Tennis World

Swiss Brilliance Or French Failure?

Japan’s New Favorite Sport

A New Generation Rises

Djokovic,s quest for a kingdom

N°22 - December 2014

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Swiss Brilliance Or French Failure?

by Giorgio Giannaccini

The defeat suffered by the French team in the Davis Cupfinal was not taken well in France.

The defeat suffered by the French team in the DavisCup final was not taken well in France. And while itwas the players who ultimately failed on the court,the blame was placed squarely on one man’sshoulders: team captain Arnaud Clement.Clement is, of course, a former player himself, andwhile he was not exactly a Yannick Noah or CédricPioline, he did enjoy a relatively distinguished career.He reached the Top 10 in the singles rankings, andwon the Wimbledon doubles event in 2007. Though he is relatively short by modern standards,he had a powerful game off the ground and could hitserves in excess of 200 km/h. He reached the final of the Australian Open in

2001 and the quarters at Wimbledon in 2008.In short, he does not have too many regrets about hisown career, though as a touch player he would havedone much better a few decades earlier. Indeed, thisseems to be a curse for French players, such asMichael Llodra, who would have certainly wonseveral Slams had he played in the 1960s. But intoday’s baseline-focused game he has had onlylimited success in singles (though he did win threeSlam titles in doubles). Despite coaching a team that made it to the finals ofthe Davis Cup, there are already calls for Clement tobe fired. This strikes us as being a bit unfair, and willlikely not come to pass. He had many things working against him going

It seems a little absurd for the French to be sounhappy about the loss, given that they wereconsidered massive underdogs.

into the tie, including an incredibly strong opposingteam.Indeed, it seems a little absurd for the French to beso unhappy about the loss, given that they wereconsidered massive underdogs. France is, along withSpain, be one of the strongest tennis countries in theworld, boasting several Top 100 players each andevery year, including some Top 10 ones. However, in Davis Cup play the tie can come down tojust two players, and if those two happen to besuperior, you have very little chance. And that isexactly what Switzerland had: two vastly superiorplayers enjoying terrific form when they needed itmost. Roger Federer was coming off a terrific year, and hiscompatriot arguably even more so, having won theAustralian Open in January.

The sudden injury to Federer’s back at the ATPWorld Tour Finals certainly gave the French an extraboost of hope. If he couldn’t play at 100%, the Swiss has littlechance of winning, especially since Federer wouldlikely have to play doubles and singles in order tocarry the day. The French boasted some very strongdoubles players, like and Julien Benneteau, and fullyexpected to win Saturday’s match if Federer couldn’tplay.The first match was between Wawrinka and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.Wawrinka was widely favored, given that theFrenchman was not particularly comfortable on clay,and the Swiss easily won in the end.Federer, on the other hand, was feeling his backinjury in a big way during his match against GaelMonfils.

he contest was surprisingly one-sided, and Monfils’ victory gavethe French team a real hope of lifting the trophy. Tsonga wasreportedly also injured in his match, though this would not berevealed until after the tie was completed. It would appear that hisinjury was not as severe as Federer’s, and he still managed to putup somewhat of a fight against Wawrinka.The doubles match, then, was crucial, and most pundits believedthe winner of the doubles would win the tie. It was at in theconsideration for the doubles that Clement perhaps made atactical error. In theory, he had at his disposal the proven doublesteam of Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Julien Benneteau, who hadjust a week before played at the ATP World Tour Finals. MichaelLlodra could also have been made available for the team, beingperhaps the best doubles players France has had over the past 20years. Instead of going with a specialist doubles combination in the team,Clement opted to go for the combination of Benneteau andRichard Gasquet. The latter has not had a very good season, and is not particularlywell known for his doubles prowess. It was a major gamble againstan opposing duo who has won an Olympic gold medal together.Unfortunately for the French team, it was a gamble that backfiredspectacularly. Wawrinka was on fire from the start, hitting the ballwith such power that his opponents, and even the crowd, lookeddumbstruck. Federer was also majestic, dicing the Frenchmenwith precise groundstrokes and accurate serves.

The doubles match, then, was crucial, and most pundits believed the winner of the doubles would win the tie.

The result was a straight sets win for the Swiss.

