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Timeless Principles of Strategy
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Timeless Principles of Strategy
By Frank Brennan
Click Photo. What are the advantages of all court tennis?
Tennis players tend to over-exaggerate the importance of how they hit the ball, and overlook the importance of how they play the game. Proper strokes and good footwork are important ingredients in winning tennis matches, but using sound strategy and tactics makes the task infinitely easier.
One of the most potent weapons any player can develop is a sound understanding of winning strategy in singles and doubles. It is absolutely essential if you truly wish to become the best tennis player you can be.
The All Court Game
What does it take to become an effective, consistent, all court strategic player? To win from the back court like Andre Agassi; to win attacking the net like Pete Sampras, and to have the flexibility to do both like Roger Fededer?
What does it take it become a consistent, strategic, all court player?
The most basic principle in winning tennis is consistency, getting the ball over the net and into the court one more time than your opponent. Learn to hit with depth, good net clearance and to eliminate unforced errors.
If you don't make the error, that only leaves one other person, and that's your opponent. Never underestimate his ability to make an error.
A second fundamental principle is to learn to play an opponent's weakness. Put very simply: if you hit a majority of your shots to your opponent's weak backhand, especially on big points, you'll probably win the match.
Geometry of the Court
Hitting crosscourt with consistency and accuracy -- the most basic principle.
Besides hitting to an obvious weakness, there are other reasons hitting to certain areas of the court.
The most basic principle: learn to hit cross court with consistency and accuracy. In general, hitting cross-court is to your advantage for three reasons.
Number one, your shot crosses the net at the lowest part. The net in the center is 6 inches lower than it is on the sidelines. That's a tremendous advantage.
Number two; the court is much longer on the diagonal than straight down the line. A down the line shot that is out by 4 feet would be in if you hit that same shot cross court.
Number three; your recovery to the center of your opponent's possible returns is also much shorter. Hitting high, deep cross court shots will give you the best chance to recover when your opponent forces you wide. On the other hand, a down-the-line shot leaves a considerably longer distance to the center of your opponent's return.
Learn to think of the court as a triangle, not a rectangle.
When you play in the backcourt, you should try to stay on the centerline, bisecting your opponent's two widest returns. In essence, you learn to see the tennis court as a triangle rather than a rectangle. In the backcourt, this means you should be on the opposite half of the court, diagonally across from your opponent.
The second major point about court position is this: in the backcourt, it is to your advantage to play as close to the baseline as possible because you will have less court to cover.
The graphic shows the additional distance a player must cover when he moves off the baseline 8 to 10 feet. Notice how moving back increases your opponent's angles, while moving up reduces them. In addition, playing on the baseline gives your opponent less time to recover between shots.
When you move back, you must cover more court. You also give your opponent better angles.
The graphic shows the additional distance a player must cover when he moves off the baseline 8 to 10 feet. Notice how moving back increases your opponent's angles, while moving up reduces them. In addition, playing on the baseline gives your opponent less time to recover between shots.
The third advantage in playing close to the baseline is that the ball doesn't slow down as much so you are able to hit the ball harder and make more aggressive shots with less effort by taking the ball on the rise. Finally, from this aggressive backcourt position, it is a much shorter distance to the net, which facilitates your ability to attack.
Moving to the Net
When you move to the net, the triangle principle is the same. You should also stay on the centerline, bisecting your opponent's two widest returns. At the net, this will place you on the same side of the court as your opponent.
At the net you must again bisect your opponent's angles.
The proper position is midway between the net and the service line. If you are tall, have a great overhead, and are quick, you can move up one step. If you are not so tall or quick and your overhead is a rumor, you may want to move back one step.
If, after several games, your opponent hasn't lobbed you successfully, you can assume that he can't or won't, and move in appropriately. Remember, the center theory is always an operation. So, maintain your position in the center of your opponent's best returns.
Approach down the line and put the ball away crosscourt.
A good lob is one of the many components in a complete tactical game.
Imagination
In using strategy, you are only limited by your imagination and your control of various shots. Being an all-court player means developing a complete tactical game: the more shots you develop, the more strategies to choose from.
Develop the ability to hit accurately down the line. This is the most basic shot for approaching the net, and also for hitting groundstroke winners when you get ahead in crosscourt rallies. A good lob allows you to exploit an opponent who crowds the net or has a weak overhead. A drop shot allows you to bring a back court player to the net where he is not comfortable. A reliable overhead is critical for both winning singles and winning doubles.
Early in your matches, you should try to identify which combinations of shots and court positions work to your advantage against a particular opponent. If you both stay in the backcourt, who usually wins the point? What if you come to the net when your opponent stays back? Or are the odds most in your favor when you bring your opponent in and then either try to pass or lob?
