Book Review: “Tennis: Winning the Mental Match”, by Allen Fox, Ph.D.

Tennis: Winning the Mental Match, by Allen Fox, Ph.D. (Kearney, NE: Morris Publishing, 2010) 159 Pages, 14 Chapters, with Foreword by Justin Gimelstob

“Tennis is more difficult mentally than most other sports. Because of its one on one personal nature, it feels more important than it is. Competitive matches can be highly stressful, and losing can be very painful.”
-From Tennis: Winning the Mental Match, by Allen Fox, Ph.D.

Allen Fox is uniquely qualified to talk about the psychological aspects of tennis from multiple perspectives – namely, as a world-class player, top coach, writer and thinker. Fox, a Ph.D. in Psychology from UCLA, is an author of multiple tennis books, former Wimbledon Quarter Finalist, former coach of top-ranked Pepperdine University, and regular contributor to Tennis Magazine and Tennis Channel.

He has made a significant contribution to mental tennis literature with this short yet lucid book. Tennis: Winning the Mental Match offers a thorough compendium of ideas and suggestions for better managing this most mental of sports, collected from Fox’s years of tennis experience.

In 14 Chapters, Fox dissects a broad range of mental tennis topics, among them: our need to win, emotional issues surrounding competition, reducing stress, confidence, game plans, breaking your opponent mentally and doubles psychology. He offers focused and practical suggestions to help players deal with these issues.

For example, on stress reduction, Fox suggests that players develop a more “realistic” perspective on the game – namely, take it as a “game to enjoy”. For Fox, this includes simply accepting outcomes which cannot be controlled, resisting the narrow focus on winning, and avoiding excessive perfectionism.

Fox offers many incisive yet often-overlooked insights. For example, he suggests that our on-court body language makes a difference – in terms of winning and impact on our opponent. “[A]ll of your actions, not just your forehands and backhands,” writes Fox, “have a profound effect on your opponent’s mental state.”

“Since human beings are a social species, they instinctively react emotionally to how other people treat them. . . If you fear [your opponent], they feel brave; if you show them they are hurting you, they feel strong; if you appear certain, they will feel uncertain; if you dismiss their efforts, they will feel weak. . . So if you appear strong, confident, and impervious to their efforts, your opponent will tend to feel weak and ineffectual.”

For Fox, among the principal mental challenges in tennis pertain to:
*Anger – releasing and managing anger outbursts
*Tanking – improving a downturn in level of play stemming from overwhelming stress
*Choking – minimizing a debilitating fear which freezes a player’s relaxed and effortless game

Here is a short list of ten (10) mental tennis ideas and concepts in the book worthy of consideration and study.

1. Tennis is an intensely emotional game. The goal is to manage these emotions. Your emotion rules every point. Thus, the trick is to maximize positive emotion before every point.

2. The primary question for players to pose, and the cause of stress is: What does winning and losing mean to me? (Fox admonishes us that tennis is a game, and to treat it as a game and simply enjoy it.)

3. Stress also comes from people attempting to control the uncontrollable. Winning a tennis match is not fully in your control. Accept it.

4. In tennis, you can play a nearly perfect match and still lose. The scoring system is “diabolical”, making some points far more important than others. This compounds the pressure.

5. Recognize and take comfort in that every match offers multiple opportunities to win, not just one.

6. The Golden Rule: Never do anything on court that does not help you win.

7. In a close match, the difference can be only a few points. How you manage your mind and emotions will determine if you win.

8. In tennis, and most things, it takes courage to get hit, and keep going. Be tough mentally.

9. Optimism is one of your biggest on-court weapons. Use it and hone it.

10. Develop higher character values for more long-term respect and satisfaction, such as good sportsmanship, respect for the opponent and the sport.

In summary, Tennis: Winning the Mental Match offers thoughtful and important insights into critical mental aspects of tennis for players at all levels. It’s a gem that should be read by all tennis enthusiasts who know that this game is ultimately a sport of supreme mental self-discipline.

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

Book Review: “Talent is Overrated”, by Geoff Colvin

Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else, Geoff Colvin, (New York, NY: Portfolio, 2008), 228 Pages, 11 Chapters with Acknowledgments, Sources and Index.

“Landing on your butt twenty thousand times is where great performance comes from.”
-Geoff Colvin Page 188, Chapter 11 (Where does great performance come from?) (Explaining that Japanese figure skater Shizuka Arakawa’s road to Gold Medal performance at the 2006 Winter Olympics required painful and massive practice designed to push her limits, powered only by her passion)

What made Mozart, Tiger Woods, Jerry Rice, Chris Rock and other world-class performers reach their levels of excellence? Most would say “natural talent” or “hard work”. But is that really true?

In this thoughtful and well-written book, Geoff Colvin, Editor at Fortune Magazine, challenges these and other basic assumptions we have about world-class performance in business and sports. And by doing so, he offers a journey into the physics of “performance excellence” – with the democratic promise that some part of that excellence might be available to us all.

Colvin employs some ground-breaking research and data to question the “natural talent” or “hard work” schools of thought about world-class performance. He suggests that something else, perhaps startling at first but actually quite intuitive, is at play in a critical way. And it’s not special intelligence or memory or experience or in-born genetics. Rather, it is something he calls “deliberate practice”.

“Deliberate practice” is a methodology carefully designed to constantly push a performer past his usual and tired limits – to stretch oneself – into what Colvin describes as the “learning zone” which is a place where the performer is continuously improving his skill sets.

Over many months or years or thousands of repetitions, a “deliberate practice” performer begins to rise to the highest levels of excellence. Colvin suggests that even such a performer’s cognitive perception, powers of creativity and intuitive knowledge and memory begin to grow. Unfortunately, “deliberate practice” is “hard”, says Colvin. “It hurts, but it works.” It is an intensely mental drill, and thus it is not “inherently enjoyable”.

What are the elements of “deliberate practice”?

*Exercises designed specifically for the individual to improve performance past his limits.
*It is repeated over and over.
*High level feedback on results is continuously available in a supportive environment.
*It’s highly demanding mentally.
*It’s not much fun, thus implies the need for passion.

Colvin goes on to show how this methodology can apply in business and sports, and to individuals and teams. Colvin lastly explores the “deepest question about great performance” – namely, where does the passion come from? He suggests that performers might have intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivations, and among them the pleasure of great accomplishment, the need for achievement, the need to do good, and the drive for power and purpose.

For Colvin, the ultimate questions about performance excellence for anyone are: What do you really want? And what do you really believe? Do you want to pay the price of sustained “deliberate practice” to reach your level of excellence? Do you really believe that you can achieve it or not?

Talent is Overrated is an intellectual exploration into what really makes for world-class performance, with useful and challenging ideas for everyone to reach a higher performance level.

Well worth reading for anyone wishing to improve at whatever they do.

