WHERE DO YOU SEND YOUR AWARENESS?




Tennis players need the ability to shift their awareness around as they play. Each shot requires a slightly different focus, a different awareness to take place. No stroke you play is the same.

Here are the areas you need to send your awareness during a point. Some of the areas I mention may surprise you. Tennis is not just about awareness of the ball and your opponent… there’s much more to tennis than that!

1. COURT AWARENESS

Because you are playing the ball from different areas within the court you need to be aware of where you are standing.
This is even more important when you are in the less familiar areas such as very deep off the baseline or very wide on either side of the court.



When you are made to play from these 'special' positions on the court, shift your awareness to where you are standing so that you can factor in things like the height of the net, and the distance to the baseline. 
Awareness of your position on the court will also tell you whether you are in an offensive, defensive, or neutral situation for your shot.


2. BALL AWARENESS

An awareness of the ball is critical to playing well. The ball can tell you everything, you just have to listen to it. 
If the ball crosses the net high, it's telling you to move back, because it almost always means the ball will land deep. 
If the ball crosses the net lower, it's telling you to expect a shorter bouncing ball, and you should start to anticipate a forward movement.


The ball doesn't always travel to you at the same speed, learn to read the speed of the ball because that will impact how much (if any) backswing you can take.


3. OPPONENT AWARENESS



Opponent awareness covers both where you should hit the ball (hopefully to where your opponent is not!) and the type of ball you should hit to your opponent.
Far too many players are concerned only with what they themselves are doing. Develop opponent awareness because it will take your game to the next level. You will begin to factor in the position of your opponent, and often you can also anticipate their movement before they actually start.


4. RACQUET FACE AWARENESS

If I was only allowed to give one tip to a player to help them improve it would be

...develop an awareness of your racquet head

The racquet head is the surface the ball takes its instructions from. If a player has no feel for or control of their racquet head they will never reach a higher level. Increased awareness of your racquet head always translated into the player improving.



Great awareness of your racquet head is more important than footwork! When I was a junior there was an adult I played often in competitions who was very fat. However, what he lacked in his ability to move around the court, he made up for with incredible control of the ball. He had "great hands", and was able to use the racquet face like a magician.

5. SELF-AWARENESS

To play well you must constantly monitor yourself.



Awareness of your technique, confidence levels, fitness levels, and the type of strategy you are using are all important during a match.
You often hear people say "they beat themselves". What this means is that a player had either made too many unforced errors or that they had a mental meltdown on the court while playing their match. 
By being self-aware during matches, you can monitor your composure, your emotions, and your physical state throughout the match. It will help you make any adjustments necessary during the match before the problem escalates too much.

SUMMARY
When you begin to play tennis the major task is for you to simply hit the ball. Getting to the ball and making decent contact is all you can focus on.
As you gain experience and start to play better, other forms of awareness become important and necessary. Developing an awareness of the court, your opponent, the racquet face, and yourself will allow you to continue developing as a better player into the future. 




Location: Bangkok, Thailand

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