I was scouring through video last night and came across a problem with an athlete who complained of getting jammed with the ball. He told me his swing did not feel right and sure enough when I viewed the video I saw him “hovering” too close to the ball on the forehand side. To make matters worse he was up near the short line so all his opponent had to do was to hit a passing shot. After you are passed a couple of times you need to stop and look where you are on the court. Often you can get up too close without realizing it, especially after your opponent has killed a couple of shots. Also stay away from the ball and try not to crowd shots. When you get too close to the ball you restrict your forehand or backhand or both for that matter.
Here are five signs of “hoveration”-
1. Sore elbow-too close to the ball so you have to twist your wrist to hit.
2. You cannot hit a down the line–too close to the ball so you hit the side wall and love cross court passes.
3. When you hit the side wall your opponent is in the front court waiting and not even honoring the lines.
4. You play someone older, fatter, slower, with less hair, and they beat you.
5. When you are done playing your lower back hurts, not your legs. I’m sure there are more-feel free to list them below! I love the help with the tip of the day!
Go get’em tigers!