Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Monday, 30 August 2010
The Playability Scale
The Playability Scale
This was an ‘aha’ moment for me one day in the bath!! How can something so simple not be utilised in a game plan, certainly at low levels however higher level players would do well to do the same when it is all going wrong! Mentality at pro level is totally different but should still be kept simple.
This scale can work at all levels from beginner to touring pro and is a guideline as to what to do in various situations, commonly found in tennis matches. A player must quickly recognise where he is on the following scale, with suggested 'positive action plans' (PAP) for each scenario:
Many Pro Players today try to play and base their games around their own particular strengths. For them this is the most comfortable way to try and win, so in essence they are in their ‘comfort zone’.
The Art of Tactics is to take your opponent out of this comfort zone generally by one of Four ways:-
1. Play your game well and hopefully this will do the job
2. Change what you are doing by using changes of pace or more subtlety like varying spins
3. Playing utilizing tactical patterns or strategies using certain targets and placements on the court
4. Mentally by breaking your opponent down so that he begins to think too much
Review this only in circumstances of trouble, when playing well the art is not to think too much. With enough practice you will become automated in this area.
1-2 Nightmare scenario, being completely outplayed or playing badly
Two-ball survival kit e.g. serve and next ball or return and next ball. Keep looking and acting the part in order to have a chance of doing better. Clear your mind of negative thoughts using thought changing techniques. Keep your awareness in the now, 1 point at a time by focusing on one part of your body or the ball.
3-4 Playing average, but not well enough to win
Keep your emotions and body language in check, to stand a chance of moving up to the arenas of 5-8. Once again keep yourself in the now and in the job at hand by maintaining focus as above.
5-6 Even situation, no clear winning
Compete with controlled ability, be aware of opportunities, and maybe take a gamble to create one. These are the matches that are won via tiebreaks and the ability to notice ‘opportunity balls’ and ‘opportunity situations’. If a match is consistently going to Deuce, then understand who is doing what to whom and help plan future points. (I.E. are you winning points, losing points or is your oppoenents forcing mistakes?)
7-8 Ahead in the match.
Don't change a winning game - Finish the job, But be aware of tactical switch by opponent. Remember mindset should not be to protect the lead but to carry out the work that got you to this position. Remember, think in images not words.
9-10 Playing in the zone.
To think too much now will place you back at worst to 7-8, make the most of it by collecting as many points as possible whilst you can.
You will have to let me know how you get on. Good visualisations and the use of anchors throughout the body can take you to a mindset of 7-10 before you even perform. This forms part of your pre-match routine that will be discussed later in the book. However poor emotional control and you can find yourself in the 1-4 area, a loss in the 5-6 of your emotions will also send you spiralling down.
Sunday, 29 August 2010
12 Week Tennis Psychology E-Programme
Starting on 5th September 2010 i will be starting the first 12-week tennis psychology e-programme.
This will take the form of the following information.....
Week 1 - Knowing your game
Week 2 - Power goalsetting for performance
Week 3 - The Art of Confidence in your game
Week 4 - The ultimate pre training confidence exercise
Week 5 - The importance of crossing the line for a winning mindset
Week 6 - Personalised Serve Routines
Week 7 - Personalised Return of Serve Routines
Week 8 - End of point play and scenarios to keep you on track
Week 9 - Staying activated and towards the zone
Week 10 - Pre match planning and game plans
Week 11 - After match evaluation and never ending improvement
Week 12 - Free Question and Email Session
If you would like to take part in this programme that will ultimately improve your game then email enquiries@andytennis.co.uk. Cost is a mere £30.00!
Best of luck and here's to taking your game to another level!
This will take the form of the following information.....
Week 1 - Knowing your game
Week 2 - Power goalsetting for performance
Week 3 - The Art of Confidence in your game
Week 4 - The ultimate pre training confidence exercise
Week 5 - The importance of crossing the line for a winning mindset
Week 6 - Personalised Serve Routines
Week 7 - Personalised Return of Serve Routines
Week 8 - End of point play and scenarios to keep you on track
Week 9 - Staying activated and towards the zone
Week 10 - Pre match planning and game plans
Week 11 - After match evaluation and never ending improvement
Week 12 - Free Question and Email Session
If you would like to take part in this programme that will ultimately improve your game then email enquiries@andytennis.co.uk. Cost is a mere £30.00!
Best of luck and here's to taking your game to another level!
