Marginal Gains: Part 1

[stotty]

I'm not big on politics at all, but I could also write extensively about my views! To compromise, I will just say that as much as I don't like him, I'm with Boris. It needs to get done, and the country needs to move on, the disruption has caused so much damage already. Stotty I'm sure has his own views,

I am staunch remainer yet voted for Boris. I can't stand the man but that was the dichotomy I was faced with. I couldn't vote for an extremist like Corbyn so had to do the unthinkable and vote for a Brexit prime minister instead. Swinson is a complete amateur and the notion of revoking article 50 just flies in the face of democracy...the brexiteers won and that's the end of it.

So on the basis I must respect the referendum result, and couldn't possibly countenance a Corbyn government, I had to vote for bumbling Boris. You have no idea how painful that was.

[nickw]

That's great! johnyandell...I can certainly appreciate your reticence in taking up the political again. Of course I respect your agreement in this case as I remember the last go round with the infamous thread that hockeyscout started..."Donald Trump for President?". But both stotty and nickw did make somewhat oblique comments about an upcoming political event that is going to have ramifications on an epic scale for many years to come. Perhaps no event since the collapsing of the Berlin Wall has been as monumental. I may be exaggerating or seemingly exaggerating but I live in Europe now and this transcends even politics. It is at the core of culture.

nickw...I haven't read your article yet but since you were man enough to respond I most certainly will. You earned my respect with your response and trust me it wouldn't have mattered which way you responded. I find it fascinating what is going on in other parts of the world and read rather much on these events. Since we have a couple of Brits on board here it is even more fascinating to get a glimpse of what is going on in their noodles. As I said...this is bigger that politics. It is about culture.

Much as tennis is about culture. Tennis often metaphors life and the times surrounding it. I have witnessed truly epic changes in both the world and the world of tennis. I have opinions about the game of tennis too. Believe me, it is ok to agree or disagree as it makes little difference with me either way. I just want to hear others opinions.

I would just like to say to the two of you...best regards to you and your loved ones. Have a wonderful Holiday and a wonderful Christmas. These are perilous times now. Buckle your seat belts. Today is a big day in Great Britain. Brexit is on the line. If it falls...will there be a domino effect?

Fascinating video though with Boris Johnson. I wonder if Boris is Swedish from his ancestry. Many Swedish names are in the form of the first name of the father and combined with "son". The Swedish name for Johnson would be "Johnsson" as in "John's Son". There that didn't hurt did it? We are all gentlemen here...I hope. At least I know the Brits are. They are renowned for that sort of thing! At least traditionally speaking.

Thank-you don_budge, and wishing you and your loved ones the very best too, for a happy and peaceful holidays. I respect what you say, and already respect you from all the many contributions you've made on the forum for many many years. For us in the UK, it's time to move on, and make the best of the new situation. For others invested in the outcome, it's time for the same. Let's see. I look forward to your views on my article too.

[don_budge]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...ture=emb_title

nickw...any reaction to this youtube video?

I'm not big on politics at all, but I could also write extensively about my views! To compromise, I will just say that as much as I don't like him, I'm with Boris. It needs to get done, and the country needs to move on, the disruption has caused so much damage already. Stotty I'm sure has his own views, as we all do here in UK. Let's try and not divert too much from the tennis though!

Agreed.

That's great! johnyandell...I can certainly appreciate your reticence in taking up the political again. Of course I respect your agreement in this case as I remember the last go round with the infamous thread that hockeyscout started..."Donald Trump for President?". But both stotty and nickw did make somewhat oblique comments about an upcoming political event that is going to have ramifications on an epic scale for many years to come. Perhaps no event since the collapsing of the Berlin Wall has been as monumental. I may be exaggerating or seemingly exaggerating but I live in Europe now and this transcends even politics. It is at the core of culture.

nickw...I haven't read your article yet but since you were man enough to respond I most certainly will. You earned my respect with your response and trust me it wouldn't have mattered which way you responded. I find it fascinating what is going on in other parts of the world and read rather much on these events. Since we have a couple of Brits on board here it is even more fascinating to get a glimpse of what is going on in their noodles. As I said...this is bigger that politics. It is about culture.