The result was a straight sets win for the Swiss, and itseemed like the tie was, for all intents and purposes,over. It was hard to contemplate a scenario whereboth Swiss men would lose their matches, especiallygiven Tsonga’s injury and Gasquet’s poor form.The decision to put Gasquet in against Federer was along shot to begin with, even with the Swiss’ injury.The Frenchman has almost never beaten Federereven at the best of times, and recent times have beenfar from the best for Gasquet. Someone like GillesSimon, against who Federer has often struggled,might have been a better option for the French team,but even that might not have helped. By SundayFederer had recovered from his injury, or at least wasso filled with adrenalin that he didn’t feel its effectsanymore.

He put on a clinic against Gasquet, never putting afoot wrong in a complete dismantling of hisopponent’s game.In the end, it’s hard to blame Arnaud Clement for thefailure of his players to deliver. His team consisted, in terms of rankings, of some ofthe best players in the world. Any captain would rightfully expect them to put upmore of a fight than they did. He can only do so much for the team since, after all,he is on the sidelines, not on the court. The main story then is of Switzerland’s triumphmore than France’s failure. There is certainly no shame in losing to two Top 5players.

As sin comnis

by Marco Avena

This year, I went to the WTA event at the Ariake Tennis Center, andalso paid a visit to the Uniqlo Megastore in the Ginza district.

This year, I went to the WTA event at the AriakeTennis Center, and also paid a visit to the UniqloMegastore in the Ginza district. It was quite anexperience, not only to see the tournament itself, butalso how Uniqlo has made a name for itself in tennis.Indeed, it is quite surprising that both tennis and thebrand’s association with the sport have become sopopular in Japan. After all, the game is nottraditionally big in the country, but recentdevelopments have changed that very quickly. Thebiggest reason for the sudden change, of course, isKei Nishikori, who is currently number five in theworld, and in 2014 became the first Japanese man toreach a Grand Slam final.

Though he lost the US Open final to Marin Cilic, hisalready massive popularity in his native countryskyrocketed even further.He is not the only Japanese player making waveseither, as the country boasts two others in the Top100: number 93 Tatsuma Ito and number 100 GoSoeda. On the women’s side, Kurumi Nara is rankednumber 44 and the 43-year old veteran Kimiko Date-Krumm is ranked number 89.That being said, Nishikori overshadows all of them.In a country that has traditionally been moreinterested in baseball and Sumo than any othersports, he has almost single-handedly made tennis anational interest. And in a place takes great pride inits ability to organize and train

youngsters, the future of the sport seems very brightindeed.Anyone wanting to see how seriously they are takingthe sport need only attend the National Finals, wheretomorrow’s champions vie for today’s trophies. Thestands have plenty of spectators and the quality ofthe play is extremely high, and from the first day tothe last it is clear that everyone is looking for the nextNishikori, who won the Rakuten Japan Open TennisChampionships at the same venue just a few monthsago.The National Finals are a real Japanese sportsOlympiad, held in Tokyo and at the same time for alldisciplines. Tokyo is teeming with young athletes inuniform arrived from all parts on

the country using the Shinkansen (speed trains).It is not just a big occasion for the participants, butfor sports fans all over the country. Many of theevents are broadcast on national television as if theyare of the same importance of professional sportsevents.The formula for producing top tennis talent hasalways been a much-discussed topic, with everyonefrom France to Spain to the United States convincedthat their system is the best. But looking at how theJapanese are going about things, you’d be hard-pressed to believe that it isn’t going to work in thelong run. Children are encouraged to play andpractice in school from a young age, and the facilitiesand equipment are of a quality that many othertennis programs around the world could only dreamof.Most of the courts they practice on are hard courts,as clay and grass are not really an option, thoughwith so much of the pro Tours now taking place onconcrete, it’s not much of an issue. Popular tennisbrands include Yonex and Asics. Mizuno, whichfamously made its way into the sport by sponsoringIvan Lendl towards the end of his career, also stillhas somewhat of a presence.But though these brands still have a place in thehearts of consumers, Uniqlo is quickly taking overthe sport. Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori areperhaps the best brand ambassadors you can hopefor, and they are spearheading the effort

Uniqlo manufactures just about anything an athleteneeds, and much more beyond that as well.Everything from underwear to duvets, pants,sweaters, T-shirts and shoes can be found at thecompany’s outlets. They are priced attractively as well, which has playedno small part in the brand’s popularity. The GinzaMegastore has 12 floors, and you can easily lose anentire day there.But because tennis is growing so quickly in Japan,there is plenty of room for others to make money aswell. Srixon recently became Kevin Anderson’ssponsor, and is also making a name for itself in thesport.In short, things are moving fast in Japan, as theyalways do.

