Tennis world en n 49 Tennis World issue 49 | Page 54

Can perception… improve
your tennis?
Federico Coppini
It is fundamental to understand the
coming ball’s characteristics right when it DIRECTION
The ball’s direction indicates if you have to
leaves your opponent’s racquet. Less
expert players often get these get ready for a forehand or a backhand,
(after the bounce or a volley, depending
characteristics only when the ball has
already passed the net and bounced. At
that moment it will be too late and
technical and tactic decisions will be on your position on the court). By getting
the ball’s direction as soon as possible
you can prepare in a more efficient way.
affected by the little time available to get
ready for the ball’s execution (stiffness,
loss of balance and of the ball…).
Remember that when you play from the
baseline there are two ball’s movements:
one goes from your opponent’s racquet to
the bounce and another one that goes
from the bounce to your racquet. Both
offer you some crucial clues on how to
prepare for the next shot.
In order to better understand the ball,
consider its five characteristics that can
give you an immediate help. DEPTH
It is very hard to precisely determine
where the ball will end and this is often the
characteristic that gets understood at the
last moment. The ability to move
backwards (in case the ball is deep) or
forwards (in case it is short) is important
and can become a key element in the
preparation of the following shot.
HEIGHT
This is one of the first ball’s aspects you
should perceive as soon as it gets hit by
your opponent. Use the net as a
benchmark in order to measure the ball’s
height.
SPEED
The ball’s speed determines the time
available to get ready and hit. It is
fundamental that your preparation reflects
the ball’s speed. For example, hit with a
quick and simple backswing after a fast
first serve (or other fast shots) and with a
longer and sharper one after an
opponent’s shot that is slower and
bounces higher.