Djokovic and Agassi with Coach "K" to help your tennis game.

Today Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic played the finals of the Australian Open. These two players are at the top of their careers and ready to go. Nadal's blistering forehand topspins, drives, court coverage and  "refuse to lose" attitude verses Djokivic's return of serve, clean ball strikes, and court coverage. The end result was the world's best tennis in 2012. I'll be back for the re-cap later. It's a great day here in New England. Let's get to the courts. Outside is sunny.

How do I train by myself?


First, watch my serving video so you have en idea of what you're doing http://youtu.be/90JontSZMJA .

Second, watch the Djokovic instructional video http://youtu.be/R0dldQUtRbo 

Third, watch the Agassi backboard video http://youtu.be/QHbatpT1Fy0 .

You now have surrounded yourself with the best out there. You are ready for a complete workout with court, or backboard and as little as three tennis balls.


Get your serve ready by going outside (if the weather's nice) and work on the fundamentals of the serve. It's meditative and a great workout. Hit a dozen or less serves if you've only have three balls, run a lap as fast as you can around the court, then hit more, then 100 jump ropes, then hit more, then 12 push-ups, then  more, get the idea...........You can be creative with your training. It makes it more realistic because you're not going to be fresh as a daisy when serving in a match. You have to be in shape and controlled, even if tired. Other possibilities include hitting reps on the backboard after hitting your serve or running forward to the board and hitting reflex volleys. If you don't have a board then just run forward, split and punch a volley out of your hand, then slide back and self toss an overhead. You then can add the cross training component of jump rope, sprints, and agility drills. You have to mix it up so you keep the body guessing and interested. In twenty minutes you could be ready to call it a day if you train hard. It's more about intensity and effort then it is about time.

Serve

The serve is the only shot in the game where you have complete control of the outcome. In a sense you are the pitcher. And as a pitcher you have options. You can throw a straight ball (fastball), a slicing fast ball (slider), a kick serve (curve/ change-up). Those are the basic pitches. Just as in baseball you will develop favorite pitches either by talent or choice. You should be able to locate the ball in the service box with control. Here are the basics:

1) Stance--keep both feet shoulder width apart or narrower and fixed when starting your motion. It is helpful to bounce the ball a few times to maintain your ritual and timing before initiating your motion.

2)  Grip--"Continental"--will allow you to hit the most variety of serves though it is tough for new players to square the ball (hit too much slice and reach too low). Your base knuckle of your index finger should be on the second panel from the top of the racket. Keep your wrist loose and drop the little finger off the grip to create more whipping racquet speed. Exaggerate the base knuckle of the first finger grip more toward the first (top) panel for the kick serve. When you first try this you might say--"There's no way," but that's the grip.

3) Toss--keep your wrist and elbow straight as you toss the ball from low (hand down to your leg) to high (full extension pointing up above your head). You should be able to draw a straight line from your front foot to the top of your fingers, up to the ball. This requires balance (do not move your feet).


4) Back-swing--the hitting arm goes down as the tossing arm goes up (some players lift their racket up sooner then others). I find it better timing for most to lag the hitting arm down a bit to build more kinetic energy. The racquet then loops behind your head and the head of the racquet points down with the butt of the racket pointing up (not to close to the back as you would lose power). As the racket goes down behind the back the knees go down; as the knees come up so does the racquet, then reach up to the ball.

5) Follow-through--for the flat serve and slice finish on the opposite side of your body. For the kick serve finish on the same side, hitting up and away to the side.Your weight will now shift to the front foot as you extend up and into the ball. For now don't leave the ground till you master the toss and hit rhythm

Practice:

Keep your feet down while developing your serve. You can first start with your racket already in the back and down position and then toss the ball to establish a high contact point. After you master this, start with your racket in the overhead position (as many pros do in their first few warm-up balls), keep it loose and whippy (maybe hang your little finger off the end to get the feel). You then can add the full back-swing keeping your feet down yet still using the knees (if you've got the feel for that). To help get the timing of the knee bend lean forward to your right a bit from the waste and then as you toss the ball bring your knees forward and bend. This gives the knees a "jump start." At this point you will be ready to work out your own serve style and add the jump into the court from the knee bend. First follow the process of steps because you need the right foundation. don't worry about the knee bend or kick serves till you get your basic motion and grip working down. You'll be amazed how much "easy power" there is with the serve when you time the arms and shoulders correctly.

