HOW TO USE THIS SITE - Part 1

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The purpose of tennis is to send the ball over the net to land within the boundaries of the opposite court in such a way that the opponent will have difficulty returning it. Ninety percent of tennis points are won on errors, i.e., balls hit into the net or out of court. A beginner must have faith that "good form" will pay dividends, once he gains control of his shots. A good-form stroke sends the ball more swiftly and accurately to spots on the court where the opponent will have the most difficulty in returning it. Fig. 1 shows the placement-shot areas.

Beginners are warned that they must be content with a goal of "getting the ball over the net" and not expect to hit placement areas very often. Likewise the beginner will dwell in "Dubland" more often than he wants to. He must practise patiently, first to conquer the net and boundary lines so that his balls land somewhere within the court. Later he will learn to control his shots and the placement areas shown in the diagram will become his point of aim. Although many of his shots will miss the target, it is better to try for them during practise than to be content with "Dubland" shots. It takes time to achieve tennis placement shots just as in the case of a 200-yard golf drive or bowling strike.

Your first assignment in learning good tennis strokes is to find out what they look like. Watch good players to get the mental image of the stroke, footwork, and body action. Next you must learn what the stroke feels like. This muscle-picture comes through imitating the form of good players. Because it is very hard to watch oneself perform, the advice of a coach or good player is invaluable. However, it is important to imitate the strokes of a player who has the same body build as yours. Thus if you have long arms and legs, with a flexible trunk, don't try to imitate a short, heavy player. Some tennists dance about the court, using hops, skips, and slides. Others use long strides. Some coaches recommend a short backswing of the racquet while others insist on taking the racquet back as far as one can reach. One teacher may advocate a lot of English (spin) on the ball while another believes in a flat stroke with very little topspin. The beginner should not be deceived by freak methods of stroking. In this book sufficient freedom within a range of sound techniques is provided. The reader is expected to use his common sense in working out the type of strokes which suits him best. Tennis is an individual game and skill is dependent upon the type of physique, mental, and emotional make-up of the player.