Help Kindly Requested on Junior Player

[hockeyscout]

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[hockeyscout]

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[GeoffWilliams]

He needs to work on his strength: his serve: more chest coil so he can roll it more. More of a sense of driving into the ground to get more power up. More reach back with his shoulder, external rotation. More back arch, to produce a higher elbow at drop. More toss control, so as he goes long, just toss forwards more, and if into net, more back a bit. More forearm pronation, and a faster hand speed.


Ed W should: do this in a serve drill: tell him to "toss forwards" for a first serve, and "toss back" for second serve, and don't tell him bh or fh, until the kid reaches trophy, and only then say, "Back hand" or: :"Forehand" and prep him by telling him which part of the ball to pronate to for fh or bhs..

[tennis_chiro]

The Walking Drill

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tennis_chiro...can you add anything to those drills above. Once you mentioned that you had another variation. East coast tennis_chiro...do you copy!!!

One of the great drills Jerry Alleyne taught me was the "Walking Drill". The key skill in moving to the net is how much you can continue to close as the ball comes to you. Most people get that they have to stop or pause or at least gather themselves (split-step or "float-step") as the opponent hits the ball and that they should come to a stop as they hit the ball, but very few understand how to use the time after the split-step to continue to close and get as close as possible for their volley or next shot (there are times when it is really better to let the ball bounce than force yourself to get in and end up playing the ball from well below the net, but that is a separate issue). Most players get to the split-step, recognize the side of their next shot and put the opposite side foot down first and then set across and into their next volley. That's fine when the ball is driven back sharp and that's all there is possibly time for, but the great players manage to find time to get in another step, or even two or three if the ball is floating. The speed of the situation hides the importance of this little step or two.

So in a similar vein to the drills of don_budge, "the walking drill" has two players rally slow to medium paced balls down the center of the court. One of them takes off for the net, but walking. He must try to get to the net and back to the baseline in as few balls as possible, playing whatever ball he gets regardless of whether it is a groundstroke, volley or half-volley. "Play the ball. Don't let the ball play you."

I can do this drill and get up to the net and back on 7 or 8 balls, walking, and stopping for every shot off my racket as well as off my opponents. I can do that because after I stop to see my partner's shot hit, I continue in to the net as the ball comes to me and get as close as I can while still stopping to execute a calm shot myself. Most people, even pretty good players, will execute this drill hitting their shots and then moving forward, walking remember, but when they stop for the partner's shot, they will only turn right or left to hit the next ball and fail to move forward to intercept the ball as it comes to them. It will take them many more balls to make the round trip.

Going backward is totally unrealistic. It is not a skill you need, but it forces you to feel the advantage of using the time when the ball is coming to you.

Of course, once you master the concept, it is easy enough to turn it up to full speed movement where the net rusher can actually run between shots. But I like the mental aspect emphasized by the "walking drill". I thought Jimmy Connors and then Andre Agassi were the best at taking the ball early after the bounce, but no one was close in the 50 years I've been watching tennis to John McEnroe when it came to using the time he had to close and get to the net. Others were quicker, had better technique, better reach, but no one closed in that moment after the split-step as well as Johnny Mac; can't think of anyone who had better feel at the net either. There were certainly people who hit their volleys crisper than he did, but his ability to intercept balls and knock them off for winners (or drop them off for winners) was unparalleled in at least the last 45 years when I've had a good look at it.

All that aside, I have to tell you, I don't think this young man's problems are with his volley technique. There are lots of bits and pieces to his technique that have to get better including that low elbow on the serve, but for him to get to the next level in his development he needs to improve his ability to just "get in the fight". Certainly, the kinds of things hockeyscout is talking about with improving athleticism would make a huge difference to him. But he has to find a way to "engage his opponent" in the battle. I don't think Nastase ever thought about technique. He just ran around the court and made the ball do things. Very few have that kind of talent, but you have to get to the point where you just "run around the court and make the ball do things" without thinking about technique. Adopt some kind of a strategy or tactic and then commit to trying to make it work.

