Bigger Better Tennis - Paul Dale

I recently worked with a group of strong ITF-level juniors. Each player had a solid game; the task for me was to take these accomplished juniors and prepare them for the next tournament. Because ground strokes are essential to a player’s competitive success, I focused on adding to their existing ground stroke games.   Many players at this level have good ground strokes but lack that X-factor separating promising juniors from juniors who transition successfully into the professional ranks. I wanted to remove them from their "consistent, safety first" mindset and add some "X-Factor" to their games. During the week of training, I brought 3 different teaching theories together. I created a much stronger, more effective game that would continue to develop far into the future. The 3 Theories I worked with them on were:      1.  THE 7 TARGET ZONES: Knowing where to hit the Ball and Why There are 7 target zones on the court. They are… (1) ...

I recently had a player, “James”, who was going through a rough period. James was struggling in practice and in competition. He didn’t seem to be enjoying himself on-court, becoming over-stressed and making poor decisions while executing strokes and tactics. It would have been easy to point the blame at his faltering ground-strokes and poor on-court execution, but I felt that spending time working on the details of his game would not have helped.   It seemed to me that the problem was mental and not technical.   Sometimes players lose sight of the real reasons they love to play tennis and compete. Often I ask players “Why do you play tennis”?   The answers are mostly the same.   Players say they “Like to Win” and “It’s fun”. But if that was true we would all play against opponents that we could beat easily.   Obviously playing against opponents that can be beaten easily would not be satisfying at all, therefore “winning” is not what brings us back...

                                                                   Nothing is more satisfying than beating an opponent who is, on paper, at least better than you.   A win against a superior opponent sets you apart as a genuine competitor. Beating superior opponents set you apart from the other players. Here are three ways to overcome a stronger opponent. 1.  Do Your Homework First Playing someone supposedly better than you suggests that your opponent is technically, physically, OR mentally stronger than you. They could even be technically, physically, AND mentally stronger than you! Don’t panic. It's time to plan their demise. Begin by l ooking at what they do best. Ask the following questions: Speed: do they prefer the ball fast or slow? Direction: do they like the ball wide or tight into the body?...

Men's Singles 4th Round Oredictions: Tsonga bt Wawrinka , Del Potro bt Berdych , Ferrer bt Granollers , Gasquet bt Murray , Almegro bt Tipsarevic , Nadal bt Monaco

Men's Singles French Open predictions (third Round): David Ferrer bt Mikhail Youzhny , Granollers bt Mathieu , Gasquet bt Haas , Murray bt Giraldo , Tipsarevic bt Benneteau , Almagro bt Mayer, Raonic bt Monaco , Nadal bt Schwank. 4th Round predictions: Djokovic bt Seppi , Tsonga bt Wawrinka , Federer bt Goffin , Del Potro bt Berdych

With the 2012 French Open about to start here are my predictions for the men up until the third Round: Djokovic v Melzer, Davydenko v Verdasco, Simon v Wawrinka, Fognini v Tsonga, Federer v Mahut, Stephanek v Lopez, Del Potro v Ferrero, Anderson v Berdych, Ferrer v Haase, Granollers v Isner, Haas v Gasquet, Falla v Murray, Tipsarevic v Benneteau, Kolhschreiber v Almegro, Monaco v Raonic, Karlovic v Nadal.

 Traveling with players to different countries can be challenging and rewarding As coaches we sometimes forget that the essence of our job is to help players win in competition.   We spend a lot of time on   the practice court but a large portion of our job should involve being with our players at tournaments and helping them translate work on the practice court into results at tournaments. It would be nice if that happened automatically but unfortunately it doesn’t always translate on the match court. It’s difficult during practice however to simulate match-play conditions and to teach a player to create and implement a strategy during the heat of battle.   I have always found that the tournament environment   actually enhances the learning   process because the player is much more receptive to advice.   The player is under pressure and will listen to key instructions on technique and strategy.    Here is a check-list of sugg...