Kei Nishikori seems to be only now entering theprime of his career, meaning that tennis is likely tohave a long honeymoon ahead of it in the country.Just imagine how crazy things will get if – and manypeople believe it is only a matter of time – he wins aGrand Slam.

Michael Chang

by David Cox

‘Helping Kei was a unique opportunity’

Deep in the bowels of the O2 Arena, the grand venuefor tennis’ end of season ATP World Tour Finals,Michael Chang is trying to explain the combinationof factors which drew him back to the circuit, adecade after he retired from the game. Chang’sinfluence has been a revelation, leading Kei Nishikorito a first Grand Slam final and a place in the world’stop five after just ten months together. “It was reallya unique opportunity,” he said. “Under normalcircumstances, I probably wouldn’t have consideredit. Coaching isn’t really something I’d planned tocommit to. But there haven’t been that manysuccessful Asian players in the men’s game, and I feltKei really had a good chance of making that nextstep.” Chang has been repeatedly besieged by youngplayers, both in the States and Asia, requesting himto become their permanent coach but with a youngfamily, he says he wasn’t prepared to commit tofurther travelling unless it was something he reallycouldn’t refuse.Coaching doesn’t quite satisfy Chang’s burningcompetitive instinct but he says he has derived

a great amount of satisfaction through working withyoung players at coaching clinics in the States andhelping his family learn the game.“I do enjoy coaching in general,” he explains. “It’s funto be able to improve and I get a lot of satisfactionout of seeing people smile on a tennis court, enjoyingthemselves and seeing their eyes lighting up andbeing like, ‘Oh wow, that really helped me. That feelsso much better.’ That’s the case even if it’s justperiodically helping my dad with his game or justgetting in an encouraging word to people that I’m incontact with.”“At the highest level, it’s certainly satisfying to beable to see Kei improve and to be able to see that he’sfeeling satisfied and feeling that, ‘Hey, I’m gettingbetter. I’m improving and results are showing.’ Ithink that’s really the positive thing for me.”But there have still been challenges for Chang, inparticular developing the levels of patience neededfor the job.“The most challenging thing is knowing that somethings are going to take time,” he said. “You’d like to be able to tell someone, ‘Hey step intothe ball a little more’ and all of the sudden they do itand from then on you never have to tell them again.

Unfortunately, as every coach and every teacher willtell you, repetition is part of it. And it takes time.When you’re continuing to repeat things and tryingto get them instilled in a person’s game, it takes timein order for those things to be ingrained.”For Nishikori, Chang realised that in order to be ableto challenge the uber-resilient Novak Djokovic overbest of five sets, he needed to develop a few moreoptions. Chang himself thrived in an era of some ofthe most formidable ball strikers of all time. But heheld his own against the likes of Boris Becker, GoranIvanisevic, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and othersthrough a mixture of quick wits, phenomenal speedand variety.

“We’ve been tweaking things with his game and thetechnical side,” Chang says. “It’s about flexibility.Men’s tennis is quite varied, so he needed to get tothe point where he was comfortable coming forwardand putting away a volley. You need options so youcan switch between styles of play rather than justplaying the same way. By freeing your style up, youbecome a tougher opponent. People can’t work youout. I wanted to help him so that he could be patientif he needed to, but he could also be aggressive ormix up the play.”Nishikori has already got to a stage where he’s nowseen as one of the favourites for the biggertournaments. Few were surprised when he reachedthe last four of the World Tour Finals last month,beating Andy Murray and David Ferrer beforebecoming the only player to take a set off eventualchampion Novak Djokovic. However Chang wouldstill like to see his charge develop a little moreconsistency over the entire calendar year, across allfour surfaces, to match the relentless of NovakDjokovic.“I would really like to see his results become moreconsistent,” he said. “He's had some good ones hereand there but they haven’t really been consistentthroughout the year, and I’d love to build a habit ofconsistent results with the opportunities to win moretournaments and notching up wins over more of thetop guys.”

