By Mark Rearden, West Lake Country Club | June 1, 2019
With the French Open upon us, I thought this might be an opportune moment to share a few thoughts about things to watch for while enjoying the tennis skills of the best players in the world. For the most part the pros on TV are not at all like us. They hit harder and more accurate shots, move faster and have physiques completely unlike ours. Having shared that bit of sobering news, there are some things we can emulate and be more “pro like” in our own tennis matches.
The first is in the area of hydration. They are constantly sipping either water or some electrolyte replacement fluid on every changeover. And the part you don’t see is they begin well before the match starts. So let’s take a tip from the pros in this regard. Begin the night before and or the morning of and start getting your body ready for battle. Once you get thirsty you are already behind. In terms of performance, we can sometimes get by without enough sleep. You can also get by without enough calories on board, but if you are low on water it will always impact performance negatively. Take that one to the bank. No athletic prowess needed here. Just do it.
Another area in which we can be more like the pros is in the area of rituals. And the good news is that the two areas I will discuss occur before the ball is even struck, so it does not require any advanced training to do. The first is what they do each time before they serve. Most will bounce the ball multiple times; some tug at the back of their shorts (guess who that is) and some do any number of combinations of things before they deliver their serve. The one area in which most all are alike however, is what they do once they pick up the ball after the final bounce. They lift their head and take a quick look at the target before they begin their motion. The number of bounces may vary depending on the situation, what they do as they approach the baseline to begin may vary greatly with the same player, but the one constant is the amount of time between picking up the final bounce and beginning the service motion. That stays the same. And that is the area where they find that moment of peace, that moment that deepens concentration. If what we do is the same each time we stand a better chance of putting together a more consistent serve.
The third area involves the rituals just before the service return. Again, there are different styles that players develop which suit their personality and individual skill set. Some players like to rock backward and forward, some weave side to side, some will start farther back and creep forward and some will bounce in place. Some even wait with their feet spread very far apart in a manner that seems contrary to quick movement. The one thing they all do is split-step just before the server strikes the ball. This provides a stable base and a strong position from which to launch themselves toward the oncoming ball. This split step is less dramatic than the one used when heading toward the net. Since the forward momentum is not as pronounced the split usually looks more like they are merely separating their feet rather than slowing down the more aggressive move designed to get them to the net. Watch closely, I think you will find that most all of them do it. And you can too.
The next area is one few people recognize at all. Have you ever noticed what a pro does when his opponent gets a long look at a weak shot or return? They delay moving until the last second and when their opponent is about to strike the ball they take off hustling in the direction they think the ball will be hit. What they know, is if they wait to see where the ball is going and then try to run it down they will never get there in time. What they do is guess. Don’t get me wrong here, it is an educated guess based on what they have seen before, but a guess nonetheless. Many of us will stand like a deer in the headlights and refuse to move at all hoping the ball will come our way. It seldom does. Do like our professional counterparts. Give yourself a fighting chance and at least guess wrong rather than not at all.
Enjoy the matches, the great shot making and all the pageantry that goes into making the Slams so much fun to watch. But make sure you look for these few things I have listed above. Once you recognize that we rank and file folks can raise our level by doing a few things that are within our control then we can make our own play experience a little better. Mark my words, it will help.