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competition DRILLS
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Ad serve + half volley deep

Cones are set in the deep corner (ad side). The player serves from the ad side and moves to the net, and the coach feeds the ball to the ad side. The player hits backhand half volley deep cross court and takes proper position at the net.

Volley Drills

Backhand into wobble target

In this drill, the player works on hitting with high trajectory over the net. This exercise forces players to swing from low to high to achieve good consistency. Visual target gives immediate feedback to kids about the previous shot. Young players love fun games so coaches have to prepare the lesson with this thought in mind. More interesting targets we put on the court, more motivated the players are to work hard and fight. That's why coaches should always change targets to make a quality lesson with youngsters.

Backhand Drills

Catch and Dribble Warm Up

Cones are set in front of the player. Coach stands behind the player and tosses the ball over the players' head. Player runs forward, catches the ball on the racquet and run around the cones without dropping the ball.

Agility & Fitness

Cone Warm Up

Cones are set in front of the player who starts on the baseline. The coach rolls the ball from behind the player. Player runs, stops the ball and goes around the cones while controlling the ball with the racquet. In this drill, player works on speed, deceleration and control.

Agility & Fitness

Cross court inside-out forehands

The coach feeds the first ball in and then players have to keep the rally going, running around the ball to play a cross-court forehand into the coned area. So player 1 hits the ball to player 1 on the other team who then returns to player 2 and so on.

Forehand Drills

Cross-court rally game with winners

Players get into pairs. Each pair takes on another pair in a cross court competition. Players take it in turns to hit the ball deep into the coned area. Every time a ball is hit short the receiving player can hit a winner down the line to score a point. The players who hit the short ball can try to recover and return the down the line winner. If they manage to return the shot they do not lose a point. Next rally starts again.

Rally Drills

Fun Finishing

Coach sets up a target (basket). Players compete with each other while trying to throw the ball inside the basket.

Coordination / Fun Games

Hit well and switch

Zones are set in both corners. The coach feeds balls to the ad side, and the player runs around and hits forehand inside out. If the player misses the zone, he has to continue to play in this direction. If the player hits the zone, coach says "switch" and the player then hits the next ball with forehand inside in.

Forehand Drills

Racquetless tennis

Staying in one service box on their side, players compete against each other just like a tennis game. Players have to bounce the ball on their side of the net, so it crosses to their opponents side. The player receiving the ball has to catch it with one hand, making sure the ball only bounces once on their side of the court. Continue this as a rally until the ball bounces twice on one side of the court.

Agility & Fitness

Running forehand down the line

The player stands on the baseline, and the coach feeds a medium-pace ball to the forehand side. The player runs forward and hits forehand volley down the line.

Volley Drills

Racquetless tennis Agility & F...

Staying in one service box on their side, players compete against each other just like a tennis game. Players have to bounce the ball on their side of the net, so it crosses to their opponents side. The player receiving the ball has to catch it with one hand, making sure the ball only bounces once on their side of the court. Continue this as a rally until the ball bounces twice on one side of the court.

General

1 Offense 1 Defense Forehand D...

2 players rally together in cross court direction. Player A hits all the balls aggressively. Player B hits all the balls defensively. After the point both players switch roles and play another rally.Drill specifications:5-10 min per sideWith more players on the court coach can use this drill strictly for the learning process or to make it really competitive. For learning purposes, players switch after few points to have a time to work on their shots as also to spend some time on different skills. For competitiveness, coach should put players into teams and play cross court points with clear defensive/offensive goals.

General

Alternate hitting volley and s...

The player stands at the net on the ad side and the coach stands on the baseline on the ad side. Players rally together. The player at the net alternates hitting backhand volley and overhead.

General

Baseline scenario Forehand & B...

The coach feeds fast ball to deuce side. The player runs and hits deep forehand cross-court. The coach immediately feeds drop shot to ad side, the player then sprints and hits deep backhand slice down the line.

General

Random cones Agility & Fitness...

Cones are set randomly around the court. The player starts from the centre of the baseline and their goal is to touch each cone as fast as possible. Order can be random but player has to recover to the middle after each touch.

General

Catch and Dribble Warm Up Agil...

Cones are set in front of the player. Coach stands behind the player and tosses the ball over the players' head. Player runs forward, catches the ball on the racquet and run around the cones without dropping the ball.

General

Tennis: Cross-court rally game...