Tennis is a LARGE ball
Ever since the grass court coaching with the Army team i have been seeing the ball like a beach ball!
How? For me just a great deal of hitting on a fast surface!
I have taken this confidence into the club matches and have managed to make the finals of the mixed doubles and men's doubles. As it stands i am in the semi's of the men's singles and have this scheduled for Monday.
There are many exercises that can be used to help with seeing the ball easier! Take one small sized mini ball ( http://tiny.cc/n8koi ) and hit with this first in the service area then the whole court for upto 5 minutes. From here you will find the normal ball to seem bigger!
I will fill you in on the tournaments when i have done however i am looking to complete the triple this year!
How? For me just a great deal of hitting on a fast surface!
I have taken this confidence into the club matches and have managed to make the finals of the mixed doubles and men's doubles. As it stands i am in the semi's of the men's singles and have this scheduled for Monday.
There are many exercises that can be used to help with seeing the ball easier! Take one small sized mini ball ( http://tiny.cc/n8koi ) and hit with this first in the service area then the whole court for upto 5 minutes. From here you will find the normal ball to seem bigger!
I will fill you in on the tournaments when i have done however i am looking to complete the triple this year!
Friday, 27 August 2010
The greatest footwork news ever!
Check this out!
An ATP stat not that long ago stated that up to 70% of unforced errors were down to poor footwork.
That's a lot of points to just throw away!
It's also something that can be avoided.
My great pal Paul Gold has some free videos to help you with just that, including the one drill he tells me that "every single tennis player regardless of their level can do and should do on a regular basis".
I've asked him to share those with you, so before he changes his mind pop along to http://footwork4tennis.com and grab them.
I bought a copy of his footwork report a while ago and I can tell you he knows what he is talking about!
Here's the link again
http://footwork4tennis.com
Andy Dowsett
An ATP stat not that long ago stated that up to 70% of unforced errors were down to poor footwork.
That's a lot of points to just throw away!
It's also something that can be avoided.
My great pal Paul Gold has some free videos to help you with just that, including the one drill he tells me that "every single tennis player regardless of their level can do and should do on a regular basis".
I've asked him to share those with you, so before he changes his mind pop along to http://footwork4tennis.com and grab them.
I bought a copy of his footwork report a while ago and I can tell you he knows what he is talking about!
Here's the link again
http://footwork4tennis.com
Andy Dowsett
A total update
So whats news? Wow so many questions and well wishers!
Okay this is where i am at......
For those that keep asking with suprisement (new word from the andy book of words) i left the PTR due to a many family goings on and the ability to get my kids to and from school. Certainly not a decision i took lightly but nevertheless had no choice.
I got a job as head coach at a big club in Essex, although this was big in the 90's definitely needs building up again but therein lies the challenge.
I have great and fond memories of the thousands of coaches i have trained, tested and put through the PTR 5-day courses which will always remain. Don't worry alas i will continue with my job to educate like i did within the PTR whereby i wrote many of the courses and programmes. These will be in the form of e-books and will be posted on my main site andytennis.co.uk
The club i am at is building greatly however a major downfall was the foresight of not realising that because many owned holiday homes, boats and chalets abroad that their would be an exodus throughout the Summer month of August! Onwards we stride however and plot and plan accordingly. The schools programme will be big in September so much so that i have hired another coach and possibly a third that has come to the foreground. I have also managed to gain the job of tutoring school teachers on how to teach tennis. Therein lies the tutoring that i am back into! Along with the scholarship coaching programme sitting in the winds.
SCHOLARSHIP COACHING PROGRAMME....
This starts in March 2011 and consists of 6 months (ending on August 31st) of playing, coaching and gaining experience in every aspect of coaching. Very similar to the Stonebridge Academy before his retirement! Students will gain a qualification and LTA licence by the end of the course and i am sure will obtain a great amount of knowledge that will set you apart from other coaches, this will be via the LTA and the PTRuk although this still has to be confirmed but the price of the courses will be included in the fee. If you are interested then let me know! I will update my site with more information on this soon.
I digress.....
I have had some offers to work indoors a few days a week throughout the winter and am contemplating taking this offer up whilst the club i am at continues to take shape and build.
