learn which shots to hit at the right time. When you should go for a winner and when you should take your time and build the point. You will find The Wardlaw Directionals of assistance in learning when to go for a winner. (see directionals on main website).

I believe it is a very useful exercise to have as much practice as possible on some clay courts, the game is different and you have to be patient and learn to build your points, it is far more difficult to hit a winner.

You will need to drill your play and shots a lot so that when a situation presents itself, you only have the need to select from a couple of possibilities, to have too many options is often a failing point, as it creates confusion and the incorrect shot selection.

The following drills exercise will assist you in your movement and decision making. The drill has six stages of increased difficulty, take it to the level to suit yourself.

One other point to keep in consideration is the height of the ball. i.e. is it above or below the height of the net, in general above the net use a drive shot, below the net use a slice, but this also depends on how far you are from the net.

Limiting your hitting options by aiming at targets

will make you a more decisive player.

FOUR TARGET DRILL.

Set up four targets at the following places:

Two deep cones about one foot inside the baseline and singles sideline.

Two cones inside the service boxes about 6 inches from either line.

Number the targets 1 – 2 – 3 –4.

Drill 1: Stand just behind the service line and get your coach or a partner to tell you which target to hit to before they feed the ball. The ball should be fed directly to you so you do not have to make much movement.

Drill 2: Go back to the baseline, your feeder again tells you which target to aim for, but now gives you an easy feed near to the service line so that you have to run and hit the ball.

Drill 3: Your feeder still makes the target decision before the feed, but you now start a rally. After a few shots (the number is pre-determined by your feeder but unknown to you) your feeder hits a ball to the service line and you move up and hit to the specified target.

Drill 4: Go back to the starting position of Drill 1, near the service line. Now the decision of where to hit the ball is yours. Your feeder sends an easy ball so you do not have to move much, but before you swing you must call out the target number.

Drill 5: Start at the baseline. Your feeder hits an easy ball near to the service line and you have to run to hit it. Before swinging call out the number of the target you are aiming at.

Drill 6: Back to the rally situation. Wait for a short ball from your partner, move up and call out the target number you are going for.

Having said everything above, you will still need to make things happen. Try not to become tentative when you start competing. Defensive play may win you some matches, but you will not move to the next level. Try to think aggressively and attack your opponent’s weaknesses.

Hit To the Open Court.

By now you should have developed your tennis technique and skills so that you can consistently control your shots over the net and into the court and place the ball where you want to.

You are now in a position to put the ball away from your opponent. They cannot cover all possible angles at the same time so there will always be openings and enable you to hit the ball out of their reach.

Try to force your opponent to run for the ball and make it more difficult for them to hit a good return; this gives you the opportunity to move to the midcourt or to the net where you will have a great chance to win the point.

Hit Behind Your Opponent.

You will be surprised how predictable you and your opponent are in your shot selection, it is up to you to hit some forcing shots. As your opponent begins to anticipate your shots and perhaps favour that direction, put the ball behind them when they are too far that way. They will find it difficult to change direction quickly enough. This is particularly effective against a player who is very quick and over reacts also when you have the opponent very wide and they are rushing back to the middle of the court.

Use Angles to open the court.

Learn how to hit some of your shots at an angle to draw your opponent wide, your next shot is then to a wide-open court.

Move Your Opponent around the Court.

Vary your shots by using speed, depth (short & long), placement and spin to un-settle your opponent. Try to make your opponent cover a lot of court. Make them move and try not to let your opponent move you around, once you have got them running keep them at it; they will possibly become fatigued  and unable to reach some of the balls.

Don’t forget there is up and back movement as well as side-to-side.

Find Your Opponent’s Weaknesses.

Whilst you are doing your pre-game warm-up, see if there are any obvious weaknesses to your opponents strokes, then when you start your game keep alert to any other weakness.

You should then try to exploit these areas, but be careful, if you continuously play on a weakness this also gives the opponent the chance to groove their stroke.

Equally, if you find your opponent has a favourite shot then you need to work out a way to neutralize this.

Conditions affect your opponent as much as you.