Once you've mastered a pitch (flat,slice, kick) then work on locating the ball to target in the service boxes. Power is the last tactical priority so don't worry about that until you've mastered the basic fundamentals.

I found this old Bill Tilden Advanced tennis video (much has changed) but the kick serve  fundamentals has not. Enjoy. Bill change the game of tennis with all the mastery of spins.

.http://youtu.be/EUA3Yb66YSQ


For the modern view of the serve I found this to be interesting: Roger Federer's serve and Poncho Gonzales. Enjoy.

http://youtu.be/8oaZ-49eebo

And finally here is my own take on the serve explained in the King's English.


http://youtu.be/90JontSZMJA

Mixed Doubles is a sport in it's own right. Is it televised? I think I saw it once for ten minutes. It's probably the least televised sport in the world, right next to archery. Lately we've had a resurrection of the sport in Falmouth. Not since the eighties has there been so many mixed doubles combinations hitting the courts. What is mixed doubles? It's when a man and women play doubles against the same combination. It's one of the few sports that place men and women on equal footing at least more equal the average pay scale for men and woman except at the US Open. You won't see a woman share a boxing match, a hockey game, or football game, etc., except at cookouts. Okay there are some exceptions in Alaska.

When I think of women's equality in tennis I think of Billy Jean King. Together we instructed a Domino's Pizza tennis clinic in Dedham and shared a  USTA high performance coaches certification in Chicago. In Domino's team matches players would switch in and out as in a basketball game. Today, on a professional level there is World Team Tennis which has has seen a rebirth from the seventies with teams like the Boston Lobsters and the Philadelphia Freedoms (enter Elton John). A colleague and former US Open Quarter Finalist named Bud Shultz is the coach for the Boston Lobsters. Bud still has a hell of a serve and volley.  The USTA now has mixed leagues where players play in leveled matches. In 1892 the first National Mixed Doubles was played at the Newport Casino in Rhode Island. That predated the first Wimbledon Mixed which was played in 1913. So you could make a case that the United States officially instituted the sport of mixed doubles. Mixed doubles is the classic Friday and Saturday sport of tennis clubs across the country.

I remember watching Eli Nastasi (one of the most talented shot-makers in the history of the game) and Gabriella Sabatina (turned model) play Ferdi Taygen (a Boston and Falmouth resident) and Barbara Potter (Potsy). Nastasi was the worst sport I've ever seen on the court but that's why people loved to watch him play. You'd never knew what he was going to do or say. Taygen, was ranked number in the world in Mixed doubles at the time. When he retired we would share a hit from time to time here at the Sports Center and he would unlock secrets of the game and recant a few tour stories. He never let Nastasi get to him.

Mr. Van Alan who founded the Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport recently passed away designed the "No-ad" or  the Van Alan Scoring System (Vass) scoring and tie-breaker which is used by many high school, college, and recreational players today as a means to keep matches on schedule and stop the non-ending deuce stalemates. We use Mr. Van Alan's no-ad in our our Friday night mixers which sometimes include, heaven forbid, two men against a man and a women or the other way around. In a mixer anything can happen and it usually does. If the match is even it doesn't matter who plays whom. You can't have a good match if it is uneven. Levels of the game are important.

There are certain rules of decorum for mixed doubles at the club level--a man shouldn't never try to take a woman out with a put-away, a woman can blast the guy and that is humorous, the man always serves first (this is to insure the team wins the first game), the woman's serve should be broken (strangely softer serves often present more difficulty for the men), it's okay for the man to to poach madly at the net and steal easy points, the man should claim most of the over-heads, the man must always be supportive to his partner and never yell at her; I suppose the converse is true but I've never really seen that happen, having a sense of humor makes things more fun (don't take it too seriously because that will only hurt your chances; you have to stay relaxed), and give your partner a kiss on the cheek at the end of the match regardless of how lousy either of you played because you must remain chivalrous at all costs. It's not okay for the man to ask the woman to sit down on the bench and let him finish the rest of the game by himself. If the woman is has a knee brace on and has had a hip replacement it's not okay to hit aces by her unless she has aced him several times.You must be more of a lady and more of a gentleman. After-all it's a gentleman's sport. It's okay to win but not win badly.