Working with Nishikori has opened Chang’s eyes tohow much the game - and in particular thetechnology – has moved on over the past twodecades. He admits to feeling a mix of envy when he sees whatthe game’s best are capable of. “If I was playing with my old equipment againstthese guys now, it just wouldn’t fly,” he said. “Certainly wouldn’t be able to do it. With the racketsand strings now, the guys are hitting the ball with somuch more pace and spin, and the rackets allowthem to do that. Even on the Champions Tour now,no one uses the old technology. We can do so manymore things now which we couldn’t do when we wereat our peak.”

A New Generation Rises

by Valerio Carriero

The 2014 tennis season will be remembered for manythings.

The 2014 tennis season will be remembered formany things. The Grand Slam victories of Marin Cilicand Stanislas Wawrinka certainly ranks up there assome memorable moments, and Federer’s revivalwhich led to a Davis Cup trophy for Switzerland isalso important. Nadal’s ninth French Open title,Djokovic’s continued dominance and SerenaWilliams’ closing in on Evert and Navratilova roundout a pretty eventful year in tennis. Li Na’sretirement, which leaves a big void in terms of Asianrepresentation in the WTA, along with many otherretirements, have emphasized a generational shift onboth Tours. Today, we will look at the players born inthe 1990s, and how they are increasingly makingtheir mark on the professional game.

The Men

On the ATP Tour, there are 18 youngsters who wereborn in the 1990s in the Top 100, though only oneended the season in the Top 10. That player is MilosRaonic, the first player of this generation to managethe feat, and also the

first to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals. Hisappearance at that event was cut short due to injury,but the fact that he qualified is significant in of itself.In addition to reaching such a milestone, he alsomanaged to get to the quarter-finals at RolandGarros and the semis at Wimbledon. Though he onlywon one title this year, he did reach the final of theATP Masters 1000 event in Paris. Following Raonicin terms of young success is the Bulgarian GrigorDimitrov, who was born in 1991 and also brieflyentered the Top 10 in 2014. He won three titles butfailed to perform consistently well enough in thebigger events to earn a year-end position in theprestigious Top 10.Going down slightly, we find David Goffin, whohad a 44-4 record after Wimbledon, winning fourChallenger and two Tour titles. Dominic Thiem alsomade waves this year, jumping 100 ranking positionsfrom 2013. Their fates have crossed this summer in Kitzbuhel,creating the first ATP-level final between children ofthe 90s. Curiously, it was quickly followed on thesame day by a final between Milos Raonic and VasekPospisil, which also featured two 90s-born players.

Scrolling still further down the list we find JackSock, one of the few Americans in the Top 100. RyanHarrison, once believed to be the future of the sportin that country, has dropped to 190 in the rankings.Jerzy Janowicz had a disappointing 2014campaign after a stellar 2013 season, largely due toinjury troubles. Just outside the top 50 there isPablo Carreno, who had a tough year in theshadow of his better-known Spanish compatriots.After the aforementioned Pospisil we find NickKyrgios, who burst onto the scene with a quarter-final showing at Wimbledon, where he ousted RafaelNadal. A little lower (ranked 56), is another youngAustralian, Bernard Tomic.

Though talented, his off-court problems have causedhis ranking to drop significantly, and his promisesome time ago of competing for a Slam “within twoyears” is looking more and more unlikely. After Jan-Lennard Struff (59), Federico Delbonis(60), Diego Schwartzman (61), Jiri Vesely (66), BlazRola (80) and Ricardas Berankis (86), we find the 17year-old Croatian Borna Coric (91), who is the firstplayer his age to reach to reach such heights sinceNadal and Gasquet. For him, it was a season toremember, winning a Challenger and reaching thesemi-finals of the ATP 250 event in Umag and theATP 500 event in Beijing. He even beat Rafael Nadaland Ernests Gulbis during that stretch, though theformer was in severe pain from his appendix.Closing out the Top 100 is Andrey Kuznetsov (93),though outside of this bracket there is plenty oftalent that might make it to the Top 100 next year.Lucas Pouille, Jason Kubler and especiallyAlexander Zverev are all players to watch. Zverevin particular, at 17 years of age, looks very promising.He surprised everyone by reaching the semi-finals atthe ATP 500 event in Hamburg. The rest of hisseason was not spectacular, but his ceiling isextremely high.A little further down is another interestingAustralian, Thanasi Kokkinakis, not to mentionthe 16 year-old Stefan Kozlov, who has alreadyreached the final of a Challenger event.

