The player stands on the baseline and the coach stands in front of the player on the same side. The coach feeds the ball off own side to the deuce corner. The player sprints and hits defensive slice down the line.
It is important to work on defensive skills to make players as complete athlete as possible. An ability to hit most of the balls over the net forces the opponent to put more power or to take a greater risk with next attempts so there is a bigger chance for rival's errors.
In this drill the player works on defensive skills with forehand slice. Short distance to the coach forces the player to quickly perform a first running step. With more players on the court coach can put other players on the other side (deuce corner) and make them respond to the forehand slice with offensive backhand cross court (deep or angle).
Indoor courts give players less time and less room. Help them sharpen their split step, shorten their swing and stay calm, and winter becomes a season of real progress.
A tiebreak is a short sprint where every point is worth the same as a break of serve. The players who win them are rarely the ones who hit hardest. Here is how to coach the patterns, habits and scoreboard thinking that win the big points.
Most club players practise the serve on its own and then have no idea what to do with the ball that comes back. Serve plus one is the pattern that turns a good serve into a won point.
Register for FREE and get coaching tips, top drills, session and more every week!
