Heading into New Year’s Eve last year, I shared 12 “Gifts” that people can give themselves to improve the quality of their tennis life. Each of these items is a tennis related life hack shamelessly adapted from a cybersecurity career development webinar that I once delivered. In 2022, I am taking an in-depth look at each one of those items on first Friday of each month. The “Gift” for April is new tennis skills.
The most successful tennis players are lifetime learners. The reason for that is because there is no such thing as total mastery in the sport. No matter how well a person plays the game of tennis, there is always someone who can do it just a little bit better. Even for the handful of professionals that ascend to #1 in the world rankings, there always a cadre of rivals working tirelessly to overtake them.
Tennis players who have not mastered the fundamental shots in tennis compete at a significant disadvantage. As long as the player on the other side of the net can see past the tip of their own nose, any weaknesses in tennis fundamentals will be immediately exposed and persecuted.
There isn’t a player in the world that doesn’t need new tennis skills. Even beyond the basic shots, there are subtle variations to each of those strokes. For example, a backhand can be hit flat, with slice, or with topspin. Additionally, the ball may be played to distinct regions of the court, such as deep corners, sharp angles, or lobbed. The variations are endless.
The most advanced players use shots in combination for maximum advantage. One classic pattern is the serve plus one. For example a wide serve can be used to open the court for a second shot to the opposite corner. The players that have the most options in the toolbox have a strategic advantage in match play.
The challenge for April is to pick one shot that you want to to develop or enhance this year. For maximum effect you should create a written roadmap for developing and refining the shot including the developmental actions that will be taken each week for the remainder of 2022
It is an investment worth making and your future self will thank you for the effort. Tomorrow I will continue this theme with some ideas on how to pick the one shot to develop or enhance. On Sunday I will enumerate off-court activities that could also be selected to elevate a player’s competitive level. (I need something to focus on since I am likely to be in a walking boot for another 8 weeks or so.)
