Thoughts about Tennis Tradition...

[don_budge]

Summary...continued

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.


Summary


In Bill Tilden’s writings he maintains that it takes one year to learn to play the game of tennis, five years to make a tennis player and ten years to make a champion. That being said, we can safely say that Gustav has learned to play the game of tennis.

In the one year that we have worked together we have in my opinion laid a sound foundation from which to build and train a tennis player. With heavy emphasis on technique in our first year it is now within our scope to begin to tackle the problems involved in creating and executing tactics against different opponents. The second year of this program will continue to emphasis technique but always with keeping in mind that there is a much larger problem to be solved and that is of course…how to win tennis matches. If he continues to progress at the same rate as the first year it would appear that he should be challenging all of the players that he has played this year for the last and most precious point in a tennis match…the match point. By the end of the second year this should be a reasonable goal but by no means is there any rule that says that it could not be accomplished earlier.

Patience is still a very large part of the lesson to be learned in all of this business of learning to play the game of tennis. One must have the patience to meticulously lay the technical foundation of all the shots in the game as well as having the patience to play each and every point with sound winning tactical strategy and energy. These things take time and it is important to not get ahead of ones self. While it would be nice to see the victories and trophies come rolling in right away it is more prudent to develop the sound foundation, mental mind set and the player’s confidence in order that bigger and more prestigious titles are contested for in the future.

Competition and preparation for competition are huge factors in the development of a tennis player. It is important to compete in order to know where one stands in the world of tennis competition. At this point in Gustav’s development it is not the end of the world to lose a tennis match. What is important now is to begin to analyze the reasons for success and failure.

One extraordinary aspect of the game of tennis is the rich history that is so much a part of the game. I think that for any serious tennis player part of the education process is to become a serious student of the game. By doing so a complete perspective of the game is attained. Not just a superficial knowledge of the latest fads and latest heroes. In doing so hopefully the student of the game learns that he can borrow ideas and technique from players as far back as the history of tennis reaches to become a more complete player.

With this in mind…if I was a young player today I would look to fashion myself after a number of players in the past and only one of the present. My collage of players may look something like this.

From the present there is only one player, Roger Federer, who is of any interest to me. He is already a part of tennis history based on his number of Grand Slam victories. His technique in every aspect of his game is sound and worthy of serious consideration. The tactics, courage and sportsmanship that he exemplifies are certainly role model quality as well.

When contemplating the past a whole world of tennis possibilities opens up for the aspiring tennis player and it may look something like this. From Bill Tilden we can accept anything he has written as sound fundamentals for technique and tactics. He is the most astute author on the game to ever write on the subject. Pancho Gonzales, the great American champion, could very well be the standard to aspire to with regard to overall style and match play competitiveness. Many of the great players consider him to be the best of all time. Many have said that if there was one match played that your life depended upon they should want that Gonzales was playing for it. Don Budge is the standard of all standards when it comes to driving off the backhand side. For years his backhand was regarded as the greatest shot of all time. At the same time we may attempt to incorporate the great Australian Ken Rosewall into the backhand in terms of applying under-spin for attack and defense. When looking for players to emulate with regard to the serve and volley game Pete Sampras and John McEnroe come to mind. With regard to Swedish tennis there is only one player to consider and of course this is the legend Bjorn Borg. His footwork, sportsmanship, stubbornness and courage rank right at the top with all of the great players. If we were to choose what kind of program we would like to borrow from, imitate and develop the great Australian coach Harry Hopmans legacy would have to rank on top of the list.

So there you have it, some food for thought for year number two. These are my ideas but the real decision about what will be accomplished is up to the player. Tennis is the sport of all sports when it comes to training an individual to make decisions and only golf can compare in this regard. From this point on the responsibility falls more and more upon your shoulders to decide where the road will take you. My job is to guide you.

The following are lines from the poem…If…by Rudyard Kipling and they are overhead of the entrance to Wimbledon I am told. They must be there for a reason. I believe it is because they speak of the tennis champions heart and his soul…his Courage.

IF YOU CAN MEET WITH TRIUMPH AND DISASTER
AND TREAT THOSE TWO IMPOSTERS JUST THE SAME…


The rest of the poem is below.

If…

IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you.
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise…

If you can dream-and not make dreams your master;
If you can think-and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build them up with worn-out tool


If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them…Hold on!

