I
have enjoyed meeting so many new
kids over the past years and
have watched many of them improve
and move up level to level. We
now have former red players
competing in the blue level at
play-offs. I am so proud of
you all and want to offer a few
strategic tips to help you do your
best!
PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. Play with your friends and your parents outiside of YLT. Remember the more you play, the better you will get.
Make your
practices count.
Remember
you are not trying to become the
best rallier. You are trying
to learn how to win points.
Work on placing your groundstrokes and moving your opponent around. I see
so many kids go out and rally up the
middle for an entire practice,
just hitting the ball without any
thought or purpose. But yet,
during a match you rarely are aiming
up the middle or hitting a ball
coming from up the middle.
Parents stand in each corner when
you hit with your child. You
should make them run and have them
hit all of their ground strokes to
your corner. They will be
working on placing their shots and
changing the direction of the ball.
Players
should also practice their serve
daily. practicing their
serve. One of the most
frequently missed shots in tennis,
is the first ball hit after you
serve, by the server. When
your child is serving, feed them a
ground stroke as soon as their serve
hits the ground. Advise them
to know where they will hit their
serve and first ground stroke before
they being the point. This will
encourage them to think on the court
and teach them to set up a point.
It's also important to practice returning serve. Try working on placing your return of serve. Decide before the
server serves where you will hit your return ahead of time. So you need to decide this for both your forehand and backhand. If your parents don't play tennis, then ask a friend from YLT to come out during the week and you can work on serving and recieving with each other.
Work on being able to end the point with confidence. Make your opponents pay for hitting a short ball. I have
watched so many advanced players
consistently hit the ball back and
forth and move the player around to
draw the short ball. But, very
few juniors are able to finish the
point with the last big shot.
Be sure to practice putting the
short ball away. Parents feed
soft floating short balls inside the
service line, and have your kids
practice hitting them crosscourt and
down the line. Remember, that
you want to hit the ball when it is
still above the net. Try to
get in position so that you can do
this. Don't time the short
ball so that you are just getting
there . Keep your feet moving
with little steps until you are
ready to swing. If necessary, you can run through the ball as you swing. Just don't run into the net. If you touch the net, you automatically lose the point.
Lastly
remember foot work is the most
important part of tennis. You
are better off with a shorter
workout with constant feet moving,
than a long work out with lazy foot
work.
Make
your practices count.
You'll
improve quickly and have fun doing
it!
SEND ME PHOTOS OF YOU PLAYING TENNIS! YLT is going to join facebook & I need your photos. Email to: laura@youthleaguetennis.org
