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Monday, August 30, 2010

How to win no matter what!

If you have played tennis long , you have without a doubt come to a situation where you are playing somebody that is better than you. On paper, you are outclassed by your opponent in every way that matters. You showing up
 for the match is a technicality. While this situation can be daunting, you can overcome it. In fact, you can actually win! Keep reading this news story. You'll get some tips that will empower you to do your best and win more matches that you should not.
Keep It All in Point of view
Before they even look at any other tips, let's acknowledge the reality of the situation. Your opponent is better than you. There is a possibility that you can throw everything you can at them and they still comfortably defeat you. If that is what happens, that is fine. As long as you do what it takes to make the best challenge that you possibly can.
Irrespective of what happens, stay confident. Play your best. In case you do the best that you can do, you can leave the court feeling proud.
Make Them Play
When top players step on the court, you can always spot them four games. This is because the intimidation factor cannot be ignored. The same can happen on the club level. If you are playing the defending champion or the man with the giant serve, your level of play can drop because of fear. Don't let someone's reputation beat you. Make them beat your with their game.
You can do this by playing smart. You don't must possess odd talent to keep the ball in the court, or to get first serves in. This is true on the club level, where most matches are lost, not won. Make the higher ranked player earn every point they get.
Keep it Simple
When playing a better player, it is simple to get to feel that you need to do something amazing on the court in order to have a chance. In some cases, that is the truth. However, don't forget this all important fact about your opponent: they are human. They can be forced in to making mistakes.
Have a simple game plan. Hit your shots crosscourt so that you have more room for error. In case you are not known for your net speeding skills, then don't try to magically become Pete Sampras. Use what you have got to the best of your ability.
Go for the Weakness
In the professionals, most players don't have any glaring weaknesses. And even in the event that they did, the remainder of their games are so tight it doesn't bother them. On the recreational level, however, that is not the case. EVERYONE has a
 weakness...a giant sinkhole of a liability that if exploited correctly, the remainder of their game will topple. When you have a chance, put your opponent in the position where they must beat you with their weakness. In the event that they beat you with their worst shot, then it is nice. You'll be surprised how the match can turn around four times you start putting pressure on them.

Increasing your chances for the win in Tennis Douples

Doubles play in tennis is not at all the same game as singles. Your objective with every single stroke is to play with a specific plan in mind, avoiding at all costs any move that would put your partner in a bad spot. It is
 all about teamwork, not fabulous play by two different individuals. As a symphony with all instruments blending together to form a masterpiece, so is the doubles game of tennis.
The critical key in doubles tennis is to be definite you are always putting the ball in play. Seldom, seldom, seldom double fault when playing doubles. To do so is absolutely inexcusable. Your return of any serve must be correct and assured, not dicy and uncertain. Keep your return low and directed at the server who may be approaching the net.
Doubles tennis play is a game of patience. You require to wait to smash in the ace hit. Rare will be the successful pass of both of your opponents on the other side of the net. You'll require to be prepared for longer rallies, more intense exchanges with the opposing team, and waiting for the clear opening before taking the slam shot that wins the point.
Your objective as a member of a partnership is to always be attacking the ball. You'll be wanting to always play at the net and go for the kill when the opening is there. You can "poach," or steal a shot that would ordinarily be your partner's, but only when you have got the clear opportunity to kill the shot, or go for the obvious score. When you "poach" a shot from your partner, you have got a winning opportunity or you have got nothing. Don't ever hesitate to "poach" the shot if you are confident in your opportunity to make it.
Because your opponents, and your partner, are also thinking of the advantage to playing at the net you can be confident they are going to be working as hard to attain the coveted net position as you are. With that in mind, you ought to first think about every shot to be either a volley or a smash. Use the less-effective defensive shots only when there is no opening for a smash, or a volley.

Importance of Footing for tennis players

The best laid designs have a solid foundation. The same is true in the game of tennis. The confusing part of this is what makes up a tennis foundation? Is it a powerful serve, solid groundstrokes, superb fitness, craftiness
 and creativity? NO! It is something much more basic. In a word, footwork.
Footwork is the critical key to all of the points listed above. The game of tennis is built from the ground up and that means it starts together with your feet. The basic premise of this game is to get the ball back in play. But how is that accomplished in case you are unable even to get to the ball? The finest strokes are nullified quickly if the owner of said strokes can not even get to the ball. In the 25+ years that I have been playing tennis, the one thing that I have learned is that the key part of the game is getting to your opponents shot. In case you can do this it at least gives you the chance to get your racquet on the ball. Getting a racquet on the ball is the only way to hit the ball back.
It's been my experience that the giant majority of mistakes from tennis players can be attributed to their footwork, or more correctly their lack of lovely footwork. This is why statues don't play tennis. Their footwork is atrocious!
So before you go spending a ton of funds to listen to your local pro bombard you with worn out well-traveled cliches or undergo major stroke overhaul, take a peek at your footwork. Proper footwork will put you in to the best position to hit your best shot. After all that is what it is all about, putting our best foot forward, right?

