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groundstrokes DRILLS
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GroundStrokes N/Movement and Direction

Players start off on centre and hit 3 shots: Forehand crosscourt, backhand down the line and forehand crosscourt. (All shots back to coach position 3)

Forehand & Backhand Drill

Groundstrokes, Inside-out forehands

-Players work on ground strokes and depth, aiming to hit beyond the service line.Possibly put targets down.-After rotations, swap to backhand. - Players no.1 and no.6 can hit inside-out forehands depending on ability.

Rally Drills

High GroundStrokes

Players start off in 2 lines centre on the baseline. The moves to inside service box to execute high groundstrokes down the line.

Attacking

Short Ball Groundstrokes

Players start off on centre of court and move forward towards service line and hit balls down the line.

Forehand & Backhand Drill

Groundstrokes Moving Forward F...

Coach stands in front of the player and alternates tosses to forehand and backhand side. Player hits the ball and moves forward, while the coach moves backwards and repeats.Coach stands in front of the player and alternates tosses to forehand and backhand side. Player hits the ball and moves forward, while the coach moves backwards and repeats.

General

Reactional Groundstrokes Movem...

Player takes position behind the baseline facing the back fence. Coach stands inside the court.Coach gives voice signal and feeds the ball to either the backhand or forehand side.Player reacts, turns around and hits forehand/backhand over the net.

General

GroundStrokes N/Movement and D...

Players start off on centre and hit 3 shots: Forehand crosscourt, backhand down the line and forehand crosscourt. (All shots back to coach position 3)

General

Mini Tennis Warm up (2) Coordi...

Players rally groundstrokes to groundstrokes (Crosscourt)

General

Ground stroke consistency Rall...

<BR>-Players hit ground strokes in pairs until one of them makes a mistake. The waiting player(s) come in if mistake is made.<BR>-After 5 minutes the winners are the players with the longest rally.<BR>-More advanced players can be given target areas to hit to.

General

Under pressure ground strokes ...

<BR>-Rally until a mistake is made by the baseliner.<BR>-Baseliners swap out on mistakes.<BR>-Volley player swaps after 2-3 minutes.

General

Ground strokes under pressure ...

<BR>-Feeder hits first ball to forehand alley.<BR>-The second ball if fed to backhand alley.<BR>-The third feed goes deep to the forehand side.

General

Mini Tennis 3 Coordination / F...

2 players volley down the line to groundstrokes (second volley position)

General

Ground-strokes rolling the bal...

Cones are set on both sides of each player, Player 1 rolls all balls cross court. Player B rolls all balls down the line, with both players rallying together for as long as possible.Ability to control the ball in the easiest activities is important to further develop tennis-specific skills. Cooperation is of utmost importance for young players so this skill should be emphasized in each rally exercise.

General

Consistency and accuracy Rally...

<BR>-Players hit forehands aiming for the line.<BR>-Players maintain high net clearance to achieve consistency.<BR>-Three points are deducted from the final score (i.e. the rally count) for each shot that was hit into the net.<BR>-After 2 minutes see which pair held the longest rally.<BR>-After one or two rounds swap to backhand.

General

All The Way Rally Drills - Ten...

The coach stands on the service line and rallies with the player, who is stood on the baseline. Everytime the player returns the ball, they move forward. Once at the net, they move backwards after every shot. The player executes groundstrokes behind the service line, and volleys inside the service line.

General

Rally to the Advantage Side Ra...

Coach stands in the advantage corner. Coach and player rally together before the coach moves the player around the court. The player's goal is to make all balls to the advantage corner.

General

Height for Depth Rally Drills ...

Players rally up and down the middle of the court, attempting to get the longest rally they can hitting beyond the service box.Racquets are placed in the net to force the players to hit with height, which will help them to get the depth they are looking for.Pairs of players can compete against each other's courts to see which pair gets the longest rally within a certain amount of time.

General

Bounce and Hit Forehand & Back...

Players rally together. Player has to say &quot;bounce&quot; when the ball bounces on their side and say &quot;hit&quot; when they make contact with the ball.

General

Good court positioning Rally D...

<BR>-Learning correct positions enhances court coverage and enables the player to respond to the most likely shot placements by the opponent.<BR>-Place 4 markers in a diamond shape around the centre of the baseline. Start by the coach telling the player to move to a correct marker after each shot.(Using forward, back, left, right commands.

General

Master of Cross Court Forehand...

Coach feeds random balls and the player must hit all of the these balls cross court in between the target cones.

General

1 High 1 Low - Forehand Foreha...

In this exercise, the coach feeds all the balls to one side. The player's goal is to alternate shots with higher and lower trajectory over the net, firstly hitting a high shot, followed by a low shot, and this is repeated.

General

1 High 1 Low - Backhand Foreha...

In this exercise, the coach feeds all the balls to one side. The player's goal is to alternate shots with higher and lower trajectory over the net, firstly hitting a high shot, followed by a low shot, and this is repeated.

General

Forehand/Backhand Rally Rally ...

4 players. 2 on each side of the net. Player 1 hits a deep forehand,and a rally starts with each player hitting a deep forehand shot. When it is player 1's turn again they hit a deep backhand shot, and the rally continues. Rally alternates between forehand and backhand shots. Repeat the drill. The drill is continuous. 

General

Deep directions + drop shot ch...

Deep zone and angle zone are set by cones. Coach feeds balls to one side. Player performs tactical pattern based on deep down the line shot, deep cross court shot, and drop shot down the line.Drill specifications:1-2 repetitions per set1-2 patterns in a row is a number that each players should hit. With more players coach can set up 2 lines to work on forehand and backhand at the same time but it requires good feeding skills to keep the patterns in a right pace. Waiting players can perform physical drills or they can imitate well-disguised drop shot to get comfortable with the last-second change of grip and drop shot motion.

