Strengthen your base and your footwork
After having an extended layoff from the game of tennis due to severe burnout, I had to get myself back into playing mode. After playing on the challenger circuit and getting to such a high level, I expected it to come right back with ease. Yeah right! After a 4 year hiatus, I had to retrain my eyes, my feet, and my fitness level. The strokes were fine, but getting into position to hit them time and time again was quite challenging. Many of you here wonder what is wrong with you strokes when you are off and having a bad day. I say that nearly all of your issues will be footwork and fitness related. You must strengthen your core as well as your whole body in order to stay balanced throughout a match and be able to do it time and time again so that you don't get tired under demanding situations. Once you tire, your footwork goes and then your strokes are thrown off due to the fact that you are not getting the ball into your perfect contact point due to the fact that you aren't getting to the ball. It isn't your stroke. It's your feet! If you want to become a better player, you must work on staying down on your shots. It is okay to come up naturally with the swing and let it lift you off the ground, but when you get tired, you don't bend as much and if you still come up with the swing, you end up hitting over the ball and thus hitting it in the net. When you get tired and mentally unfocused always, always, always go back to basics and use perfect form so that you can give yourself a chance to get that second wind. Relax your movement and slow things down. Pretend as though you are in practice having balls fed to you just like a drill. It's all in the feet, the movement of the feet, and the strength of the core that will make your game skyrocket to new levels.......