"What do you do if you're serving and have a match point against your grandmother?" This was a question asked to me by Adelaide Cummings, the phenomenal tennis legend and writer from West Falmouth.

"I don't know," I said. "What?"

"You ace-a," she said.

Here's another one she asked. "How many tennis balls fit in the service box?"

"I don't know."

"Six hundred and fifty, don't you think you could serve just one in?"

That is a great way to lighten the load after a double fault. You'd better read your audience first.

This weekend the Sports Center will be hosting a Mixed Doubles Tournament that begins Friday evening and ends Sunday with the finals. Late Saturday afternoon there will be a social mixer for all players in the tournament. Hopefully no Eli Nastasi's will show up. If they do we'll have to throw them into the penalty box  to the adulation of the locals.

Timing

What is timing? Timing is everything. With it you can counter the toughest shots, adjust to your opponent, conditions, develop new levels of the game, and play with confidence. Without it you miss-hit, lodge the ball in the middle of your racket, hack-nub winners, hack-nub errors, and eventually lose your confidence. Timing is the ability to stroke a ball over the net with your desired outcome consistently over time. It's effortless outcome management. It's how an eight year old can hold down a rally with an accomplished adult player and maintain equal shot quality despite strength differences.

Other terms that travel with timing include smoothness, consistency, easiness, and fluidity. They describe the qualities of good timing. Smoothness is the ability to have your body flow with a steady motion from the ready position,  the take away, loading, releasing, and finishing the shot. Consistency is the ability to repeat that motion over the course of a rally or point. Easiness and fluidity are required for good timing.

Many players have  basic swing patterns down but lack smoothness. The best way to fix that problem is hold the racket looser, like a bird--not so tight you kill it but don't let it go. In doing so you will allow your body to react in a kinetic chain (the sum of the body parts put together creates the optimum result). When you trust your racket it will trust you. That's when hitting gets fun. Another thing to look for is your preparation (the take back loading). This should be done in a continous manner with no sharp hitches (despite some hitches I've encountered some people can't play without them and they are critical for their timing). Most solid strikers do not possess hitching characteristics.

Players who catch the ball in the middle of their racket (at the throat) when swinging look around and wonder what happened to the ball. That's when I tell them it went to the Bermuda Triangle. When they finally discover it lodged in their racket we all have a good laugh. That's an example of bad timing. The good thing about that bad timing in this instance it teaches you to distance yourself from the ball. Rally practice will develop your timing to higher levels. Striking a ball repeatedly with better players or the ball machine will hone your strokes and  timing. Timing is something that's borrowed from your hitting partner. Better players will give you better timing. A coach can hit you balls to help you smooth out your swing and eliminate hitches and fundamental errors. That will improve timing. Give yourself time for those corrections on the practice court to show up in competition.

Old habits die hard but an old dog can learn to hunt if he's hungry.  If your shots aren't technically sound they're not going to produce desired outcomes. Play those shots with care. If you hack a ball over the net for a winner raise your hand or racket to your opponent in acknowledgement. They appreciate it and it sends a message that you're a sportsman.

Recently Rafa was playing in the finals of the Davis Cup representing Spain against Argentina. Jaun Martin Del Potro was his 6'5'' opponent, a big strong guy who hits with the old fashioned (like Federer) eastern forehand grip. His strokes were powerful fastballs delivered from both wings. Rafa has the timing and defensive skills to heavy topspin and placements form all over the court. It was just good enough to best Del Potro in the fourth set tie-breaker for the match. Del Potro who is making a come back from injury played extremely well and cried passionately after the loss in Seville amongst a rowdy Spanish crowd. He pounded balls from corner to corner without much margin over the net or inside the court. He had to blast past the Spaniard. Very difficult on red clay to put a ball away. Many times he did. Until it came to fourth set when Rafa stuck the sword into the bull.  If it had been played in Argentina on a hard court would the result have been different? Yes the result would have been different. Most probably Argentina would have set up a hard court allowing Del Potro's flatter ball to run through the court.  Argentina did not have the home court and Rafa would put Spain on top of Davis Cup for the second year in a row.

Del Potro took the ball early (close to the baseline) and pushed Raffa around. The trouble was Raffa was too fast to the ball and simply returned too many shots with margin and Del Potros risky but good timing was not enough that day. That was the only timing he had to beat Raffa and he did the best he could. 2012 will be an interesting year with this guy back in the line-up on the ATP.

