1/24/11--lessOn Wih K.
The volley involves moving into the shot with your shoulder. Your arm is somewhat close to your body. The aggressive nature of the volley comes from your shoulder. Your footwork (stepping into the shot) allows Your shoulder to provide the power.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Never Turn Your Neck Without Moving Your Feet
2/23/11--Lesson With J.--
Have you played doubles with a partner (or you yourself) who sees the ball whiz past and the partner (or you), just turns his/her neck to watch the ball sail past. This is wrong, wrong, wrong. If you need to turn your neck, move your feet and get into position for the next ball. This is a good general principle to follow. So, never turn your neck without moving your feet.
We worked on serving while having our shoulders at a 230 degree angle from the net. This allows the server to get more spin and more bite on the ball. There are three ways to stand: facing the net, perpendicular to the net and greater than perpendicular to the net. If you stand at a more acute angle, then it is really important to use a continental grip rather than a forehand grip. (Note to self: change to a continental grip.) I asked J. if I have a neurological deficit that makes me use a forehand grip on my serve. I notice that he did not answer me.
J. says I need to be able to play singles and hit 5 to 6 times over the net before I try to put it away. He says that there is a choice to hit the ball with more control and less pace. So far, I seem to be resisting this path. He is hoping I can possibly follow his advice.
We practiced hitting volleys through the "goal", i.e., down the middle between the two opponents.
Have you played doubles with a partner (or you yourself) who sees the ball whiz past and the partner (or you), just turns his/her neck to watch the ball sail past. This is wrong, wrong, wrong. If you need to turn your neck, move your feet and get into position for the next ball. This is a good general principle to follow. So, never turn your neck without moving your feet.
We worked on serving while having our shoulders at a 230 degree angle from the net. This allows the server to get more spin and more bite on the ball. There are three ways to stand: facing the net, perpendicular to the net and greater than perpendicular to the net. If you stand at a more acute angle, then it is really important to use a continental grip rather than a forehand grip. (Note to self: change to a continental grip.) I asked J. if I have a neurological deficit that makes me use a forehand grip on my serve. I notice that he did not answer me.
J. says I need to be able to play singles and hit 5 to 6 times over the net before I try to put it away. He says that there is a choice to hit the ball with more control and less pace. So far, I seem to be resisting this path. He is hoping I can possibly follow his advice.
We practiced hitting volleys through the "goal", i.e., down the middle between the two opponents.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Wednesday and Thursday lessons
1-16-11--Lesson With J.--
We started with a warm up where J. emphasized keeping our heads still and keeping our eyes on the ball.
We worked on court positions in doubles. There are really three combinations: split=one up and one back, both back and both at net. When both are at the net, the opponents need to get a bit back so that they are in the position to return the ball. The most effective ground stroke from the baseline is usually down the middle and cross court rather than down the line.
We worked on serve and J. told me that I need to vary my serve more and sometimes hit a soft serve on my first serve.
We worked on the movement of the player who is not the receiver. It is important to aggressively take the net if your partner makes a good cross court return. If you are not assertive in moving up to the net and just inch up there, your opponent is not afraid of you at all. He noticed that the non-receivers in our lesson don't move much after their partners return a good cross court ball.
1-17-11--Singles Lesson With K.
Today we worked on defensive shots. A defensive high shot is hit with a continental grip and a firm wrist. There is no follow through and the pop comes from stepping into the shot like you would do on a volley. We worked on cutting off a return lob. Again, you keep you wrist firm, have no follow through and footwork gives the pop to the ball.
We started with a warm up where J. emphasized keeping our heads still and keeping our eyes on the ball.
We worked on court positions in doubles. There are really three combinations: split=one up and one back, both back and both at net. When both are at the net, the opponents need to get a bit back so that they are in the position to return the ball. The most effective ground stroke from the baseline is usually down the middle and cross court rather than down the line.
We worked on serve and J. told me that I need to vary my serve more and sometimes hit a soft serve on my first serve.
We worked on the movement of the player who is not the receiver. It is important to aggressively take the net if your partner makes a good cross court return. If you are not assertive in moving up to the net and just inch up there, your opponent is not afraid of you at all. He noticed that the non-receivers in our lesson don't move much after their partners return a good cross court ball.
1-17-11--Singles Lesson With K.
Today we worked on defensive shots. A defensive high shot is hit with a continental grip and a firm wrist. There is no follow through and the pop comes from stepping into the shot like you would do on a volley. We worked on cutting off a return lob. Again, you keep you wrist firm, have no follow through and footwork gives the pop to the ball.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Volleying and More Volleying
Lesson With K.--2/14/11
Today we worked on a volley combination. The first shot is a volley from the service line. This volley needs to be deep to elicit a weak reply. Then the next shot is an extreme angle. On the first volley, follow it in to a certain extent so that you are in position for the next volley. For me, I need to remind myself to keep a firm wrist. The racquet face should be up at the completion of the shot. The racquet needs to be upright during the execution of the volley. My first volley is hard and sometimes I don't expect that the ball will be returned, but I need to keep ready for the next shot. I need to concentrate on footwork and stepping into the shot. This is what makes a volley go deep.
