Learning Tennis – Practice, Play, Watch and Learn

Learning Guide — By admin

Whether or not you are working with professional to improve your tennis game, it is important to spend time practicing and playing to work on your technique.

Playing games

Playing games is a great way to learn the game of tennis. You will notice that you will sometimes play well even when you practice poorly and vice versa. The more exposure you have to different types of competitors, the more prepared you’ll be for various styles of play.

You will find that hitting during tennis practice is quite different than playing in a tennis game. Playing games introduces pressure and a different sense of pacing that can throw off many early players. It’s important to become comfortable and learn how to thrive in game situations. Playing with tennis players with different playing styles can also really help your game.

Examples of various styles of play are the:

• Flat-ball hitter
• Heavy spin hitter
• Baseline player
• Serve and volleyer
• Lefty
• Dink player

Playing against opponents with different styles will help you to improve your game.

Playing Tournaments

Tennis tournaments take the game to the next level. Beyond the learning benefits of more play time, you will learn how to manage yourself throughout an entire tennis tournament.

There are tennis tournaments for players of all levels, including even the beginnerish 2.5 level. You may find tennis tournaments sponsored by a local club, pro, or community center. Some of these may run their own tournaments. In the US, some of these may also participate in tennis tournaments that are part of USTA.

Established in 1881, the USTA is a non-profit organization that promotes the sport of tennis. In addition to running tennis tournaments across the US, the USTA provides newsletters about upcoming events in your area and discounts on tickets to tennis events and USTA merchandise. As a member of USTA, you’ll also walk around knowing that you are helping to support the game you love.

Before your first tennis tournament, critically assess your current level of play and start with tournaments at or slightly below your self-evaluated skill level. Even if you are a seasoned player, tournament play introduces a lot of additional complexity that may challenge your on-court tennis performance. For the new tournament tennis player, this pressure could be overwhelming. Make sure you are at a level at which you feel like you can really hold your own.

You should arrive early to your tournament games and warm up appropriately. During and after the tennis tournament, take notes so you can learn from your experiences.

Watching Pros

Beyond playing, watching tennis tournaments can be a great way to learn. Here are some suggestions for what to watch for at a tennis tournament:

If you are working on a particular part of your tennis game, pay attention to what your instructor, book, video, etc. is telling you and watch to see how the pros do it. For instance, if you are working on your footwork, watch the way the top players glide around the court and position themselves for the next shot.

Watch how the pros manage their emotional state during a tennis match. What do they do when they are under pressure? What do they do when they are playing poorly?

Most importantly, of course, while doing any of these things – have fun!

Want to take your game to the next level?  Check out tennis schools and camps, clinics, and private lessons.

Tags: Learning Guide, learning tennis, tennis practice, watching tennis