One Simple Athleticism Hack
While playing tennis, tilt your torso. It sounds simple, and it is, but this minor adjustment will drastically improve your balance, movement, and stroke production. Tilting your torso improves your play in a few...
Never Miss Your Approach Shots
In tennis, “probing” refers to the act of spacing your body with respect to the ball, and it is one of the most important drivers of consistency while playing. The image above depicts two...
The Receiving Loop
In the 2011 Miami Final, Rafael Nadal hit a winner past Novak Djokovic that looked rather strange on TV (the point). The ball landed quite close to him, at least, close in the scope...
The Split-Step: Why, When, and How
The split-step is an athletic hop done immediately prior to receiving a ball in tennis. The player hops a few inches off the ground and lands with their feet wider than shoulder width apart....
Positive, Neutral, and Negative Balance
Here’s a simple way to understand the basics of balance in tennis. Shots can be played in: In a perfect world, we’d play every shot in positive balance. Positive balance lets us recruit the...
Balance Secrets in Tennis
Many skills in tennis are easily visible – any casual Wimbledon fan will be quick to gawk at Carlos Alcaraz’s incredible forehand or be awed by Roger Federer’s immaculate feel. Movement is equally visible...
The Brutal Math of Consistency
Imagine two tennis players, both very consistent: Who wins, and by how much? For now, assume neither has a big serve; almost all of their points start neutral. The answer will surprise you. Below...
Alcarize Your Dropshot
In the Barcelona 2023 final, Carlos Alcaraz hit nine drop shot winners against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Nine. In two sets. How is Carlos Alcaraz so unbelievably lethal with this shot, when most on the tour...
The Anxiety Secret (Never Choke Again)
Today, I played 20 points with a student, and during those 20 points, he missed eight feeds. Eight. That means that, 40% of the time, he didn’t even start the point. During the other...
See The Ball Like Novak Djokovic
When you think of “consistency” in tennis, who’s the first player that comes to mind? For most, it’s Novak Djokovic. Novak is one of the best movers on the tour, and he has perfect...