HIT THE BALL!

I heard that very beautiful statement, HIT THE BALL for the very first time when I stepped on the tennis court 35 years ago. Now that I walk the courts at my tennis academy at the Turnberry Isle Yacht Club, supervising my coaches and watching my players, I still hear that statement, HIT THE BALL many times throughout each day.

If you really think about the phrase, HIT THE BALL, it could have many different meanings. Depending on the tone of voice, body language and/or intention of the phrase it could have various meanings. For instance, if you hear “hit the ball” in a soft tone of voice you may hit the ball softly which would make for a great drop shot, right?! But, if you hear it with a strong tone of voice, you may hit the ball harder. If you see your coach jumping around and you hear him saying HIT THE BALL, you may want to hit the ball even harder. No matter how the statement is said or how you hit the ball, bottom line your racquet and strings are making contact with the ball, hitting the ball.

It is important that you have a clear understanding what your coach is trying to convey when he says “HIT THE BALL”. Asking for clarity and/or more specifics will narrow down what exactly he or she is looking for. For example, when you hear “HIT THE BALL’ it could mean that you are pushing the ball because you are nervous and playing tentatively, your ball is landing short and you are getting pushed around. So by saying “HIT THE BALL”, your coach wants you to have a full and free stroke so you can produce some offensive shots to keep your opponent honest. That is the point when the mental and technical foundations come into play in one simple statement of “HIT THE BALL”.

For the next step to take your tennis to the next level it is crucial that you learn and master the “HIT THE BALL” know how by understanding exactly what part of the ball you must hit in any given situation: how to hit the ball when it comes very fast, slow, with no pace, when the ball bounces low, high, waist level, with a slice, flat or with top spin, etc. For instance, when you should hit the ball using the above situations and where on the court you hit to direct the ball by using good shot selection, percentage play and strategy.

So, in three little words many meanings can come across from your coach. By a constant consistent training program paired with good communication between coach and player, the phrase “HIT THE BALL” becomes much more than three words; it becomes a constant coaching tool, a form of match development and stroke selection. So the next time your coach yells, “HIT THE BALL” uses the skills you’ve worked on in all those hours of practice to deduce his meaning and play the point to the best of your ability!
If the meaning is still cloudy during match time, use your scheduled practices to remember how to “HIT THE BALL” correctly in all different situations. Most of all, when you hit the courts remember to “HIT THE BALL”.

By Colon Nuñez...Coach Nunez is a former Davis Cup Player and touring pro who coached top players like Andres Gomez, Michael Chang, Nicolas Pereira, Jaime Yzaga, Mary Pierce, Nicolas Lapentti and many more. Today he teaches at the Nunez Tennis Training in Turnberry Isles, Miami, Florida, USA. You can read more articles on www.juniortennis.com