General

Hit and move: Running drives R...

Players are working in threes with player 1 in a full-court and players 2 and 3 in the forehand and backhand corners respectively.Player 1 is hitting running drives, 1 forehand cross followed by 1 backhand cross.Player 2 is hitting a forehand line, and player 3 a backhand line.The pattern is played in this way for up to 3 minutes depending on the level of fitness of player 1.

General

Passing shots Forehand & Backh...

Starting with a feed to either forehand or backhand at random players play their first shot down the line after which the players can play out the point. No lobs allowed.

General

Non-Dominant Warm Up Rally Dri...

Players rally up and down the middle of the court while standing on the service line using their non-dominant hand, looking for as much control as they can get.

General

Recovery Habits - Backhand Mov...

This drill teaches how to achieve good positioning on the court. Coach tosses balls to the one side, and the player hits the ball and recovers to the proper spot. If the shot is cross court (yellow cone), player recovers to the closer (yellow) cone. If the shot is down the line to the red cone, player has to go to the further (red) cone.

General

Hitting on the Run Forehand & ...

There are 2 lines of players starting at the middle of the baseline. The coach feeds wide balls alternately to each side. Players hit one shot down the line and then return to the opposite line.

General

Angle it aggressively Forehand...

Coach feeds an easy ball to attack. Player runs and hits aggressive angle shot.Drill specifications:1-5 repetitions per set This drill suits individual lessons as also can be successfully used with more players on the court. When coach is working only with 1-2 students more repetitions can be used to allow players correct own mistakes by looking at the previous shots. Group lessons will be more effective with players switching after one shot because it guarantees good pace of the drill as also all the players will be learning from others all the time.

General

Comfortable New Grip Forehand ...

Player inserts a pen between the hand and the racquet's grip. Player imitates forehand without changing a grip. In this exercise, the pen is a valuable tool that will do all the work for the coach. Every time the player tries to change the grip to the old one, they will feel it because of the pen. After imitating, the coach should toss or feed balls to challenge players at the early stages of grip's change.

General

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groundstrokes SESSIONS
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Better footwork, better tennis

Improve your player's footwork with this week's session. Better footwork = better tennis!

Challenge the serve to meet demands!

Make your players tactically aware and ready for their return of serve, hitting shot patterns to go on the front foot

Necessary skills for successful doubles

Get your players working effectively as a duo and improving their doubles game

Developing The Basics Of The Baseline Game

Learn how to perfect the baseline game and dominate your opponent!

The Importance Of Footwork

Teach your players the importance of correct footwork and how it can win them more games!

Strategy to force mistakes

Attack with purpose and work on your player?s tactics with this session, ready to outfox the opposition

Dealing with moonballers

Make sure that your players deal with moonballers with this session, negotiating the high ball with ease to get in a winning position!

Working on Groundstrokes

Teach your players how to improve their power and accuracy, and get them hitting groundstrokes like the pros!

Creating opportunities

Create opportunities with this session, helping your players to develop their tactics and use planned strategies to beat the opposition

Dealing with left-handers

Deal with left-handers effectively with this session, helping you adapt on court to tricky situations

Technical Session For Better Control Over The Strokes

Understand which areas improves control and feeling for the ball. Developing proper technique allows players to play effectively and avoid injuries.

Multi-Dimensional Practice

Coach your players to use a variety of shots on court and play in a multi-dimensional style, with this attacking session

You Don't Need Power To Win!

Power isn?t everything in tennis - get to work on your player?s slice with this backspin session!

Improve Your Groundstrokes

Build your power, hone in your accuracy and develop into the best grinder in the game with flawless groundstrokes.

Move your Opponent

Develop your player's skills to move the opposition around the court with this session, working on key skills such as coming to the net, ready to take the advantage!

Drills based on match scenarios

Help your players adapt to changing conditions on court with this match scenario session!
groundstrokes ANSWERS
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I'm coaching middle school tennis for the first time. Where to begin?

Coaching tennis to middle school athletes for the first time. How do I begin?

Rhonda R Lang Coach, United States of America

How to plan 4 progressive lessons?

Hi, I'm on Level 2 Tennis Assistant Coach course, and have a task to plan 4 progressive lessons, explaining the objectives,overall aims and what the players should be able to do before they move onto the next lesson. I did my Level 1 11 years ago, so I'm a bit out of touch. Can any one help please?

Archived User Coach

Session of the week

Hi, the ''sessions of the week'' are every week the same. I see 3 different sessions: Improve your groundstrokes, move your opponent and 1 session based on the serve. When you guys are adding new sessions???? Thnx

Bas Coach, Netherlands

coaching programe U14 girl

hi ! hope somebody can help! my daughter's coach has left and I will be coaching her for the next months. She plays at good level but no tournaments at the moment. I would like to have a coaching plan which I can follow. Sportplan is great for th drills, but they should be linked to a programme. can anybody help? many thanks

cristiano braggion Coach, Ireland

prepare 10 years boy for competetions?

how can i prepare 10 years boy for competetions?

Abdul Alsuroor Coach, Saudi Arabia

group coaching

I want to design an 8 sessions for 2 beginners players

Asim 0 Coach, Qatar

Forehand groundstroke. contact...

Forehand groundstroke. Coach A teaches a classic FH with the C loop and says that the modern FH (western Grip) contact point is at the side. I understood that the Eastern FH was hit at the side but the Semi western was hit 6 to 8" in front when the racket face is vertical to the ground. Which is correct?

Norman Frey Coach, United States of America

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