3 SIMPLE STRATEGIES TO BOOST YOUR GAME

Strategy is the most neglected part of a player’s development, and yet with the correct strategy any opponent can be beaten 

In my opinion, Strategy is the “next Frontier” of tennis. Most of the competitive players I see today are technically very good and are physically in great shape but few are playing their matches with any real understanding of Strategy. 

Here are three super-effective ways for you to add some basic strategy to help boost your game almost immediately.

1. HIT CROSSCOURT

There is a saying in boxing that “The Jab is everything, everything comes from the Jab”. Every fighter is trained to establish the Jab during the fight because once a fighter can dominate with their Jab, they dominate the fight. 

Why? Because the boxing Jab establishes the distance between the two fighters allowing one fighter to dictate whether the fight is conducted at close quarters or further apart.

The Jab is also the “stepping stone” for other punches. Fighters throw the Jab out and look to follow-up that Jab with another more telling punch such as a Hook or an Upper-cut.

In tennis, the equivalent to the boxing Jab is the Cross-court (forehand and backhand). Here are the reasons why the tennis Cross-court can be so helpful to you in matches:

– The Cross-court shot in tennis puts your opponent under more pressure because it’s always moving away from them. If you’re Cross-Court game is strong enough your opponent will eventually drop a ball through the middle of the court and short. That’s your chance to attack with a forehand or to come forward to the net!

– If you are in trouble during the rally the best direction to defend is Cross-Court. There’s more court to defend to when you hit to the far corner, but even more importantly you have given your opponent the toughest option on their next ball, a down-the-line shot. Although they can still hit the ball back cross-court, you probably haven’t recovered your position yet after the previous shot, so hitting down-the-line is their best option. For your opponent, changing direction down-the-line is a tougher shot to play.

If your game can be based around a strong Cross-Court foundation you become a much more difficult opponent to beat.

2. GIVE YOUR OPPONENTS WHAT THEY DISLIKE

It sounds obvious but why wouldn’t you give your opponent the type of balls they don’t like, and as often as possible?

The problem with most players, however, is that they are unable to analyze their opponents well enough to really know for sure their opponents’ likes and dislikes. Here’s how to analyze at your opponent better.

If you’ve played your opponent before or have seen them play matches before then you have some idea of their preferences. If you’ve never seen your next opponent before then you will need to focus hard during the 5 minutes of the warm-up. The 5 minutes of the warm-up tend to show you everything you will need to know about their preferences and dislikes.

Of course, you should be still trying to “read” your opponent as the match is in progress and make adjustments to your plan when you see anything that may help. Here’s what you are looking for:

High or Low: Does your opponent prefer to play their strokes off a high or low bouncing ball?

Fast or Slow: What speed do they prefer the ball to come to them? Which option do they make timing errors off?

Wide or Tight: Does your opponent prefer to play their strokes while moving wide in the court or do they prefer to hit balls that are "tight” and into the body?

Up or Back: Some players prefer to play up at the net while others prefer staying back at the baseline. What does your opponent prefer?

Whether you’re scouting an opponent during an early-round match, trying to get an understanding of their game during the warm-up or analyzing them while the match is in progress , look for two things, What type of ball are the mistakes coming from and what balls do they play really well? Whatever they dislike, give them more of and whatever they like avoid giving them that ball.

“Avoid what is strong and attack what is weak”

– Tsun Tzu

3. BE AWARE OF YOUR FEET & HEIGHT OF THE BALL

Making the correct decisions during the point is critical to you being successful. This is called your shot selection. The essence of good shot selection is about you deciding the best, most effective ways to play each ball. Whether you defend the point or attack the point at the correct times will make you a much better player. Whether you must go into Offensive mode or Defensive mode can be decided by becoming aware of two factors:

– The position of your feet when you hit the ball. Any time you hit the ball with your feet positioned inside the baseline you’re in an Offensive situation. Attack the point! If your feet are behind the baseline when you contact the ball you’re on defense. Nothing silly!

– The height of the ball when you make contact. Picture an imaginary line running parallel from the top of the net (the white band), all the way across your side of the court. Any ball struck above that imaginary line is an offensive ball, while any ball struck below the imaginary line is a defensive ball.

These two simple “rules” provide you with a shot selection template. They will ensure that you are not making shot selection mistakes and trying to hit the wrong shot at the wrong time.

With these 3 simple strategies, your games will become stronger immediately, but more importantly, you will now be dictating the rally, reading your opponent better and making all the right decisions in matches