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings- nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it.
And- which is more-you will be a Man, my son!

by Rudyard Kipling

[don_budge]

Analysis of Gustaf's game...plus a map of the way forward.

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.

Analysis written for my protege...


January 1, 2010

Analysis of Gustav Adolfssons tennis game after the completion of 1 year of training under the direction of Steve Navarro

First year goals and criteria of accomplishment

-Service…goal was to develop a classic motion with the elements of smoothness, completeness of backswing and the necessary rhythm to begin to serve with more versatility, spin and tactical method.
Mission accomplished with regard to service motion. Minor issues remaining with regard to backswing and rhythm that I believe are related to each other.

-Forehand…goal was to develop a forehand as a basis for the attack and aggressive element of the game.
Mission accomplished.

-Backhand…goals were unspecified in the beginning but eventually the decision was made to switch from a two hand backhand to a one hand backhand.
Mission accomplished.

Along with the specified goals stated above much was accomplished in the first year without specified goals. Much progress was made with regard to net game, approach game and the beginnings of a sound tactical game based on the foundation of sound stroke fundamentals.

Second year goals and analysis of present competence with potential for growth on a shot by shot basis

-Service…excellent beginning position, setup and preparation. Backswing tends to be a bit fast which inhibits a number of aspects of the swing that are important for the generation of effortless power, spin and placement. Overall goal for the second year is to arrive at a finished product of the service in terms of technique in order to develop a tactically efficient serve that is consistent, flexible and reliable under pressure. Completing and perfecting the necessary technique will enable the accomplishment of the ultimate goal which is the ability to consistently hold the service game under any conditions.

-Forehand groundstroke…excellent ability to produce a powerful stroke with minimum of spin from anywhere on the court. The potential for attack and aggression is always a threat on the forehand side of the court. The goal for the second year is to continue to develop the element of attack and at the same time develop a stroke that is more flexible tactically. To accomplish this the backswing will need to be modified to produce spin for more control and flexibility. With the ability to produce spin and flexible shots the ability to tactically neutralize and to play sound tactical defense the forehand becomes a much more sophisticated weapon.

-Forehand approach shot…a fairly new concept in the initial stage of development. This is an extremely important tactical shot that should be played a vast majority of the time down the line to the right handed opponent’s backhand. The goal for the second year is to develop a consistent forehand approach shot with under- spin, side-spin and top-spin. Along with the technique required to hit these shots the understanding of the necessity for tactical pressure on the opponent must be thoroughly developed.

-Forehand volley…without formally stating a goal in the first year this was an area of growth. The goal for the second year is to produce a consistent punching volley stroke that yields the ability to penetrate the opponent’s defense and the ability to volley with touch using the desired amount of under-spin for the specific type of volley.

-Backhand groundstroke…without specifying a goal for the first year the decision was make to switch to a one hand backhand. Just recently positive results are to be observed which should emphasis the importance of patience and hard work to an aspiring tennis player. The goals for the second year are most ambitious with regard to the development of the backhand and they are two fold. The backhand stroke at the end of the two year point is to be the most flexible stroke in the repertoire in terms of attack and defense. The goal for the range of the backhand shall be from extreme attack to subtle defense and all shots in between.

-Backhand approach shot…the goal for the second year is to produce approach shots that consistent, flexible and penetrating to the opponent’s defense. It will be absolutely necessary to produce under-spin on a majority of backhand approach shots with the emphasis on depth and placement.

-Backhand volley… without formally stating a goal in the first year this was an area of growth. The goal for the second year is to produce a consistent punching volley stroke that yields the ability to penetrate the opponent’s defense and the ability to volley with touch using the desired amount of under-spin for the specific type of volley.

-Overhead and Half-volley…the goal for the second year for these advanced shots is to become more technically and tactically proficient and to understand how these shots are to be used not only offensively but defensively as well.

-Tactics…much of the first year was devoted to the building of a foundation of technically sound strokes. This process continues into the second year but additionally the development of tactics and strategy against different opponents will be emphasized. Development of the serve and volley tactic and net play tactics to be pursued aggressively.

