Jim McLennan, Senior Editor, TennisONE
The recently concluded Bank of the West Classic, held at the Stanford's fantastic Taube Family Tennis Center, showcased Martina Hingis' amazing tennis skills.
Dominating both the singles and doubles, Hingis displayed incredible court presence, an uncanny knack for shot selection, and great feel for the ball. In the finals against Conchita Martinez she was always in control, appeared not to have broken a sweat, and made it look all too easy. She is known to have relatively light practice sessions, and she appears far less muscular than her adversaries, yet she dominates, and this reminds me exactly of McEnroe. Her artistry certainly approaches his, though without the unseemly temper tantrums. Hingis draws me into her matches (as did Mac) with creativity and her use of the whole court. This in sharp contrast to a semifinal match that featured only crosscourt groundstrokes, played without variation of spin, speed or placement. So many of today's players (men and women) appear to have hit so many balls to reach their present level of skill, that their matches are just venues for their hitting skills (Pierce, Martinez, Coetzer,....). No one is playing the game, just hitting the ball.
Hingis enjoys classic topspin on both wings, an excellent underspin volley, a clean and crisp approaching game which includes a sidespin backhand approach (quite evident in doubles). She serves and volleys, takes the ball early when an opening presents itself, passes both with and without pace (my favorite is her softie topspin roller) and totally takes control of the time during the points. She rarely overpowers or outhits her opponent, rather she simply outplays them, just like Mac.
We will develop these themes in a series of articles that examine her grips, her stroking style, and her strategic talents. Hingis is already demonstrating the signs of a classic champion with all the shots, a champion that provides excellent training models for children or adults who are "building" their games.