Frank Giampaolo’s
CHAMPIONSHIP TENNIS at The US Open 2017
Spacing Drill
The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s Bestselling Book Championship Tennis available through most on-line retailers!
Spacing
In the early 1990s, I did high-speed video analysis of players’ strokes and discovered that a large a majority of mis-hits occurred because of the player being too close to the ball at impact. Mis- hits also resulted from the player being too far away from the ball, but being jammed was clearly more prevalent. This is why proper spacing plays such a large role in clean stroke production.
Hitting effectively on the move is a requirement for high-level play, and it’s something that must be practiced repeatedly. This is a great drill for developing the footwork required for proper spacing. An experienced feeder is mandatory for this quick-paced drill. The feeder customizes the ball’s speed, spin, and trajectory to suit the player’s ability level.
Begin with the coach standing with a basket of balls, positioned behind the ad-side doubles alley. The coach will deliver a rapid-fire two-ball sequence to the player’s forehand wing at three different stations on the court.
- The player begins by standing behind the baseline on the opposing ad-side corner. The coach feeds a high deep ball directly at the player. The player has to run around to the side of the ball and space herself to hit an aggressive inside-out forehand. As the ball is struck, the coach feeds another ball, this time short and inside the service box. The player has to move into the court, properly space herself away from the ball, and once again hit an inside-out forehand.
- The player quickly slides back to the base-line, this time at the center hash mark, and the coach repeats the sequence—deep ball followed by short ball. The player continues to direct her shots toward the coach’s corner.
- The player quickly slides back to the base-line, this time to the deuce-side corner. The coach again repeats the sequence of deep ball followed by short ball. The player’s target remains the coach’s corner of the court.
After the player hits from all stations, repeat the stations with the coach drilling to the back- hand wing. Next, repeat the drill for both the forehand and backhand with the coach standing behind the deuce-side doubles alley. This corner of the court now becomes the player’s target area.
Championship Tennis at US Open
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Return of Serve Part 3
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Return of Serve: Reading Serving Positions and Tendencies
As mentioned in the previous chapter, taking different positions along the baseline can offer the server better angles into the service box. A right-handed server may stand a few feet over to the left while preparing to deliver an extreme kick serve out wide on the ad side. A perceptive returner will spot the shift along the baseline and then slide over toward the doubles alley to intercept the wide serve.
Realizing that an opponent is repeatedly hitting the same bland slice serve down the T to the forehand on the advantage side should tip off an aware returner and instigate an offensive attack. The returner should hold a neutral position until the ball toss leaves the server’s hand; then, with a fast first step, the returner should quickly slide to the right to deliver an offensive forehand blow.
Reading the server often includes making educated guesses based on previous experience. Advanced opponents will choose to run the same “winning” service patterns on important points. By anticipating the serve and disrupting the pattern from the first ball, the returner will put himself in the advantage to start the point. When players practice
the art of paying attention, it pays off match after match.
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Return of Serve Part 2
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Returns of Serve: Reading the Ball Toss
Certain serves come from certain ball tosses. For instance, if a right-handed server tosses the ball to his left side and arches the back to make contact, it will usually be a kick serve that goes out to the returner’s left, or backhand, side (if right-handed). In this case, the returner should slide to the left and prepare for a backhand return in the high strike zone, or he should run around the serve to crush an offensive forehand
If a right-handed server tosses the ball out in front and slightly to his right, it will most
likely be a flat or slice serve that goes to the returner’s right, or forehand, wing (if righthanded).
Once the returner spots this cue, he should slide to the right to prepare for a
forehand return. Keep in mind that the serve directions will be opposite for
a lefty server.
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Reading the Server
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Reading the Server
Anticipatory skills are one of the most important elements in a player’s ability to execute
effective returns of serve. Knowing the intended serve location before the ball is struck
is a serious advantage for the returner. How does it work? Basically, spotting and understanding
those millisecond clues aid the brain’s ability to send the desired motor program
down the nervous system to recruit the appropriate muscles in the appropriate fashion.
Again, this is a learned behavior that requires time and commitment. Exceptions shadow
every rule, but the following sections describe the most frequent serving cues.
Returns of Serve: Watching the Server’s Preparation
While in the ready position, the returner should study the server’s eyes. Servers often unknowingly give away their intentions by staring down their target. The returner should be coy; he can give that corner of the box plenty of space—that is, until the server tosses the ball. Then he should quickly and quietly slide into position to crush the return.
In addition to watching the opponent’s line of sight, the returner should pay attention to any other possible “tells.” In Andre Agassi’s autobiography, Open, he shares a story that illustrates this point. When returning Boris Becker’s massive serve, Agassi noticed that if “Boom Boom” was about to serve to the left side of Agassi’s service box, Becker
would stick his tongue out of the left side of his mouth. If he was about to deliver a body serve, his tongue would point straight out the center of his mouth. Before each serve to the right side of the box—you guessed it—Becker would stick his tongue out of the right side of his mouth. Agassi could anticipate the intended serve and jump all over it.