Players get into pairs. Each pair takes on another pair in a cross court competition. Players take it in turns to hit the ball deep into the coned area. Every time a ball is hit short the receiving player can hit a winner down the line to score a point. The players who hit the short ball can try to recover and return the down the line winner. If they manage to return the shot they do not lose a point. Next rally starts again.

General

Rally with observation Rally D...

The coach stands at the net and rallies with a player. The coach hits all the balls randomly and can change position. The player has to play all the ball back to the coach even if she changed her court position.Opponent's perception is a skill as any other that players have to practice. Most of the time players focus on the ball so they are pretty good with ball perception but they don't have the same ability according to the opponent. Knowing where the rival is situated on the court can be a great advantage because we can use more effective tactical decisions and win points without taking too much risk.

General

Consistency and accuracy Rally...

<BR>-Players hit forehands aiming for the line.<BR>-Players maintain high net clearance to achieve consistency.<BR>-Three points are deducted from the final score (i.e. the rally count) for each shot that was hit into the net.<BR>-After 2 minutes see which pair held the longest rally.<BR>-After one or two rounds swap to backhand.

General

Move the cone Coordination / F...

Each player has own area with cones placed all around, and players start bouncing the ball up and they try to hit own cone. If the cone is hit, the player takes the cone and puts on the other player's area. The goal is to move as many cones to the other player as possible.

General

Rally and run around Forehand ...

The player stands between 2 cones. The coach and player rally with each other. The coach tries to hit all the balls between the cones, which the player then hits the ball and runs around the cone according to the stroke he chose. If the player hits a forehand he has to run around the right cone. If the player hits a backhand he has to run around left cone.Adding decision making skill to simple rally is a great way to teach your players how to act under the time pressure. If the player is able to maintain consistency while making right decisions, then they won't have problems with smart strategy during the match. It is important to design drills that are consisted of skills that players have to use during competition because the more similar the practice environment to the competitive one, the easier it will be to perform at the same level day by day.

General

Height Rally Drills - Tennis D...

Purpose:To learn that shots go higher over the net than imagined Variation &quot;A&quot;Cover the net with towels and ask 2 singles players to play up to 11 points.Feed underhand for 2 points alternately Variation &quot;B&quot;Erect badminton nets to create higher target over netCompete as in &quot;A&quot;.

General

Bonus for good positioning For...

2 players play points against each other. Each player has a chance for additional points if he/she moves inside the baseline after a good offensive shot that forces the opponent to play defensively.Drill specifications:1-2 points and switch2 players compete with each other. With more players coach can set up specific footwork drills to improve movement or let players watch the points and pay attention especially to moving inside the baseline after a good offensive shot. This drill can work as a competition where players work individually or in teams.

General

Live ball drill with player Ra...

In this Drill the players start in the tram line. With the coach feeding the first ball from the basket the first player hits a controlled forehand back to the player at the net who in turn plays the ball in to the open court for the player to run onto the ball and hit a winner down the line. Player then runs around the cone and returns back to the queue.

General

Hit well and switch Forehand D...

Zones are set in both corners. The coach feeds balls to the ad side, and the player runs around and hits forehand inside out. If the player misses the zone, he has to continue to play in this direction. If the player hits the zone, coach says &quot;switch&quot; and the player then hits the next ball with forehand inside in.

General

Line and Cross Volley Drills -...

Players work in groups of 4 volleying one ball between 4.Players down 1 end start by always hitting cross court, the pair down the other end hitting down the line.Players continue in this way until &quot;change&quot; is called by the coach, and the pattern resumes with all players trying to keep the rally going as this occurs.Courts compete between themselves looking for the longest rallies or alternatively, players can compete amongst the groups of 4 by counting errors, so that the player with the least amount of errors at the end of the drill wins!

General

Return and drop Backhand Drill...

The coach serves wide from the ad side and the player hits deep backhand cross-court return. The coach feeds another ball to the ad sidem and the player finishes with backhand drop shot down the line.

General

Overhead Volley Volley Drills ...

The coach feeds 20 balls from the basket alternating between an overhead and a put-away volley.The players aim the overheads at the deeper targets and the volleys at the shorter targets, hitting cross-court and closing the net down as they do so.The coach can feed forehand volley then backhand volley alternately after the smash but they should also vary this and change the pattern - so maybe they will get another forehand volley instead of the backhand that they were expecting.Once the player has completed the 20 ball set they go around the far end of the court to pick the balls up, and the next player has their turn.Up to 5 sets of 20 can be repeated in this way.