The genius at tennis: John McEnroe

How the Irreverent & Gifted Player Wrote an Important Page of Tennis History
Among all the talents that the game of tennis has produced in its history, one name stands out for his geniality & unorthodox way of playing. What John McEnroe did with a tennis racket is unlikely to be repeated by
 someone ever.
It is needless to say that there's players who had better results & won more tittles than they did, but his shot making ability & his unique volley skills have no match whatsoever. In addition, while being a true serve & volley player they managed to hang from the baseline consistently against the other top players from his generation, even having a continental grip on the forehand, something that was already outdated at the time.
Although some top statistical figures are attributed to him, not only numbers bring the greatest memories of this gifted player. For example, they holds five Grand Slam tittles, two Wimbledon advertisement six US Open, but who can forget the 1984 French Open? They had a exceptional run on his weakest surface, clay, losing one set (to Jose Higueras) on his way to the final against Ivan Lendl. In the first five sets of that final match, McEnroe was responsible for what probably has been the best clay court exhibition ever performed by a "non clay court player", as they made Lendl look astonished with the beat they was giving him. McEnroe went on to lose that match, which still these days makes him lose his sleep, as they says. That was one of the greatest shames of all time, for that title would have meant more for his career than for Lendl's.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

News: Five Things to keep an eye on

Can Roger Federer reclaim his spot as the top tennis player in the world?

The holder of the most grand slam championships in tennis history is no longer the man to beat -- that title goes to No. 1 seed Nadal. Since his Wimbledon loss to Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals, Federer has only entered three tournaments but has quietly played a quantity of his best tennis of the year. Federer won last week's ATP Masters Series event in Cincinnati & reached the final of the ATP Rogers Cup earlier in the month. If Federer can keep the momentum going, they could re-establish himself as the top men's tennis player with a win at Flushing Meadows.

Who will capitalize on Serena Williams' absence?

The women's No. 1 overall player will miss this year's U.S. Open because of a cut foot. Williams had won three of the seven Grand Slam tournaments this year (Australian Open & Wimbledon) & would have been the favourite. With the absence of Williams, there's plenty of females who could win their first grand slam title. Top seed Wozniacki, former No. 1s Jelena Jankovic & Dinara Safina, & Victoria Azarenka have the best chance to finally break through.

Will Andy Roddick the home folks?

The crowd favourite seems to have finally gotten healthy at the ideal time. Roddick battled shoulder injuries in the beginning of the year & was then diagnosed with mono this summer. With a neat bill of health, Roddick reached the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters event, beating top three players Robin Soderling & Novak Djokovic along the way. The 2003 Open champion doesn't have a hard draw & could basically make his way in to the semifinals.

Nadal is still looking for his first U.S. Open win.

Surprisingly, Nadal has never made it to the final of a U.S. Open. Rafa has made it to the semifinals each of the last three years but has lost to a lower seed each time. If Nadal completes the career grand slam this year, it will cap the best season of his career. Rafa won the French Open & Wimbledon earlier this year & reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open before pulling out with a knee injury.

Clijsters looks to repeat.

After winning last year's U.S. Open as a wild card, Clijsters will certainly have a bigger target on her back. This year they enters the event as the No. 2 seed despite an up-and-down season. Lately, though, Clijsters has played well, winning two of her last seven matches, & has won all seven of her titles this year on hard courts.

