Tennis Training Theme #5 – Consistency

Objective

With specific purposeful training and match play application, develop an ability to get the ball in play with consistency and depth for the serve, groundstrokes, volleys and overheads for both singles and doubles.

1. Work on your control of net clearance. Increase your margin for error by hitting four to seven feet above the net for your rally balls. Focus specifically on making no mistakes in the net. Eliminating mistakes in the net can improve consistency considerably. Learn how to raise the height of the ball with a lob or semi-lob in response to a difficult “get” to allow time to recover back into position.
2. Work on your footwork. Keep your feet constantly moving with multiple adjustment steps in preparation for each shot. Work on your multi-directional speed and agility to run down every shot. Work on your scrambling skills and “hands” (your ability to manipulate the angle of the racquet face) to retrieve difficult shots (including difficult to anticipate errant or misdirected shots).
3. Work on your depth and the margin established by depth. Develop the ability to consistently hit past the service line (preferably having the ball bounce midway between the service line and the baseline). Work predominantly to the middle of the court (middle 1/3 of the court) particularly to get into the rally.
4. Work on developing a sound stroke pattern for the groundstrokes with a long extension through the strike zone and a consistent finish and look to your stroke. Keep your head down at the point of contact (through the finish of the stroke) to maintain your racquet plane and to ensure solid and consistent contact in the sweet spot of the racquet and extension of the racquet through the hitting zone
5. Learn how to control the pace to your preferred tempo and rhythm. Work on maintaining a manageable pace. Learn how to take pace off the ball (with spin) when the tempo of the rally starts getting out of control.
6. Work on your shot tolerance (your ability to stay in a rally or point for as many shots as necessary). Do everything possible to make your opponent hit one more shot. Work on your focus and discipline to get a racquet on every ball. Adopt a mindset that if you get a racquet on the ball you are able to get it back in play.
7. Work on your ability to stay in a point by maintaining the direction and angle of each shot. Learn how to maintain direction by hitting over the middle part of the net (using the center strap as reference). Improve consistency by hitting to big targets. Work also redirecting the ball down-the-line with consistency. Make sure to create margin and not force a mistake out wide of the sideline when redirecting a shot down-the-line. With down-the-line redirection, account for the difference in net height and establish a hitting line that has the ball clearing the opposing baseline at a perpendicular angle.
8. Learn how to develop a rhythm and flow to your game by focusing on the ball and the bounce for a mind-body connection. Work on developing a fluid, effortless, tension free style of play with a relaxed and lively hitting arm. Be conscious of the small details such as relaxing your grip and supporting the racquet with your non-hitting hand between shots to reduce both tension and fatigue.
9. Work on getting your first serve in play. With the goal of establishing a defensive, consistent style of play, target to be able to maintain a 1^st serve percentage of 75% or higher. Consistently getting the first serve in play helps to maintain your rhythm for the ensuing rallies and point exchanges and supports a game plan for consistency, depth and your ability to “grind”. Conversely, struggling with the serve or going for too much on the first serve (without positive results) can be disruptive and counterproductive for a player looking to be consistent. Equally important, in singles work on getting your return of serve back in play preferably deep to the middle of the court or crosscourt (maintaining the direction of the serve). Ideally as a consistent player you would like to get every serve back in play but more realistically, target to get 80% or more 1^st serves back in play and 90% or more of 2^nd serves back in play.
10. Work on being purposeful in practice and training with the focus being repetition. Do cross-court and down-the-line rallies with depth using primarily your outside stroke. Simple counting also works for consistency and rhythm. There are many cooperative drills and point situations to improve consistency. One example of a cooperative point situation is a drill where two players are required to hit X number of shots in play before playing out each point. It helps establish the rally and promotes rhythm, patience and discipline. Another example is an offense-defense role playing point situation where one player on defense looks to extend the rally beyond x number of shots while at the same time the other player on offense looks to end the point in less than x number of shots. Work on your consistency in match play for both singles and doubles. Look to work the point with a high shot threshold to improve your consistency under the pressure of competition.