Tennis: develop a forehand

Intention: Develop basic forehand and backhand technique.The group is divided into two- "Hitters" and "Fielders".Hitters execute the drill, whilst fielders collect balls. Change roles after each player has 5 turns. Coach feeds simultaneously to the player at the front of each queue. Each player hits five balls (outside shot) and moves off the court and returns to the back of the opposite queue (players will alternate between forehand and backhand on each turn).NB: Coach must continue to reinforce key teaching points.

<p dir="ltr">Intention: Develop basic forehand technique. Players line up on one side of the net set up on a short court. Coach on the other side of the net. Coach feeds the ball to the first player in the line. Each player hits the ball 3 times. Shot is a forehand played with a neutral hitting stance and the player is to finish balanced on one foot. Those in the line mimic the shot of the player playing the ball. Once the player has had their three shots, they collect three balls to return to the hopper before joining the back of the line. 

Player A hits forehand cross court, forehand inside out and forehand inside in. After this pattern both players play the point out.

Coach rallies with player. Player alternates hitting forehand and catching/throwing forehand.

Cones are set in the ad corner (backhand corner). The coach feeds random balls and the player hits only forehands into the proper zone.

Cones are set in the deuce corner. The coach feeds random balls. The player has to use forehand from the all court and hit the balls to the deuce corner.

Starting with a feed to either forehand or backhand at random players play their first shot down the line after which the players can play out the point. No lobs allowed.

Cones are set on both sides of each player, Player 1 rolls all balls cross court. Player B rolls all balls down the line, with both players rallying together for as long as possible.Ability to control the ball in the easiest activities is important to further develop tennis-specific skills. Cooperation is of utmost importance for young players so this skill should be emphasized in each rally exercise.

Rings are placed in front of the player. The player rallies with the coach/player and has to perform split step inside the rings before each shot.

Coach stands in the advantage corner. Coach and player rally together before the coach moves the player around the court. The player's goal is to make all balls to the advantage corner.

Coach feeds an easy high ball. Player tries to hit the ball over the shoulder.Drill specifications:6-8 repetitions per setOther players imitate the shot to develop muscle memory and gain faster improvement while waiting for own turn.

The coach stands next to the player and keeps their racquet in a horizontal position. The player moves their racquet over and under the coach's racquet to imitate a forehand stroke.

The player stands on the service line. Coach then throws a low ball to their forehand side. The player should then run forward, bend their knees and hits the forehand.

<span style=&quot;font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;&quot;>There are 3 movements in this drill. Coach feeds first ball to the deuce side and player responds with forehand cross court. Coach immediately feeds second ball and the player hits an inside out. The next ball is fed aggressively to the deuce side. Player finishes with forehand down the line on the run.

Intention: Assess forehand technique whilst developing the principles of rallying.Players start on their various courts. Each of which has a designated score that is progressive (eg 5, 7, 9) and at the discretion of the coach.Where space is limited, courts can be divided in half or thirds to create stations.One player ('The Sender') starts each rally with an underarm throw to a target area on their partners side of the court, which is situated half way between their partner (&quot;The receiver&quot;) and the net.The 'receiver', who is positioned roughly two racket lengths behind the target area, with a racket, attempts to hit the ball after one bounce to a target area on their partner's side of the court, which is positioned roughly half way between their partner and the net.The pair must then continue to throw and hit the ball (after one bounce) until they achieve the score for their designated court/station.If the rally breaks down in any way, the pair must start the rally again from zero on the court/ station they are on.If the players successfully achieve the score for their designated court (or station), they progress upwards (one station) and 'Budge' the pair on the higher station down.If either of the pair lands the ball directly on the target area they automatically progress upwards (one station) and 'Budge' the pair on the higher station down.When a pair achieves the designated score on the highest (top) court they are awarded 1 'golden' point.When a pair successfully achieves a 'golden' point, they attempt another one until they are 'budged'.The game ends when a pair reaches a pre-set number of 'golden' points. Alternatively, the pair with the most 'golden' points at the end of a pre allocated period of time is the winner.

The coach kneels down on the player's side. Players serves to the T from deuce side, and the coach throws first ball to the deuce side. The player hits forehand down the line and the coach feeds second ball to the ad side. The player runs around and hits forehand inside in.

Players rally together. Player has to say &quot;bounce&quot; when the ball bounces on their side and say &quot;hit&quot; when they make contact with the ball.

Player stands on the baselineCoach feeds high topspin ball to the backhand sidePlayer hits backhand slice on the rise

Player takes ready position. Coach throws ball to the forehand side. Player doesn't move legs and hits forehand. Player has to use only upper body to hit the ball.

The player starts on the baselineThe coach feeds deep balls to the deuce sideThe player alternates responding to these balls with half-volley and movement back and hitting regular shot from deep zone

The player starts by sitting on the ground. They are fed the ball by the coach and must execute a forehand volley whilst only moving their upper body.

The player stands on the baseline and the coach stands in front of the player on the same side. The coach feeds the ball off own side to the deuce corner. The player sprints and hits defensive slice down the line.

Intention: Explore tactical development- &quot;Over and In&quot; and &quot;Hitting into space&quot; Each player starts the game with 3 lives (can be amended depending on time). Players at the front of the line take it in turns to hit a ball fed to them by the coach.  The players keep their lives if they successfully execute the shot by hitting the ball over and in. The player loses a life in one of the following ways: Hitting the ball out. Hitting the ball into the net. Hitting the ball after more than one bounce. Missing the ball.  Once the player has lost all 3 lives they are in the dungeon (coaches side of the net). If the coach or another player in the dungeon catches the ball without a bounce, the player loses a life. The only way out of the dungeon is to catch a shot from another player before it bounces, thus gaining one life.  The player with the most lives remaining at the end of the game is the winner.  

The coach feeds shorter ball to the deuce side. The player moves forward, hits forehand approach shot down the line and comes to the net. The coach hits the ball back to the deuce side and then the player finishes with deep forehand volley cross-court.

<br>2 players rally in cross court direction. Players adjust their court position according to the placement of own shots. If the ball is hit really deep players move closer to the baseline. If the ball is hit with medium depth players maintain the position around 2 meters behind the baseline. If the ball is hit short players quickly move back to prepare for defense.<br>Drill specifications: 1 min and switch 4 players work with each other at the same time so the coach can walk around and provide constant feedback about the footwork and positioning. Main goal is to focus on these two aspects so any faults related to stroke’s technique shouldn’t be pointed out at this time. Waiting players should do fitness drill to work on their footwork skills and legs endurance. Ladder, jump rope or plyometrics are great examples to implement while waiting for own turn.

Cones are set in front of the player. Cones show the player how they should use their legs while performing a closed stance forehand. Player imitates a forehand closed stance stroke and moves their back leg forward after the shot towards the cone.