February 15, 2011
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--------------------------------For TennisOne Members----------------------------- FREE to Members: To launch the Membership Rewards Program, we're giving away FREE our new 2-disk DVD "TennisOne's Stroke Secrets: Keys to Better Groundstrokes." This has a commercial price of $100. DVD Description: Here are the secrets to better groundstrokes from some of TennisOne's top writers! We've extracted, re-organized, and re-mastered many of the best TennisOne articles, videos, and newsletters on groundstrokes over the past four years. We've packed 4.5 hours of stunningly crisp video instruction (typically 4-5 DVDs) into this 2-disk DVD set you'll want to keep in your tennis library for years to come. Time limit. To make this extraordinary offer, we have to batch all the orders together and move into high-volume processing. Therefore, if you want this 2-disk DVD product for free, you must place your order between Feb 9 – Feb 18th midnight). How TennisOne benefits? This is no gimmick. We're giving a $100 product away free to our Members. But no, we're not crazy. We trust you'll tell all your friends, your club members, your professional associations about this incredible new TennisOne Member Rewards Program and we'll benefit by gaining more members. So please share this news with everyone. To find out more and to order: 1. Log in to www.tennisone.com with your member login & password. 2. Click here for full 2-disk DVD package details and how to place your FREE order. -----------------For Non-Members------------------------------------------------ If you are not yet a TennisOne member, now you have huge new incentive to become one. Sign-up for a TennisOne membership between Feb 9-Feb16th midnight), keep your TennisOne membership through the 30 day free trial, and you'll become part of our Rewards Program and receive this 2-disk DVD, priced at $100, for FREE. Click here to see the full product description of "TennisOne's Stroke Secrets: Keys to Better Groundstrokes." Click here to signup for a risk-free, TennisOne 30 day free trial membership. Limited time offer. This is a limited-time offer, ending at midnight (Pacific) on Feb 18th. Once you sign up, you'll receive a confirming email from me confirming this offer. Best Regards, Tennis Warehouse – New Products – Men's Apparel - KWISS Accomplish Group - Crew, Polo, LS Crew, 1/2 Zip, Shorts
The Underspin Backhand and Contrarian Tennis Jim McLennan Consider the contrarian investment strategy: Buy when everyone sells, and sell when everyone buys. Certainly a few contrarians made a BUNDLE (yes with a capital B) on the subprime crisis, for as the herd moved farther and farther right, they moved left. But this is about tennis. When it comes to the cardinal rules of the game, they include, in no particular order:
Sampras Still Has It For this particular article, let’s take a look at how the slow and low under-spin floater from the backhand wing takes opponents out of their comfort zone. This week at the SAP Open in San Jose, CA our ball kid squad was treated with two fabulous matches. On Monday night Pete Sampras played an exhibition with Gael Monfils – an amazing night. Pete volleyed with aplomb (understatement), Monfils covered every inch of the court (and probably more) and the two men could not have made a more pleasing tennis exhibition.
Mostly Pete used topspin off his backhand wing, occasionally resorting to underspin, but never really floating it low because Pete wants to play the net and has no reason to bring his opponent forward. That said, Pete hit some amazing underspin backhand approach shots off the return of the second serve, and that stroke resembles in form the low floater. Ivo Karlovic's Underspin Then on Saturday afternoon Ivo Karlovic played Milos Raonic in a semi final exhibition as Gael Monfils withdrew from the tournament with a wrist injury after winning his quarterfinal match. Milos went on to beat Verdasco in the finals with some cool headed play, but on this afternoon the wily Karlovic prevailed 7-6, 7-6. So, armed with some feel on the backhand wing, Ivo repeatedly kept the backhand under spin low and slow, real low, and real slow. Sometimes on rallies, often on approaches, but always to get the young big hitting Canadian inside the baseline and well below the net. McEnroe's Contrarian Style One simply has to watch any two professionals practicing (men or women) to see them stroking the ball back and forth – heavy topspin, with both players well back of the baseline. The herd plays this way, heavy topspin well behind the baseline. I believe a contrarian like John McEnroe would give these guys fits. You can learn to do the same, but there are some pre conditions:
Federer Showed Power of Underspin Backhand in 2008 US Open Commenting a few years ago when Federer beat a young and improving (at that time) Novak Djokovic. I wrote: “Creating the most difficult reply. McEnroe consistently praised Federer’s game, not only for his shot making but equally for his tactics and strategy. As any point unfolds, first with backcourt ground strokes, then perhaps an approach shot, and finishing with either a winner or error from the backcourt or at the net, there will always be the decisions faced and made by both players on each and every shot. When to add pace, when to defend, when to move forward, when to retreat." McEnroe knew to create situations where the opponent was forced to choose the most difficult, and therefore most error prone, reply. And in so doing, often his opponents undid themselves with a string of errors. Federer has remarked that it takes him “15 seconds” to size up an opponent. Perhaps a little bold, but who can argue with his success. And this “sizing up” clarifies his opponent’s tendencies, and more importantly the shots they have the most difficult executing.
Often two-handed players (Roddick, Djokovic, and Hewitt) are less comfortable approaching on the backhand side. For some reason that particular shot may be more easily struck with one-handed mechanics. So on the first championship point, with Djokovic serving to the ad court, Federer gently chipped short and crosscourt, and the kid neatly ran around the ball to knock off a forehand winner from mid-court. Next championship point, ad court, Federer chipped softly again (45 miles an hour to be exact), but this time the kid didn’t run around, hesitated, then inexplicably tried a one-handed cross court drop shot that fell aimlessly into the net. You too can learn to run these patterns against your opponents, but only if you diligently study their style of play, and then if you are able to expose those weaknesses when the chips are down. McEnroe played a similar style, chipping, dinking, driving – a full admixture of pace and spin till, as Arthur Ashe described, “He nicks you in so many places, ultimately you are bleeding to death.” Your game can be as much about power as about guile, but only if you work to perfect the guile side of the street.
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