Mixed Doubles Lesson And I Forgot To Blog My Lesson Last Monday

I will start with last Monday:


3/29/11--Lesson With K.--Concentrating On The Follow Through


K. has been riding me about my follow through for about two years now.  He has been on my case for so long that I forgot what he used to tell me to do to encourage a good follow through.  He is suggesting I "catch" my racquet way over my left shoulder every time I hit a forehand.  I bet he first told me this three years ago.  Writing down his suggestions is a good way to remind myself about my follow through goal.  I have really practiced catching the racquet all week.  On my backhand, which is one handed, I should concentrate on following up and out and mirroring that motion on my off hand.  He is not adamant about me changing my backhand because he said my style is unique and that he hates to mess with it.

4/3/11--Lesson With Suzette--Mixed Doubles

S. thinks the key to mixed doubles is the serve, the return of serve and the third ball following these two shots.  On a second serve, placement is really important.  A softer serve to to middle of the box is just not going to work.  The serve should be angled and/or deep.  There are two logical returns of the serve:  a rally ball or a extremely angled ball.  It is important to not return a high ball over the middle.  Your cross court will cross the middle but it needs to be low so that it is not poached.  Don't forget to step into the return and split step as the server hits the ball. 

Lessons Yesterday And Today

3/23/11--Lesson With J.--Inside Out


Inside out means hitting from the inside of the court to the outside of the court.  A properly hit inside out ball is hard for the returner to hit down the line.  Hitting inside out requires you to get a good shoulder turn and to space yourself away from the ball.  For singles, hit a wide shorter ball.  For doubles, hit the inside out deep.  It is not important to hit a hard paced ball.  Placement is more important.


3/24/11--Lesson With K.--Drop Shots and Returning A Drop Shot In Singles


The drop shot doesn't have to just barely clear the net, but it needs to be within the service box, either down the line or cross court.  It is a very strategic shot when playing against a "pusher".  A"pusher" doesn't go for winners but just calmly returns shots, usually pushing you from corner to corner.  "pushers" like to hit from the baseline and don't like to have to come up and take a shorter shot.  To return a wide drop shot, run forward with your arm ahead of you as if you have a dog on a leash bounding ahead of you.  Push through the ball holding the racquet with a continental grip and aim down the line.  This puts you in a good spot to volley the next shot.

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.

The High Volley

1/19/2011--Lesson with J.


Don't take a high volley as a low overhead.  The high volley is a...high volley.  Use continental grip (just like with a regular volley) and when taking the shot concentrate on not breaking your wrist.  Maybe it's better to just say to keep a firm wrist since it would not ever be logical to break your wrist which would involve a cast and would interfere with playing tennis and of course, executing the high volley.  But I digress...


You take a high volley like a lower volley, except that you need to be spaced farther away from the ball.  If you take the ball too close to you, the racquet will be in the wrong position and you will be swinging in a downward direction and the ball will slam into the net.  You can take a low volley close to you and a mid-range volley with an intermediate distance between you and the ball.  But a high volley needs spacing away from your body.


When the ball comes sailing high over the net right where you want to make a lovely, high volley, frequently that juicy ball gets slammed into the net.  The common strategy seems to be "WW" which means wait and whack.  Instead of moving to where you should be, it is common that the player just stands and waits and then whacks it into the net.  This is not a good idea.

Singles Serving Placement

1/13/10--Singles Lesson With K.


When serving in doubles, it is often a good idea to serve down the "T".  In singles, it is good to serve out wide.  The next shot should be to the other corner.  Establish this pattern early in the match and later change it up.


K. told me that I am contacting the ball behind me.  I need to focus on getting the ball out in front.

Lesson With J.-- Firing A Cannon From A Canoe

Today we started with a long warm up.  Our task was to hit cross court and keep the ball going for at least 10 times over the net.  At first, this was hard for me since I have a habit of hitting with a lot of pace.  As time went on, it got easier and easier.  Later while we were playing, I had a lot more control over the ball than I usually do.  This would be a great warm up before an important match.


Here are J's pearls of wisdom:

Lesson With J.  1/12/11
Hitting a ball without balancing up is like shooting a cannon from a canoe.  You can shoot the cannon but your aim might not be very accurate.

To get ready for returning serve, first adjust your shoulders.  That is the main part of the return of serve.  Then you can adjust the backstroke depending on the served ball.  There are three positions of backstroke.  Take less of a backstroke the harder the ball is hit to you.


Are you a good winter driver?  If you are, you know that you have to adjust for driving on ice patches.  If you get to an ice patch, do you put the pedal to the metal?  If you don't adjust to the ice patch, you are going to have a collision. A good driver adjusts the speed to match the driving conditions.  This is the way it is with playing tennis.  If you get a ball hit to you, you need to adjust to that ball.  J. told me a few weeks ago that sometimes I go 70 mph in a 45 mph zone.


Bending your knees while you are playing is like anchoring your boat.


Consider physics with regard to tennis.  Many players hit straight through the ball but physics dictate that you need to hit up on the ball.  A bouncing ball is coming down, then up.  To return the ball, you need to hit from low to high.  If you hit straight through the ball, it will go into the net.


So today, has overtones of boating, driving and physics class.

The First Week of 2011--Tennis 8 0r 9 Times--This Should Be A Good Year!

 I try to take three lessons a week and play three to five other times during the week.  I have been taking lessons for a decade and I am still hearing some of the same things I heard ten years ago.  I think if I write down the lesson ideas, it may help me incorporate the information so that I can execute the ideas instead of just memorizing the ideas.  If I write down the pluses and minuses of my tennis play, I may be able to see a pattern or coach myself to improve.  I have another blog www.lifehasitsupsanddowns.com which has to do with breast cancer and tennis, but this is just about tennis.  I like tennis better than I like cancer.

1/5/2011--Lesson with J.
1.  Warm up with a mid-pace ball so that you can get into the timing of hitting.
2.  When coming up on an approach shot,  approach from the side of the ball at an adequate distance away from the ball.
3.  React the opposite of the ball on difficult balls.  When a really hard shot is coming, just meet the ball with the racquet.  Take less of a back stroke responding to hard hit ball.
4.  If you are tossing the ball wildly on the serve and it is not going where you want it to go, toss more slowly and release higher up from the ground.  Think about the position of the arm on the Statue of Liberty when you are tossing the ball for the serve.
5.  Don't break your wrist on volleys. 
6.  To get away from the ball to hit it properly, quicken your footwork.  
7.  Don't be afraid to make errors.  
8.  When communicating with your partner, you might say something that you think is helpful but the comment can be taken wrong.  Be supportive but know if your partner would rather you not say anything at all.  When playing a mixed doubles match with your husband, never critique him.  Spouses should take separate cars to a mixed doubles match.  (I think this was said in jest, but it might be a great idea.)
9. (From yesterday's lesson with K.) When taking an approach shot, take the ball on the rise and be sure to space yourself away from the ball.  then get your strings up to be ready to take the next volley.

Today--1/6/11--Singles Lesson With K.

1. Singles is different from doubles in that you don't need to aim away from the net player since you only have one opponent.  
2.  Start the match with a pattern.  Serve out wide and then change direction on the next ball to the opposite court.  
3.  Don't let up on my serve until my opponent proves that she can crush the ball.


4.  Keep my hand up longer on my ball toss.