Anticipatory skills are one of the most important elements in a player’s ability to execute effective returns of serve. Knowing the intended serve location before the ball is struck is a serious advantage for the returner. How does it work? Basically, spotting and understanding those millisecond clues aid the brain’s ability to send the desired motor program down the nervous system to recruit the appropriate muscles in the appropriate fashion. Again, this is a learned behavior that requires time and commitment. Exceptions shadow every rule, but the following sections describe the most frequent serving cues. (For more info- Championship Tennis)
Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Playing Styles
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis (Available at Human Kinetics , Amazon,etc.). Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Playing Styles
Once players are fully attuned to their personality, body type, and athletic foundation,
they can more effectively adapt their playing style. Having an innate stylistic preference
leads to numerous advantages. The advantages include the following:
• The knowledge to hire coaches and trainers who possess personalities best suited
to accelerate his/her learning curve;
• The confidence that comes with knowing exactly how she/he performs best;
• The ability to lure opponents out of their preferred style and force them to play
out of their comfort zones;
• The ability to impose his/her best style, strategies, and tactics on the most important points;
• The improved ability to reach his.her goal of mastering a minimum of three playing
styles—called A, B, and C game plans—which adds depth and variation to the
player’s game; and
• The opportunity to select a stylistically complementary doubles partner to help form a winning
team.
Though there are subtle variations, six basic playing styles are seen in tennis:
- Net Rusher
- All-Court Player
- Baseline Counter-Puncher Player
- Aggressive Baseliner Player
- Retriever Player
- Finesse Player
Do you know what your preferred playing style?
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Short-Angle (Side-Door) Groundstrokes
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Short-Angle (Side-Door)
In a tennis match, most players prefer hitting hard to running hard. A short-angle, or side-door, shot is a terrific short-ball option that forces opponents to produce shots from an uncomfortable position. Instead of crushing the ball back, a player creates a short angle and demands movement, fitness, and agility from the opponent. Like any undeveloped tool, this is a risky option if attempted without training and repetition. When executed properly,
however, it results in taking opponents’ legs out from under them (wearing them out), putting opponents on the extreme defensive, or even giving the player an outright winner.
Unlike the high looper, the target window over the net for this shot is typically lower than on a standard drive. Because this is a cross-court shot, the ball travels mostly over the middle, or lowest part, of the net. Adding extra spin, especially topspin helps bring the ball down quickly into the court, and the resulting bounce can drag the
opponent even farther outside the court.
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Practice Smart
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
“Practice in the manner in which you are expected to perform.”
Players wanting to maximize potential at the quickest rate are practicing in the manner in which they are expected to perform.
Here’s a common scenario: John takes a lesson on Friday with his local teaching pro. The pro feeds every ball right to John’s primary strike zone. After a half hour of hitting these perfectly placed balls, John thinks, Forget the club tournament tomorrow—I’m going pro! John leaves the lesson feeling great about his game. The next day, he draws a moonball pusher in the first round of the tournament. The opponent plays at two speeds: slow and slower. He also hits with a higher trajectory than John is accustomed to, forcing John to hit at head level all match long. Not surprisingly, John goes down in flames. After the match, he thinks, I don’t get it. I was on fire yesterday. I’m great in practice, but I stink in a real match. The moral of this story? Players must practice in the manner in which they are
expected to perform. This is why some players feel good about themselves during lessons but seldom improve. Accelerated learning means practicing shots in those pesky secondary strike zones so that they’re second nature during competition.
Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Serving Myths
The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo
Serving Myths
In addition to involving the most varied technique, the serve also invites the most interpretations on how it should be performed. Although certain parts of the motion can be
debated (e.g., pinpoint versus platform stance), there are some popular teaching points
that time has proven to be dated or inaccurate.
Here are a Few Serving Myths:
- Toss high and you’ll have more time. Studies using slow-motion cameras have
determined that a ball tossed 6 feet (183 cm) higher than the top of an outstretched
racket head passes through the hitting zone of the service swing 20 times faster than a
ball tossed around the peak of a server’s reach. If the player tosses lower, the ball sits in
the hitting zone longer. - Scratch your back on the back-swing. As the racket head passes between the dominant
hitting hand and the server’s head, the uncoiling inertia of the body’s kinetic chain
actually throws the racket away from the back, or the center of the axis. This desired
centrifugal force doesn’t allow for a muscle contraction, which would pull the racket
head down to accommodate a back-scratching position. - Hit down on a serve. Remember Artis Gilmore from earlier in the chapter? He was
7-foot-2 and still too short to hit down on a serve. So unless the player is about 8 feet tall
(according to our serve study at the Vic Braden Tennis College), it is in his best interest
to hit up and out while serving. - Bend your knees for great power. Though it can be important to the rhythm of the
server’s motion, knee bend supplies the least amount of racket head speed for the serve.
Instead, the player should focus on fluid, liquid power and hand speed. - There’s an ideal service motion. One of the most talked about myths in this book
is that there is one best way to hit a tennis ball. In fact, customization and personal
preferences play a critical role in a player’s ability to advance to the highest levels of play.
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