Developing the Components

Component Development Process

Developing a linear interval

Moving the racquet in a straight line is unnatural. It is more natural to move the racquet in a circular motion. But this unreliable, unstable and uncontrollable at anything but very low speeds. Hence, you must learn to move the racquet in a straight line and you must learn to do it hitting balls. The lab phase of a tennis course is the time during which you work on targeted skill development such as linear interval training. The basic exercise is to hit balls from a closed stance. Start by dropping the ball and striking it with a very short stroke as seen in the rollover below.

 

Continue the exercise by dropping the ball farther in front and still striking it without moving your feet. The idea is to force yourself to extend the racquet forward in a straight line as far as possible.

 

 

Component Development Process

Developing a Ballistic Acceleration

A ballistic movement is a short burst of power. An illustration of a simple ballistic movement is seen in the video below. The exercise is to drop balls within close range (unlike the linear interval exercise) or to tie a ball on a string as in the video below and use the shortest burst possible to strike the ball. If you are on a court, it should be possible to stand half way between the service line and net and clear the net using a very short punching motion. Again, the exercise is to make this movement as short as possible. In contrast the linear interval exercise is to make the straight line interval as long as possible.

Click on image to see video

 

Component Development Process

Developing Acceleration

Basic acceleration precedes the ballistic acceleration. In this movement, the racquet is pulled forward by the butt from the shoulder and thrusts into the path of the ball as seen in the rollover images below.

Match Play Version Simplified Studio Version

The exercise is to develop the capability to execute this movement in about one frame of video, or 1/30 of a second. This would be top speed and is rarely seen. However, by training to achieve top speed your match speed will greatly increase.

With all exercises, first start by just hitting balls down the center of the court at a comfortable speed until you feel ready to increase the speed. Twenty minutes is a good warm up period, but five minutes is adequate for some players. Then gradually increase the speed of the exercise. To obtain higher and higher speeds you will find it necessary to hold you stomach muscles tighter and tighter to prevent loss of balance at the end of the stroke. Also you find it necessary to maintain balance by exerting force to offset rotational forces as the speed increases.

Component Development Process

Developing Rotation

High speed rotation is by far the hardest skill component to develop. It requires special attention, and as we have stated, using the medicine ball will not suffice to develop the level of core strength need to rally at high speeds.

The specific exercise we recommend is illustrated in the video below:

Full Rotation Exercise

Note that the feet do not move and complete balance is maintained throughout the stroke. The reason for this static position is that only by a completely static position is it possible to hit a ball at the highest speed. This is because that even very small imbalances in the body, or tilts in the body angle or other uncontrolled arm or shoulder movements will result in very large errors during high speed rallies. Our research has shown that as soon as a player begins to move, ball speeds drop. Hence, it is of the utmost importance that complete body control be maintained throughout the stroke.

Component Development Process

Developing the Contract Component

The contract component is developed by having an assistant hold your racquet by the tip as you pull it forward by the butt from the shoulder. An additional exercise suggested by EASI Tennis Pro Peter Apostle is to get in a swimming pool and pull the racquet forward by the butt. The water resistance prevents you from premature rotation as it is quite hard to rotate the racquet when the racquet is behind your body and submerged.

Simplified Studio Example Simplified Studio Example

The above rollover images show the contract stage simplified in the studio. The example earlier shows the contract stage executed on court.

Another exercise is suggested by Bollettieri. In his exercise an assistant holds their hands on each side of the racquet a few inches apart, not touching the racquet. The exercise is to pull the racquet forward without touching the assistants hands. Caution, if you do not pull from the full shoulder muscle, you may strain a tendon -- so proceed carefully!.

Component Development Process

Developing the Takeback Component

The takeback is a very subtle personal movement having a wide range of possibilities. A full circular takeback has little use today since it is basically unstable at high speeds. Thus the takeback has evolved into many forms. The most reliable forms are where the wrist position that will be used at contact is fixed early and is held fixed throughout the stroke and there is a stabilizing pause somewhere along the movement. There is no exercise for the takeback other than experimenting with various movements to see what works best.