I haven't had time to make a good contribution here to this post, but I have really enjoyed hearing all the different voices chiming in. Afraid I don't see anything special in Dimitrov's footwork, except that it is mostly lacking in today's play and effort to jump into the ball. Dimitrov sets his plant foot almost parallel to the baseline (putting him in a good position to use his hips and shoulders) and then he gets his weight forward with or without a step before really making his final swing at the ball with his head almost completely still. For me this is absolutely classic tennis technique. No load and explode. No jumping forward into the shot. Just simple take your position, get your weight solid at your pivot point and swing through the shot. Ed's student is muscling the ball too much, I think partly in an effort to "get his legs into the shot", etc. He needs to swing freely as he does in the video when he goes through hockeyscout's "no racket" drill. If he would swing freely with the kind of body motion he is exhibiting there, half his problems would be solved. The boy loses the feel of the racket head as it passes the unit turn position and gets almost all the way back before he makes a big effort with his arm. I'd like to see a swing that is initiated from the end position of his unit turn and initiated primarily by his core with the arm just going along for the ride. I told Ed more medicine ball throws with the forehand motion and the "drop" (also includes the SSC, but that's hard to do with the medicine ball, except we think of the SSC occurring primarily in the forearm and I try to think of it including the entire kinetic chain back to the core; you almost need the weight of the medicine ball to feel that if you are trying to learn it).

Enough.

don

[stotty]

All that aside, I have to tell you, I don't think this young man's problems are with his volley technique. There are lots of bits and pieces to his technique that have to get better including that low elbow on the serve, but for him to get to the next level in his development he needs to improve his ability to just "get in the fight".

Adopt some kind of a strategy or tactic and then commit to trying to make it work.

don

Yes, there is something lacking in his mental approach. That's very visible. Giving him a strategy to go into matches with would seem a good idea. It would give him something hang onto in a crisis too.

But it's hard to teach kids how to win. They have to go and figure it out for themselves. Some are natural winners, some have to learn how to win.

The boy is sixteen. The low elbow should have gone by now. I have no doubt he has been told and worked on it. And this was my question earlier. How dedicated is he to work on a problem like that? With a dedicated student, that problem can be dealt reasonably swiftly...unless he is an uncoachable type, which he doesn't seem.

[10splayer]

The serve is a bit of a problem. This is about as extreme a case of a "staggered start" delivery as one will ever see, and I think Bobby and Stotty are point on in there advice...

The difficulty with this trophy position, is that it makes it incredible difficult to sync the leg drive with the arm progressions...In your students case, the legs are still "driving up/extending" as the racquet is "moving up". A big, big, no no. A common denominator with all great servers (regardless of delivery style) is that the legs begin to drive at the entry of the back, and arrive at full extenstion when the racquet is at it's low point....


"Working" on the "leg drive" is moot until there is a better marriage between these to elements...Finding a little less demanding trophy position would be helpful in this endeavor IMO...

[hockeyscout]

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[hockeyscout]

Food intake?

One request for Ed - can you track what this boy is eating and give us a breakdown? Does he know his blood type? This is pretty important, and number one, he won't get better if he's using the wrong fuel. He will sputter and burn out.

[bobbyswift]

Looking at forehand from side I would not emphasize extension but internal rotation. From the rear you will see why. Not one forehand of the group jumps higher than your ball machine. His ball is descending at that point no energy rising. Bruce Elliott advice on internal rotation is his elbow should point outward vigorously. His forearm should pronate and his wrist should radial deviate. Especially for his heavy ball that he appears to be trying to hit.

[bobbyswift]

Looking at slice backhand. Would have him look at the use of the left hand on a pro player. The left hand has such opposite force that you can see the player squeezing their scapula. The follow thru of pro tennis is much different than his. Players are coming down but across their bodies . When filming from side I was really surprised by how drastic this can be seen. Again go to stroke archive.

[EdWeiss]

To everyone a heartfelt thanks and keep the ideas coming!

Kyle - thanks for the nice words on my home court. I have spent so many satisfying hours on it over the years with my students.