Much as tennis is about culture. Tennis often metaphors life and the times surrounding it. I have witnessed truly epic changes in both the world and the world of tennis. I have opinions about the game of tennis too. Believe me, it is ok to agree or disagree as it makes little difference with me either way. I just want to hear others opinions.

I would just like to say to the two of you...best regards to you and your loved ones. Have a wonderful Holiday and a wonderful Christmas. These are perilous times now. Buckle your seat belts. Today is a big day in Great Britain. Brexit is on the line. If it falls...will there be a domino effect?

Fascinating video though with Boris Johnson. I wonder if Boris is Swedish from his ancestry. Many Swedish names are in the form of the first name of the father and combined with "son". The Swedish name for Johnson would be "Johnsson" as in "John's Son". There that didn't hurt did it? We are all gentlemen here...I hope. At least I know the Brits are. They are renowned for that sort of thing! At least traditionally speaking.

[johnyandell]

Agreed.

[nickw]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...ture=emb_title

nickw...any reaction to this youtube video?

I'm not big on politics at all, but I could also write extensively about my views! To compromise, I will just say that as much as I don't like him, I'm with Boris. It needs to get done, and the country needs to move on, the disruption has caused so much damage already. Stotty I'm sure has his own views, as we all do here in UK. Let's try and not divert too much from the tennis though!

[don_budge]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=106&v=nj-YK3JJCIU&feature=emb_title

nickw...any reaction to this youtube video?

[nickw]

Thanks very much Stotty. It's a shame Screaming Lord Sutch is no longer with us, as I think this could have been his time!

I'm hoping later articles will also offer solutions for those with old-style games, and those with guile and precision rather than power. I do want the series to be relevant to all levels of the game, and all game-styles, so hopefully we'll get some good discussion going around these variations.

[stotty]

Great article, Nick. You make me proud to be British...or whatever we are going to be after 12 December. Personally I'd rather give my vote to Santa Claus.

Small margins make all the difference there is no doubt about that.

Good comments by rthodges. The serve is the main set up shot for many players. Roger hits a first serve to a corner of the service box then peels away to belt a forehand on the next shot. How many times have we seen that over the last 15 years? Slightly less obvious is Novak's return...deep down the middle.

It's slightly different if you are like me with an old school game...but more on this later.

[nickw]

Thanks for your comments rthodges, fully agree. I’m a big fan of Craig’s work.

The series will get to serving and returning further in, and break that down between 1st serve, 2nd serve, 1st serve return, and 2nd serve return. The start of the point is so important so we’ll be covering all the plans you need to find a few more % in each situation.

[johnyandell]

rt,
Exactly. Goes hand in hand with Craig's work! And agree about the serve.

[rthodges]

I really enjoyed the article and how it was a practical application of Craig O’Shannessy’s concepts. The charts showing the setup shots for each top shot were a great addition in my opinion because of how easy it is to implement them into serve +1 and return +1 patterns. Sometimes I find strategy and pattern advice gets too complicated to accomplish its main goal: the player thinking 1-2 shots ahead and executing without hesitation.

On serve I think you can take this one step further and use the serve to mimic the setup shot. In the ad court my favorite serve +1 pattern in this manner is a serve out wide (same setup as an inside out forehand) and then hitting an inside out or inside in forehand to try and win the point. In the deuce court I like to hit lots of body serves (same setup as a cross court forehand) which usually either gives me a forehand to hit down the line or a short ball in the middle to attack. My returns need some serious work, I still block about 80% just down the middle.

[johnyandell]

Let's discuss Nick Wheatley's article, "Marginal Gains: Part 1"