[chuck62]

the forgotten forehand

Don & DB,

Thanks for the insights. Don you seem to have run into just about every great player of the 2nd half of the 20th century at one time or another. I've really enjoyed your anecdotes. Still waiting for your new instructional articles. Did not realize it before but now that I look at the old Kramer clips they do look like flat /slice forehands. I was looking for an ideal model for the shot, for the backhand we have Rosewall, the gold standard. But for the forehand slice ? Perhaps Kramer or Savitt. As I look at Kramer's its an eastern grip, a relatively flat swing plane, leading with the butt of the racquet he hits through the ball with a slightly open face and with a fair amount of sidespin. What a great approach shot that must have been as it kicked away from his opponents in their backhand corner.

[don_budge]

From the Slice...and upwards

Thanks Bottle. I forgot about Tilden who apparently used it quite a bit. Funny that you have to go that far back to find a model for the forehand slice, whereas the backhand slice is still popular on the tour today. Stotty must be right its the harder shot of the two to master. Still if a player could bring out a low skidding foreand once in awhile it would surely throw off his opponent.

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.

From Bill Tilden we can read about the main uses of the slice:

1. To vary pace on your opponent by mixing it with a drive and to take pace out of great speed and to slow up tempo.

2. To return great speed on service (defense).

3. To handle shots that catch you out of position, particularly shots that bound to high to drive.

4. As an advancing shot behind which to go to the net (attack).

The thing to do is evaluate these four fundamentals statements within the context of the modern game...with it's modern equipment. As Trey Waltke says...it still makes sense for 99.5% of the people.

Yes chuck62...it's easy to forget about Bill Tilden these days. Not only was the game hijacked by the equipment (read manufacturers, tennis officials and the governing body) money, it was only natural that the coaching profession would also be hijacked to accommodate the "new" game as well. So much smoke and snake oil.

Stotty...when teaching the game, there is no difficult decision to make in my book. Beginners need fundamentals in order to build their games on solid ground. You cannot teach the pro game to youngsters. At some point they will be on their own as their game takes on their personality...at which point you are there to guide them with your sage wisdom. You simply cross that bridge when you come to it. You simply substitute "Match Play and the Spin of the Ball" for "How to play Better Tennis". Great coaches are marinated in experience...and not necessarily all tennis experience. There are few reliable short cuts if any. And my book says...The book is Bill Tilden. The model is Richard Gonzales with the Don Budge backhand. The coach is Harry Hopman. Roger Federer is the living proof. Simplify coaches!

As coaches we need a basis or a model from which to work. We need a philosophy and one that is tried and true. We cannot proceed with our craft going along with the latest fad or fancy. My model has a book, a model, a coach and proof. Adopt this and you cannot go wrong. American Tennis...adopt this and within ten years we will rule the tennis world once again. Follow the Spaniards...never! Follow the Serbs...never! Tear down the latest paradigm and strike a blow for tennis...real tennis. What the hell...strike a blow for the people, we aren't going to take it anymore. These are dangerous times...in more ways than one, and it will be easy to slip into the habit of not questioning the authorities and accepting everything that comes down the pipe. We have been duly warned...by both Tilden and Orwell. Not to mention the Big Guy.

We have strayed as a race of people, the human race that is...and we have strayed as well within the confines of our dear and wonderful game as we allowed her to be sold down the river, without a fight...without any protest. Well, except for me...don_quixote. God's gift to mankind in terms of recreation...in terms of tradition. Along with golf. We have strayed to the point where it is no longer tennis. It should be renamed "Ball Bashing". I am not amused.

I am a simple man...or not, depending upon the situation or your point of view. My first initial reaction is to reduce things to the lowest common denominator...the LCD. We had a simply wonderful discussion regards the underspin backhand, among other things, over the course of the last couple of months. This business of the underspin forehand is beginning to size up as well. It is the next piece of the puzzle for my classic student of the game...Gustaf. We proceed trusting my intuition while developing his. Trust is an integral part of the whole project.

Thanks to yourselves chuck62, bottle, Stotty and now our veteran ace in the hole...tennis_chiro, I believe in the way forward. You see Stotty, it is very much a matter of trust and belief. Very interesting perspective, Don. This guy has been well marinated. Everybody is welcome in this discussion...worldsbestcoach, this means you too. I hope to hear from you.

"...but it is my personal opinion that almost all such shots should be slices, and not chops."-Bill Tilden.

[tennis_chiro]

Not quite that far back

Thanks Bottle. I forgot about Tilden who apparently used it quite a bit. Funny that you have to go that far back to find a model for the forehand slice, whereas the backhand slice is still popular on the tour today. Stotty must be right its the harder shot of the two to master. Still if a player could bring out a low skidding foreand once in awhile it would surely throw off his opponent.