Successful all court play means executing the shot combinations that are in your favor against a particular opponent.
Figure this out early and then try to work your opponent into the position that is strongest for you and the weakest for him as often as possible. A successful all court player wins because he is able to attack, to defend, and to match his strengths and weaknesses against those of any opponent.
Concentration
Employing proper strategy requires concentration. To do this, you must control your emotions and learn to take your time.
Timing and pacing are two critical elements in playing winning tennis. Great players ease into matches, develop their shot rhythm gradually and identify the opponent's strengths and weaknesses.
Learn to take your time between points and develop a comfortable pace in your matches.
Find the comfortable pace in your own matches. Learn to take your time between points. If you are behind, taking your time and playing slowly allows you to settle down, get your game working and cool off a hot opponent.
When you are ahead, maintaining your natural pace is equally as important. This will control your natural excitement at playing well and sensing victory. You will also capitalize on your opponent's anxiousness.
You can only play as fast as the slowest player. It might as well be you.
A doubles player is part of a team, and a positive team attitude is a huge key.
Doubles
The first to note about the game of doubles is that you and your partners are not two singles players, but a doubles team. You have a teammate relying on you so it's important to be consistent, stroke-wise and also emotionally.
Be communicative, supportive, and encouraging. The right attitude is even more important when your partner is not playing his best. Over time, a positive attitude is a huge key to the success of a team.
In the Backcourt
When you're in the back court in doubles, keep the ball in play and away from the net player opposite you. Hit deep cross courts. This will set up your partner to hit forcing volleys. It will also generate short balls that allow you to approach the net yourself. Your goal on the return of serve is to get every return into play, to return cross court to the server and to return low.
Stay in front of the ball to intercept as many balls as possible.
At the Net
In order to position yourself correctly to cover your alley and the middle of the court, you should move side to side with the ball. If the ball is hit wide into the alley, slide one step towards the sidelines.
On a ball hit closer to the middle, slide one step the other way. Your job is to stay in front of the ball, decreasing your opponent's angle and increasing your chance of intercepting his shot. Good doubles players attack the middle, move to the middle and protect the middle of the court.
At the net, your goal is to intercept as many balls as possible and volley them to the opening between your opponents in the middle of the court for winners. As you become confident at the net, you increase your range of movement - moving further toward the middle or even your partner's side to pick off weak returns.
As you play better and better doubles, you will want to get to the net as quickly as possible. This means coming in on cross court rallies and on the return of serve. Developing a solid reliable slice will help keep the ball low and lead to shoulder high volleys.
Following your serve to the net is basic in advanced doubles.
Most importantly, it means following your serve to the net. Learn to serve accurately to both sides of the service boxes and develop a deep, consistent first volley. As you approach the net, continue to move in after each shot.
As you come in, you must avoid hitting to the opposing net player. A hard, high ball will allow him to put the ball away.
One alternate strategy is to hit off pace shots that stay low. This will prevent the opponent from hitting down and making winning volleys. As you come in, keep the ball low and continue to move in after each shot. This will allow you to hit down and put the ball away.
If you don't have a volley into the open court, hit all your putaways at your closest opponent. If your partner is a good poacher, serve down the middle to both the duce and add courts, giving your partner a better angle to volley your opponent's returns.
When the court isn't open, hit your volleys at the closest opponent.
If your opponents are both back, hit the first overhead down the middle and make sure you close back into the net and angle the second overhead off the court for the winner.
In doubles, it helps to think of the match as serving games and receiving games. The easiest way to win your serve is to be consistent with your first serve and get lots of help from your partner poaching at the net.
The easiest way to win the receiving game is to return consistently and again, get help from your partner poaching on your good returns. The keys are obvious - consistency and help.
Click Photo to hear 4 final points about winning in singles and doubles.
Know Yourself
Finally realize that great players play within themselves. Resist the temptation to try low percentage shots that you are not capable of making consistently in practice. If you have weaknesses, work hard to eliminate them. Never be afraid to lose. Just make the effort to play the way you are capable of playing every time you go on the court.
Frank Brennan was the most successful women's coach in college tennis history, as well as the director of one of the nation's outstanding junior camps for over three decades. As women's varsity coach at Stanford University, Brennan led the Cardinal to a record five consecutive NCAA team titles. His teams won a total of 10 team titles overall, producing a long series of All-American and professional players. As director of his own tennis camps in New Jersey, and later of the Nike Tennis Camp at Stanford, Frank helped hundreds of junior players at all levels understand every phase of the game, including the principles of winning strategy.
Source: tennisplayer.net archive — Timeless Principles of strategy.docx (John Yandell teaching library, 2002-2022). Extracted and rendered as HTML for Tennis Future Lab.