The Essentials of Shot Making

by Feisal Hassan, USPTA Master Professional

Ready position. Grip. Backswing. Contact point. Follow-through. These are the stroke components that have been drilled into us when taking tennis lessons. And they are important components of shot making, but, what are the true essentials that lead to a successful tennis stroke? It is my belief that seeing/watching the ball, moving to the ball, maintaining balance when hitting the ball and controlling the racquet head are the real fundamentals. 

For decades, players have been told to “watch the ball,” “move your feet,” “keep your balance,” and “control the racquet or swing.”  These phrases seem to be maxims that should solve all of the sensory problems encountered when playing tennis. And these phrases are fine if the purpose is to make the student aware of what it is he/she needs to fix. But how does one learn to “watch” the ball better or maintain their “balance during a stroke?” It’s like telling someone to concentrate. Saying concentrate isn’t going to make one concentrate. A player needs to be taught how to concentrate. In the same way, a player needs to be taught how to: watch the ball, move the feet, maintain balance, and control the racquet. 

Thus, I believe the essentials of shot making can be broken down into four stages:

1. See the ball

2. Move/footwork to get into position to hit the ball

3. Balance to hit the ball solid

4. Swing/control of the racquet head

These stages are realistic to the sequence of what a player has to go through when hitting a ball.

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the method/program that I use to train these essentials of stroke making utilizing specific training programs for each stage. Future articles will go in-depth and offer practice drills and exercises for each level within each of the 4 stages of shot making. Your comments are welcome.

To read the rest of Feisal Hassan's article, <% ns_puts [nsv_get mkm_includes mkm_oldContentFooter_inc] %>