Anticipation is a key element in the development of an advanced player. An intermediate will often hit and back up or hesitate too long when getting his opponent in trouble or sensing when a ball will be short. The average player is average because he seldom hits the ball deep.

In fact against most players the odds are that the next ball or every other ball will be short so you should anticipate this probability and be inside the baseline expecting a short ball. Good tennis is a game of opportunities, it is a game of closing out a point and not letting your opponent keep playing. This means you must fight to get to the net.

The best shot to come in behind is a deep shot that keeps your opponent pinned behind the baseline. If you can develop the confidence to take the short ball and hit an approach shot and volley and come in, then you will find you anticipate always moving forward rather than naturally staying back. Your opponent will feel this pressure and this will affect his concentration and rhythm of his swing and he will produce errors.

There are basic five things that a player can do to his opponent from the baseline:

1. hit to your opponent’s left
2. to his right
3. over his head
4. at his feet, and
5. through him

Tennis tactics means devising a realistic game plan which forces you to evaluate your own game and to learn how to scout and play your opponent. For a beginner the first and most basic rule is to get it “Down the middle and deep”. This works on any type of surface or conditions.

It helps you win by (1)(Keeping your opponent hitting from behind the baseline; (2) the net is 5 1/2″ lower in the middle than at the singles sideline giving you less chance for error; (3) you can concentrate more confidently on the stroke because you are not gambling with the sidelines; (4) By hitting down the middle you reduce the length of the diagonal available to your opponent if he wants to hit crosscourt.

The problem with hitting down the middle is an opponent with a strong shot can step around and hit from his strength every time. It is important to remember if you can keep it going deep enough you will still come out ahead. Once you get better at this strategy you can
play slightly to his weaker side.

Good serve tactics concentrate on three things: the service stance, the grasping action and the throwing action. The grasping action relies on you grasping the tennis ball in your non-playing hand between your thumb and all four fingers. If you want to hold two tennis balls at once, grip the first ball with your thumb and the second ball against your hand with your third and fourth fingers. Then hold the ball or balls against your tennis racket strings.

To take up a correct service stance, stand behind the baseline sideways on to the net with your feet shoulder-width apart. Slightly flex your knees with weight poised on your back foot. An effective serve tactic is to watch where your opponent stands and decide at which part of the court you therefore wish to aim. Then look at the ball against your racket strings as you begin to serve. Keep your arms relaxed and your knees flexed with your weight on your back foot. Point your toe towards the right hand net post. Place your back foot parellel to the baseline. Use a modified forehand grip to begin with. graduating to the Continental grip as your tennis game and tennis strategy improves.

When contributions to excellence in any sport are calculated, usually the most important…yet least trained…are the roles of mental and emotional processes in performance. Coaches focus on “left brain” training, including technique, the geometry of the court and game strategies. “Right brain” training is largely ignored. The right brain deals with emotions, self-talk, mood, balance, visualizations and mind pictures…all of which can have a tremendously positive impact on tennis success.

A USTA study of fifty-one American tennis champions found that they attributed their successes primarily to emotional and mental toughness. Over the past 30 years a new science, “Sport Psychology,” has emerged, with a strong research base of skills sets aimed at giving the athlete every advantage available to supplement his/her athletic preparation. These skill set objectives include training in the following: mental toughness and intensity, self-confidence, regardless of the competition and score, getting into and staying in “the zone,” overcoming worry and anxiety during competition, preventing and overcoming injuries, perfecting pain management and maintaining anger and emotional control at “crunch time.”

In particular, she has a routine she follows in between games. After each game and before sitting down she follows the exact same steps, helping her to maintain her consistency and keep control no matter what is happening on the tennis court. Whether she is in front or not, she follows this routine and it is clear it is an essential tactic in her tennis game.

After the last point of the game she walks to the service box corner, steps inside the box and then makes a forty five degree turn to her chair. If the previous last shot has taken her out of court she will walk back in to go through her routine. Every single great tennis player also follows some sort of routine before serving. They may bounce the ball on the ground, adjust the balls in their pocket a la Agassi or fiddle with their racquet. Whatever, these rituals enable the player to focus and to maintain their consistency and control. Emulate these tennis tactics of the great players and you, too, can be in control out there on the tennis court.