Bigger Better Tennis - Paul Dale

'It’s important to develop your game beyond technique and towards feeling… …with feeling, technique improves' The quote above is important because what many players and coaches believe is that great technique is the end destination. The belief is that with great technique you have arrived. That’s far from the reality! Great technique is really important. It’s part of   the armour that will protect you from the pressure that comes in high stakes tennis. Your game is much less prone to breakdown in matches because good technique is your firewall to the “bugs” your opponent is trying to hurt you with. However great technique is only the framework to the overall “building” that will be constructed around your game.   Those other additional parts to the “building” include things like shot selection (which shot to play) and strategy (your purpose). These elements will give your game greater overall meaning. Another problem with this technique above all els...

As a tennis coach there can be few experiences that equal sitting in the court as a Davis Cup Captain. You’re an integral part of the drama and at the core of the excitement. The fact is that you are communicating directly with your player at each changeover and therefore actively participating in the match. The conditions we experienced in the different countries we visited varied greatly. We were drawn to play Kuwait in an early round of the 1990 Competition during the time of Ramadan, a month of fasting for Muslims around the world.  During the daylight hours you are expected to abstain from drinking and eating which would have been fine if we didn’t have to play the best of five sets in the hot desert sun. The tie was broadcast locally live on TV and during the changeovers the camera would discreetly pan away from the players and into the crowd, allowing players from both countries to drink water! The timing of our return home from that fixture against Kuwait w...

One of the most neglected aspects of modern tennis is the ability to keep the ball low.  Young players today are so focused on hitting bigger shots and are so fixated on topspin that their ability to maintain a low ball is entirely missing. However, the top players understand the value of keeping a ball low in certain situations and employ underspin a lot more than you might otherwise think. Here's when keeping the ball low is beneficial… 1.   To Stop Your Opponent Attacking You It's the era of big groundstrokes! Dominant forehands are now the norm and any ball waist height today is an invitation for your opponent to go on the attack. If you throw in a low ball when you get in trouble during the rally, you neutralize your opponent's offense. The low ball has taken the ball out of their strike zone and gets you back into the rally on level terms. Underspin helps you to defend a point. By keeping the ball low, you are  neutralizing your opponents at...