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DEVELOPMENT

My mission is to share my experiences so that others will not have to endure the same struggles that defined my career- the struggle to become a better player. With such an overwhelming amount of information available, how do you know what to pay attention to? There is so much misquided information  from popular teaching methods, articles in tennis magazines and much of television commentary, and if accepted, will most likely prevent you from reaching your maximum potential. There is way too much structure and far too many rules that will interfere with your ability to progress. I believe these rules will inhibit the natural rhythm of your stoke, limit your ability to move effortlessly, and ultimately hinder your future development. Do you feel like you’re struggling with your game? Does it seem like you’re not improving and getting frustrated? I would bet that you have been misguided like me on the proper fundamentals of the game. Here is a list of a few accepted teaching methods, which will be followed by an explanation of negative effects and how they might feel.

1.  Get prepared early
2.  Always forward into every shot, don’t move back
3.  Get there and get set
4.  Don’t wait for the ball
5.  Extend through contact, follow through over your shoulder   (wrap around)
6.  Stay down through the shot
7.  Take every ball early
8.  Hit out in front
9.  Take lots of small steps
10.Two handed backhand is all left hand

Rule #1) Get Prepared Early;
What does this mean? Prepare your racket, your body, or both? This concept has always confused me, but I believed it to be true because I was constantly feeling rushed. We hear “racket must be back before the ball crosses the net or before the ball bounces”. This is such nonsense and it is misguiding.  When you prepare will likely depend on how fast the ball is approaching, the angle of the ball and what you want to do with the shot.

Common factors with this hindering approach:
1.Stroke feels awkward and too long
2.Your movement to the ball feels clumsy
3.Running wide for balls will be a weakness
4.No flexibility in the stroke because it sets at a pre-determined position
5.Struggle with short balls
6.You are prepared early but feel late



Rule #2) Move Forward Into Every Shot and Don’t Move Back:
It is amazing to me that this philosophy is still being taught. I just don’t understand what people are watching. All of the great players continually move in all directions, forward, backward, sideways, etc. It is impossible and unnatural to go forward all of the time. You cannot get away with playing all offense like you could years ago. Changing from defense to offense requires great flexibility and few limitations.

Affects:
1.Constant miss-hits
2.Difficulty with deep defensive balls
3.Inconsistent day to day
4.Feeling cramped, hitting space






Rule #3) Get There and Get Set
Here the rule is to get to that perfect position as quickly as possible in order to set your feet and racket. This is crazy! Of course you do this some of the time. Unless the conditions are perfect you are going to struggle. You will have a hard time finding a rhythm on your strokes. This is completely opposite of how easy and simple the pros flow around the court.
1.Feel stuck
2.Difficulty swinging freely
3.Everything is happening very fast





Rule #4) Don't Wait for the Ball
All of the great players have learned to wait for the ball. I didn’t learn this until I was in my mid twenties. How do you “hold” the ball? The player waits for you to make a move or will hold you so long that it will leave you incapable of making a move. Players that grow up on clay learn this instinctively. Here in America we are taught to never let your opponent back into the court and always take time away from them. Panic mode is how I describe it.
Do you take time away from your opponent? Yes. Do you wait for the ball? Yes. The first consideration should be - what is the best shot for you.

1.Super fast pace/panic mode
2.Many miss-hits
3.Feeling clumsy or awkward
4.Movements will feel Jerky
5.Don’t feel in control
6.Bad days are really bad

Rule #5) Extend Through Contact - Follow Through Over Your Shoulder This popular lesson should be thrown in the garbage. Some might ask how you get someone to extend out through contact. It is part of the chain link that cannot be broken down. As your body and bigger muscles rotate with a loose flexible arm, your racket will naturally extend just like a golf swing. If you try to force the extension and follow through you will be using mostly arm to swing the racket, which will make your forearm muscles extremely tight at contact. Having a pre-determined follow through will limit the variety of shots you can play.