You don't really have to go quite that far back. The summer after my senior year in high school (1966) when I was really just trying to learn to play, my coach sent me to see Jack Kramer's coach, Bob Harmon. I never did learn what he was trying to teach me and, frankly, didn't recover to learn to hit the forehand decently for over 30 years when it was really too late. He didn't really emphasize either topspin or slice, just turning the body through the ball. Here is a clip from the stroke archive of Kramer's slice approach:

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/strokearchive/golden_legends/jackkramer/jackkramer_sa.html?JKFHSliceFront.mov

But if you really look at all of his forehands in the archives, most of them are slices. He was famous for pushing that slice into his opponent's backhand corner. I don't have video, but I don't think it was that uncommon of a tactic in the 60's and even well into the 70's. I'm reaching a little with my memory, but I think you would find players like Ralston, Gimeno, Graebner, Ashe and Osuna using the shot to great advantage. The winter of '70-'71, I was the pro at the Vanderbilt Tennis Club in Grand Central Station in NY and I got to practice just a little with Ralston, Ashe and Graebner, but my first introduction there to a "big time" player was when they trotted out this investment banker who was more than 20 years older than I was for a practice match. He just about knocked me off my feet with the depth and pace of his groundstrokes. I didn't know he had won Wimbledon and the Australian 20 years earlier. He could hit a forehand slice into the corner that made you want to dig a hole in the court to get it back. Dick Savitt had a tremendous slice or flat forehand.

http://www.nj.com/tennis/index.ssf/2011/07/politi_former_wimbledon_champ.html

Of all the pros I hit with that year (including Laver, Rosewall and Emerson - when they were getting ready for their $10,000 winner-take-all matches on the same surface in Madison Square Garden), his ball seemed the most difficult to handle.

BTW, Dick was a very successful investment banker. All the years I was in NY, Dick had just about the best box at the US Open, 1st row -right behind the server. Nice guy too.

So it's not that long since a slice forehand was used, but except for people like Santoro, it does seem lost. My old student, Paul Annacone did a pretty good job with it, but he couldn't hit a regular baseline drive with the big boys and had to rely on the slice and chip to get to the net.

don

[chuck62]

The rarest shot

Thanks Bottle. I forgot about Tilden who apparently used it quite a bit. Funny that you have to go that far back to find a model for the forehand slice, whereas the backhand slice is still popular on the tour today. Stotty must be right its the harder shot of the two to master. Still if a player could bring out a low skidding foreand once in awhile it would surely throw off his opponent.

[bottle]

Three Forehand Slices

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/strokearchive/golden_legends/billtilden/billtilden_sa.html?BTFHSliceCourtLevelSide1.mov

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/strokearchive/golden_legends/billtilden/billtilden_sa.html?BTFHSliceCourtLevelSide2.mov

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/strokearchive/golden_legends/billtilden/billtilden_sa.html?BTSliceFHFront.mov

[bottle]

~

I was interviewing a rowing coach in his kitchen one morning after his varsity schoolboy crew just lost the national championship by a whisker. At the same time they lost a free trip to Henley, England since sponsors aleady were lined up.

While the coach, Charles Butt Sr., was helping me with the magazine article I was about to write, the telephone rang.

It was the captain of the crew. I couldn't hear his end of the conversation, but Charlie said, "Tastes like ashes, doesn't it? And it should. If it doesn't taste like ashes you weren't trying hard enough."

[don_budge]

Theo loses 18-16 in Super Tiebreak...

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.

Returned to the club today to see some real tennis...while Monfils defeated Nieminen in the finals of the Stockholm Open in three sets.

Theo lost the first set at love but battled back to take the second set 7-5. In our series we play a "Super Tiebreak" if the players split the first two sets...for all of the marbles. The first to ten and winning by two wins the match.

The two opponents battled back and forth in what turned out to be an epic struggle. Theo won the 9-9 point to go up 10-9 but could not capitalize. They went back and forth...until Theo's opponent took advantage of a short ball and placed it squarely in Theo's backhand corner where he could not manage to return it. Final score 18-16 in the Super Tiebreak.

Theo managed to stay composed on his way to the net for the obligatory handshake but when that little piece of business was squared away he collapsed sobbing into his hands...and he was unable to stop. I was watching from behind the glass partition behind the courts as his father trotted over to console him. After a couple of minutes I went over to see if I could shed a little light on the subject.

