“My athletes are losing and it is my fault!” This came to me from one of my coaches I work with.
Say what? Okay enough–no coach! -your athlete has to get better. To be consistent there is only one way. Perfect practice-over and over–and over and over again. The more time on the court, the better the player.
Funny but if I was to put down on paper the amount of hours spent by the best players in all divisions, from Pro down–the winners of those divisions usually are the ones on the court the most. There is no secret there. As you go up in levels it is not the quantity of time but the quality.
Are you practicing correctly? I recently saw something that caught my eye while we are on this subject. I have seen athletes all of a sudden go from one way of playing to another. What do you think has happened to their games? Yep–down the tubes. One reason is of course change sends your game South.
If they stick with the change it will pay off no doubt. But to be rigid in grip and mechanics may not be the best way to accomplish that change. Here is some free advice for all instructors–do not coach the way you played but coach the way that best helps your athlete succeed.
This means understanding not everyone can hit with the grip you played with and for that matter change their stroke mechanics.
And as Forest once famously said, “That’s all I’m going to say about that!”