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
http://www.timelesstennis.net

Serve and volley since 2000 – The decline of an art.

By Jacob Funnell

“We’re in a situation that if we don’t take [the decline of serve and volley] seriously, we might be in a position in two or three years’ time when we’ll have extremely boring tennis with guys just standing on the baseline. If that happens I think tennis will die quite a lot” ~ Jonas Bjorkman, then Chairman of the Player Council, speaking in 2001.

In 2001, there was little indication that the era of serve and volley tennis was living on borrowed time in its spiritual heartland of Wimbledon. Players at every stage of their career, and of every stature, were following their serves into the net with great effect. The mighty Sampras and the ever-hopeful Henman, the giant veteran Ivanisevic and the rising star Federer, all used the same basic game plan. Whether following booming 130mph serves, or more modest deliveries, there could be little doubt which style was ascendant on the skiddy, low-bouncing grass, with Andre Agassi the only baseliner in the semi-finals.

Wimbledon 2001 is especially famed for being the first and only time Sampras and Federer met competitively. Of course, they would go on to meet each other eternally, in the unwinnable game of ‘Who is the Greatest Tennis Player Ever’. It is obviously wonderful to watch Federer at a time when all the world could have scarcely guessed the towering heights of his dominance to come. Another remarkable aspect of the match, however, is the style of both men. Federer was very like Sampras. He served and volleyed, and though his serve lacked the venom of Sampras’, these minor details were outweighed by the great similarities between the two as they vied for control of the net.

Federer went on to lose to the serve and volley of Henman, who went on to lose to the serve and volley of Ivansevic, who went on to beat the serve and volley of Rafter, to win the title.

This was not to last. The balance between serve and volley and baseline tennis would be tipped decisively, and in 2002, now Tim Henman was the only serve and volleyer in the semi-finals. Hewitt and Nalbandian went on to play the first Wimbledon final without a single player attempting the tactic, even as a surprise change-up. Even Agassi would serve and volley as a change of pace, a different look, something else for the other guy to think about. Now Wimbledon was winnable without even needing to do it. The factors for this change go down like accessories to murder in the minds of many tennis fans. What were they, then? What had turned the attacking game of serve and volley into endless metronomic rallies[1]?

Before all else, tennis players themselves have changed. Nobody would doubt that the current top 20 is fitter, faster and stronger than at any point in history. In 2011, the world’s best serve and volleyer, Michael Llodra (ranked 24^th), hit a heavy kick serve, in the deuce court, to the backhand of the world’s best baseliner, Rafael Nadal (ranked 1^st) on the ‘quick’ clay of Madrid.

Nadal, standing about 10 feet from the baseline, hit a backhand crosscourt, dropping relatively tamely at Llodra’s feet. The great touch-artist half-volleyed the ball at a sharp angle away from Nadal, bouncing very close to the net of Nadal’s ad court service box. To even reach the ball before it bounced twice would require dashing across almost the entire diagonal of the court at four-fifths the speed of an Olympic sprinter. This is exactly what Nadal did, covering 15 metres in less than two seconds, before deftly dinking the ball past a helpless Llodra cross-court.

The changes in racket equipment at the turn of the century had their impact, too. Often cited as a seismic shift in tennis, Gustavo Kuertern started using underwear elastic company Luxilon’s polyester strings in 1997, and went on to win three French Opens. With these strings the ball gained more spin and speed when hit with the ferocious racket-head speed generated by modern, ‘windshield wiper’ swings. Taylor Dent, who continued to serve and volley deep into the 2000s, considers modern strings the main culprit for its demise[2] “I think that the biggest changes are in the strings, that’s actually a bigger change than from wood to graphite, because these guys can get so much dip on the ball at such a high pace. In the past, if you were serving and volleying, it was really tough for the guy to get a return down at your feet because you can’t generate that kind of spin off a first serve. Generally speaking, you’re just trying to keep it low over the net, but now, if you don’t really stretch a guy out, it’s coming back at your feet, and then they can hit passing shots so hard because they can generate so much spin.“ Furthermore, going into the 2000s were the first generation of tennis players who had played with graphite rackets since the age of 4 or 5. It became second-nature to them to use these new, powerful tools, whereas in the previous era many top pros had made this change mid-career. But though this change in technology certainly made life no easier for serve-volleyers, how to explain their disappearance even from the quick lawns of Wimbledon?

Well, they became less quick. And it is this change, above all, which is lamented by modern professionals. As Greg Rusedski remarked mournfully at Queen’s Club 2008 whilst commentating on the wholesale destruction of serve-volleyer Jonas Bjorkman by Rafael Nadal “these aren’t like the grass courts we used to play on”. The change in grass courts is such that all talk about serve and volley being the ‘ideal strategy’ for the surface is antiquated. Unlike the changes in racket technology and the fitness of the players themselves, this was a step-change. Allegedly motivated by a desire to lengthen rallies, due to the increased television spectator revenue promised by longer points, Wimbledon 2002 was utterly different to Wimbledon 2001. The substrate of the courts were changed to encourage higher bounces. The mix of the grass changed from a quick 70% Rye / 30% Creeping red fescue, to a slower 100% Perennial ryegrass. This, coupled with the slower balls[3], led to one thing – the first ever Wimbledon final that lacked a single serve and volley point, between the straightforward baseliners of Hewitt and Nalbandian.

The change in the tournament overall was mirrored in the change in a man, Roger Federer. Though he serve-volleyed extensively in his final against Philippoussis in 2003, he never again attacked as much as he did in 2001 against Sampras. In his subsequent finals against Roddick and Nadal, Federer  primarily made his impact from the baseline, serve-volleying infrequently. In a 2010 interview[4], Federer remarked that “I obviously came here in the year when I played Sampras, let’s say, I was serve and volleying 80% of the first serve, 50% on the second serve. I remember once speaking to Wayne Ferreira who I was playing doubles with that year actually. He said he used to serve and volley always first serve, 50% of the second serve. And towards the end of his career at Wimbledon, he used to serve and volley 50% of his first serve and not anymore on his second serve. You wonder, how in the world has that happened? Have we become such incredible return players or can we not volley anymore or is it just a combination of slower balls, slower courts? I think it’s definitely a bit of a combination of many things. If I look back, I think we definitely had many more great volley players in the game back then. When you do have that, you are forced to move in, as well, because you don’t want to hit passing shots against a great volleyer over and over again. But because we don’t have that as much anymore, everybody’s content staying at the baseline”

Federer further notes that “unfortunately, they’ve slowed down everything, indoors, grass. Everything has become so slow, I think that is a bit of a pity.”

After this conspiracy of factors had successfully killed the last great serve-volleyers, what remains of serve and volley going into the new decade?