But as a coach looking to build don't forget to look at all ventures and ideas outside of the box! For instance today i coached 78 young kids from the local Catholic Church. They had a week long bible club that i have to say was well attended and looking at it the attraction was certainly fun and making friends over anything else. Something we need to look at in our coaching programmes when building! At the end of the 3 hours all had a taster session and went home with a flyer explaining the club programme and a ticket for a free session if they take it up. For the adults there was also a invite for an 8 week coaching course funded from Sport Essex.
The next few weeks will see a visit from the Brownies and Beavers, along with a group from Ford the major business 2 minutes down the road. As they say build it and they will come!
I have come across a great wee talent in the form of a young county sprinter. My god can she move, her poise and balance second to none and has an eye for the ball! In 3 sessions she can rally around 20 balls from the baseline and put at least 1 in 4 serves in. Not too dusty! On top of this i am helping her with her psychology work for both sports ready for the Olympics in 2016! So talented, hard working and enthusiastic ability to learn. What more can i ask for?
On top of this i am just finishing a club doubles e-book for you all with more in the pipeline. An advanced serving download is in progress and Tennis 90 coming along.
This just leaves the club doubles, mixed doubles and singles to play and win on bank holiday Monday. I will keep you posted..................
Okay this is where i am at......
For those that keep asking with suprisement (new word from the andy book of words) i left the PTR due to a many family goings on and the ability to get my kids to and from school. Certainly not a decision i took lightly but nevertheless had no choice.
I got a job as head coach at a big club in Essex, although this was big in the 90's definitely needs building up again but therein lies the challenge.
I have great and fond memories of the thousands of coaches i have trained, tested and put through the PTR 5-day courses which will always remain. Don't worry alas i will continue with my job to educate like i did within the PTR whereby i wrote many of the courses and programmes. These will be in the form of e-books and will be posted on my main site andytennis.co.uk
The club i am at is building greatly however a major downfall was the foresight of not realising that because many owned holiday homes, boats and chalets abroad that their would be an exodus throughout the Summer month of August! Onwards we stride however and plot and plan accordingly. The schools programme will be big in September so much so that i have hired another coach and possibly a third that has come to the foreground. I have also managed to gain the job of tutoring school teachers on how to teach tennis. Therein lies the tutoring that i am back into! Along with the scholarship coaching programme sitting in the winds.
SCHOLARSHIP COACHING PROGRAMME....
This starts in March 2011 and consists of 6 months (ending on August 31st) of playing, coaching and gaining experience in every aspect of coaching. Very similar to the Stonebridge Academy before his retirement! Students will gain a qualification and LTA licence by the end of the course and i am sure will obtain a great amount of knowledge that will set you apart from other coaches, this will be via the LTA and the PTRuk although this still has to be confirmed but the price of the courses will be included in the fee. If you are interested then let me know! I will update my site with more information on this soon.
I digress.....
I have had some offers to work indoors a few days a week throughout the winter and am contemplating taking this offer up whilst the club i am at continues to take shape and build.
But as a coach looking to build don't forget to look at all ventures and ideas outside of the box! For instance today i coached 78 young kids from the local Catholic Church. They had a week long bible club that i have to say was well attended and looking at it the attraction was certainly fun and making friends over anything else. Something we need to look at in our coaching programmes when building! At the end of the 3 hours all had a taster session and went home with a flyer explaining the club programme and a ticket for a free session if they take it up. For the adults there was also a invite for an 8 week coaching course funded from Sport Essex.
The next few weeks will see a visit from the Brownies and Beavers, along with a group from Ford the major business 2 minutes down the road. As they say build it and they will come!
I have come across a great wee talent in the form of a young county sprinter. My god can she move, her poise and balance second to none and has an eye for the ball! In 3 sessions she can rally around 20 balls from the baseline and put at least 1 in 4 serves in. Not too dusty! On top of this i am helping her with her psychology work for both sports ready for the Olympics in 2016! So talented, hard working and enthusiastic ability to learn. What more can i ask for?
On top of this i am just finishing a club doubles e-book for you all with more in the pipeline. An advanced serving download is in progress and Tennis 90 coming along.
This just leaves the club doubles, mixed doubles and singles to play and win on bank holiday Monday. I will keep you posted..................
Saturday, 14 August 2010
Army Tennis Training Sir!
I had the tremendous job of coaching the Army Ladies, Mens and Vets tennis team at the All England Grass Courts this year at Raynes Park. Mission to prepare the teams for the inter services championship to be held at Wimbledon the following week.