The womenWhile the youngsters on the ATP Tour are strugglingto assert themselves, on the WTA they are alreadyruling the roost. In the Top 10 alone there are fourplayers born in the 1990s: Simona Halep, PetraKvitova, Eugenie Bouchard and CarolineWozniacki. All of them played in a Grand Slamfinal in 2014, with the Wimbledon final betweenKvitova and Bouchard being the first such matchbetween players of that generation. Halep contestedthe final at the French Open in addition to reachingnumber two in the rankings, while Kvitova won hersecond Wimbledon title by beating Bouchard.Wozniacki was a surprise this year, havingdisappeared in the wilderness after enjoying a periodof dominance some years ago. More aggressive playhas seemingly resurrected her career.Moving on from the Top 10, we find Alize Cornet(19), Garbine Muguruza (20), Karolina Pliskova(23), Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (24), Elina Svitolina(28) and Madison Keys (30), all of whom won atleast one tournament in 2014.

Mona Barthel (42, victorious in Bastad), Alison Riske(43, champion in Tianjin), Kurumi Nara (44, winnerin Rio). Heather Watson comes in at 49, and willattempt to regain some ground after a bout ofmononucleosis. Christina McHale, number 52 and a finalist inAcapulco, Annika Beck, 53 and triumphant inLuxembourg follow her, along with Lauren Davis(55), Jana Cepelova (56 and finalist in Charleston),Bojana Jovanovski (57 and twice a finalist in 2014),Monica Puig (59 and winner in Strasbourg), AjlaTomljanovic (62, defeated Radwanska at RolandGarros), Kristina Mladenovic (67), Kiki Bertens (68),Tereza Smitková (69), Vitalia Diatchenko (71),

It does not end here, with Belinda Bencic, born in1997 and already number 32 in the world, reachingthe quarter-finals at the US Open and a final inTianjin. Close behind at 32 and 33 are Zarina Diyasand Camila Giorgi, both of whom were one stepaway from their first title.Sloane Stephens, on the other hand, had a verydisappointing year, dropping to 36. Immediatelybehind her we find Caroline Garcia, aFrenchwoman with enormous potential, albeit with alot of inconsistency. She defeated Jelena Jankovic inBogota to win the title there, surprising tennispundits everywhere.The list continues with Coco Vandeweghe (39, won atitle at 's-Hertogenbosch), Irina-Carmelia Begu (41,reached the final in Moscow),

Shelby Rogers (73, finalist in Bad Gastein), AnnaKarolína Schmiedlová (74) and Stefanie Voegele(80). Then there's Donna Vekic, born in 1996 butalready a winner in Kuala Lumpur. Unfortunately,she fell away towards the second half of the year,changing coach and ending ranked 82.Lower down we find Katerina Siniakova (84),followed by Ana-Lena Friedsam (87), SpanishArrabuarrena Lara (88) and Maria Teresa Torro-Flor. At 92 we find Ana Konjuh, with Sorana Cirstea,who had a very poor season, coming in just after her. The American Madison Brengle and Nicole Gibbs,along with Polona Hercog (96), Timea Babos (98),Saisai Zheng (99) and An-Sophie Mestach (100),round out the list.

In total, there are 48 names in the Top 100 who wereborn in the 1990s. The average age of a Top 10 player on the women’scircuit is 25.4, whereas it jumps to 27.8 for the men. This not only points to a major difference in the waythe two Tours compete internally, but also to achange in the overall way tennis is played in themodern era.

Out Of The Shadows

by Laura Saggio

The past season was certainly one to remember forStanislas Wawrinka.