At the highest level, only three players consistently in the top 10 serve and volley regularly, in that they will serve and volley at least once in most matches. Those are Federer, Roddick and Murray. All three men have great variety in their shots and game plans. Federer idolized Edberg as a boy, and his attacking instincts, obvious enjoyment of the style, and practised technique, mean that he (comparatively) often serve-volleys, especially when comfortably in front, or when playing in practice/exhibition matches.

Roddick, by contrast, has no apparent love of the serve and volley game. He does, however, have a love of serving, and a tireless desire to try new strategies against any opponent. Thus, when Michael Llodra began chipping his giant serve back during Wimbledon 2010, Roddick began to serve and volley to force the Frenchman to go for more risky shots. And during the ATP World Tour Finals the same year, he came up with the daring tactic of serve-volleying on his second serves against Nadal, the rationale being that this was his best approach shot. It paid limited dividends, but the tactic remains a viable weapon in his armoury.

Murray is naturally fond of variety, and though this primarily means differences in his groundstrokes, he will occasionally change-up play with a serve and volley point. Temperamentally unsentimental, he will happily serve and volley when it works, as his fine use of serve and volley against David Nalbandian in the 2010 Paris Masters demonstrated. Down a set and losing badly from the back of the court, Murray switched to serve and volley tactics. This game-changing decision saw his play likened to that of Boris Becker and Pete Sampras, and he went on to take the next two sets to win the match. Providing more support for the view that slower court surfaces were the largest factor in the decline of serve and volley since 2000, the event was played on the fastest surface of a Masters 1000 event, the indoor courts of the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy.

Beyond these 3, most of the remaining top 10 are notable for their total absence of any serve-volleying. This is in contrast to 2000, when the year-end top 10 mostly had the will and ability to change things up with serve and volley, if only occasionally. Nadal tried it successfully a couple of times against Denis Istomin at Queen’s Club 2010, to the great surprise of all present, and the author knows of no other occasions. For Nadal, every point in every competition matters, whatever the score, so unlike Federer he is rarely or never ‘just playing’ with an opponent he has well beaten. His baseline play is outstanding, and consequently there is seldom a situation where serving and volleying will tilt the odds in his favour more than staying at the baseline – so to prevent any wasted points, he never serve-volleys. Djokovic uses it very rarely as a surprise tactic, but it is a trivial aspect of his game. Berdych, like Nadal, has been known to serve and volley (ineffectually) on grass courts, but again it is essentially non-existent. Soderling never serve-volleys despite his 140mph+ serve. Ferrer, Del Potro and Verdasco are much the same[5].

Just outside the consistent top 10, there are a number of players who incorporate serve and volley as a non-trivial aspect of their game. Tsonga used it occasionally to great effect to reach the final of the 2008 Australian Open, as did Mardy Fish in his 2008 US Open run. Jurgen Melzer, too, can use it as an effective change-up, helping him reach the 2010 Wimbledon fourth round.

But only when climbing down to the rank of 24 in the world do you hit the first true serve-volleyer, Michael Llodra. A tricky lefty and doubles Grand Slam champion, with a serve branded ‘unbelievable’ and volleys which are ‘the best on the tour’ by Robin Soderling, he has been making some inroads into Grand Slams and Masters 1000 events – notably a semi-final run on the quick fastcourts at Paris, where he was only just edged by the much higher ranked Soderling. He has claimed some remarkable scalps including Querrey, Berdych and Djokovic. He is, in his own words, ‘like the Last of the Mohicans’, and the rarity of his game can cause some opponents to unravel. But not all. The great test of his game came in the crucial 2010 singles Davis Cup tie between France and Serbia. There, the unfazed baseliner Victor Troicki efficiently and consistently unlocked Llodra. Whether it is the rackets, the surface, or the athleticism of players, few tennis fans could have seen this as anything other than a final, superfluous nail in the coffin of serve and volley at the highest level.

To find other true serve-volleyers, further climb-downs in the rankings are necessary[6]. Here, three main categories of modern serve and volley emerge. The first, dwindling group are veterans from the 90s and early 2000s. Llodra (30 years old) and Stepanek (32 years old) are the main players in this category, following the retirement of Dent in 2010. The second are doubles specialists. Naturally suited to playing at the net and practised at serve-volleying, doubles specialists often trade on this unusual advantage when entering singles – a good example is Nicolas Mahut. And thirdly, are big (and usually tall) servers. Thus Ivo Karlovic usually follows his record-breaking serves to the net, as does the 6’7” Chris Guccione. But even armed with the biggest serves with the acutest angles in the game, younger tall players such as Kevin Anderson and John Isner frequently elect to stay back on serve.

The remaining reserves are in doubles play proper, where serve and volley remains a winning tactic at the very highest level, and a few of the 1,000+ professional journeymen singles players that play in Challengers and Futures level events across the globe. Indeed, it is worth noting that outside the very top 0.0001% of tennis players in the world, pure serve and volley remains a viable tactic. Llodra, after all, is the 24^th best player on the entire planet. Thus unknowns like Takao Suzuki, Prakash Amritraj and Ivan Navarro can quietly ply their trade, winning enough matches to earn a living, and, very rarely, making enough of a run in a major tournament to feature as a brief blip on the radar of tennis spectators everywhere.

So what is the future of serve and volley? As a surprise tactic, it appears to remain safe. Two of the most prominent breakthroughs of 2011, Milos Raonic and Ryan Harrison, are competent serve -volleyers. Both players clearly practice the tactic as necessary, for one can be a great server and a great volleyer and yet be ineffectual at putting these together in serve and volley – look at the tenuous footwork of Djokovic on his rare attempts at serve and volley, compared to the fluid, razor-sharp mastery of Sampras. It of course helps that players like Raonic grew up idolizing Sampras. Without a similar influence around in the 2000s, it will be interesting to see whether many young players will feel inspired to put the dedicated time in necessary – Nick Bolletieri[7] says it takes three to four years to learn serve and volley well. Further, Bolletieri tells us it can take a talented player until their early twenties to master serve and volley– when college tennis scholarships are on the line, this is too late, as a player could instead be mastering a more straightforward baseline game likely to garner more wins.

A few predict the return of a new, great serve and volleyer, almost as a Messianic figure sent to save tennis from its baseline tedium. Thus McEnroe foresees an ultra-athletic player that will serve and volley, and start beating the baseliners. Sampras, too, believes that his game would continue to work well against modern players. But this view is in the minority. Federer, a talented serve and volleyer, knew that the age was at an end, and changed in time to be a great all-court player. Dent and Henman both attempted to re-work their games much later in their careers to a more all-court focus, with less success. Indeed, a weary Dent came to say at the end of his career “serve and volley is not a viable way to play tennis – you have to serve aces to make it work”.

For those desperate for a glimmer of hope for a future tennis containing serve and volleyers, perhaps one thing can be said – should serve and volley ever become viable again through changes to courts or racket technology etc., it will come to the fore again, perhaps discovered by a lowly ranked singles player, or a doubles specialist causally playing a singles tournament.

