Bailey’s Blog

Bring the ball side foot under the torso, thus leading with the nose. Doing so will enable you to provide maximum traction by loading the outside leg, thus making you push off strongly. This is called the “drop step”.

You load the ball of your foot and this allows you to LEAN your upper body in the direction of the shot. If you need to run you drop the foot, if you need to keep the weight back i.e. you anchor the heel.

By dropping the foot, it also clears the hips and enables a quick unit turn and pivot. This will allow the first step to be a cross-over step, which is faster and covers more ground.

Anticipate rather than respond. Don’t be concerned with footwork - instead let your training lead you to the right position. Be concerned with your objective - YOUR GAME PLAN. Game plan = keep so much pressure on your opponent that you upset footwork, balance and ability to move.

Concentrate all the energy of the body and mind on one specific goal at a time. The secret to flowing is to exclude all extraneous thoughts, thoughts that are not concerned with achieving your ultimate goal.

Don’t be concerned with the past or future only what is going on at the moment!

If you want to get faster on the court then remember that speed is a combination of stride length and stride frequency.

Stride length comes from taking bigger and better strides thus this comes from strengthening. I always like to say resistance work- Using equipement like weights, medicine ball work, hills, stairs, sand, water and resistance belts, chords, parachutes , sleds and plyometrics.

Stride frequency comes from assistance work like down hill running or ramps (no more than 3 degrees gradient), vipers chords that pull you along so the legs turn over faster than they do on flat ground, and line jumps, fast skipping or ladder work.

Remember, the faster you get to the ball the more options you have !Your speed can force your opponent to over play by playing closer to the lines…..plus…IT’S JUST A GREAT FEELING TO BE STRONG, FAST and POWERFUL!

Skipping with a skipping rope is great for a great low impact cardio work-out that also gets you light on your feet….. which is perfect for tennis! Did you know that 10 minutes of skipping is equivalent to 30 minutes of jogging! The great thing is that it also targets all parts of the lower body (if you select the right footwork patterns) and works on strength, speed (if you do intervals), power, muscular endurance and hand/foot co-ordination. Below is my top 15 skipping moves from simpliest to most complex:

Do each pattern for 30 secs then repeat x 2 for a challenging 15 minute work out-

Note: Skipping is a fantastic warm-up before a match (just look at its’ popularity with boxers!)

1st; feet together 2nd; side to side 3rd; forward and back 4th; knees up 5th; butt kicks 6th; star jump (in and out) 7th; hip twists 8th; toes down(scissor feet) 9th; heels down(scissor feet) 10th; alternate leg kicks 11th; 2 on right then 2 on left 12th; right leg hops 13th; left leg hops 14th; ankle flips 15th; double jumps with 3 jumps in between!

Good luck!…. and if you hit the feet too many times with a rope then do without a rope. Remember fast music is great for rhythm and motivation! At all times try and skip on a soft surface like carpet or a woodern floor.

Your hitting stance is essential in gaining balance, knowing where your weight is and generating power. The important thing to understand is that different stances suit certain contact moves and athletic skills. Certain stances like the semi-open stance give better balance and have a better set up to transfer the weight from the back foot to the front foot which is the secret to power.

There are certain rules that also govern what you should do with your hips and or leg/s depending on the stance. For instance-

• Hip shift, lateral hop, or 2 foot pivot the hips when open
• Stay low and lunge sideways when hitting off a running stance
• Hip spin or transfer the weight from back to front foot when hitting off a semi-open stance 
• Hop or step down the court when hitting off  a neutral stance
• Hit off 1 leg when using a back foot stance 
• Pivot around 1 leg when the stance is closed

The wrong shot selection off the wrong stance will greatly increase the chance of an error i.e. hip spin off and open stance or transfer off a running stance or hit a forhand off a closed stance.

Martina Navratilova was asked Q.) How is it possible to keep playing with such hunger?

A.) ” The hunger comes from being an eternal apprentice of the game. I’m still learning about how to hit the ball better in some ways….do things differently. The joy is learning how to do that” 

Wow! The joy is learning! This is what makes someone a special player..they love being students of the game! They seek the joy of consistent and never ending improvement….always learning, asking questions, researching, experimenting and most importantly they possess this inherent want to understand!

You can’t teach someone to love the game….love the process….the love must already be there!