Author Archives: tennisdevelopmentinnovation

To  a certain degree, the serve can be likened to a golf swing in that some variants while not technically correct can be effective due in part by your ability to repeat the motion and deliver a consistent and effective outcome that starts the point. The serve is complex on many fronts, even the mentalContinue reading “Tennis Serve Variants and Why They Matter”

Many challenges hinder our development in tennis and unfortunately the industry as a whole continues to lag behind other sports in developing methodologies that demonstrate proven metrics in advancements in technique, tactics and ultimately match play results. One glaring challenge is the lack of contextual teaching we have in the sport.  Static feeding dead ballsContinue reading “Contextual Teaching in Tennis”

A very common phrase offered to recreational tennis players is to tell them to not swing on volleys.  I hear this often in adult clinics, usually after a player bricks a volley into the net. “Don’t Swing”  If you’ve ever taken a clinic from local coach and legend Paul Graham, you probably hear this phraseContinue reading “Don’t Swing on your Volleys”

Is “hit more in front” the most common phrase coming out of the mouth of every tennis coach on the planet?  Is this really an epidemic that exists or is there a disconnect between players and coaches? Generally, the bulk of rec players are perpetually late with their contact and I think there are aContinue reading “Hit out in front…or not?”

Hyper-angulation isn’t something widely discussed within the context of the tennis serve however it is observed in rec tennis, competitive tennis and professional tennis.  The term hyper-angulation is related to the arm angle and shoulder joint at around the trophy position of the serve.  It is more of a concern for baseball pitchers that lagContinue reading “Hyper-angulation on the tennis serve”

The game is changing.  Video content is pervasive at high speeds and new tools on YouTube allow you to watch full speed videos in slow motion and even frame-by-frame. The tools needed today will likely change tomorrow but here is a list of things that I have on hand for video analysis. 4 tripods.  1-standardContinue reading “Analysis Tools for Tennis Development”

Very common is the downward shoulder tilt from non-dominant side to hitting side at preparation and right up to contact on the modern tennis forehand.  You will see this with many advanced players and at varying incoming ball heights.  This shoulder tilt provides a foundation to swing in an upward and across path to generateContinue reading “Shoulder Tilt on the Tennis groundstroke”