How to practice serving

Believe it or not, even a tennis master like me needs to practice. After getting broken a few times in a match, I decided that I needed to practice my serve. Since it was a warm New York day and I didn't have anyone to play with I headed to the outdoor courts to work on my serve. I'm working on getting a new grip for my serve, the continental grip. I tired to structure my practice session so tat I could maximize the spare hour I had. Here's something I recommend when practicing to make your session most effective : use an abbreviated serve. Don't bother with the windup when working on a new grip, toss or swing. First, focus on getting the grip and toss and contact point right. After you have mastered these aspects of your serve, work on using your body- specifically your legs- in developing a faster serve. Finally, after you have mastered these aspects, add in the windup. Witt this type of practice regimen you will find that it is easier to make corrections and adjustments in your serve. If you try to work on too many aspects of your serve at once, your serve will falter.

How to play One On One Doubles!

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Ed Krass, the creator of One on One Doubles. One on One Doubles is a singles game where players must serve and volley on their serve and all shots are played cross court. After the interview with Ed Krass, I decided to try introducing one on one doubles play to an intermediate student of mine. At first, it was a struggle for the student to successfully serve and volley, he often missed volleys and got caught while on the run. Here were some key factors that helped him execute the serve and volley plays successfully. First, an abbreviated serve was necessary for him to move into the net quickly. Second, split stepping when he got to the service line and putting his racquet up was vital to successfully hitting winning volleys. Furthermore, taking off immediately after he hit the serve to head to the net was a key factor in producing winning volleys. In addition, understanding the early contact point for volleys helped him successfully win points. For more information on One on One Doubles, go to www.oneononedoubles.com. For more tennis tips go to www.elftennis.com