Jay Berger - Anticipation

[jlkm2219]

A few words to describe this article: EXCELLENT!!!

I have a 16 y/o son who plays tennis (national ranked in Venezuela) and I found this article very useful to me (as father/coach) to help his development.

Bedst regards,

JK

[airforce1]

split step

Great Article on one of the most important aspects of Jr development!
Question for Jay though. I'm sure you have the research to back your point about being in the air when the ball is struck. I have found that, having landed and in compression at that point, seems to be quicker for me. Maybe I would be surprised if I had some good video of myself, but it seems logical as well that I would be able to spring towards the direction of the next ball an instant earlier from compression, as opposed to having to land, compress, then spring. Can you speak more on this and how you came to this conclusion?
thanks for the great article and keep em coming!
Chuck

[johnyandell]

Jay and I have discussed this, and the point to realize is that in a significant number of cases the top players are already turning the outside foot in the direction of the movement before they land. This was first discovered in the high speed footage shot at the U.S. Open in 1997 and studied at USTA Player Development.

[airforce1]

good point

Thanks John, this is just the kind of little thing that your site provides to help us all get better.
Having that foot already turned at landing probably facilitates that all important aspect of balance as you make that early move towards setting up your quality contact point!
thanks again,
Chuck