Submit your questions to Bill Mountford here
Q: My sister and I play singles together about twice a week. Would you kindly suggest on a good warm-up routine that we could use before our match?
Catherine - Boonton, NJ
Go through a range of dynamic stretches before you begin hitting balls. Visit this LINK for some examples. Ideally, you should be perspiring BEFORE you begin hitting.
When you start to hit, do so gently at first. Many players choose to begin with some short-court rallies and then slowly work back toward the baseline. Initially, hit balls gently and down the middle. As you gain some feel for the ball, then gradually add more pace and spin to the ball. Be sure to hit some volley and overheads, lastly, hit plenty of practice serves to both the deuce- and ad-court sides before you begin playing.
- Bill
Q: I am a slightly overweight player and have problems with speed and stamina. Do you have any daily conditioning drills that could help me lose a few pounds?
Keigh - Panama City Beach, FL
Why don’t you try to participate in some Cardio Tennis classes in your area? There have been some remarkable weight loss stories since the advent of this initiative. Visit www.CardioTennis.com for a facility with classes near you.
- Bill
Q: I work at the Boys and Girls Club up here, and this month and next I am teaching a day camp for beginning and intermediate tennis players. I am on my high school tennis team, and I know the game, but my problem is that I am not sure how to go about teaching 8-10 year olds how to play. They have the attention span of a goldfish!! How many things can I cover per day? At what pace do I introduce them to new things? Help!!!
Amanda - Ronan, MT
My best advice when teaching 8-10 year old goldfish, errr, children is to make it fun. If they have fun, they will play more. If they play more, they will get better quickly. How do you know if they are having fun? Look for smiles and listen for laughter. That is even more important than specific drills, games or exercises.
- Bill
Q: For some reason, I have developed a horrible case of double fault-itis. On key points, if I miss the first serve, I begin to dread hitting the second serve. It doesn’t matter how I hit the ball, it feels forced and has been resulting in a ton a free points.
I think it is much more mental than physical, but I cannot get my confidence in my second serve back.
Any tips on how to get out of this funk (the other day I double faulted at 8-9 in a supertiebreaker, the worst possible way to lose a match).
Don - Boston, MA
Many players endure this problem. Pam Shriver had some famous “yips” on the second serve, as did Miroslav Mecir, Jennifer Capriati, Tim Mayotte, Anna Kournikova, and Elena Dementieva. So, you are in good company.
Have an accomplished teaching professional take a look at your second serve (during competition, not in practice), and allow him/her to advise on if there are any significant technical deficiencies. Tactically, focus heavily on making first serves. If you get the first ball into play, then it takes the second serve out of the equation entirely. In fact, do not go for aggressive first serves unless you are ahead by two or more points (40-0, 40-15, or 30-0) in a given game.
Hang in there!
- Bill
Q: What is a split step? My tennis instructor told me to try a split step and I had no idea what he was talking about.
Kelley - Redding, CA
The split-step is a timed jump-and-land. Ideally, you should land in an athletic posture (on the balls of your feet with your feet spread slightly wider than shoulder width apart, and with knees flexed) exactly as your opponent is about to begin his/her forward swing at the ball. This movement allows you get in the best position to react to the next ball.
- Bill
Q: I was recently competing in a local tennis tournament where upon match point my opponent rushed the net and I hit a backhand passing shot that bounced off his forehead and struck a bird that was flying by. My opponent claimed that because of the obstruction he was entitled to replay the point. I reluctantly agreed to play a let and proceeded to lose the match in three sets, whereby I smashed and discarded my rackets into the nearest lake. Am I correct in the assumption that I won the match on that controversial call?
Edward - San Diego, CA
I do not really have a response for this question, but wanted to publish it anyway.
- Bill
Additional thoughts for the week...
Three cheers for Bob and Mike Bryan, who completed their career Grand Slam with the doubles championship at Wimbledon. Awesome!
How about that Jonas Bjorkman?!?! The 34-years-young Swede enjoyed an incredible run to the semifinals. All thirty-somethings were smiling.
Allez Amelie! The charming Frenchwoman justified her #1 ranking with a brilliant effort in recovering from a one-set deficit in the final to beat Maggie Fitzgerald.
Zi Yan and Jie Zheng won the women’s doubles title, and Na Li reached the quarters of the singles. The Chinese seemed poised to overtake the Russians as the preeminent tennis nation in women’s tennis. Watch out!
Congratulations to the American boys who won the junior doubles. Kellen Damico and Nathaniel Schnugg, of Parker, CO and Medford, OR respectively, won the title by going three sets in every round until the final (where they took care of business in straight sets). Well done!
All hail Roger, who survived the Rafa assault. Methinks that if Nadal holds serve at 5-4 in the second set that we would have had the first Spanish men’s champion at the Big W since 1966 (Manual Santana). But, survive he did. Although Federer retained his title, in many ways Rafa won too.
I will be going on my annual pilgrimage to Newport, RI for the Hall of Fame induction weekend and tournament. Go to
www.TennisFame.com for an update on the events this week, as well as all the results. Look for a full report next week.
Lastly, only 60 days until Roger Federer plays Rafa Nadal in the US Open final!