For now – quasi-religious predictions of a resurrection aside –we can see that Bjorkman was right in 2001. Top-ranking serve and volleyers have died. And tennis has died quite a lot, too.

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[1] This discussion is especially indebted to Ian Westermann’s ‘Miss Serve and Volley? Get Over It’ at the Essential Tennis ProBlog.

[2] http://www.tennisserver.com/photofeed/2010/100816-wsfg_mens_masters.shtml

[3] It is worth noting that the All-England Club officially denies that the changes in surface and balls during 2001 were at all significant, and that there was no intention to change the surface for a particular style of play. This being so, it becomes difficult to explain the dramatic difference in play that prevailed after that point, so their claims are at best open to question.

[4] http://2010.wimbledon.org/en_GB/news/interviews/2010-06-28/201006281277741945488.html

[5] All players will run into the net to volley away a return that flies very high into the air, but this ‘serve, see high return, and come to the net to volley it away’ is not true serve and volley, which is a premeditated tactic known to the server before they even hit the ball.

[6] Even amongst the ‘serve and volleyers’ named here, some have changed their playing styles over the course of their careers, and adapt their play for more or less serve and volley dependent on surface, opponent &c.

[7] http://www.midatlantic.usta.com/will_the_serve_and_volley_ever_bounce_back/

Postscript: Since writing this article, Wimbledon 2011 saw a small but significant amount of serve and volley tactics. Murray, Tsonga, Fish and Lopez all serve and volleyed on their runs to the quarter-finals (and Del Potro, surprisingly, used the tactic up to the fourth round). Indeed, Roddick vs Lopez was a true blast from the past, a wonderful mix of serve-volleying, chip and charge, net-attacking tennis as well as the usual baseline battles. The situation in the final between Djokovic and Nadal, however, remained starkly different to the serve and volley of the 2001 final a decade ago. Nonetheless, Djokovic did serve and volley out of nowhere to set-up championship point – suggesting that serve and volley, as a surprise tactic, is indeed here to stay.

The Three Golden Rules of Tennis

The Three Golden Rules of Tennis

Are there any universal rules of tennis that will help lift all players to higher levels of success and growth?

Yes.

Here are 3 interesting and pivotal concepts borrowed from some top coaches and writers.

1. Never Do Anything on Court that Does Not Help You Win
————————————————————————————————————————–
* From Allen Fox, Ph.D., former World-Class Player, Coach, Psychologist and Author.

Fox tells us that champions never lose sight of their ultimate goal – to win. Losers, meanwhile, often seem to be driven by a fear of failure. Thus, for Fox, the first (and final) “Golden Rule” is to ask yourself: “Will this help me win the match?” If not, don’t do it, admonishes Fox.

Examples of things that happen on court that typically enable and encourage players to get “off-track” or not “let-go-of-a-point” are: bad line calls, faulty umpire instructions, crowd distractions, weather issues, court surface problems and many other related topics. Of course, these types of issues should not be completely ignored. Rather, they should be carefully managed to avoid losing focus on the final goal – to win.

All too often, warns Fox, lesser players feel pressured and fear failure, and quickly fall into excuse-making, defeatism or personal antagonism. Only the rare player can elevate his or her game with anger. For most of us, we draw far better dividends by staying focused and keeping “our eyes on the prize”.

2. Never Do Anything on Court that Does Not Help You Become More Loose
————————————————————————————————————————–
*From Jeff Greenwald, M.A., M.F.T., former World No. 1 and USA No. 1 in Men’s Singles and Doubles (35-and-Over Division), Sports Psychology Consultant and Author

Greenwald suggests that a player’s best tennis happens when tension and tightness is released. But conversely a certain amount of arousal and adrenaline should be maintained. Thus, Greenwald prefers the term “loose” as opposed to “relaxed”. Being “relaxed” may imply a certain lack of intensity or focus. Being “loose”, on the other hand, forces the player’s mind to think about his or her body. And encourages the player to make things more limber and fluid.

The goal for Greenwald then is to “drop into a looser state ” so you can execute with your highest confidence. How is it done? Greenwald says that the key is to first be aware of your body’s tightness and literally “call up” this looser state. Shift attention to your hands, wrists, arms, shoulders, upper and lower backs. Are they loose and limber? Are you breathing deeply?

Even simple technique reminders such as committing to a “split-step-and-go”, “early racket preparation”, or “full follow-through” often helps many players increase their physical looseness and shift away from tension. Simply pay attention to your body and loosen it up, counsels Greenwald, which then paradoxically allows you to forget your ego and get out of your head.

“Looseness” of hands, say most coaches, enables a player to grip the racket in the ideal manner – as if holding an raw egg or live bird. “Looseness” of body, suggest most coaches, empowers: footwork to be quick and urgent, swing technique to be smooth and fluid, and the mind to be focused and intense.

3. Never Do Anything on Court that Does Not Help You Improve Your Game in the Long Run
—————————————————————————————————————————-
*From Vic Braden, Legendary Coach, Sports Psychologist and Bestselling Author

Braden reminds us that all of us are naturally focused on short-term results. What is the score? What is my rank or rating? How can I win now?

Yet, half of us will lose our matches. Indeed, every player in a tournament will eventually lose – except, of course, for the winning champion. Yet even the champion has suffered his or her share of past losses. Therefore, we will all eventually lose. Braden suggests however that while “losing” is inevitable, “defeat” is optional.

In other words, we can never be defeated if: we first play to the best of our ability on every shot and point, and then learn from our losses to improve our game for the long run. Our victorious opponent, after all, has conveniently shown us our weaknesses and our strengths. We win by building our game up with the knowledge we have gained – fortifying our strengths and addressing our weaknesses.

In this way, Braden defines for us a “new kind of winning” – one in which we can’t lose. Many coaches call this the “cycle of improvement.” Our final goal is to always come back and, of course, “play our game” – but this time an all-new and improved game.

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

Sources:
1. The Winner’s Mind, Allen Fox, Ph.D. (Racquet Tech Pub.: Vista, CA, 2005)
2. The Best Tennis of Your Life, Jeff Greenwald, M.A., M.F.T. (Betterway Books: Cincinnati, OH 2007)
3. Mental Tennis, Vic Braden (Little, Brown: New York, NY 1993)

The Parallel Universes of Tennis

Our best theoretical physicists and mathematicians today have deduced with their experiments and equations that our Universe is far richer and more complex than ever imagined.

For example, physics pioneers such as Michio Kaku of City University of New York and Brian Greene of Columbia University, argue that our physical reality may actually consist of much more than our 3 simple dimensions of space, and time – but rather up to 11 dimensions of space and time.

Meanwhile, leading research physicists such as Max Tegmark of MIT and top astronomers such as Alex Filippenko of University of California at Berkley (and an avid tennis player), propose yet another mind-bending possibility.

