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Alan Margot – Clever Tennis Taking Reflex Time Away
In this doubles video, we are going to look at taking reflex time away from your opponent and we’re going to focus on the role of the net man. So, you are the net man, you decide to poach. You make your move and you’re in sync with the return; It’s right there in front of you and you have choices where to hit the volley. You decide to volley to the middle of the court? Why? Because it’s open? Here’s another thought for you. As you move up the ladder in the levels of play from 3.5, it becomes more obvious to your opponent that the middle is open. And having had many experiences of being burned in the middle, your opponent has instinctively learned to cover the middle in a heart beat! So hitting your poach to the middle of the court becomes reflexed back into play by your opponent, and the point continues. So here we go. The tasty shot is to volley down near your opponent at net, taking the reflex time away, and the best placement is to volley your shot to the alley next to your opponent, like the pros do. As you move up and out of the 3.5 level, it is an expected and accepted play to take the reflex time away! Do it!
Alan Margot Alan is the founder of www.clevertennis.com - a fun and enjoyable video based learning website that teaches doubles tactics and strategies to the 3.5 to 4.5 level. Alan is currently the Director of Tennis at the Atherton Tennis Center, Holbrook-Palmer Park in Atherton, California. For 35 years he has taught and coached all levels and ages of players including sectional and nationally ranked juniors and touring professionals in the Bay Area. He has also served as a NorCal Regional Director of the United States Professional Tennis Association. “At CleverTennis we are always thinking of new ways to connect with people to teach tennis, whether it’s through our Tennis Getaways or through our DVDs and videos. Learning is fun - at every level!” For more information on CleverTennis Getaways see www.clevertennis.com. |
Tennis is a game about time and there are many ways to use time to your advantage. You can take time away from your opponent by closing quickly on a volley, or by taking the ball early and hitting it on the rise. You can also slow the game down by changing the pace of your shots, or by taking more time between points to slow down the tempo of play.