To answer at least some of the questions:
- The student is coachable. He listens and tries to implement the coaching ideas.
- Yes I have certainly mentioned and worked on some of the items mentioned such as the low elbow on the serve and the straight arm on the serve. We get it better but then he can slide and go back to the less than ideal habits. Getting the feedback from the contributors is great as it 1) is a clear message to the student about the importance of these things and 2) is a clear message to the coach (me) that the coachneeds to be ever vigilant and do what I can to stop any backsliding.
- the comment about a sometimes lack of energy or intensity is legitimate. The student and I have had many conversations on that score. I will say that overall his attitude and work ethic have steadily improved.
- Stotty's comments about needing to learn how to win are spot on. An age old problem for many players. Learning to really fight is part of it but so is having a better game plan. Suggestions welcome. The student has confidence in his ability which is at least a start.
- I do not know his blood type but will ask.
-we worked today on the low elbow I'm the serve using some of Don Brosseau's corrective techniques. On a number of serves there was real improvement: easy power" on a number of them. I will get a video posted.
-hockeyscout your enthusiasm and willingness to be of assistance are greatly appreciated.
-Steve N. - we have actually used some of your drills and they are helpful. When I retread your posts I realized that my administering of them could be better ( for example making sure to emphasize the student using variety of shot ands depth).
I will get to more of the questions over the weekend.

Again a big thank you!

[klacr]

Ed,

Thank you for the opportunity. Your willingness to share your student with us speaks volumes of your ability and confidence in us as well as the genuine care and investment into your student.


"A good coach will make his players see what they can be rather than what they are" - Ara Parseghian

Good luck to your student on his development. It's a long term process. Always was, always will be.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[tennis_chiro]

Good pickup, Bobbyswift

Looking at slice backhand. Would have him look at the use of the left hand on a pro player. The left hand has such opposite force that you can see the player squeezing their scapula. The follow thru of pro tennis is much different than his. Players are coming down but across their bodies . When filming from side I was really surprised by how drastic this can be seen. Again go to stroke archive.

That's a good point, bobbyswift, but it's a good thing. He's been taught for at least 2 years now, and I think more, that he needs both a Rosewallian and a Federerian (the more common downward and across stroke you are referencing) slice in his repertoire. What you are seeing there is a hybrid of the two with a lot more "stick" on the ball than he would get in the normal defensive slice drive you see employed most of the time by today's players who can hit a slice. Of course, I'm in the minority that still think the Rosewallian slice is effective against today's players, if you know how to hit it. Most don't have the option. I'm pretty sure he can hit down on the ball more (and across partly as a result) if he is faced with a deep, high bouncing ball or an appropriate defensive situation. But the fact that he can hit "the knife" and really lean on that slice drive aggressively when he gets the opportunity is a huge advantage; in fact, I'd like to see him level the stroke out even a little more on balls that are sitting there for him and make it look even more like Rosewall and more agressive. That still left shoulder is a critical part of driving the ball and in a couple of those shots he is leaning on it beautifully.

Yes, you are right to be pointing out the difference Bobbyswift, but OMG, I think the pros should be copying him and trying to develop the shot he is demonstrating right there. If as we are told, it is not possible to execute the shot against heavy top, he will adapt and come down more on the ball; but the fact that he keeps that shoulder still and holds his line of drive on the target will enable him to "lean" on the ball and hit an effective slice even if he does end up having to hit down on it a little more.

from about 2:30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsVgRFVjafg

don

[stotty]

Ed,

Here is a clip of a boy who I have recently taken on. He is 12. He has a chronic low elbow flaw on his serve. I quickly put together a video today of the process I use to help to clear up this kind of problem.

It's painstaking stuff, and other coaches may have quicker techniques, but I never fail to get there with this method.

As you pointed out yourself, being vigilant is often the key to good coaching. You cannot be soft on kids or they will lapse. It's hard not to empathise with them when you see them struggle with things like this, but if you slacken the reins they will never get there.

The sound quality is poor and I could have put the sequence together better, but you'll get the idea.

The very first serve he delivers is his actual serve at the present moment...the rest of the clip is process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_gATEE_1qI

[EdWeiss]

Thanks Stotty. When I click on the video it says "private"