An engineer overthinks tennis in a daily journal.
I have a complicated relationship with my Spinshot Player Ball Machine. It was purchased because I needed something that could deliver a precise series of shot patterns. When the machine is fully programmed and tuned, it does that very well. In fact the word I use to describe that state is nirvana. However, anyone considering purchasing a Spinshot should be aware that it takes considerable tinkering to get to that point.
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Last week the USTA Official Facebook page shared a link with a survey targeting tennis players in the 18-39 age demographic. Discussion on Facebook was spirited… and mostly from people who were over 40 who were miffed at being excluded. According to the Facebook request, “The USTA is conducting a focus group to better understand what, how, and when tennis players in this demographic want to play.” As my family consistently reminds me, I passed 40 a very long time ago. However, in the true Fiend at Court spirit, I have some thoughts. Let’s regard this as my focus group of 1.
I am in lockstep agreement with first item listed in the USTA Long Term Strategic Plan. “Attract, engage, and retain new generations of diverse tennis participants.” This weekend I have been examining how difficult it is for beginning players to engage in the tennis ecosystem. #NationalTennisMonth is a perfect example of how tennis promotion tends to be isolated within a tennis echo-chamber. Surely we don’t think that the non-tennis community follows tennis organizations on twitter in any great numbers. Right…?
The USTA Strategic Initiatives unveiled in 2020 includes the imperative of providing positive experiences to new players who are experiencing tennis for the first time. As a sport with a steep learning curve, it is essential to get new players engaged with quality information and instruction on how to play the sport. It shouldn’t be hard for a player new to tennis to discover opportunities to engage with professional instruction, but it is. Tennis needs to rethink how it presents itself in the modern era.
It is intuitively obvious that every single person who actively plays tennis had that moment when someone pressed a racquet into their hands and they took their first swing at a ball. In other words, everybody was a beginner once upon a time. Even Roger Federer didn’t emerge from the womb with his elegant one-handed backhand. Additionally, it is highly likely that Federer missed the first time he took a cut at the ball. In observance of #NationalTennisMonth, today’s topic is how beginners can get started in tennis.
I own a lot of books about how to play tennis doubles. In a confession that will not surprise anyone who has ever played doubles with me, until this week… I had yet to read any of them from cover to cover. That just changed. Yesterday I finished reading “The Art of Doubles: Winning Tennis Strategies & Drills” by Pat Blaskower. This book led me to the revelation that I have essentially never drilled specifically for doubles. It blows my mind.
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The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has stewardship over the Rules of Tennis. There is a process for changing the rules and updates are made on a fairly regular basis. Did you know that until 1961 the player delivering the service had to keep one foot on the ground? The elimination of that requirement was a rule change that materially changed the play of the game. Sometimes updates to the rules emerge from technology advancements. The entire Player Analysis Technology is full of examples of recently added rules and restrictions.
Tennis ball machines hold a special place in my heart. I personally own two full fledged ball machines as well as a toy that has been repurposed to effectively work as a ball machine. My local tennis club has a commercial grade ball machine that I also frequently use. I love them all. I have decided to write about them in order of acquisition which means that my Lobster Elite 2 which was purchased back in 2009 is the first out of the chute.
The USTA sent an email late last week promoting May as #NationalTennisMonth. That message did not go out to all USTA members and the best guess is that it was directed toward tennis service providers. In fact, the links in the message are to a “Marketing Generator” that tennis service providers can use. The marketing generator is basically a set of templates for the USTA Net Generation program. A service provider can edit these templates to add their own logo and facility information. The finished products are available for download which means that it is up to the service providers to contract printing services.
This weekend I have been pitching ideas for tennis themed reality shows into the ether. To round out weekend, I have one more proposal. The idea is pretty simple. Bring back the Reality TV quiz show “Cash Cab” picking up passengers from tennis tournaments and asking questions relating exclusively about tennis. It might not inspire anyone to pick up a racquet, but it would certainly be entertaining.