General

Serve and recovery Serve and R...

The player performs regular serve. After the serve, the player recovers behind the baseline as fast as possible.

General

Effective all-court volleys Vo...

Cones (stations) are set on the player's side. The player starts from the first cone and the coach feeds the ball. The player then tries to hit the ball into the deuce zone. If he makes it he is allowed to move to the next station. If he doesn't he tries until he makes a successful shot.

General

Mid Court Variety Rally Drills...

Coach feeds the ball to the ad side.Player steps inside the baseline and hits backhand down the line.Coach feeds another ball to the ad side.Player runs around the ball and hits forehand drop shot inside in.

General

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competition SESSIONS
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Play With Intent

Get your players feeling confident while hitting volleys from different areas on the court...

Pre-Tournament Priority Session

Focus on your players serve and return game to address priorities before heading into competition

Pressure Rallying - Movement and Concentration session

Improve your players' rallying under pressure and use a ticking clock scenario in this high-intensity movement and concentration session

Fun Coordination and Alternative hand Skills

Find out how coordinated your players are with this fun peripheral vision and alternative hand skills session

Target oriented practice for kids

Improve your player’s accuracy with simple target games, which will leave them with a smile on their face!

Improving Key Skills For Juniors

Use this session plan to help your players’ confidence and skills grow, by putting in use of key skills that are required in the game.

Point Play: Restricted and Unrestricted

Perfect session for pre comp' players: A fast rotating, rallying point play session to improve your players shot selection and court positioning

Coaching Groups Successfully |...

Coaching groups doesn’t have to be hard! Ensure your players keep busy with fun drills that will improve skills!
competition ANSWERS
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Psychology in tennis HELP! My daughter gets upset...

Psychology in tennis HELP!!! I have a daughter who is an excellent player who only started playing tennis seriously last yr at the age of 13. She is a much better player than all the people she has completed against in matches but always loses due to over hitting and getting upset if the wrong call is made (which happens frequently due to how fast she hits and serves) do we need some sort of psychological help for this. what is the best way to get this... books, councilling ??? any help would be most appreciated thanks

Archived User Coach

how can i correct a slapping forehand

one of my student is playing is forehand , with slapping. pls let me know how to correct it. gana.

Coach, United States of America

Passing shot drill for four or five players.

Is there a drill to involve four or five players to teach a passing shot? Situation would be opponent at or approaching the net and plays a poor approach.

Keith Brown Coach, England

What to teach first?

Hello. I have question for you all. What to teach first, for example a kid who is 6 years old? I am starting tennis coach career, so I need advices of you all. Thanks. :))

Mateo Coach, Bosnia and Herzegovina

introducing pressure to the training environment

I am interested in simulating the pressures of competition. Do any coaches have any tips or drills that can be incorporated into the training environment that add pressure/stress for the athlete and by doing this it will hopefully allow athlete to adapt to pressure. thanks!!

Newton michelle Coach, Canada

what

What drill do u recommend for large group of new players

Mona R Forster Coach, United Arab Emirates

prepare 10 years boy for competetions?

how can i prepare 10 years boy for competetions?

Abdul Alsuroor Coach, United Kingdom

Psychology in tennis HELP! My ...

Psychology in tennis HELP!!! I have a daughter who is an excellent player who only started playing tennis seriously last yr at the age of 13. She is a much better player than all the people she has completed against in matches but always loses due to over hitting and getting upset if the wrong call is made (which happens frequently due to how fast she hits and serves) do we need some sort of psychological help for this. what is the best way to get this... books, councilling ??? any help would be most appreciated thanks

Archived User Coach

Strategy to win senior 70´s t...

How to win senior 70´s tournament singles? Strategy?

Archived User Coach

FUN GAME- both competitive and...

can this drill be used both for anticipating the ball,control,tempo while also as a fun game for students with both competitive and cooperative aspects

Mayank Yadav Coach, United Kingdom

I'm coaching middle school ten...

Coaching tennis to middle school athletes for the first time. How do I begin?

Rhonda R Lang Coach, United States of America

how can i make a 4 week plan f...

how can i make a 4 week plan for preparation for tennis tournament i'll play

Archived User Coach

How do you beat someone who is...

How do you beat someone who is clearly inferior but just keeps the ball in play?

Archived User Coach

Permanent lines for U10 tennis...

I would like to add permanent lines for Under 10 tennis and am wondering if anyone has any experience doing this and can help me avoid problems with adult members?

Archived User Coach

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