There was an example of different timing styles--one who hits heavy spin and sometimes flat and the other who hits very flat all the time.  One plays close to the line and takes things early while the other can play deep and send back enormous topspin balls that kick up into your shoulders or flatten it with tight spin when the ball is short.

How can you best develop timing? When you warm up start off easy. Hit balls that go slow and to your hitting partner. As your rallies develop pick up the pace gradually. When you have difficulty hitting a ten shot rally slow down and work at that level. This will give you great timing and you'll being training smart.

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Tennis Show Down at FSC

How to play with people watching

     You've got to be kidding. I've never had anyone watch my match play except once and I played awful. Pretend they're wearing clowns pants; does that feel any different? It doesn't matter who or when you are playing you need to be relaxed. Your body reacts better. It's more flexible, makes fewer errors, and shots happen without your self talk getting in the way.
      A term for this mind/body relationship is called the ideal performance state (IPS). When you're in the IPS you make the shots.  Ray Allen, the famous three point shooter for the Celtics practices his three pointers in the morning; he starts with easy baskets and then goes for longer ones. Then he comes back before team practice in the afternoon (he's the first one at the Garden) and shoots again for one hour. So, part of the reason for his success is that he practices significantly more and smarter than everyone else. Those automatic shots happen for a reason; it's probably harder for him to miss his shots than make the shots. Why? It has become second nature. The more you practice the less you have to think once you've mastered the fundamentals. Then, there's Tom Brady, a true gamer, a pressure expert, and he has performed amazingly in crunch situations. There more he does it the more consistent he shows himself. He's comfortable in those situations. Players who miss are not comfortable with those situations. They can't dial it up. The champions are great when they have to be. The crunch points determine the great from the best of the best. The very best thrive in a high pressure environment. Relaxation, focus, and confidence are all part of that equation. The largest success factor is determined by your preparation. Brady also puts in extra hours practicing his passes outside of the team practice.

     What if people are watching when I'm competing? First, don't watch yourself. What does that mean? If you're your own critic you won't be able to zone. What I mean by critic is--you can't think of a double fault when your toss is up in the air. The prophecy will come true. Anyone who's played sports knows what I'm talking about. If a pitcher thinks ball before he throws then it will be a ball. If your out in the drive way and shoot threes they tend to drop more when your out shooting around because you believe in it. Maybe not the first one or two times you play but the practice court will eventually show up in your game. If you work on your serve for just twenty minutes per day you'll started nailing the serve in your matches because your body will be on auto-pilot. If you can't get by people watching imagine they're wearing clowns pants There are some tricks to relax: humor is a great way to calm yourself-- crack a joke with your doubles partner, fix your strings, take a deep breath, or tie your shoes. All of these things takes pressure off the moment. Pros will take time outs to control momentum and question calls. The list is almost endless when you think about it.
     Many players think-- "just play." They think, hey I play for fun, I don't need to practice and they become cagey. What is cagey? That is when a player learns by experience and manages their game in competitive situations. They have a keen sense of what they can do in a match and in one sense this keeps them free of negative self talk. They just play. The only problem with this is that your game will only go so far. You might be a great singles player for your team but you can't volley too well. Or perhaps you have an aggressive game but no backhand. Or you don't handle pace well because of a hitch in your swing. You don't have the  mechanics to execute in that environment. You could say that about anyone who wants to move up a level. What is the biggest hurdle holding you back? Until you address the fundamentals hurdle it's going to just sit there until you jump it. You'll keep getting the lesson every time you play up until you address it. Some players don't see their hurdles and won't address them or don't care enough to jump it. It's too much work.
     The players who make the most improvements are the players who receive coaching, practice and put themselves in "playing up" situations. Then they start making the shots in the new tougher environment. They will have several breakthroughs because they go back to the chalkboard, work out the kinks, find challenging coaching sessions (those who want to improve are willing to spend money on their game) and then test those skills in the game. It's a cycle of playing, evaluation, and practicing with a purpose. When you are well prepared you become more relaxed.
     Even with preparation you may need some more tricks to keep stress at an optimum level: tilt your head up and look up with your eyes as much as you can for a few seconds and then release the hold, lift up and relax your shoulders, jog  in place ( Maria Sharapova) before starting a point, bounce the the ball before the serve (Novak Djokovic), grunt out your breath when you hit (Jimmy Connors), practice a couple of correction swings after a miss, sing a favorite song in your mind, hold your racquet lightly with your fingers when you feel tight during play,etc...etc....etc.  You have to be comfortable in the big situations and relaxed. If you look out in the stands at the crowd you won't stand a chance, unless you can disconnect, and then reconnect.
     Look forward to your next on court big moment and let yourself play. Tell yourself  how much you love it and go for it. Pretend if you have to. Sooner or later you'll start believing. When you believe in yourself you'll play your best. That's all we can ever ask of ourselves. If people are watching that makes it better.

