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James Blake

Jim McLennan

James Blake has just concluded a breakout year, with a fabulous finish at the season ending 2006 Tennis Masters Cup. He opened the tournament with a straight set victory over Rafael Nadal, 6-4 7-6. In his second match he outlasted Nikolay Davydenk, 2-6 6-4 7-5, and he secured a spot in the finals beating David Nalbandian 6-4 6-1.

Blake was thoroughly outplayed in the final by Federer in yet another flawless display of Roger’s precision tennis. When the dust settled, James finished the 2006 season ranked fourth in the world and first in the United States. Not bad for a guy who cracked his neck against a net post while practicing at the 2004 Italian championships and whose ranking plummeted to 210 that same season.

James plays what I hope will become the “prototypical” American game: Basic eastern grip, one handed backhand, playing on or inside the baseline, always looking to control the point, and both willing and able to move forward. And, for our impressionable youth, this is a game well worth copying. In fact, his forcing, offensive, inside the baseline style is one of the main reasons he holds three wins over Rafael Nadal. (Pretty impressive when you compare this with Roger’s performance against Nadal)

Head to head with Andy Roddick, we can track James progress over the years. Blake is 2 and 6 overall, but the two wins were secured this year.

Head to head with Roger Federer, James is occasionally playing Roger close, but on this score, James has yet to break through. And as we will see, I think one of the keys will be an improved serve.

The Ricoh match facts provide interesting insights into the nuts and bolts of the game. There are no measurements of fitness, of concentration, of court speed, or of heart. Rather the numbers simply measure serve and return, but open a window into the state of Blake's game and where he might improve. For both in overall rankings, as well as with comparisons with Federer, we can see that James fares higher in the return numbers than he does with the serve.

Overall, Blake’s numbers and his rankings are obviously higher in the return categories. And as much as anything, this speaks to his attacking style, taking the ball early, and his willingness to attack any and all balls. But on the serving side of the ledger his rankings are not as high, and in particular his numbers on the first serve are to my mind most telling. Looking closely at the slow motion image of Blake, and this one bears repeating a number of times; there are two elements that stand out.

First it appears that he is not fully “up” at contact. Blake jumps when serving, but it appears he is actually descending when the ball is struck. Roddick or Federer on the other hand (who both jump) are peaking at contact, that is they are at the top of their jump and in this manner the angle of projection is maximized. Further, everything is moving in the “right direction” if they are moving up as they are hitting up. Certainly this is a nuance, and James is only slightly off, but the “devil is in the details,” and that is case here. Check the following link for this same comparison between Taylor Dent and Roger Federer.

Secondly, consider disguise. Aces occur because of the combination of placement and speed. Sometimes the receiver “reads” the serve and moves but is unable to reach the ball. Other times the receiver does not get a “read” and is aced without ever taking a step. This so called “flat footed ace” occurs often with Federer (and Sampras or Ivanisivec before him) because of Roger’s unpredictability and disguise.

To my eye, Blake's aces are struck less with disguise than with placement and power. On this score James hit and follow through are more reminiscent of Agassi’s wrist snap than they are of Roddick’s, or Federer’s or Sampras’ signature forearm roll.

It is somewhat counterintuitive, but when rolling the forearm to snap across rather than up and over the ball, the timing of the snap will vary the serve laterally. And this lateral variability, when under control, is the key to all disguised serves. Pancho Gonzalez, who served with a tremendous forearm roll advised, “Serve with an eastern backhand grip. No matter how long it takes to learn, once mastered you will serve with spin, speed, and disguise.” (Click here) to see Jim McLennan's take on the forearm roll.

But as this year concludes, let us all celebrate this amazing guy. He is personable, likeable, a wonderful role model for our kids, and an excellent technical model for anyone building a game. Number four in the world is pretty darn good – lets sit back and see if James can take it yet higher. I, for one, am pulling for him.

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