Buying the *Perfect* tennis shoes

When going to buy a pair of excellent tennis shoes, it is essential to know the exact size, without this information you possibly can purchase the unsuitable dimension, which could trigger your feet to be pinched, or may trigger blisters if the sneakers are large. If you are not positive on the shoe measurement that you wear you require to see knowledgeable on the shoe store to find out your shoe size before you do something else.
The next step is to select what type of foot you have. Relying on the exact kind of your foot, your choice of footwear shall be impacted. Not all shoes are appropriate for all toes types. When you have a supinated foot then you should not pick a pair of footwear which might be designed for the best foot type. A great foot would wear the sneakers evenly all throughout the bottom. Somebody with a supinated foot would put on the shoes on the skin heavily, while the within of the shoe was virtually untouched. A pronated foot would wear heavily the inside of the foot & infrequently the arch space is badly worn as well. A pronated foot sometimes has a a lot greater threat of harm so having the right footwear is not a luxury however a requirement.
Five times you have decided shoe size & foot sort you can then move onto finding the shoes that are best suited for you based mostly on type & luxury level. Lots of tennis players select to put on a specific model of shoe & only put on that brand. This usually happens because they discover a brand that matches their foot well. When you can afford to buy them, you must also look to buy brand title tennis shoes. You additionally must look for a pair of shoes that gives a huge amount of lateral support. In case your footwear provide no lateral assist, you are increasing the risk of a sprained or twisted ankle. Always be definite that you have lots of lateral support before you buy the shoes. & your final consideration ought to be discovering a pair of sneakers which are lightweight.

Major changes in the game

As with plenty of sports, tennis has been able to alter & evolve over the years. & naturally with any alter comes challenges from loyal fans who need to see things stay at the established order. One of the first major changes in tennis was using HPS Ballast in lieu of a Lamp Ballast to light the courts, so players could play at night. Another alter came as females were allowed to play for money. As important as these changes were, they are now historically & it is important now to look toward the future. In order to see what is next in terms of the future of tennis, they must examine one major changes that have taken place within the sport over the past ten years. The first major alter came through the addition of retractable roofing to most Grand Slam stadiums. The second major alter is the addition of Shot-spot know-how to the game.
Although a retractable roof may not sound like large alter, it actually is for tennis. Before retractable roofs began being installed it was common at Grand Slam tournaments for players to experience a rain delay in which they must leave the court for fear that the courts may get wet & a player could slip & hurt his or her self. In the coursework of a rain delay momentum could basically alter as the player who was ahead at the time of the rain delay could suddenly find his or her self losing after a delay. Some rain delays would take 30 minutes, while others meant close to 24 hours. Being mentally prepared for & in the coursework of a rain delay was an important skill for players to have. With a retractable roof on most of the middle courts at the Grand Slam tournaments momentum can no longer alter because of the weather. Most tournaments now have this know-how.
Shot-spot know-how has been important to the evolution of tennis. For hundreds of years, chair umpires had been known to make mistakes when it came to calling the ball out or in. These umpire mistakes could basically cost someone a match. With this new know-how, players are allowed to challenge a positive amount of calls per match that they feel are incorrect. This keeps the umpire honest & it also has been known to help alter momentum in the game. For example, in a large point, if someone challenges a bad call & wins the point then the momentum can basically switch to their favor because of the confidence gained from calling the point correctly.
In order for tennis to survive in the future, the sport must keep making small adjustments to the game so it is as fair as feasible for all players & fans. So far the sport has been able to keep up with know-how while not altering the game much. It is important to keep a balance, so the game is fundamentally the same with a few small changes along the way.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

How to beat the game: Improving your serve!

In the event you ask any tennis player which aspect of their game they require to improve, the most common answer is their serve. Here are some simple to follow tips that can make a large difference to your match.
 note, however that tennis, like any other sport, needs to be practised in order to see any improvements. So reading about these tips won't make you a better player. You'll must put them in to practice in the event you require to truly reap the benefits.
Tip 1
In order to be a lovely tennis player, you will must learn to relax. For a lovely consistent serve, your arm & wrist must be free of stress & tension. In the event you are stressed out, or you are not properly warmed up, your muscles will be tight & your strength & flexibility will be greatly decreased. Don't underestimate the power in your wrist.
Some specialists say that as much as one fifth of the power in your serve comes from the wrist. So it is vital that your wrists & arms are fully relaxed, & the muscles can retain all of their elasticity.
Tip 2
Aim for a smooth action. Perfection only comes form hard work. To have an effective serve, you body needs to flow in a liquid, simple manner. This means your arms, legs & trunk ought to all in move in harmony. Jerky movements are a sign that some aspect of your serve is out of alignment.
By continually practicing until your serving action becomes smoother, you will start to create muscle memory & it will soon become second nature.
Tip3
Jump! All professional players utilize the additional power & leverage of leaping in the coursework of a serve. This technique takes time & practice & is not recommended to beginners. This is because it is simple to fall when you;re are learning to serve & jump simultaneously. In the event you do select to take the leap, you may require to think about a pair tennis shoes with additional cushioning for the soles.
This will help to protect the knees when you land back down on the court.
Tip 4
Line up your body. It may appear obvious, but lots of players don't actually face the right way when they are serving. If your body is crooked or angled away from the service box you are aiming for, you won't get the maximum amount of power in to your serve. However, there is an element of strategy here also as you don;t require to make it obvious to your opponent as to where you are planning to play the serve.

