Bailey’s Blog

The next few Bailey Blogs are focusing on the VERY IMPORTANT skill of  POSITIONING YOURSELF at the CORRECT LOCATION on the tennis court. Develop this with shadow tennis and fed ball initially (to understand the concept) …..but training…. using live ball drills (with serve ands return) and match play are crucial, as court positioning  is all about understanding angles,  geometry and reading the clues and cues that the opponent shows down the other end of the court.

I was inspired to write this series when reading a article in my local city newspaper by Tom Smithies that was titled “Keepers improve with age”. It talked about the importance of experience when trying to make it as a goalkeeper in international soccer. What is gained by experience? It is the ability to position yourself correctly and also anticipate well? …..Yes…both these skills are very important in tennis as well!

 Following is an extract of the article-

“…..goalkeeper is the position in soccer where experience counts most, and there are many examples of top flight keepers defying the advance of age.

Peter Shilton, England’s No 1 for many years, played in 1990 World Cup at the age of 38, helping his team to the semi-finals.

Italian keeper Dino Zoff went one better, captaining his side to win the 1982 World Cup at the age of 40…….For all of them, the EXPERIENCE GAINED OVER THE YEARS gives them BETTER POSITIONING and ANTICIPATION.

Socceroos’ goalkeeping coach Tony Franken believes that if anything, keepers in the 30s can be at the top of their game. ” Goalkeepers are still learning their trade in their late 20s. In their early 30s they usually hit their prime” he said……..”I put it down to three things that determine how long you can play for: your reflexes, your agility and your footwork”……….with experience comes the ability to put yourself in the right place, added Franken, evoking the memory of former Arsenal and Northern Ireland custodian Pat Jennings.

“He played until his late 30s and rarely dived - he was always in the right position.”

To me ……it sounds a bit what the great Andre Agassi was able to demonstrate on the tennis court…..he positioned himself so well on the court it looked like he was always just walking to the ball while eveyone else is lunging and twisting and turning!!

Ying and Yang has always been applied to the training of martial artists. Where a soft approach (Ying) is in harmony with a hard approach (Yang). I believe the same should be applied to tennis. If through movement you emphasise firm, assertive,explosive movements in combination with plaiable, yielding and relaxed flowing movements then you have the perfect tennis playing approach. You need to connect hard hitting power fully aggressive movements with relaxed wrists and soft hands and a calm mind.

It is my firm conviction that technique, footwork and movement training must involve the cultivation of both Ying and Yang energies. The cultivation of YANG involves the sharpening of yout “tools” or “weapons” i.e. serve, footwork, groundstrokes, smashes. One develops these weapons so that one or more are your weapons of attack, but others can still not be disarmed. One must raise his quality of execution by improving co-ordination, balance, speed, precision and power.

The cultivation of Ying energy, however, involves, the sensitivity and pliability of ones body, improving the soft and yielding skills of ones limbs and cultivating the relaxation of mind and body, in addition to developing a “detached” attitude of mental poise and emotional calmness.As a result, one is able to move to a higher training, developing the skill of SPONTANEOUS ADAPTION. This skill allows one to quickly generate the appropriate amount of energy, which compliments the opponents energy almost with out concscious thought.

When the adaptive skills reaches its highest level, it becomes like a shadow following effortlessly the moving object, or a cork adapting itself to the crests and troughs of the waves.

The height of CULTIVATION should move towards SIMPLICITY. The process is to simplify like a sculptor who  continuosly chisels away all the nonessentials until he creates a masterpiece. It is combining the Ying and Yang energies i.e when to he hard when to be soft and adapting whenever necessary.

When a martial artist understands and most importanly RESPECTS his ART he learns through his mentor (sensei) and through experience, experimentation and study to ask himself three questions…. What suits you? ……What is your way (style)?…… What do you do well?. Great questions for a tennis player to ask him/herself!!!

“I have personally learnt a lot by reading about martial arts and there approach to learning and teaching and combat. A lot of the above theories are based on those of Bruce Lee …a very famous martial artist but …in my eyes ….a greater teacher and philosopher. I personally  apply a lot of his philosophy into my thinking and teaching and I really advise others to “empty your cup” and read up on others sports as they can really help in the learning, training, playing and teaching of tennis”.

In my mind I keep a philosophy of committment, desire and dedication. There has to be a bench mark set.

If a client COMMITS to a fitness class designed for full time tennis players - lets say a beach run and work out every Saturday morning. All the attendees MUST understand it  is a group thing that relies on group dynamic and group motivation.

The attendance is not compulsory as straight away this will sort out the keen ones….but the other factor is what excuses are given for non attendance?. Excuses like “I was too tired”, ” I slept in”, “I was hung over” …don’t sit very well with me.

So, here is how it works……..if they miss once I FORGIVE

……………if they miss twice I ask for a EXPLANATION

……………if they miss three times I REPRIMAND

…………..if they miss four times I LET THEM GO and ask them not to return. They pull the group down with their lack of committment.

