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TennisOne Lessons
Ball Control The Unsung Hero of Tennis Play Wayne Elderton No matter your level, success in tennis really comes down to one simple thing: “making the fuzzy, round, yellow thing go where you want it to.” In other words, manipulating the ball is the essence of the game. There are many descriptions for players who have exceptional ball control. They are described as having great touch, feel, or 'good hands. In my opinion, good ball control is 20% cognitive knowledge of why the ball does what it does (one doesn't need to be a physicist, just know how to practically apply a few principles); 65% experiential (as you hit balls and train yourself to control them, trial and error); and 15% is just plain natural talent. Some people are just better adept at coordination conducive to making the ball do what they want. We may not have that last 15%, but there is much that can be done to have great ball control. The key for us lies in that first 20%, the cognitive knowledge.
Most players stumble around in the 65% experiential range, hitting lots of balls but stuck in a 'hit and miss’, ‘trial & error' approach to ball control. They hit the ball somewhere and make a mental connection as to why it went there. Was it my body? My arm? The way my feet were? My grip? It reminds me of a 3.0 level player who came for a lesson for the first time. After hitting a serve wide, he said, "Was my foot correct?" I asked, "Do you feel there is a connection between your foot and the direction of the serve?" It's sad to see these misconceptions floating around out there. If we get a head start on that first 20% of understanding ball control, we can better shape, and shortcut, the 65% of time training and experiencing ball control. Even without the natural gifts, we can excel with 85% mastery. The secret is a solid understanding of the in’s and out's of ball control. The ‘Two-Fold’ Definition of Technique Tactics are the where and when of playing the game. Where the ball goes to perform the tactic (e.g. hit to the opponent’s backhand, put it at the feet of a net rusher, etc.) and decision making of when to do it (e.g. lob over an opponent’s head when they are close to the net). In contrast, technique is how to make the ball achieve the tactic. Typically, when information on technique is presented (in magazines, websites, etc.), it is about biomechanics (how the body moves). However, it is extremely helpful and practical to give technique a ‘two-fold’ definition. Technique must be 1: Efficient and, 2: Effective. Part of technique is indeed biomechanics and how a player’s body moves to:
This aspect of technique is called “Efficiency” which is very important, but not the whole picture (in coaching circles, this principle is also called: “Conformity”). Another aspect of technique is not about the player’s body, but about the ball. This is called “Effectiveness.” To have ‘effective’ technique means a player can make the ball go where it should to execute a tactic. So, technique has a biomechanic aspect (the body) and a ballistic aspect (the ball). This is a critical point. There is a direct connection between tactics and technique that is lost on the majority of players and coaches. They are not as separate as commonly taught. The international coaching trend of the Game-based Approach (GBA) seeks to properly relate tactics and technique since technique tends to be learned in isolation of the very tactics the technique is supposed to accomplish. If we depict this as a diagram, we see there is a smooth continuum between tactics and technique. If the two-fold definition of technique is Efficiency and Effectiveness (how the player’s body moves and where the ball goes) then Ball Control is the ‘bridge’ between tactics and technique.
Direct Verses Indirect Technique So how does this nifty tennis knowledge affect the typical tennis player? Let’s imagine an example: A player goes to a coach for lessons with the typical complaint, “my backhand stinks.” The coach feeds some balls and then proceeds to ‘fix’ it. “You need to change to more of a eastern backhand grip and follow-through more,” comes the sage advice. The coach then continues to feed balls and reminds the player to change the grip and follow-through. It’s possible (and even likely) that, even though he is able to do what the coach required, he could still lose the same way he did before. The biomechanics were addressed, but divorced from the ballistics.