Strong tips for the weekend Tennis players

Are you a weekend or casual tennis player? If so, you, like many others, may be frustrated with a lack of progression in your tennis skills. Tennis is a sport that has so many tools and requires many different skills and techniques that sometimes playing just once a week is not enough to get better.
But, another element of the game of tennis that is not often focused on is the mental game. And this is where the weekend player can get actually end up winning more points and matches even without a considerably improvement in the technical skills.
Here are some tips which helped me to win more and have more fun:
Tip #1: Slow Down Your Swing
So many club players think they need to murder the ball. But what happens is it goes right into the net or always goes way out. Bottom line is that a player who does this has no control over the ball. And, you cannot win tennis games if you have no control. You are relying on luck. Luck is never enough to win games consistently.
Instead, start off playing with a slower but full swing and hit through the ball. Also, when you start off, aim for the middle of the court. As your arm loosens up, you can then start choosing corners and short shots for ball placement.
If you are playing at the club or recreational league level, you will win more matches if you can just return the ball and keep it in play. A weaker player can beat a stronger and faster club player any time with consistent strokes and some focus on placement.
Tip #2: Bounce-Hit Focus
Many average players never focus on the ball enough. Your eyes should be watching the ball like a hawk and should remain on the ball as long as you can up until you hit it. So many players will let their eyes leave the ball to see where the ball is going.
By just focusing on keeping your eyes ALWAYS on the ball, your game will improve. One of the tricks that an instructor of mine taught me when I was 12 was the BOUNCE-HIT mantra.
When you are playing a point, in your head say bounce when the ball bounds and hit when the ball is hit- either by you or your opponent. This mantra not only keeps you focused on the ball but it also sets a rhythm to your hitting which in turn results in more consistent tennis playing.
Tip #3: Tie Your Shoe
Momentum plays a key role in any tennis match. Just look at the pros. You will see even the best players lose momentum and as a result lose points, games, and sets. It happens to everyone. In any tennis game with evenly matched players, you will gain momentum and lose momentum.
By understanding this, you can use do things to stop the downward spiral of bad momentum. Most players experiencing a string of lost points and errors tend to want to speed up the game. If they are serving, they will hurry up their next serve and if they are returning, they will swing at the serve wildly or half-heartedly without much thought.
If you find yourself in this stage of a match, the key is to do the opposite. Slow down the pace of play. Break the negative streak. One of the best ways to do this is to tie your shoes. By tying your shoes your mind has to focus on that task and thus it breaks its hypnotic trance of negativity.
Another thing to do before each serve or serve return is to take a long deep breath. Breathe in for 6 seconds, hold it for 2 and then breathe out for 7 seconds. This is only 15 seconds so it will not be noticed by the outside world or will not cause your opponent to get angry for delays. But, these 15 seconds will greatly improve your chances on the next point.
Focus on just these three tips the next time you get out on the courts and I promise you will see improvement in your game and in the score.

3 *Secrets* to Winning in Tennis

Playing tennis is funny, but, like every sport, the real fun begins when you start winning. Who wants to play when you lose everytime? And if you want to win there are three things you must have in mind while playing: you must send the ball cross court, you must put as many first serves in as possible and, most important, you must exploit the opponent's weaknesses. These are the most important things to have in mind when playing tennis. But what does this mean in detail? Let's have a look...
As already said, playing the ball cross court is fundamental for winning. The more tired the opponent is, the more chances you have to win the set and the play. Moreover, a good cross court ball is probably the most difficult ball to hit correctly in the whole tennis. It requires a great master skill of both the forehand and backhand, and just a simple mistake can put your adversary in advantage. Putting your adversary in a difficult position is the best way to have the game in your hands.
But playing the ball cross court is useless if you cannot hit the first serve of your opponent. A strong and fast first serve is the single most difficult thing to respond correctly in a tennis game. Especially if at an angle: try to surprise your opponent with strange angles on your first serve. Always bring your first serve to a limit, without pushing too far, because a strong first serve is useless if it makes foul.
Analyze always your opponent's play before every match. Find out his weaknesses and exploit them. Is he left handed? Then a good cross field shot is probably the best choice. Is he weak on his backhand? Then hammer him on that side until he cracks. And so no.
As you can see, the key principles here are all very simple. But be careful, because if you will adopt these methods this means that someone else may adopt them too: so be sure to be strong on cross field balls, to be able to respond well to strong serves and to have as little weaknesses to exploit as possible. This is the key to victory in tennis.