"Theo", I said to him...his face still buried in his hands. "It's Steve. I came all of the way from Stockholm to see you play." No response, more tears. "Theo, it's Steve. You're ok, stop crying, you're ok. I am proud of you. You tried your best. If you would of won one more point the other boy would be the one crying. You're ok...it's alright." No dice.

His mother came over and eventually...it was a good ten minutes, maybe even fifteen he managed to stop sobbing and the three of us went over to the other side of the court to sort things out. He's eleven. I told the mother that it was probably better for him that he lost. The other boy just gave it a big "Yeah!" went off to pound some lunch and that was that for him. Theo, on the other hand, had to process the fact that he was number one, exhausted...plus he had to process coming out on the short end of the stick in an 18-16 marathon tie-break. I have never played an 18-16 tie-break. Mumsy and I had a nice little philosophical discussion about what good training tennis is for life...it's not always a bed of roses, it's not always a trip to the beach. Theo had a couple of cookies and I saw him smiling and laughing with the other boys who were playing in the doubles about a half an hour later. Kids.

The whole experience sort of shocked Theo. He'd never been there before. He was in uncharted waters. The drama really piled up. All of us tennis players know what it is like to lose a close one. You survive. You find a way. Wouldn't it be funny if one day he is in the Wimbledon finals playing against the American number one...going the distance to five sets, finding himself in a marathon tie-break and winning. The smile on his face will bear just a bit of a pained expression when his memory of "that day at Skultorps" snuck its way back into his noodle.

Sorry for the repetition...just shuffling the papers around. Rearranging the chairs on the Titanic.

[chuck62]

The elusive forehand slice

DB,

Looking forward to your thoughts on how to execute the forehand slice. I play alot of doubles and have had alot of success with a backhand slice approach, but can't seem to get the same confidence in an underspin forehand. So any advice you have would be appreciated. I'm a big believer in having a variety of weapons to use against any given opponent. As I study the archive, I see that Greg Rusedski and Navratalova also used the forehand slice as an approach shot. In some of the old footage on the TC it looks like Evonne Goolagong is hitting a pretty forehand slice as well, in fact she seemed to be able to hit just about any shot she wanted from the same continental grip.

[don_budge]

Slice forehands...funny you should mention that.

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.

chuck62 and licensedcoach...so great to see you guys in this neck of the woods. Super, super posts and one that I have been mulling over a bit. What about that slice forehand?

My prize pupil, Gustaf, has recently begun to show some of what I suspected to be true of him. He has a nice set of Jante Law ingrained in him from Swedish society...he is as smart, as nice, as good looking as the Swedish winter night is long. And he has been hanging with a Motor City original tough guy for the past three years...he has an Eight-Mile, Federeresque sneer on his face. Quite a look for a nice Swedish kid.

I switched him to a one hand backhand two years ago at the age of fifteen. He has just turned seventeen. Yesterday, in practice, he was coming over it with the elegance of a true Budge-esque drive and what pleased me most...was the Rosewallien slice he was knifing. In a way it was sort of sad for me...I no longer stand a chance against him. My inability to move and get in position severely limits me...against youth. He is better than he knows and with the revelation about the Rosewallian backhand there is no where for me to go...his forehand is rather overwhelming. Despite my personal sadness about my own limitations now, my pride and my happiness for him is...priceless.

We are going the Williams Sisters approach here...grooming for the mens game. Juniors are just a bit of practice. You know...it takes a lot more time and work to train a kid to play tennis properly. It's not just strong grip forehand and two hand backhands. To teach all of the nuances such as slice backhand, perfect service motion with all of the variety of spin and tactics, and all of the rest of it is a long and arduous process. A tough road to hoe. But when you get a glimpse of it coming to fruition...it is really a sight to behold. It's more or less up to him now. He is becoming a man...and he is doing exactly what I trained him to do. He is playing all court tennis. He is making decisions and thinking for himself. I hope that one of those decisions is going to be...kick ass and take names. It is another piece of the puzzle when winning becomes a huge part of a rather complex equation.

Just a little update...as the world turns.

As far as the total picture goes...coincidentally we are now polishing the forehand volley and the underspin forehand approach. This work we are embarking on now is going to be a huge linchpin. I am going to be publishing my thoughts...it helps me to hear myself think.