Issues with this topic:
1.Hard time generating one’s own pace, especially on slow courts
2.Often mishits
3.Developing heavy spin
4.Good defensive shots




Rule #6) Stay Down
The fact is that sometimes you stay down and sometimes you don’t. Like everything else, being a flexible and natural the player will determine automatically how the body needs to react to the situation in order to hit the best possible shot. It is completely unnatural to stay down through impact all the time. Bending and staying down is one of the most overused and overrated error detections. Of course it applies sometimes, but not even close to the extent to which it is used.
1.Hitting arm will feel tight, limiting your larger muscles to work
2.Many off center hits
3.Awkward movement
4.Strike zone will be too far in front







Rule #7) Hit out in Front
Your strike zone should have the flexibility to change. From the center of the court you will likely make contact out in front. Your hitting position will be less in front as you move sideways and especially moving backwards or playing defensive shots. If you have been taught to always have a forward hitting position many problems will persist.
1.Constant miss-hits
2.Long backswing and short follow-through
3.Weak and awkward running shots
4.Mediocre defensive skills
5.Poor crosscourt directional shot

Rule #8) Take Small Steps
Good positioning is obviously important. Consciously focusing on small steps takes away from letting your mind decide what shot to play. There are situations where you need to make adjustments and using smaller steps should happen naturally if you have time or if you need to slow down. I don’t believe in teaching a player to take small steps to correct missed shots.   Former Top 10 player Miloslav Mecir, whose name was “Big Cat”, said “Why take 3 steps when I can take two?

Common Factors you might feel:
1.May feel awkward
2.Feel rushed
3.Stroke may feel cramped

Rule #9) Two-Handed backhand is all left hand:
My backhand was pretty bad through my mid-twenties. I received this advice then, and continue to hear it now. If you struggle with your backhand and try this overused method it will eventually get worse. Most likely, your issue will be that your chain link is out of sync and your bigger muscles are not helping enough. The left hand sometimes feels more active when you are trying to direct the shot, use more spin, or in an emergency. This usually happens after contact.

Using Too Much Left Hand causes:
1.Arm and wrist feels tight and restricted
2.May have difficulty generating power
3.Contact will not feel solid

I hope some of this information has been useful in evaluating your game. If you feel that you possess some of these limiting factors than I suggest you read my piece on “Making Changes”. There is no quick fix to any of these problems, especially when making permanent changes. We have this illusion that somebody has the answers to our problems. It is going to be necessary to become a student of the game because you must possess the power to know what feels right and what doesn’t. So much of what we do and learn is about feel. I have personally dealt with every issue described. Describing how things feel is very difficult. Remember I am just a guy who had to make a lot changes to make a buck playing professional tennis.

Rule#10) YOU MUST HAVE PATTERNS
If you don’t know your patterns, shame on you (a little sarcasm here)! Patterns seem as important as having a great serve! Bjorn Borg once said “sometimes I go crosscourt and sometimes I go down the line” in an interview after he won Wimbledon. What are your patterns? If you have clearly defined patterns you will become a robot; inflexible and uncreative. Is your opponent supposed to help you achieve your pattern routines? Mardy Fish loves his backhand down the line and it is one of the best shots in the game. Does he have a pattern on the backhand? I never saw one. When he felt it, he hit it. The most important “pattern” is to develop a strong foundation of repeatable high percentage shots. For example: developing depth, pace, and accuracy on your backhand crosscourt can enable you to get other shots that you can take risks. (Agassi specialty) Read Dr. Allen Fox’s’ article on the “Middle Game”.

Players must take ownership their game.  By identifying issues that may limit your development you can have the power to know what does or doesn’t work. You must be in control of the changes in your game.

Summary:
In order to reach your maximum potential, your game should consist of the three elements; flexibility, ease of movement or flow, and rhythm. Flexibility in your strokes and having the ability to adapt is essential for consistency. Ease of movement or flow provides a sense of calmness and efficiency. All strokes should have a rhythm that will produce consistent shots on any surface or in any conditions.

*Look for the Tab on "Producing Change"
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