Nutrition and Game

As in any sport, we tennis players need to give some serious consideration to nutrition.
The more exact the nutrition is to your tennis needs, the greater the effect it will have on your game.
Here is some solid gold advice for you.
In case you require to be a winner on the court, then pay attention to your tennis nutrition.
In case you require to stay a winner on the tennis court, then make sure that nutrition for tennis becomes a high priority in your schedule from today.
Don't think that practising and working on your forehands, backhands, serves and your volleys will be to take your game to its highest level.
Even in case you think that adding on some fitness work will be , then you need to think again.
All the top tennis players like Federer, Nadal, Andy Murray, Djokovic, Del Potro, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova and Justine Henin pay actual close attention to their nutrition. They know that this is the one element that could make all the difference when it comes to winning the large events like Wimbledon, the US Open & the Italian Open when you need to win so lots of matches in such a short space of time.
Don't forget, it is not the physical side of your performance that you need to affect when it comes to trying to play your best tennis, the mental side of the game is HUGE and it is directly affected by your nutrition in ways that you would not imagine.
Most tennis players don't know this, so you can take this information and use it to your advantage.....right now!!
So, don't ignore your greatest secret weapon: Tennis Nutrition.
To help you do this, here are 5 things you can start doing TODAY to improve your tennis.
1. Eat 5-7 small meals a day. You are trying to feed your body with all of the nutrients it needs on a regular basis and ensuring you are eating every 2 1/2 to 3 hours is the way you can do it.
2. Include some protein at each and every meal. The portion does not need to be massive: 1 egg, 1/2 breast of chicken, 60g of ham, etc.
3. Eat vibrant vegetables at least 3 times per day. Raw and cooked, the more the better. It is the nutrients in these vegetables which will turn the starch in your diet in foods such as pasta and potatoes in to the energy to fuel your game.
4. Sip water regularly. Aim for at least a couple of sips every 15 minutes. Even the slightest level of dehydration can affect your performance, so don't wait until you are thirsty as this is the signal that you are already dehydrated.
5. About 1/2 hour before going on court, have any part of a banana or a sports bar. This will instantly get sugar in to your bloodstream, giving you some energy to kick off your session in the best way feasible.

Tennis: Impoving your Flexibility

Why is flexibility very important when you are playing tennis? There's a selection of reasons because this happens, but I can tell you it fundamentally goes down to this: being able to move quickly and to change to the opponent's play is without a doubt the best key to win in tennis. analyze how champions play on the court. No one of them has a "the stronger, the better" attitude. The always go first for flexibility and precision and only after that they go for power. As they say, power is nothing without the control. And if there is no control, there is also the risk of having a bad injury.
So flexibility is radical in tennis. But how can they improve our flexibility in tennis to become better players?
It is actually very simple, and it goes down to this: stretch often, train on a wide range of movements and seldom ever tense yourself up. This may look like a banal list but the basics for a nice tennis game are all here. Let's examine in detail how these things can improve your game tenfold.
Stretching is to flexibility like the court is to tennis: it is everything. In the event you seldom stretch, you are not only limiting yourself, but you are also putting yourself in a position that will cause you a few injuries in the event you are not cautious. Do not overdo it: a basic stretching of the legs and arms is often to prepare your body to the game. Do a short run of the court to heat yourself up a small, then stretch your legs, your arms and your back, do not forget your ankles because they are basically damaged in tennis.
Ok, now that you are all stretched up, start your training. You need, as I already said, to train for a wide range of movements. Train for the forehand on all the feasible angles, the backhand, the volèes and the serve. Every time you ought to try to do the movement a small differently. This may appear like a small thing, but this way you are training your brain to reply well in every situation. Keep in mind, flexibility is key here. You have no idea how your opponent is going to answer the next ball, so you need to be prepared for everything. Try everything, and see what works best for you. Find your weak points and train them at the best. You do not need holes that your opponent can exploit.
Let's now speak about tension. This may appear like the most dull point: do not tense yourself up. What the hell does this mean? It is actually very simple: do not block your body unnecessarily. Everyone has some tension in the body that makes movement and flexibility more difficult. When playing tennis, seldom ever tense yourself up before you are going to hit the ball. The only moment you need to tense yourself up is when you hit the ball, that is it. In the event you tense more often you are actually limiting yourself. Let your instinct work for you. In the event you relax , it is possible for you to not only to reply faster, but to reply the best way feasible. In the event you do not think me, try it.
In the event you train this way, following those simple points, you will gain a flexibility in tennis that will scare your opponents away. You will literally make your opponent wonder "How does they do that?" It is simple, but not simple: train often and results will come out sooner.