Risk Management

[johnyandell]

Let's get your thoughts on Nick Wheatley's new article, "Risk Management"

[stotty]

Good article...provokes thoughts of Bill Tilden.

The down the line option is a conundrum for youngsters for sure. I think it was Doug Eng that said the down the line is more difficult shot because it gets practiced less and used far less. He had a point. If 80 percent of the time players go cross court stands to reason they are going to get way more comfortable with it.

I like the notion that serve and volley is such a rarity that when occasionally done it always wins the point. I think Roger was hoping SABR would have the same effect.

I read an article recently about instead of cloning the latest top players' games, it might be better that upcoming players invent their own style and set about breaking convention. The game hasn't come up with anything particularly new in quite a while now. Someone needs to do something different. You don't beat Novak by playing like Novak...never going to happen. Gaston nearly did a good job of upending Thiem...two sets down then tried something mad and different, nearly pulled it off too.

Bill Tilden was an amazing student of the game and way ahead of his time when it comes to the psychology of playing points. In one of his books he breaks down the value of points and what he wrote back then all those years ago holds true today...no different. Very few have read Tilden's books but they are an astonishingly good read if one takes the time. Below are a few excerpts (the last one is my favourite...which Pat Cash threw out of the window in Wimbledon 1987):

"Take chances when you are behind, never when ahead. Risks are only worth while when you have everything to win and nothing to lose."

"The two crucial points in any game are the third and the fourth. If the first two points are divided for 15-all, the third means an advantage gained. If won by you, you should strive to consolidate it by taking the next for 40-15 and two chances for game, while if lost, you must draw even at 30 all to have an even chance for game. In order to do this, be sure to always put the ball in play safely, and do not take unnecessary chances, at 15-all or 30-15."

"In the game score the sixth seventh and eighth game are the crux of every close set. These games mean 4-2 or 3-all, 5-2 or 4-3 the most vital advantage in the match, or 5-3 or 4-all, a matter of extreme moment to a tiring player... 5-2 is too late to start a rally, but 4-3 is a real chance...

''The first set is vital in a 2 out of 3 match."

''The great advantage of 3-1 on your own service is a stumbling-block for many players, for they let up at the fifth game, thinking they have a 2 game lead''.

"Practice is played with the racquet, matches are won by the mind."

"Tennis psychology is nothing more than understanding the workings of your opponent's mind, and gauging the effect of your own game on his mental viewpoint, and understanding the mental effects on your own mind."

"It is seldom you need cover more than two-thirds of a tennis court, so why worry about the unnecessary portions of it?"

"The first and most important point in match play is knowing how to lose. Lose cheerfully, generously, and like a sportsman. This is the first great law of tennis, and the second is like unto it - to win modestly, cheerfully, generously and like a sportsman."

[don_budge]

"Take chances when you are behind, never when ahead. Risks are only worth while when you have everything to win and nothing to lose."

"The two crucial points in any game are the third and the fourth. If the first two points are divided for 15-all, the third means an advantage gained. If won by you, you should strive to consolidate it by taking the next for 40-15 and two chances for game, while if lost, you must draw even at 30 all to have an even chance for game. In order to do this, be sure to always put the ball in play safely, and do not take unnecessary chances, at 15-all or 30-15."

"In the game score the sixth seventh and eighth game are the crux of every close set. These games mean 4-2 or 3-all, 5-2 or 4-3 the most vital advantage in the match, or 5-3 or 4-all, a matter of extreme moment to a tiring player... 5-2 is too late to start a rally, but 4-3 is a real chance...

''The first set is vital in a 2 out of 3 match."

''The great advantage of 3-1 on your own service is a stumbling-block for many players, for they let up at the fifth game, thinking they have a 2 game lead''.

"Practice is played with the racquet, matches are won by the mind."

"Tennis psychology is nothing more than understanding the workings of your opponent's mind, and gauging the effect of your own game on his mental viewpoint, and understanding the mental effects on your own mind."

"It is seldom you need cover more than two-thirds of a tennis court, so why worry about the unnecessary portions of it?"

These words are like white light...inspiration. The book is Tilden...William Tilden II

[nickw]

Good article...provokes thoughts of Bill Tilden.
[/I]

Thanks Stotty. I read one of Tilden's books a few years ago, and was also amazed at how relevant it was to today's game despite him writing it close to 100 years ago!! I remember some of his key points such as transferring your weight into the shot, and choosing what spin you put onto each shot. Simple but so effective and still so relevant today. So many youngsters today don't seem to understand what topspin and slice actually are. They think they've hit topspin, and actually the ball is half side spin half topspin and lacking potential quality. It can be similar with slice. Spins are so effective, and the rpm's have increased massively over the last 20 yrs, but it seems it's a part of the game that is often overlooked in today's coaching. The importance Tilden associated to it was fascinating!