My teaching pro advises me to "establish long hitting patterns," as he calls it, in the beginning of the match, that is to swing freely and pretty hard so that if my shots miss they go long, and not in the net or short in the court. I however fear that such a strategy will cause me to hit to many unforced errors. Could you please give me your view on my coach's advice.
Did your coach ever play any tournaments? College? I mean that is not the advise of someone whose been in the trenches. Get your control and confidence up first, then increase your speed gradually. Ease into match play. That's the consensus from the guys (and girls) on tour.
Try this warm-up. (It works great for my dozen kids in the top ten in
Southern California). Start at the service line, and in slow motion take
full and perfect strokes, play opposite-handed (or two-handed on both sides)
for five minutes, to get your focus keyed up with your non- dominant side.
You'll be amazed at how much this will help your game. Then go to your correct
or dominant hand and warm up hitting short court again. Next, slide back
and hit at 3/4 court to your partner, and then all the way back to full
court rallies. Its better to start off short stroking slowly and perfectly,
first left handed, then right (reverse for lefties). Get your control first.
Good luck. Do this routine for a couple of weeks and you won't need luck.
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