The past season was certainly one to remember forStanislas Wawrinka. Not only did he finally overtakehis great friend and rival Roger Federer, at least for awhile, he recorded two massive milestones – onepersonal and one patriotic.The two victories provided perfect bookends for anhistoric year. It all started, of course, in Australia, where Wawrinkastunned the tennis world by winning the AustralianOpen, beating none other than Rafael Nadal in thefinal. He displayed some incredible technical prowessthroughout the fortnight, and deservedly took homethe title at the end. The final was slightly controversial, since a

debilitating injury to Rafael Nadal reduced him to ashell of himself for much of the latter half of thecontest. But that is the nature of the sport, andWawrinka had dominated his opponent even beforethe injury occurred.Even so, Nadal did manage to sneak the third set inhis favor, when a visibly shaken Wawrinka seemedunsure of how to proceed with this strange situation.He quickly composed himself in the fourth set,however, and finished off the match with relativeease. Unlike so many other players, who struggle to copewith the fame and success in the first few monthsafter their first Grand Slam, Wawrinka kept playingat a very high level through the first

The Swiss had been displaying an increased maturityfor years, not only physically but mentally. For mostof his career he had been considered a talented butvolatile player, who often sabotaged his own chancesat success. At the US Open in 2007, for example, hehad his fourth round match against Juan IgnacioChela all but won, only to lose his temper,composure and eventually the match.For the next few years there would be slow growth inhis game and mental approach, with great successes(such as reaching the final in Rome in 2008) oftenfollowed by weeks of poor play. He floated aroundthe Top 30 for a long time, usually between 15 and 30the in the rankings. But all of his hard workingstarted paying off in a big way in 2013, no doubtthanks in large part to the influence of his new coachMagnus Norman.All of the shots that had been so good in the pastsuddenly became great. His legendary backhand wasjoined by a consistently powerful forehand, and hisserve also became a huge weapon.

The Davis Cup trophy, which Wawrinka had so longsought, finally came at the end of the season. He hadalways wanted Federer to join him in Davis Cup play,but his countryman often opted to focus on hissingles career instead. This year, however, the two teamed up to form one ofthe fiercest combinations the Davis Cup has seen inrecent editions. Not only did they have the singlescredentials, both being in the Top 5, but they alsohad the doubles prowess, having won Olympic goldin Beijing in 2008, to make the tie an almostforegone conclusion in their favor. There had been some concerns that the two wouldnot be able to play doubles at a high level together inthis instance.

His defense, on-court tactics and composure likewiseall saw major improvement.The defensive improvement was particularlyimportant, since it allowed him to stay in the longrallies that so many of the top players – like NovakDjokovic, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal – like toemploy. He also became much more comfortable atthe net, much like his friend Roger Federer, whichadded yet another dimension to his game. He found,as Federer did, that approaching the net oftenconfused opponents, who have grown so use tobaseline-only rallies. Recent improvements intechnology have allowed just about everyone on Tourto avoid the net like a plague, but Wawrinka’sinclusion of this weapon in his arsenal has made allthe difference.

After all, they had failed to defend their gold medal in2012, largely due to the fact that they rarely playedtogether and experienced a number ofmiscommunications common to a doubles pair out ofpractice. Such fears were put to bed almostimmediately on the Saturday though, as the two menplayed some of the best tennis of the year from thestart.Much has been said that the French made a mistakeby not playing the proven doubles pair of Benneteauand Roger-Vasselin, instead opting to replace thelatter with Gasquet. But even had they done so, itseems unlikely that they would have been able to puta stop to the Swiss juggernaut.

Even the back injury that Federer suffered at the ATPWorld Tour Finals could not save the French. Awarethat his countryman might not win his first match,Wawrinka played like a man possessed in his firstrubber, easily overcoming Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to puthis team ahead. Though Federer lost to Gael Monfilson the first day, he was in fine form on the Sunday,easily taking care of Richard Gasquet seal the historicvictory for Switzerland. It seems fitting that the man who was lacking justthis one major trophy in his over-filled cabinet wouldbe the one to secure the win for his country.

Nole’s Best Season?

by Marco Di Nardo

There was much talk of Novak Djokovic in 2014.

