Shot Selection

The April 12 Gifts “Challenge” is to select one shot to add (or enhance) in your tennis arsenal. Today’s post is a primer on sources of ideas and information that can guide that selection. If you are struggling to identify your top tennis improvement priority, this post is for you.

I once organized an indoor drill for my tri-level team on a bad weather day leading into the tournament weekend. With a lot of players crammed onto a single court, cooperative drill play involving set shot patterns was designed to optimize that time. One of the drills that I had planned completely fell apart because two of the players were struggling to hit a lob in the prescribed set pattern sequence.

In fact, one of my teammates told me in exasperation that she doesn’t need to hit lobs in practice because she can’t hit a lob and thus never hits a lob in a match. That statement was from one of the higher NTRP rated players on the tri-level team. My astonished reaction was twofold: 1) I need to remember to crowd the net the next time I play against her, and 2) Girlfriend, you need to learn to hit a lob.

If you have ever managed to overhear a scouting report on yourself, it was probably rife with development opportunities. I have experienced that a few times during league play. The phrase “drop shot” with an expletive is a pretty good indication that the conversation is about me. I once heard that phrase immediately followed by “no backhand whatsoever.” That insight prompted me to focus on improving that shot.

Even if you have never overheard your own scouting report, there is a pretty direct way to gain that information. Ask. Your league teammates and doubles partners are likely harboring a wealth of external observations of your opportunities for improvement. I have also found that my tournament opponents are a good source of data and are usually happy to share it.

In 2022, I have been writing about keeping written notes in a Player Development Journal derived from the one published by the USTA Player Development program. That exercise has produced a litany of developmental opportunities for myself. Some actions that have emerged from that effort are decidedly short-term. However, long term trends have clearly also emerged.

Here is a summary of my four previous posts on the Player Development Journal:

• The USTA Player Development Journal. Introduces the and gives a little more history on the “Playing Styles” section of the document.
• Post-Practice Evaluation. Describes the customizations that I made to the Practice Evaluation Worksheet that work for me. (Includes downloadable form.)
• Post-Match Evaluation. Describes the customizations that I made to the Post-Match Evaluation Worksheet. (Includes downloadable form.)
• I Love It When a Plan Comes Together. How the Post-Match Evaluation worksheet made a difference in matches I played on two consecutive weekends.

Tomorrow I will will wrap up this theme by enumerating off-court training opportunities that might be considered for this challenge in lieu of working on specific shots and tactical play.

Todays banner photo was taken by Dianne Lee at the National Senior Women’s Clay Court Championships a couple of weeks ago. Just look at all the information being exchanged.