Thanks for your thoughts guys...they came at a perfect time. Now we have an underspin backhand...we proceed to the next piece of the puzzle, the weakest link in the chain...which is, of course, a work already in process. It's how you build a classic tennis player!

[stotty]

Sliced Connors.

Yes, the forehand slice does seem to be obsolete these days. The shot is far more difficult to execute well than a sliced backhand, I think.

Yeah, I have a visual memory Connors hitting a kind of inside-out sliced spin on his forehand approach shot. He seemed to hit across the face of the ball as well as under it. Anyone else remember Connors doing this? Or is it my grainy, visual memory confusing him with someone else?

[chuck62]

forehand slice anyone ?

Impressive homage to the venerable Rosewall backhand slice guys. Don't think I have ever seen a stroke with better grace or balance. Having seen the effectiveness of the backhand slice, even today, we see Federer using it to get the Joker out of his rythmn. Wouldn't it make sense for a player to have a decent forehand slice in the arsenal, that would stay low and skid out of the strike zone ? If so, is there any decent instruction out there on how to hit one ? I can't remember seeing anyone hit an offensive forehand slice these days, seems like they all use the defensive squash shot. Last offensive forehand slice I can remember was by Jimmy Connors. Is the shot totally obsolete ?

[bottle]

Wonderful Stuff

Wonderful stuff. Much more important than that I'm in it is all of the ideas in ALL of this material for me or anyone to hit this basic shot more easily and effectively including the when, where and why of it.

I think it funny that I can say that Rosewall's slice always looks the same in movies, and you point to this, and next thing you know we and others are finding variations all over the place.

For instance, in the Waltke article, Rosewall takes the racket tip quite steeply up, in the Cruz article only up to 45 degrees. This makes me think more about tennis_chiro and his insight about how one can use grip change to turn the racket over.

Do you want a little more drop in the motion? How about more whang from farther back? Also what are we to make of Rosewall's left arm?

Jim Kacian, haiku editor and former tour player, once kidded with me about the artistic license at the end of John McPhee's great book "The Game." That book ends with Arthur Ashe hitting a topspin backhand winner with both wings outthrust like a phoenix. But Ashe didn't hit his backhands that way! His left arm wasn't around a girl he was about to take home from a dance (Donald Budge's expression except for the part about going home). But his left arm was similarly curved if behind him, more like Ken Rosewall's left arm in a typical backhand slice.

The Waltke article doesn't provide the best camera angle to see this but the Cruz article does.

Rosewall is so balanced and swinging so easily that his curved left arm counters by two inches and no more.

Well, if you can calm down an insane horse by lowering its head, maybe you can give some structure to your slice by adopting this finish.

This seems preferable to making excuses about evolution, age, sciatica or talent. ("Ken Rosewall is a genius and you're not, you peon!") Better engineering, yes. I'm all for it.

[don_budge]

Watch the hand...which the racquet head is an extension of

tradi’tion n. body of beliefs, facts, etc., handed down to generation to generation without being reduced to writing; the process of handing down.

The "Muscles" slice backhand...

Watch the hand...it is quicker than the eye.

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/classiclessons/trey_waltke/the_slice_backhand/the_slice_backhand.html

"In the Trey Waltke article, first up in the "Classic Lessons" section just to the left of here, racket tip stays level to the court immediately after contact, too, in the repeating video of Waltke's own tremendously effective slice."-bottle

This video was cherry picked to demonstrate Trey Waltke slicing a backhand in a petri dish. In all of these shots he has perfect balance, plenty of time and a ball in perfect position in order for him to demonstrate the objective of his technique lesson...which is a very sound one.

"But down below, where there's a plethora of still photos of Rosewall all in a cluster, one of them shows a sudden plunge of the racket tip from contact before everything goes up in a similar way."-bottle