It is like a mosquito buzzing in your ear while your laying in bed,

Once you ignore it,

Twice you get irritated,

Thrice you zone in on the bugger

Four times, you throw back the sheets, turn on the light, get out the fly swat and try the kill the #@@%$!

You can’t get the best out of a student by lighting a fire under them . You have to light a fire with in them!

When on the baseline and moving left or right to a moderately wide and medium paced short or semi-deep ball a 3-beat or 5-beat rhythm can be used with your feet. I refer to this as a cha cha cha rhythm or a feet feet feet rhythm. Often,  I will call out these cue words so the player can get attuned to the cadence needed. (SEE BLOG ON CADENCE).

This is similar to a well grooved boxer hitting a speed bag. With a 3 or 5 beat rhythm you get into a groove and this makes execution and timing easier. You, MUST HOWEVER always perform a last big step (penultimate step)to the side to get balance and lock down the weight before the final contact move. Be it a step down, low spin, transfer move, reverse spin, one foot pivot etc….

Remember, the secrect to power lies in rhythm, balance and relaxation. However …make sure the steps are not forced or what I call “Hollywood” steps ….because too many steps are for show instead of function. Steps must be smooth and therefore not time or energy wasting.

In many ways running to a hit a hard to reach ball in tennis is similar to a run up when performing a long jump and hitting  the perfect takeoff.  To nail a great long jump it is not just about great stride length and frequency it is also about excellent rhythm and judging the distance to the take-off so all steps are even and well judged. With great rhythm you get a great take-off. It is similar to a bowler in criket or a athlete throwing a javelin, sticking the polevaul or a gymnast making a vault.

And, it doesn’t matter how far you jump in the long jump- if you make a foul it doesn’t count. In tennis,likewise, if you sprint to the ball and mess up your feet and take those little adjusting steps while on the full run your shot will also be foul. Keep the out steps smooth even and with excellent rhythm. A classic example is sprinting up stairs two at a time. This requires power, confidence and trust in your judgement.

I get my athletes to pratice hitting shots on the run up stairs (racket in hand, 2 stairs at a time) and then shadowing the passing shot (power move) on the flat section at the top. This develps great leg drive but also confidence in their footwork and understanding the importance of strong well judged and rhythmically even stride length. 

Every tennis player….and ….especially a professional player must  REALISE AND THEN UNDERSTAND what they need to do athletically on the tennis court. This is what the Bailey method aims to do! Educate and develop the tennis athlete!

Tennis is a lower body sport. Modility, speed, agility and balance through great footwork, excellent body alignment, solid hitting foundations and control of the center of gravity are all athletic based skills that need to be developed and then mastered.

The above areas must be trained and respected by every player but especially those players whose livelihood relies on effective and efficient court movement, body balance and stroke production. 

I teach my students to be

1.) Independant thinkers    and

2.) Responsible for their actions

Look at Roger Federer….he is number 1 in the world without a coach….yes….he is an independant thinker.

The other great thing about Roger is he never makes excuses…instead he focuses his energy on finding a way to win….even when the chips are down. I really believe there is a close relation to how you play on the court and how you behave on the court. Be responsible…act with class……for win or lose you are then already a class above!

The outsatnding characteristic of the expert athlete is his EASE of MOVEMENT, during maximum effort. I call this effortless effort. This however does not come easily, though it appears easy.

The novice is characterized by:

1. Tenseness
2. Wasted motion
3. Excess effort

The ‘rare’ person, the ‘natural athlete’, seems to be endowed with tha ability to undertake any sport activity , whether  he is experienced or not, with ease. This ease is his ability to perform with ‘minimal breaking tension’. It is more present in some athletes than others, but can be improved by all.

A lot of effortless effort, comes from a STATE of BEING…being YOURSELF, being RELAXED, being CENTERED, being ALIGNED, being PREPARED and most importantly being CONFIDENT…. TRUSTING YOUR TRAINING (muscle memory) so all your focus is on your opponent and what is happening in the NOW!!!

Cadence is the SPECIFIC RHYTHM at which a succession of movements is executed.

Roger Federer, Andre Aggasi, Chris Evert and Martins Hingis have beautiful cadence. A correctly judged cadence permits the CALM CONTROL of every stroke. This control will allow the player to select, with more ease , the movements of attack or defence. Are you going to strike or pull back a little on the shot.

I like to refer to this as a wonderful ” Back foot to front foot” timing of the final step towards the ball . Like a heavy weight boxer timing that knock out punch! Rhythm with timing are a powerful combination.

Ideally a player should seek to impose his cadence on a opponent i.e. hit the ball with loops and then fire in a hard ball. That is, intentially vary the cadence of his own movements (contact moves). You are deliberately establishing a certain rhythm and then forcing it onto your opponent.

Speed, applied at the opportune moment, together with the correctly judged cadence in the execution of the movement, will go a long way to ensuring the success of a stroke.

Remember hower, that no matter how accurate , fast, economical and timely that your attack may be…..it will fall short unless you have CALCULATED YOUR DISTANCE WELL. The art of successful hitting is also the art of correct distance judging. Tempo and distance judging are very important in tennis.