They say that 21st century physics, together with massive data from space-based satellites such WMAP (Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe), now suggest that our vast universe is actually but one of many — a Multiverse of many different parallel universes in different dimensions, spaces and times.

Back to Earth.

In the world of tennis, consider how many levels or “worlds” are at play in a match. Beyond strokes, footwork, technique, mental nerves, match conditions and the score, what other “universes” might there exist to affect the ultimate outcome?

1. The Universe of Managing Unforced Errors
Most coaches agree that tennis at all levels, especially recreational tennis, is a battle of unforced errors. Whoever makes more unforced errors usually loses. Bill Tilden wrote: “Remember that in first-class tournament tennis, 70% of all points end in error, a net or out . . .” And of course, he warns that it’s even higher at lower tennis levels. Vic Braden adds his observation: Most rallies at all levels on average last no more than 2 to 3 strokes before someone makes an error. Thus, controlling errors is beyond critical.

Managing unforced errors first requires attention to what is happening and why. Most unforced errors happen because a player is simply not watching the ball intently and exclusively. Another reason for many unforced errors is, of course, poor stroke technique (hitting long or into the net) or bad footwork (swinging too close to or too far from the ball).

To manage unforced errors (which are simply unavoidable for everyone), coaches suggest that a player employ the mind set which the pros reportedly use: A mentality of rapid and fluid recovery from unforced errors, rather than trying to avoid unforced errors which is of course plainly impossible.

Go back to some basics to recover from an unforced error. Watch the ball, watch your spacing to the ball, watch your form. Return to hitting “the directionals” (meaning hitting the ball back in the direction from which it came to you.) Hit the ball cross-court more often, where there is “more” court and a “lower” net. Hit with more safety, meaning hit higher over the net, thus hitting the ball deeper. And above all, as Vic Braden implores all players, hit with topspin and less flat — with your racket head starting below the level of the ball, and moving low to high.

2. The Universe of “Getting on a Roll”
Tennis is a sport about rhythm and timing in swinging the racket at the ball. How many times have we seen a player “catch fire” in their stroke production or service motion and get into an almost unbreakable “groove” at a tournament? “Tennis is a psychological game”, wrote Vic Braden. And it is probably about which player can “get into a roll” faster and better than the other. Which player on this day can more quickly and consistently play his or her best tennis game?

Tennis players, more than nearly all athletes, it is said, are creatures of habit and routine — before, after and between points. Ever notice how meticulously Rafael Nadal always places his water bottles at chair side in the same exact way and engages in the very same routines on court? Getting into a “groove” mentally and physically probably helps enormously in re-creating a top player’s proven court domination in a new match. It is remarkable to see how any player’s confidence is suddenly boosted when he or she manages to hit a few winners in sequence. More often than not, many more winners will flow from that player in the course of that match.

3. The Universe of Imposing Your Will on Your Opponent
Tennis is very close to a boxing match. Each player’s shot to the opponent is like a boxer’s punch. Each exchange is really about who is pushing around whom. Each player is matching his strengths and weaknesses against the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. Each player is looking to be continuously on-balance, hitting his best shots, and taking charge — and making his opponent look off-balance and be reaching and lunging for the ball.

Of course, each of us has a limited reserve of will-power, and a limited ability to withstand stress and pressure. No one can stay concentrated and focused indefinitely. Thus, each player is striving to outlast the opponent. And a tennis match’s outcome is about who outlasts the other in this way.

Bill Tilden put it this way: “When two players start a match, it is always a battle to see who will dominate the match, and who will be pushed around. One player or the other will ultimately impress his tennis personality on the other. The one who does will win, because by doing so he forces the recognition of impending defeat upon his opponent. [Set] your tempo and hold it. An attitude of calm confidence goes a long way toward maintaining a mental edge. The more you can make your opponent feel that you expect to win, intend to win, and there’s nothing he can do to shake your confidence and determination, the harder it is for him to hold his own concentration. [The old saying is]: A man who won’t be beaten, can’t be beaten.”

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

Sources:
1. Parallel Worlds, Michio Kaku, Ph.D., (Anchor Books: New York, 2005)
2. The Elegant Universe, Brian Greene, Ph.D., (Norton: New York, 1999)
3. How to Play Better Tennis, Bill Tilden (Cornerstone Library Publications Reprint of 1950 Edition: New York, 1973)
4. Mental Tennis, Vic Braden, (Little, Brown: New York, 1993)

Geometry and the Art of Tennis

The great Greek mathematician Euclid (circa 300BC in Alexandria) is considered the “Father of Geometry”. He may have found it interesting that the modern game of tennis is, arguably, mostly a problem of geometry.

The art of tennis is essentially the problem of hitting a tennis ball with as much spin and power necessary to carry it over the net and within the lines of the court to a place where your opponent cannot return the ball.

Thus, geometry is involved with the path of the ball, the configuration of the court, and the positioning of the player.

Most coaches will agree that winning tennis is about moving forward, controlling the middle of the court, cutting off angles and defending as much of the court as possible.

So what do the laws of geometry then instruct us to do on a tennis court?

(Of course, let’s not get too technical with concepts like a triangle’s hypotenuse or angle of reflection or angle of incidence.)

Here’s a simple and short list compiled from writers and coaches who have studied this topic:

1. Creating more angles with your positioning
Move closer into the court. Take the ball on the rise, when possible.

The closer any player moves in, the greater number of angles that they create, not to mention the steeper the angles that they create. The view of the court looks different and more favorable to the incoming player – more court to hit to and easier to see. And the earlier the player hits the ball, the less time for the opponent to react to more angles and to more difficult angles.

2. Hitting cross-court on rallies
When you hit cross court to your opponent in a rally, you gain safety and probability to your game. The tennis net is about 15% lower at the center strap than at the ends (3 feet vs. 3 feet 6 inches). The tennis court (which is 78 feet in length) is also about 10% “longer” if you hit cross court than down-the-line (about 4 feet for singles, 8 feet for doubles), since you “gain” space in hitting diagonally.

That’s a 10% to 15% return on your investment, if you hit cross-court.

3. Hitting down-the-line on volleys
The reverse is true for volleys. Hit down-the-line. Why? The key is how much space you have to cover when and if the opponent returns your volley. Geometrically, volleying down-the-line forces your opponent into fewer “angled” options on his return. It’s more difficult for him to hit the ball back at steep angles. Meaning, you will have to cover less territory on his return.

4. Recovering back to the middle on defense
In playing defense in tennis, the challenge is to get back quickly to the position where you can safely cover as much of the court as possible against your opponent’s potential shots. That position, geometry tells us, is the point at the middle of where you opponent could return the ball.

In other words, to maximize court coverage, a player quickly moves to that area which is the “mid-point” of the opponent’s range of return. Notice that top players use this quick recovery to “mid-point” as more than just defense. They use it to actually gain “space” and “time” over their opponent, enabling them to go on offense on their next shot, if at all possible.