My expectations of the event were - 0. My knowledge of what to expect - 0.
The idea was to learn from the first day and plan and prepare from this day forward for the following week.
The mens team consisted of a rebel band of 16 players headed by the team captain Roger. All great guys and all hard workers. Now if you have a problem, if no one else can help and if you can find them, then maybe you can hire.....oh hold on wrong scenario!
The ladies team as nice as pie and in need of some renovated coaching work. Vets team great bunch but dammit if i could find time to multi-task 3 different groups at the same time and keep them happy whilst differentiating a the same time. I did however mange to find a way but not without much duress!
Day 1 on grass saw me playing ridiculously out of sorts with my timing and managed to get by with hitting with the lower level guys that i soon figured out within the 20 minute warm up. The aim was to get the team used to hitting on grass. In periodisation terms this was the preparation phase.
Day 2 as a coach saw me playing about 8 foot behind the baseline but hitting with anyone. The aim here was to get used to moving on the grass and playing specific tactical scenarios in doubles as well as singles.
Day 3 outstanding, hitting, seeing and feeling the ball better. Confidence of hitting on grass as a whole for all was better and here we have hit the pre-competitive phase of life.
Day 4 again pre-competitive and my version of pressure point tennis to get the players playing under duress.
Day 5 active rest until competition on Monday and Tuesday.
The experience as a coach was outstanding, how many coaches can say they have coached the Army team? I felt privileged and overwhelmed. But at the same time looking back now have a better understanding of how to train the team in the week leading up to the tournament.
At Wimbledon my job was to prepare all players for ensuing matches and hit with them at the penultimate time on the courts they were to play. Matches were dispersed at Aorangi Park and the sacred courts of 14 to 19 on the grounds itself. The other job pick the matches that mean most and sit down for on court coaching between changeovers. Prognosis at the higher levels? Keep it simple with what you do well and not to try anything you don't really own. On the lower levels attack the weaknesses with plays that work and stick to it until such times the opponent changes their game.
Overall results Navy 1st, Army 2nd, Air Force 3rd.
Personally i would like to thank all those that trained and put the effort in and made me feel welcome to the team. I look forward to training the B team for the indoor championships and the A team again next year for Wimbledon.
My expectations of the event were - 0. My knowledge of what to expect - 0.
The idea was to learn from the first day and plan and prepare from this day forward for the following week.
The mens team consisted of a rebel band of 16 players headed by the team captain Roger. All great guys and all hard workers. Now if you have a problem, if no one else can help and if you can find them, then maybe you can hire.....oh hold on wrong scenario!
The ladies team as nice as pie and in need of some renovated coaching work. Vets team great bunch but dammit if i could find time to multi-task 3 different groups at the same time and keep them happy whilst differentiating a the same time. I did however mange to find a way but not without much duress!
Day 1 on grass saw me playing ridiculously out of sorts with my timing and managed to get by with hitting with the lower level guys that i soon figured out within the 20 minute warm up. The aim was to get the team used to hitting on grass. In periodisation terms this was the preparation phase.
Day 2 as a coach saw me playing about 8 foot behind the baseline but hitting with anyone. The aim here was to get used to moving on the grass and playing specific tactical scenarios in doubles as well as singles.
Day 3 outstanding, hitting, seeing and feeling the ball better. Confidence of hitting on grass as a whole for all was better and here we have hit the pre-competitive phase of life.
Day 4 again pre-competitive and my version of pressure point tennis to get the players playing under duress.
Day 5 active rest until competition on Monday and Tuesday.
The experience as a coach was outstanding, how many coaches can say they have coached the Army team? I felt privileged and overwhelmed. But at the same time looking back now have a better understanding of how to train the team in the week leading up to the tournament.
At Wimbledon my job was to prepare all players for ensuing matches and hit with them at the penultimate time on the courts they were to play. Matches were dispersed at Aorangi Park and the sacred courts of 14 to 19 on the grounds itself. The other job pick the matches that mean most and sit down for on court coaching between changeovers. Prognosis at the higher levels? Keep it simple with what you do well and not to try anything you don't really own. On the lower levels attack the weaknesses with plays that work and stick to it until such times the opponent changes their game.
Overall results Navy 1st, Army 2nd, Air Force 3rd.
Personally i would like to thank all those that trained and put the effort in and made me feel welcome to the team. I look forward to training the B team for the indoor championships and the A team again next year for Wimbledon.
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