An engineer overthinks tennis in a daily journal.
For tennis players that are committed to improving their technique, there is no better tool than video review. That means that devices to support and enhance video collection make terrific gifts for tennis players. This is a summary of my top recommendations for 2021.
Tennis News You Can Use Andy Murray was prominent in the news this week, first by playing “lost and found” with his wedding ring andRead More
This weekend the “Unplugged” themed posts continues to expand on points of feedback that I recently submitted to the USTA Adult Competition Committee. (ACC) A lot of women in the Senior Tennis Community are currently doing the same thing. The declining participation in tournament tennis coupled with recent USTA “innovations” exacerbating the problem has brought us to a precipice. Point #4 advocates that the scoring format in the main draw for National Level 1 (and really 2, and 3) tournaments should always be a full 3 sets.
Arguably no player has benefitted more from the Coco Gauff effect than Caty McNally. Though she is currently ranked 110, she gets more tennis broadcast screen time than many other American women currently in the WTA top 100. The reason for that attention is quite simple. She is Coco Gauff’s doubles partner. One very positive side effect of Coco mania is that the tennis broadcasting industry has suddenly rediscovered that doubles is a thing.
This is the penultimate post on the rules of wheelchair tennis. Today we are discussing the fact that if a player is unable to propel the wheelchair via the pushrrim, then it is permissible to use one foot to move the chair around the court. This cannot possibly be more efficient than pushrim propulsion. That is probably why it is generally allowed.
There is a cliché in chess, “Every Russian schoolboy knows…” The phrase refers to the fundamental knowledge of chess tactics and strategy that everybody is expected to understand. “Every Russian schoolboy knows…” is even used as the title of a popular chess training series. So…what does the game of chess have to do with tennis? Nothing. And Everything. I have been thinking about the cultural concept captured by “Every Russian Schoolboy knows…” in the context of the USTA Player Development program.
Following an early morning training session this week, the FACSU thanked me for “the hit.” As soon as that innocuous phrase was uttered, it was clear that the tennis phrase “having a hit” had jumped to the start of the queue for the installment of “Tennis Vernacular” themed posts this weekend. That phrase was introduced and repeated as a recurring concept throughout Grace Lichtenstein’s “A Long Way Baby” book. I regarded it as an interesting turn of phrase, but not one that was in contemporary usage. As it turns out, apparently the FACSU uses it from time to time, albeit in a shortened format.
To the best of my recollection, I never encountered the term “treeing” back in the 70’s and 80’s when I was playing junior tennis. I was first exposed to the word and its meaning through the junior playing career of the Umpire I Gave Birth To. Consequently, I regarded the word as a distinctly modern term. “Treeing” in tennis occurs when a player rises above their normal skill level on a temporary basis. The most common usage of the term when I encounter it in the wild refers to a single shot. Treeing can also be exhibited for an extended duration spanning a few games or possibly even a set.
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The dawn of each Grand Slam tournament sparks a ritual in the Fiend at Court household. I say something along the lines of “It’s official. Nike has completely run out of attractive color combinations.” To which the Fiend at Court spousal unit replies “Please don’t buy me any of that.” Fun fact: Outside of league and tournament swag, almost the entirety of the Fiend at Court household’s tennis wardrobe has been gleaned from the clearance rack of one of the major online tennis retailers. We are experts in what is likely to eventually be offered at deep discount.
When mapping out books to cover during Black History month this year, Zina: My Life in Women’s Tennis was an immediate selection. Zina Garrison emerged from a public park’s program in Houston, which makes her book an obvious choice for a tennis blog sourced from Texas. Additionally, she was my Dad’s favorite player. It was a foregone conclusion that this book would come up pretty quickly in the rotation.