Tennis then is a game of gaining the advantage of “space” and “time” over your opponent. And geometry helps us to see how.

It is said that “strategic” tennis players incorporate geometric concepts into their game. Meanwhile, “practice” tennis players incorporate the same geometric ideas into their play, but by “learned repetition” in their practice.

Either way, effective use of the rules of geometry intelligently elevates the level of your game. And it will probably help generate more winners and reduce unforced errors.

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

Quantum Tennis: A Path to Tennis Mastery

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*This Blog Article was inspired by the ideas in the book Quantum Golf and the other sources listed at the end of this article. I gratefully acknowledge these sources and their authors, and highly recommend them to the reader.
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“Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow… Be water, my friend.”
-Bruce Lee, from A Warrior’s Journey, (DVD Documentary, 2000)

What is Quantum Tennis?
Bruce Lee’s famous quotation is about the power of fluidity – and an admonition to harness it in the human body in order to reach a higher level of performance and power.

Quantum Tennis is a system intended to capture this fluidity in the game of tennis. It is both a mental philosophy and a practical method to help achieve the deepest levels of relaxation and rhythm, and thus develop a state of “super-fluidity”.

Just as quantum physics reduces the universe to its irreducible component, Quantum Tennis reduces good tennis to its smallest indivisible part – its core essence. And seeks to master it.

What is the essence of tennis? On a very basic level, it’s simply bio-mechanical movement on a court with a ball and a racket by a human machine.

Why is Quantum Tennis important to consider?
Quantum Tennis is probably important to us all, whether we know it or not, simply because tennis is always being played on a quantum level.

Indeed, just as the physical world cannot “be” – it cannot exist – without its smallest parts in full operation, Quantum Tennis cannot help but exist.

Quantum Tennis draws upon concepts developed in 3 fields of study: human bio-mechanics, laws of physics, and transcendental meditation.

From the science of human bio-mechanics:
*Using the human body to channel and project bio-energy using the Kinetic Chain. Unleashing power from the ground up through the human anatomy. Martial arts students know that this bio-energy or power is often called: chi.

From the laws of physics:
*The “law of gravity” (for example, in allowing your arms to swing down as you begin the service motion). The concept of “uniform circular motion” or rotational power (for example, the rotation of torso, shoulders and knees as part of the release of the Kinetic Chain). The “law of inertia” or where an object in motion stays in motion (for example, the “split-step-and-go” when responding to the oncoming ball). The law of the “center of gravity” (for example, when bending down low to achieve a low base).

From the practice of transcendental meditation:
*The idea of the Universal Self or Essence that is always around you, and tapping into that limitless sense of fluidity and grace.

How might a player’s game improve with Quantum Tennis?
Quantum Tennis promotes a relaxed and free racket swing. It calls for an “effortless effort”. It encourages all parts of the body to move together and in proper order without hesitation. It focuses on process, not outcome.

It asks for a looser and looser grip, and less and less tension in the hands and face. It wants the human form on the court, and the tennis racket in the air, to simply “glide” without any friction. It compels the player to play the game deliberately and smoothly, and without pressing or feeling hurried.

So how does it work?

The Five (5) Fundamentals of Quantum Tennis
1. Frame of mind
Each player must choose whether they play Quantum Tennis or Classical Tennis. It is a “frame of mind.” However, it is not a choice of one or the other. Quantum Tennis does not replace or supplant Classical Tennis. Rather, it simply adds to or supplements it. Classical Tennis has a valid and vital role in teaching the traditional fundamentals of the game and its parts.

Quantum Tennis tries to add an important layer or level. It seeks to open the player’s mind frame to the “quantum world” – a place where all body parts work in unison and flow together in an almost “frictionless” state. For example, in a quantum mechanical serve swing, you feel energized from the swing’s rhythm and smoothness. In contrast, a classical serve swing often makes you a little more tired and strained.

Practical tips-
*Observe the tennis swings of players. Recognize the difference between the standard classical swing vs. the quantum swing.

*Notice how the quantum swing displays effortless power and smooth rhythm. Appreciate how the quantum swing seems to allow the player to actually gain energy from each swing.

2. Flow – The Superfluid Swing
Quantum Tennis asks the player to imagine and execute a “flow” or superfluid swing to their game.

Think of a pendulum. It swings back and forth effortlessly and dynamically, and without any friction. Only the natural force of gravity is needed. On a forehand or backhand, the butt of the racket is pulled into the oncoming ball, freely out in front of you, with your body weight shifting forward, just as in the swinging arm of a pendulum.

The pendulum image is useful for even more instructive insights. The swinging arm illustrates the idea of “change and non-change” – both are happening together. There is dynamic movement, yet it is also a natural “state of being”.

Similarly, the pendulum example also illustrates the concept of “rest and activity.” The arm at its highest upswing shows rest or potential activity, and its motion on the downswing shows powerful activity and energy. The cycle of rest and activity is a basic rhythm of life, underling all of existence.

In quantum flow, the player is asked to capture this basic rhythm and develop an effortless swing – an orderly fluid flow – which actually gives and not expends energy – just like the pendulum. Quantum Tennis challenges the student to reach an absolutely “frictionless” state.

In physics, the fourth state of matter is known as the “superfluid state.” It happens when you take liquid helium and cool it to extremely low temperatures in a laboratory – close to absolute zero. Helium takes on unique and dynamic properties of the quantum world of physics. Its fluidity actually seems to defy gravity.

Practical tips-
*Practice the superfluid swing – When you swing a racket, imagine a swinging pendulum. Think of liquid helium operating in the superfluid state. Do less, accomplish more. Gain energy from your swing. Try swinging the racket without any ball or without any break in the swing path in order to develop a feel for the superfluid swing.

*Literally, say the words to yourself: “super” (while you inhale) and “fluid” (while you exhale). There should be a gap between the word “super” and “fluid”. The word “super” coincides with the takeback of the racket, which is a point of rest or potential activity. Then there is a slight pause. Then there is the swing forward, which accelerates into the word “fluid”.

*Try practicing the superfluid swing with the Quantum Grip. The Quantum Grip is extremely loose and light- as loose and light as you can make possible. In this grip, you literally slide your hand down the racket handle as far as possible, allowing part of the meat of your palm to be “off” the handle altogether. It will almost seem that the racket will fly off your hand when striking the ball.

*Keep a Quantum Scorecard for yourself in a set. At the end of each game, ask yourself and mark down on paper, how many swings you made in that game that you consider “quantum swings”? How many were standard or classical swings? Work on increasing the number of quantum swings in future games.

3. Focus – the Q point
Focus is the next fundamental in Quantum Tennis. Focus means zeroing in on the final finish or ultimate posture of a perfect quantum swing that you have made in the past. It is called the Q point.