Here is the reality of tennis...a subtle truth. This is an actual shot...possibly played in practice, but Ken Rosewall has not necessarily cherry picked this sequence and for good reason. Now we can see what happens under more game situation like conditions. This guy can apply leverage to the ball from any angle. The first picture shows Rosewall making a backwards movement because the ball is coming a bit deeper than he anticipated, hence he is adjusting his body and his swing to accommodate the bounce and speed of the ball. You can see from Rosewall's stance that he is playing a defensive shot, he is going to play this ball barely in front of his hip, with a combination of spin, placement and subtle pace to a place in the court where he has calculated that his opponent can do the minimum amount of damage to him on the next shot...as he did not have the time to line up his feet as he would have under ideal shot conditions so he does what all great champions and tennis players do...he ad-libs. He never really gets his weight onto his front foot, at least not not in the sense of going forward as he optimally would as his footwork and his momentum are going too much sideways, but you can see that just like Federer in the wonderful world of Yandell video "Forehand not Gone", he automatically moves his back foot into position behind his front foot in his best attempt to assimilate perfect hitting conditions...to hold his balance and to line up his shot. Here is a Great Master of the Game at work.

"All this material shows Budge and Rosewall getting arm straight sooner than Waltke, who starts straightening at same time but doesn't finish till shortly before contact."-bottle

This business about the "straight arm" is a very interesting point...but it actually does not have much to do with the actual shot production. What is fundamentally important is to observe the path of Rosewall's hand on the racquet...notice how it it follows on a pure parabolic path from the beginning of his forward swing until he finishes his follow through. Waltke's point of the "L" that the arm forms in the backswing and maintains throughout the swing is fundamentally spot on. Waltke's hand also is on "track" throughout his swing and is traveling at the same speed as his shoulders, which is the most important fundamental aspect of the execution of any tennis shot...get the racquet, which is an extension of the hand, on track. The wrist is going to play its part as usual as tennis_chiro puts it..."the passive hinge". Perhaps it is easier to imagine the racquet head being an extension of the hand if you use the ping pong paddle as the tool instead.

The arm is going to bend a bit depending on the length of the backswing and the amount of turn that the player is putting on his torso so at some point the arm is naturally going to flex at the elbow...largely because of the movement in positioning the body to a moving and spinning ball. In golf, this front arm is basically going to maintain its straightness, at least among professionals and for good reason. Number one, the ball is lying still on the ground so it is necessary for the arm to maintain its precise distance from the ball so that it will return the club head precisely to the ball. One must take into account the size of the golf club head also to realize the importance of the straight arm.

In a tennis shot the single arm backhand is a swinging appendage and it is the weight of the racquet head that will govern the straightness of the arm. As the hand is making its descending journey along the track that is basically parallel to the shoulders, the gravity of the racquet head is going to dictate the straightening of the arm at some point in the swing...and not some conscious effort on the part of the player.

Incidentally...when "Rosewall swings the open racket like a tray of canapes before he turns it over", it doesn't necessarily mean that something will happen more abruptly. It is only the Master manipulating the face of the racquet...everything is in place for the unfurling of the swing for the racquet face to meet the ball in the manner that he has designed it to. A tray of canapes...how bottle-esque is that? Nice play...Johnny!

The point of the attractive Swiss femme fatale leaning on the ball is the key to it all...she's the icing on the cake. Notice how Rosewall's weight is simultaneously sinking into his front leg at the very same moment that his racquet and his hand is sinking into the ball. Notice how his shoulder is lowering the boom on the ball at the same time. Sheer poetry in motion. By "leaning" on the ball with the simultaneous racquet head tracking the ball via the path of the hand you have a created a nice tasty recipe for a perfectly pitched "ping" on the strings...an underspin masterpiece. Voila!


With regards to Federer's slice...go down to "The Puzzle of the Slice", which is really no puzzle at all if you understand some basic engineering principles and the effects that they have "created" on the game of tennis...take a look at Roger's racquet and "hand" action on this shot.

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/strategy/john_yandell/wimbledon_2008_a_different_story/wimbledon_2008_a_different_story.html

Roger is a Great Master as well. He is not a slave to technique. Here he is altering his stroke to fit the circumstances and produces the perfect shot for the moment. I really like his action here...and if I was his coach I would have him using this shot against Djokovic and Nadal whenever the situation dictated, which means mixing it up with deep balls with variety of pace and spin, in order for the Swiss to get the Serb and the Spaniard just a bit out of kilter and off balance, in order to deliver the payload...the knockout blow.

I am puzzled why Federer does not use this tactic more often...but it is quite possible that there is something that I don't understand about the effects of the engineering on the game...the combination of frames, strings and court surfaces that may make this an unacceptable percentage tactic at that level of the game. Be that as it may...Trey Waltke is probably correct in his assessment that for 99.9% percent of the population this is still a great tactic.