We practiced serve and volley. K. said that this is more of a doubles maneuver. Unless the opponent is having a lot of difficulty returning serve, serve and volley will not work because there is too much court to cover.
Then we did our fast volley drill. I have the most trouble when the ball is coming right for my body. I need to use better footwork to get away from the ball.
Today we worked on a volley combination. The first shot is a volley from the service line. This volley needs to be deep to elicit a weak reply. Then the next shot is an extreme angle. On the first volley, follow it in to a certain extent so that you are in position for the next volley. For me, I need to remind myself to keep a firm wrist. The racquet face should be up at the completion of the shot. The racquet needs to be upright during the execution of the volley. My first volley is hard and sometimes I don't expect that the ball will be returned, but I need to keep ready for the next shot. I need to concentrate on footwork and stepping into the shot. This is what makes a volley go deep.
We practiced serve and volley. K. said that this is more of a doubles maneuver. Unless the opponent is having a lot of difficulty returning serve, serve and volley will not work because there is too much court to cover.
Then we did our fast volley drill. I have the most trouble when the ball is coming right for my body. I need to use better footwork to get away from the ball.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
The Half Volley
2-9-11--Lesson With J.
First let me document my discussion with John... I asked about poaching. John said that the poach needs to incorporate the intention of finishing out the point. He said that you may not always be successful in finishing the point, but if you are going to poach, you should be in the position where you have a good chance that you can close out the point or you shouldn't poach.
J. said that I need to follow through on my forehand groundies with my whole arm, not just my wrist.
With regard to the half volley, the shot requires a closed stance (with good footwork) and low, bent knees. The ideal half volley is not a strong offensive shot, but rather a low medium pace ball. Typically, a half volley will land short. If the opponent is on the baseline and sees the half volley-er getting down to take that shot, he/she should start working up to the net to be in a position to make the return. It is a good probability that half volley is not going to be a deep shot. The return of the half volley should be a shot where you are taking it really early.
On the serve, I need to toss as I am lean forward, not leaning backward and I probably need to toss the ball higher.
First let me document my discussion with John... I asked about poaching. John said that the poach needs to incorporate the intention of finishing out the point. He said that you may not always be successful in finishing the point, but if you are going to poach, you should be in the position where you have a good chance that you can close out the point or you shouldn't poach.
J. said that I need to follow through on my forehand groundies with my whole arm, not just my wrist.
With regard to the half volley, the shot requires a closed stance (with good footwork) and low, bent knees. The ideal half volley is not a strong offensive shot, but rather a low medium pace ball. Typically, a half volley will land short. If the opponent is on the baseline and sees the half volley-er getting down to take that shot, he/she should start working up to the net to be in a position to make the return. It is a good probability that half volley is not going to be a deep shot. The return of the half volley should be a shot where you are taking it really early.
On the serve, I need to toss as I am lean forward, not leaning backward and I probably need to toss the ball higher.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
May I Be Open With You?
Lesson With K. 2-3-11
Well, not open with you, but open stance....
Use open stance when going out for a wide ball or when taking a deep, higher ball right on the baseline. Do not step into the ball, but bend your knee closest to the ball. Transfer your weight from your hitting foot to your other foot and complete the follow through. Using the open stance allows you to get into the center of the court faster since your weight is not going toward the alley.
Well, not open with you, but open stance....
Use open stance when going out for a wide ball or when taking a deep, higher ball right on the baseline. Do not step into the ball, but bend your knee closest to the ball. Transfer your weight from your hitting foot to your other foot and complete the follow through. Using the open stance allows you to get into the center of the court faster since your weight is not going toward the alley.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Pivotal Lesson Today
2-2-11 Lesson With J.
And no, we did not work on pivoting. This is going to be very good for my game.
We worked on taking a short, low ball. There are two choices: chip the shot back (but this could float too high and be an easy put away shot) or use a closed stance and bend knees getting quite low. Brush up on the back of the ball like a regular groundie except less force. The less your knees are bent, the faster your arm. You don't want a really fast arm because the ball will smack into the net. I should already know this from experience, but I never figured it out before. The closed stance is really important so that you can get down low on the ball. When taking a shot right at the baseline, the procedure is really the same--closed stance and get low.
And no, we did not work on pivoting. This is going to be very good for my game.
We worked on taking a short, low ball. There are two choices: chip the shot back (but this could float too high and be an easy put away shot) or use a closed stance and bend knees getting quite low. Brush up on the back of the ball like a regular groundie except less force. The less your knees are bent, the faster your arm. You don't want a really fast arm because the ball will smack into the net. I should already know this from experience, but I never figured it out before. The closed stance is really important so that you can get down low on the ball. When taking a shot right at the baseline, the procedure is really the same--closed stance and get low.
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