What was your final finish? What was the final position of your body, torso, hips, arms, hands and racket when you last made that perfect quantum swing? What was the position of your feet? What was your balance? What was your breathing? Now move to that exact final position now and simply hold it. Develop a clear feel and image of it. Memorize it. Program it.

Next, slowly move your swing backwards from this Q point to the starting point of your swing – literally, a “reverse swing.” Think of a Hi-Def video in reverse slow motion of your quantum swing. You are wiring your body and mind to think “quantum swing”.

Practical tip-
*Practice this Q point position and “reverse swing” as part of your practices and warm-ups.

4. Feeling – Quantum Vision
Tennis is a game not only of “seeing” and “hearing”, but of “feel.”

The next fundamental of Quantum Tennis is better developing a player’s feel for tennis by “Quantum Vision.” It is yet another way to build the superfluid swing.

Quantum Vision means having a concrete intention to use the swing to hit the ball to a target. Once you have that target intention in mind, you allow that intention to become fainter and fainter – leaving only a feeling for it to remain.

Quantum vision asks you to “see” and “hear” the ball in your mind’s eye going to that target. Your quantum swing then simply executes the program in your mind’s eye. The attention is then focused on the process of your swing, not the outcome. The ball simply moves into the path of the swing, not the other way around.

Practical tips-
*Try target practice in a new way. Try your quantum swing first at close targets on the court, say the service line. See, hear and sense the target. Try to develop a “feel” for the target. Then, try your quantum swing at farther targets such as the baseline. Focus on the process of the quantum swing, allowing the target to be just be a “feeling”. Many top coaches including Robert Landsdorp have said that tennis is a game of developing an instinct or natural feel for the lines of the court as you play.

*Make an Advanced Quantum Scorecard for yourself in a set. In each set, make a count of your Quantum Swings just as you did in the earlier Quantum Scorecard. But this time, rate each Quantum Swing with a “1″, “2″ or “3″, with “3″ being a near-perfect superfluid swing. Work on increasing the number of your Rating “3″ Quantum swings.

5. Finding your “true self”: The Cosmic Computer
The final fundamental of Quantum Tennis is finding your “true self”, sometimes called the Universal Self, drawn from the practice of Transcendental Meditation.

Transcendental Meditation teaches students a way, through a self-development technique called daily mindful meditation, to find one’s “true self” or Universal Self, and thus harness a dynamic yet peaceful state of being.

This Universal Self is a grand or Cosmic Computer that governs the universe. It holds the earth and stars in place. It controls the changing of nature’s seasons, and keeps the human heart pumping. It is an infinitely dynamic world of limitless power, rhythm and fluidity. It is much the same as the sub-atomic quantum world of physics.

In tennis, finding your “true self” starts with finding your internal rhythm or clock. The real opponent is always your “small self” – your individual ego’s eternal desire to win rather than lose. And its endless dialogue of worrying about how others see you.

In order to find your Quantum Tennis, you must first play your own game. In life as in tennis, it’s all about playing your own game. Quantum Tennis admonishes us to say it to ourselves over and over. Play your own game. Play your own game.

Quantum Tennis, by adopting the self-development technique of daily mindful meditation, offers a way to submerge the “small self” and tap into that vast ocean of consciousness – the boundless reservoir of energy and creativity of the Universal Self.

Many great athletes in all sports have at times performed at the deepest levels of relaxation and at full power and fluidity. Some call it “The Zone”. The Cosmic Computer takes over and literally and automatically does everything powerfully and perfectly.

Practical tip-
*Consider daily mindful meditation for relaxation, stress-reduction and tapping into an inner consciousness and power.

Final thoughts
The principles of Quantum Tennis suggest a doorway to another world of play. It offers the possibility of deeper levels of relaxation, looseness and fluidity of movement.

Mindful mediation promises its students a more peaceful state of mind. And the chance to tap into the limitless power of the Universal Self.

There are those players who might say that they are only interested in improving their tennis game – not necessarily their life. The answer of Quantum Tennis, and its students, is simply this: –
“My friends, tennis is life.”

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
http://www.timelesstennis.net

Sources:
1. Quantum Golf – The Path to Golf Mastery, by Kjell Enhager (Warner Books, Inc. NY, 1991)
2. Quantum Healing, by Deepak Chopra, M.D. (Bantam, NY, 1989)
3. Transcendental Mediation, by Robert Roth (Donald I. Fine, Inc., 1987)
4. Quantum Tennis/Golf – The Superfluid Swing, by Jim McLennan, USPTA Addvantage Magazine (May 2002)
See: http://www.addvantageuspta.com

Superfludity Animation HD (more…)

For God & Country: The Davis Cup – USA v. Colombia 2010

In tennis, playing for God and Country means The Davis Cup, which carries a very special history of pride and passion.

I had the unique opportunity to watch live the Davis Cup tie (match series) between USA and Colombia while traveling through Colombia in September 2010. The tie was a Play-off for entry into the World Group next year.

Team USA was represented by Mardy Fish, Sam Querrey, John Isner, Ryan Harrison and Captain Patrick McEnroe. Several top American players chose not to play this year’s Davis Cup, among them Andy Roddick, James Blake and the Bryan Brother Twins.

Team Colombia offered their best player Santiago Giraldo, ranked No. 61 in the world, and other stars such as Alejandro Falla, who took Roger Federer to 5 sets at Wimbledon in July, and doubles players Robert Farah and Carlos Salamanca.

Team Colombia had the home court advantage, and proved to be a determined opponent electrified by a wildly-supportive crowd. Team USA had the advantage of experience and history, having won the Davis Cup a record 32 times, the most ever for any team.

The event was staged on the red clay at the Plaza de Toros La Santamaria in Bogota, Colombia. The city of Bogota sits at an altitude of 2650 meters or 8700 feet above sea level. Thus, the locale posed a special challenge for both sides, especially the Americans. The tie was scheduled for best of 5 matches called “rubbers”, and it proved to be a thrilling and closely-contested battle.

The Davis Cup format is 2 singles matches, a doubles match, then 2 so-called “reverse” singles matches. Each match was best of 5 sets. The winner of 3 of 5 matches would move on to the World Group.

The USA won over Colombia 3-1. (September 17 – 19, 2010)

First Singles rubber: Mardy Fish (USA) defeated Alejandro Falla (Colombia) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Second Singles rubber: Santiago Girlado (Colombia) defeated Sam Querrey (USA) 6-2, 6-4, 7-5.
Doubles rubber: Mardy Fish/John Isner (USA) defeated Robert Farah/Carlos Salamanca (Colombia) 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-3.
First Reverse Singles rubber: Mardy Fish (USA) defeated Santiago Giraldo (Colombia) 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 4-6, 8-6.
Last Reverse Singles rubber canceled due to rain.