So what’s the connection? When playing the game, players usually aren’t trying to hit the ball anywhere, but somewhere in particular. If the coach had connected tactics and technique, they would first find out from the player what they needed the ball to do when playing. Technical instruction without tactical connection is just an exercise in making strokes look prettier. Once they find out what the ball needs to do, players can then work on practical, relevant, technique based on the game of tennis (e.g. Coach: “I noticed the key issue on your backhand was, when I sent you a higher ball, you had a challenge keeping it deep and gave me lots of opportunities to attack”). As much as the biomechanics are important, they don’t directly determine ball control. Biomechanics only influence ball control indirectly. In other words, it is possible to move very efficiently yet not make the ball go where it is supposed to. This is usually accompanied by constantly complaining about always losing to players who are ‘worse’ than you. This disconnect, between biomechanics and ball control, is confounding to coaches and players alike. For example, if a player wants to send a ball crosscourt and it doesn’t go there, they will often follow incorrect mechanical advice like, “line up your body and feet where you want the ball to go,”“hit it earlier,” and “follow-through in the direction you want to send it.” Although these elements have some bearing on where the ball goes, they don’t directly determine it. The result of mechanical advice that doesn’t control the ball is frustration. The player can actually perform these movements exactly and the ball still doesn’t cooperate. Not the best way to retain players and progress in the sport. If players know precisely how the ball is controlled, they can solve the problems encountered in a match. For example, if you need to move an opponent around to win, knowing what controls the ball’s direction solves the problem. The Five Ball Controls So what are the ways a ball can be manipulated? How can a player have technique that is, ‘Effective.’ There are only five things a ball can do ballistically. These are called the Five Ball Controls and are important for every player to know:
Every shot played presents a challenge of receiving a combination of these and sending a combination. For example, I received a high (height), deep (distance), topspin (spin) ball to my backhand (direction) at medium pace (speed). I responded with a deep (distance) crosscourt (direction), slice (spin). Every shot in tennis has all five characteristics, but not all of them are always relevant. On the previous slice example, speed and height were not a major issue. Knowing about the Five Ball Controls provides a framework to solve on-court problems. It is irrelevant to winning points for players to think about where their follow-through should end or where their elbow should be on their backhand. Far more relevant is engaging in what the ball is doing. Here are some examples of common tactics and the related Ball Controls: Receiving:
Sending:
The P.A.S. Principles and Controlling the Ball In a GBA, technique is simply a way to perform a tactic. But, as mentioned earlier, if the biomechanics don’t directly determine where the ball goes, then what does? Every shot is controlled by what happens during the impact point (where the ball contacts the racquet). On every shot in tennis the racquet must pass through the impact point. I will use the letters PAS as an acronym to remember what controls the ball. These are what I call the P.A.S. Principles:
Here is a helpful way to understand it. Imagine a player hitting a ball on a court. Now imagine everything is blacked out except the racquet and the ball. The things the racquet does as it interacts with the ball are the PAS principles. All of the Five Ball Controls are just a result of the unique combination of the racquet’s Path, Angle, and Speed. Every shot in tennis is just a ‘recipe’ of the three P.A.S. Principles. For example, to hit a groundstroke down-the-line, the Angle of the racquet face needs to look at the intended target. The Path of the racquet should be towards the target to create a ‘hitting zone’ and keep the racquet on track. The speed of the racquet must be enough to overcome any ‘angle of reflection’ caused by a ball coming from an angle. If the ball doesn’t do what it is supposed to, the PAS recipe must be fixed (“My racquet was looking to the middle of the court when I hit it and that’s why it went there”). Even Mini-Tennis kids can quickly learn how to fix their own shots. If, in a Mini-Tennis rally, the ball hits the net, the coach could help them learn by saying, “open your racquet up a bit and swing more low to high to lift it over the net.” This problem solving tool will stay with them for life and is far more effective than parroting the over-used, “bend your knees,” as the solution (knee flexion is a good thing but not as a solution to this situation). For more advanced shots, it works just as well. If a player’s topspin lob keeps landing long, it may be because the player’s swing speed was too slow resulting in insufficient topspin to bring the ball down soon enough. The solution of, “accelerate your racquet more through the impact,” would do the trick (the “S” in PAS).
The New World of Ball Control It has been my experience that when players learn the P.A.S. Principles, their tennis transforms. A whole new world opens up to them. Rather than being stuck in the ‘mechanics mode’ of always worrying about moving ‘properly’ (because the coach says they should), they now have a mechanism to ‘coach themselves’ during a match. They have the tools, with the biomechanics they currently have, to make the ball do what they need it to. Now, just to confirm, I am not saying players should continue with poor biomechanics! It’s just that in a match, you have to play as effectively as possible with the mechanics you have. To improve to higher levels, new mechanics will be required and learning them integrated with tactics and ball control is the best way to go. I have also found players using PAS are more motivated to improve their biomechanics. They have a framework to directly see and experience the limitations their mechanics have (it is much more powerful if it comes from them and not the coach). Connecting tactics and ball control to mechanics gives good incentive for players to change grips, rotations, movements, etc. (e.g. Player: “I really need to get more topspin on the ball to get it to kick more on my serve, how do I do it?” Coach: “A more vertical racquet angle and steeper upward swing path will help, taking a backhand grip will make both of those easier, want to try?” Player: “I can’t seem to do it with my current swing, I might as well go for it”. Ball Control is the unsung hero of tennis play. It connects tactics and biomechanics in a powerful and practical way. It allows for more effective play without radically altering stroke mechanics (make sure to improve your mechanics if they are poor). See what happens when you start practicing putting the ball where it should go rather than worrying if you are following through or not. We will continue this series by looking at each ball control and providing drills to help you master the PAS Principles and make you the most effective player you can be. Your comments are welcome. Let us know what you think about Wayne Elderton's article by emailing us here at TennisOne.
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Wayne Elderton