DOC'S TIP OF THE DAY -- FLEXIBILITY TRAINING

Remember to do as much flexibility training as possible. Flexibility training is directly related to strength and muscle power. It is a fact that muscle stretching under tension is a critical part of stroke mechanics. The ability to increase range of motion at a body joint results in better storage of elastic energy, HENCE a greater degree of racquet displacement which helps move the racquet faster which improves power. An example of this training would be simple shoulder internal rotations with a stretch cord or a light dumbbell. Another would be core training. add

Doc's Tip of the Day -- Tossing Motion on the Serve

One of the most important parts of the Serve is of course the toss. What appears to be a routine or automatic move is in fact not that easy at all. I will discuss these points:

1. how you hold the ball in your tossing hand.
2. the length of travel of the arm.
3. the speed of the arm.
4. the turn of the front shoulder during the ascent of the tossing arm.
5. the release of the ball out of the hand.

First, when holding the ball in your hand, the ball should not be held with your fingers. You want to cradle the ball at the base of your fingers and the very top part of your palm. The ball should lay in your hand, try not to grab ball.

Secondly, know if your arm descends first or if it ascends from the start point. IF your arm descends, make sure your tossing hand (knuckle) touches the inside of your leg, before ascending. After releasing the ball, continue moving your arm straight up to an angle of 180 degrees to your front leg.

Thirdly, the speed of the arm is constant. It does not accelerate to release the ball. The motion speed is relatively slow and controlled because momentum is built up due to the length of arm travel.

Fourth, because of the turn of the front shoulder when the arm is ascending, the arm ascends at a slight angle to the front leg. This angle is approximately 83+/-2 degrees. This is because you want to toss the ball in front of your body or at approximately 12 o'clock to your front foot.

And lastly, when you release the toss out of your hand do not flick or move the WRIST. This is very important. The ball should have very minimal spin or none at all after tossed. afdd

Doc's Tip of the Day -- Return of Serve

When returning serve, these actions are extremely important.
1. Have a slightly angled stance towards the server or into the court. (Your outside foot will be closer to net)
2. Split step forward when landing. (your split should be at least 1 inch vertically)
3. Your first move as you come down from your split step is a unit body turn.
4. Start immediately adjusting your feet to get into position for proper contact distance.
5. Establish balance, by holding your weight and do not lean or try to go forward to hit the return.
5. It is satisfactory to wait for the ball the come to you so you can maintain your balance.

* on faster serves, you may only have time to turn or pivot after split stepping.
* on serves spinning fast away from you, you must take multiple steps after split stepping to get to the ball. afdd

FOREHAND -- POWER

Pertaining to the closed or semi open stance when hitting a forehand there is NO current study or research to substantiate that in the semi open stance one can hit the forehand harder or with more pace. All standing research shows that stepping into forehand can generate more power because of transfer of body weight into the shot. fdd

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Strategy

A Strategy that is quite important for match play and not adapted by enough players and can be used at all levels is called SHOT TOLERANCE.
It is simply designating a number that you decide upon yourself in which you will hit that many balls into the court every single point played. Now, obviously the higher the number the better.
So lets say you decide to hit 6 balls into play every single point. That's a great strategy. You have a shot tolerance of 6. Keep in mind that tennis is a game of unknown factors. Control ONLY what you can control. If your opponent hits a winner, then accept that and go to the next point. If you have an easy ball on the second shot, put it away, that's that. Shot Tolerance is only a basis for you to have an overall strategy when you play. Your opponents will likely miss within a rally of 4 balls in most matches you play.
what do you think nadankey's shot tolerance is? dd

DOC'S COMMENTS ON FEDERER'S 6TH WORLD TITLE

I am not surprised that Federer has won his 6th end of season world title, and maybe neither are you. I believe it is because of these three main reasons:
1. The other top 3 players are physically worn out and hurt due to the longevity of the ATP season and their styles of play and emotions. (Murray, Nadal, and Djokavic.)
2. Federer is the best player on indoor hard courts.
3. Federer's style of play, technique, movement, and emotional acuity all help him continue to win and stay healthy like the EVERYREADY battery bunny.
Federer can hit more total winners with all his shots than the others, his emotions and expressions are less taxing than the others, his movement is more efficient I believe especially indoors, and physically he hits the ball with a minimal of energy which allows him to conserve energy over a longer season.
Note that Djokavic had a historic season and was completely tapped out mentally and physically after the U.S.Open. fdd

DOC'S TIP OF THE DAY -- ONE HANDED BH

If you have a difficult time hitting through your one handed backhand you must make sure you are throwing, extending or reaching back with your non-dominant arm when you contact the ball. Hitting through the ball basically means are you able to hit the ball deep into the court.
Try to straighten your non dominant arm behind you as you hit the ball. Throw it back quickly when contacting the ball. dd