Mardy Fish played some of his best tennis to win 3 “rubbers” or matches, the first American “triple” since Pete Sampras accomplished that feat in 1995 playing in Moscow. “To win three points in one Davis Cup match under these circumstances in such an important tie is one of the biggest – if not the biggest – accomplishment of my career,” remarked Fish.

Patrick McEnroe, who retired from his 10-year Captaincy of the USA Davis Cup team immediately after the tie series, said of Fish: “What a Herculean effort . . . Mardy’s was one of the greatest efforts in Davis Cup history – forget my 10 years as captain. To win three points under these conditions – with the altitude, the crowd and everything. He is in illustrious company.”

My takeaways:
*Tennis is big in Latin America and Colombia. The enthusiasm and support of the wildly-cheering and banner-waving crowds was impressive.

*The Americans arrived in Bogota a week early to practice and acclimate to the high altitude, the highest ever for any Davis Cup tie – and they responded admirably. And they were said to enjoy their off-court time in Colombia as well!

*The Davis Cup is a premier forum for showcasing national patriotism and pride of tennis fans in countries around the world.

Well done to all the players and coaches on both teams!

For more on the Davis Cup, visit:
The Davis Cup

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

Book Review: “Hardcourt Confidential”, by Patrick McEnroe with Peter Bodo

Hardcourt Confidential: Tales from Twenty Years in the Pro Tennis Trenches, by Patrick McEnroe with Peter Bodo (Hyperion, NY, 2010), 305 Pages, 12 Chapters with Introduction & Acknowledgments, and 16 Black & White Photographs

With this newly-released book, the U.S. Davis Cup Captain and ESPN Commentator Patrick McEnroe, brother of the great John McEnroe, offers up a fascinating read into the world of pro tennis and some of its top stars. For me, PMac has always been a thoughtful and articulate commentator on the game.

And his book did not disappoint. Indeed, I found the tales told by PMac in the book to be quite fascinating. Even more useful for me were his insightful comments about the growth and development of modern tennis – all from PMac’s unique perspective as commentator, coach, player and insider for 20+ years.

The book is organized by mirroring the tennis year calendar, with tales spanning from: January’s Australian Open to the Fall’s U.S. Open and the year-end Master’s tournaments.

PMac’s stories of the big stars are set against the backdrop of the world of pro tennis. It’s a small and insular world. And it’s not surprising that it includes many driven egos, fragile personalities, and some real-world Prima Donas. And PMac does not pull his punches…

Among those covered in the book: Brother John McEnroe (who is a recurring subject), Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, James Blake, Serena Williams, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Coach Robert Lansdorp, even TV commentators such as Cliff Drysdale and the list goes on.

What I found most illuminating however was PMac’s comments about the game of tennis:

Some excerpts:

*”Tennis is a game steeped in aesthetics and etiquette. Nothing, including frantic attempts to expand the basic audience or the sometimes shocking behavior of the players, has done a lot to change that…gorgeous tennis, sportsmanship and personal appeal has never gone out of style…One reason tennis attracts so many female fans is because you can watch the game and focus on individual performance, rather than the combat or score. Tennis can be balletic or bullish…” (pp. 142-143)

*”Tennis has largely been a middle-class aspirational sport…the game is full of niceties that no one really wants to give up – raising your hand in apology when you inadvertently hit a let-cord winner…[or when you] hold up new balls before serving…” (p. 143)

*”Tennis strives to be a popular sport while retaining many elements that make it elitist in the same way that the Marine Corps or a good school…is elitist. The game is focused on being inclusive, but it’s exclusive in that it asks you to embrace tennis traditions.” (p. 143)

*”Tennis is really about who is willing to pay, and how much, to watch anyone hit a ball.” (p. 52)

*”Power has always been the Holy Grail in tennis, and maybe it always will be, even though power alone no longer suffices to get the work of greatness done.” (p. 146)

*”[A] combination of court speed and the advent of polyester strings (sometimes in combination with traditional gut) now allows men to take savage cuts at the ball and still have it fall in. And it has led to an absolute mastery of spin.” (p. 53)

*”Racket speed (how quickly you accelerate through the stroke) today [is] the grail…The search for increased racket-head speed has led many pros to play with ever lighter frames. The advent of polyester strings also had a huge impact in recent years. The old truism dictating that the harder you swing, the less control you have, has been turned upside down. With the new less elastic strings, swinging from the heels gives you more control.” (pp. 98-99)

*”A player’s first job under duress is to avoid the silly and stupid error. His second task is to make something happen, preferably forcing an error.” (p. 55)

*”[T]he one shared attribute of all great players is exceptional timing.” (p. 99)

*”[G]etting good [in tennis now] is less about stroking technique…than how well you hit on the move, how fit you are, how well you play defense, or transition to – and from – offense…you’d better be ready to rip the ball, open up the court, and seize your chances. And do all of that on the fly.” (p. 98)

All in all, with Peter Bodo’s wonderful assistance, the book is well-written and engaging. And it makes for some interesting summer reading into the game of pro tennis today.

For more, click here to read:
Patrick McEnroe’s Interview with USTA about his new book

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net

The Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum: An amazing piece of tennis history

Britain is the modern home and origin of the sport we know and love, now called Tennis. Each year it hosts what many consider to be the sport’s most prestigious tournament…the Championships at “The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club”, popularly called “Wimbledon.”

But did you know that Wimbledon proudly offers visitors and fans one of the best tennis museums around – a museum which beautifully honors the rich traditions and history of the game?

In fact, it’s a 21st century state of the art facility, showcasing never-before-seen exhibits and showpieces, with audio guides in 8 different languages. The Duke of Kent inaugurated the new museum on April 12, 2006. Some of the highlights include:

*A dynamic panoramic cinema on a 200 degree screen which envelopes the viewer into a Championship match. The film shows the science of tennis, and offers views on how players’ bodies and equipment are affected during the course of a match.
*A John McEnroe hologram projection, where the multiple Grand Slam winner takes the viewer on an additional tour of parts of the museum and reflects on past matches and opponents.
*A fashion section where the “fashion whites” of Wimbledon over the years are on display, including Roger Federer’s match clothing worn in the Championship Finals against Andy Roddick in Wimbledon 2009.
*Interactive “touchscreen” exhibits offering visitors, among other things, videos of past championship matches, and information on the evolution of tennis rackets and technology.

Be sure to check it out, if you ever one day attend the Wimbledon tournament…

Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Church Road
Wimbledon
London SW19 5AE
Telephone: (020) 8946 6131
Hours: Daily from 10AM to 5PM
Admission
Adult £10.00 (with Tour £18.00)
Child £5.50 (with Tour £13.00)

For more on the Wimbledon Museum, including a 360 degree panoramic view:
About the Museum

The Travel Channel’s “Wimbledon Museum“

Timeless Tennis: A Blog
www.timelesstennis.net