Clay/Hard Court Sliding

[doctorhl]

Can anyone weigh in on clay and hard court sliding? Has anyone had experience with the Wilson Glide? I am clueless about clay court sliding and astounded by hard sliding like Novak.(I can vouch for what happens to the “sliding challenged” when playing on poorly watered soft courts!). Here is a 2018 open access research article on footwear sliding design: www.core.ac.uk. Type in: Critical Shoe Contact Area”

[bottle]

Would you care to summarize the article? I would do it-- only I got lost.

[doctorhl]

A good sliding shoe has pimples and dimples. The raised pimples help you slide. The pimples are placed on the heel for the heel slide. Pimples are placed on the inside edge of the forefoot when it then makes contact, especially for the hard court slide. A mixture of pimples and dimples are placed in the center of the forefoot to help you stop and reverse. The scientists were studying ratios of pimple to dimples patterns in the forefoot. The Wilson Guide has a thin layer of plastic slightly recessed under the rubber. Players said it made sliding easier on a hard court, but there was a learning curve. Another article mentioned significant differences in sliding friction and clay particle size. I think a well-watered soft court will slide significantly different from a dry one.

I just can’t find any info on technique and I hate to bust my butt or roll an ankle. This research came from Sheffield university. The Brits have always been ahead of us across the pond in regards to tennis sport science research. Another plus for a centralized sport ministry—-subsidized tennis research grant money.

[doctorhl]

Judging by the pimple pattern, I guess you slide on the inside edge like a ski, then at some point your foot rotates flat on the ground to bein the stop and reverse. I suppose someone will “wax the edges” one day.

[bottle]

Thanks for the translation.

[jperedo]

I was able to learn just through watching people do it on youtube. A few keys I've found to a successful slide:
-land on your heel then flatten the foot. Landing on your forefoot will cause your foot to get stuck
-get your weight back and down away from your lead foot/direction of the slide, kind of like you're sitting down. Notice how easy it is to slide your feet around when your are sitting on a bench.
-don't let your weight go past your lead knee, you'll break something
-there are a couple types of slides, there's the lunge slide typically used to reach drop shots and a lateral slide for baseline stops and the technique is slightly different
-hip rotation and flexibility seems important. There are some players like Hyeon Chung, Mackie Macondald and Kei Nishikori who seem to have really flexible hip rotators and are unreal at sliding
-being really warmed up seems to help alot

I only learned to slide in my 30's with average athleticism. I'm not a natural and couldn't slide on clay before I did some analysis of the technique. I'm able to do it easily on clay now, but hard court can be hit and miss depending on how my body feels and the particular court. I rarely try on hard court any more, I've had a few close calls with my foot getting caught especially on clean indoor courts. Dirty outdoor courts I find to be super easy.

John I'd love to see an article on this topic one of these days, perhaps with some sort of progression.

[stotty]

I was able to learn just through watching people do it on youtube. A few keys I've found to a successful slide:
-land on your heel then flatten the foot. Landing on your forefoot will cause your foot to get stuck
-get your weight back and down away from your lead foot/direction of the slide, kind of like you're sitting down. Notice how easy it is to slide your feet around when your are sitting on a bench.
-don't let your weight go past your lead knee, you'll break something
-there are a couple types of slides, there's the lunge slide typically used to reach drop shots and a lateral slide for baseline stops and the technique is slightly different
-hip rotation and flexibility seems important. There are some players like Hyeon Chung, Mackie Macondald and Kei Nishikori who seem to have really flexible hip rotators and are unreal at sliding
-being really warmed up seems to help alot

I only learned to slide in my 30's with average athleticism. I'm not a natural and couldn't slide on clay before I did some analysis of the technique. I'm able to do it easily on clay now, but hard court can be hit and miss depending on how my body feels and the particular court. I rarely try on hard court any more, I've had a few close calls with my foot getting caught especially on clean indoor courts. Dirty outdoor courts I find to be super easy.

John I'd love to see an article on this topic one of these days, perhaps with some sort of progression.

I spent my formative years playing on shale courts, which are similar to clay. Much of what you say is true. It's all about being balanced and getting comfortable with sliding.

Sliding on a hard court is a whole different ball game. You have to be moving really fast to even attempt it and it's only really doable on the full stretch. Novak is amazing at it. I am not sure when sliding on a hard court started but I imagine it's only in the past 10 or 15 years.

[nytennisaddict]

I spent my formative years playing on shale courts, which are similar to clay. Much of what you say is true. It's all about being balanced and getting comfortable with sliding.

Sliding on a hard court is a whole different ball game. You have to be moving really fast to even attempt it and it's only really doable on the full stretch. Novak is amazing at it. I am not sure when sliding on a hard court started but I imagine it's only in the past 10 or 15 years.

on worn outdoor courts, with slightly worn hardcourt sneakers, i can slide..
but when i see the pros doing it on grippy (eg. US Open courts right after the tournament), i'm amazed at the speed/strength/explosiveness they are showing to be able to break the coefficient of friction on a a grippy surface.

[stroke]

sliding on a hard court, breaking the "coefficient of friction" is probably not something that can be taught, kind of like height

[johnyandell]

Look at these:

https://www.tennisplayer.net/bulleti...t-slide?t=3047

https://www.tennisplayer.net/members/new_issue/2015/september/

These are things that happen not things you try to do

[doctorhl]

I was able to learn just through watching people do it on youtube. A few keys I've found to a successful slide:
-land on your heel then flatten the foot. Landing on your forefoot will cause your foot to get stuck
-get your weight back and down away from your lead foot/direction of the slide, kind of like you're sitting down. Notice how easy it is to slide your feet around when your are sitting on a bench.
-don't let your weight go past your lead knee, you'll break something
-there are a couple types of slides, there's the lunge slide typically used to reach drop shots and a lateral slide for baseline stops and the technique is slightly different
-hip rotation and flexibility seems important. There are some players like Hyeon Chung, Mackie Macondald and Kei Nishikori who seem to have really flexible hip rotators and are unreal at sliding
-being really warmed up seems to help alot

I only learned to slide in my 30's with average athleticism. I'm not a natural and couldn't slide on clay before I did some analysis of the technique. I'm able to do it easily on clay now, but hard court can be hit and miss depending on how my body feels and the particular court. I rarely try on hard court any more, I've had a few close calls with my foot getting caught especially on clean indoor courts. Dirty outdoor courts I find to be super easy.

John I'd love to see an article on this topic one of these days, perhaps with some sort of progression.

Thanks jperedo for the feedback. That was great!

[johnyandell]

Doctor, Only if it's about clay! Maybe you write it.

[doctorhl]

Look at these:

https://www.tennisplayer.net/bulleti...t-slide?t=3047

https://www.tennisplayer.net/members/new_issue/2015/september/

These are things that happen not things you try to do

Thanks! I should have researched the forum first and would have found your posts.

[johnyandell]

I could be wrong but at lower levels don't know why you would want to slide on hard--on clay sliding into the shot is normal.

[stotty]

I could be wrong but at lower levels don't know why you would want to slide on hard--on clay sliding into the shot is normal.

John, I have looked into this one quite a lot and a player has to be moving at sheer velocity for it to happen...and then it will happen naturally for many players. Most club players don't move at anything like that velocity and will simply snap a cartilage trying it. It is truly one of those things which is the reserve of the elite, save the odd explosive mover at lower levels.