Playing Up

Who doesn't want to play up? I guess if the match were for money you wouldn't, right? Guess what, it is for money. Players who play up are getting a chance to test their skills in a new forum of players, coaches, and clubs. Players who receive those players are giving them a chance. There is that day when you are the new kid on the block. Just remember that when you play it takes two to tango. Some players are moving down the club ladder: lack of conditioning, age, injury, etc. Today I'm talking about playing up: those players who have been hitting the ball machine, taking lessons, hitting the gym, and want a chance to showcase their skills.

I remembered playing my first tournament, a fourteen and under tournament in Barnstable. First I beat several opponents before losing to Tom who became a team-mate at Falmouth High School. Playing up in that tournament gave me my first forum to test skills. Before then it was the backboard of West Falmouth and random players at public courts. Playing up was always a treat because the environment tested you. It made you want to practice, get calloused hands, ride your bike to ball parks, look at new racquets, read tennis magazines, and run. I was hooked on improving and getting chances to play up.

When you play up expect to be surprised. Balls that regularly score you points don't. Your opponent gets to them and makes counter attacks. So you lose points that regularly go in the win column. The next thing you try to do is raise your level too much. You risk too soon and often. The result is a quick bad loss. The best thing to do is to make the easy shots well. What are the easy shots? Get the first serve in and place it with a plan, example: serve wide to the strength and then hit over to the less powerful side. That is a good play. It's percentage and  it keeps your mind on the doing rather than panicking. Another play would be to return the line of the ball no matter what. Believe it or not better players make more mistakes holding a rally rather making great shots. When you hold the rally they tend to think--Hey this guy/gal can hit. Once you've created that thought in their mind, you're on your way to developing points. To compete you have to get your first two shots in play--the serve and next shot and the return and the next shot.That can be your first goal, compete, hit two shots in a row. The next goal is get into a winning position. If your're not competing then get back to basics. The next thing we tend to do when playing up is put the ball away twice as hard. IT's more effective  to be more selective approaching the net, rally verses drop shot, or pass verses lob. Each one of those decisions can cost you points.  Focus on execution. Read that again. It's all about executing the fundamentals. There's only so much you can do with smoke and mirrors. Try to get ready faster, smooth your swing out, stay low, see the ball early, and raise your level. Better execution trumps elaborate schemes. Above all stay relaxed so you can perform. If you become a stiff then your're done.This is why many big upsets happen with low ranked players. They are relaxed. They have nothing to lose. Their body relaxes and they just channel greatness. They have no conscious fear and their shots show it. They go in and they find the zone.

When you're playing up play your "A" game not your "B" game. If you volley best then come to the net as much as possible. If ground stroke best then let your partner take the net and play the back court. Playing up is not the day to test out new strings, new shots, and a new game style. Save that for the practice court. Today is the day to do what you do best. You have to play your best to win. Plan your best shots (partner's too) against the your opponents "B" game. They may still win but you've increased your chances. When I play I'm always searching for a way to increase my chances and decrease my opponent's chances. If I'm going to lose I'll lose slow. It's not good to lose fast. They may beat me 6-0,6-0 but their going to have to win every point and I'm going to keep them out there for one and one half hour. That's different then shaking hands before the first half hour bell rings. That is the worst.

Finally, in life we all have chances to play up. Take advantage of those situations and play them. If you don't you'll second guess yourself. When you get in those situations play your "A" game and learn. Take those lessons to the practice court and train to improve your skills. Also remember that you are not at the level of your opponent unless you can get into a position to win. There's a difference between playing up and over your head. Take small steps as you move up. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is your game. It takes a lifetime.