There was much talk of Novak Djokovic in 2014. Therelationship with his new coach, Boris Becker, hismarriage to longtime girlfriend Jelena Ristic and thebirth of his first son were just a couple of the topicsthat kept pundits busy throughout the season. Inaddition to all of these events, he also finished theyear at number one in the world for a third time.According to many fans and analysts, this wasperhaps the best year the Serbian has seen so far inhis career. But from an objective point of view, was itreally his finest hour?If you end the year on top of the world rankings,there is no doubt that you played at a very high levelthroughout the year.

But for a player like Djokovic, used to winning almosteverywhere, before saying it is his most successfulyear we must carefully analyze the results.Let's start from the beginning. Djokovic opened theseason in the last days of 2013, when he participatedin an exhibition event in 2009 in Abu Dhabi. For thethird year in a row he won the event, beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semi-finals and David Ferrerin the final. So far, nothing new. He then flew toMelbourne to officially open his pro season. The Australian Open did not go the way the Serb hadplanned, and his three-year reign as champion cameto an end in the quarter-finals,

where he was defeated by eventual winner Stanislas Wawrinka.Criticism of both his game and his new coach came thick and fast.He then lost to Roger Federer in the semi-finals in Dubai, beforebouncing back to win the first two Masters 1000 events of theyear, Indian Wells and Miami. He lost again to Federer in thesemi-finals of Monte Carlo, though he did injure himself duringthe match. Because of that injury, he was forced to skip thetournament in Madrid. He returned to the court in Rome, beatingNadal soundly in a highly touted final. The win made him the mainfavorite heading into Roland Garros. In Paris, things went verywell until the last act, when he ran out of steam against Nadal in aphysical slugfest.But he did not let that defeat get under his skin, and bounced backstrongly at Wimbledon. After an epic final, he finally managed torecord his first Slam final win over Roger Federer, beating theSwiss in five tough sets. The following months represented a bit ofa lull for Nole, as he put up two poor performances at the ATPMasters 1000 events in Canada and Cincinnati. He lost to Tsongaand Robredo respectively, both times in straight sets.Despite his dipping form, he entered the US Open as the hotfavorite. The world was shocked when he lost to rising Japanesestar Kei Nishikori in the semi-finals. Hitting the Asian hard courts,he found some success again, winning the ATP 500 event inBeijing and reaching the semi-finals in Shanghai, where he againlost to Federer.

That loss suddenly made the prospect ofsurrendering the top spot of the rankings very realindeed. But a win in Paris and the ATP World Tourfinals quickly put an end to any worries about theyear-end ranking.So how does 2014 compare to previous years? As faras successes at the Masters 1000 level is concerned,he won four tournaments. This is good, but not asgood as the five he won in 2011. He did win onlythree in 2012 and 2013 though, so it is a step up fromthose years.His Slam results were also mixed. In the two Majorswhere he usually plays his best, the Australian andUS Opens, he performed rather poorly, but excelledin the other two.

Overall, it was his worst recent season from thispoint of view, with 4280 points against 5120 in 2012and 2013, and 6720 in 2011.At the Australian Open and US Open, Djokovic hadhis worst results in many years, not reaching a finalat either event. In 2010, he reached the quarter-finalsin Melbourne and in New York, in 2011 he won bothtournaments, while in 2012 and 2013 he won inAustralia while reaching the final in New York. At Roland Garros and Wimbledon, conversely,Novak achieved the best results of his career. For thefirst ever he played in the final in Paris and London,losing the first and winning the second. He wonWimbledon in 2011 as well, but in that year reachedonly the semi-finals at the French Open. To close the discussion, let's compare the total pointsearned in 2014, which were 11 360, with thoseachieved in previous years. In 2011 he racked up 13630, compared to 12 920 in 2012 and 12 260 in 2013.This also confirms that his season was good, but nothis best. In conclusion, 2014 was a fantastic year for NovakDjokovic, both on and off the court. However, talkthat it was his best year ever does not quite match upwith the statistics of the season.

Number One Once Again

by Laura Saggio

The numbers and the words of the undisputed championof 2014.

2014 was definitely the year of Novak Djokovic. Onceagain, he finished the year as world number one,clinching the top spot at the ATP World Tour Finals,an event which he also won. He became a father as well, and will soon be the starof a series of short documentary films. The clips, which were largely filmed in his nativeBelgrade, will be released just before the AustralianOpen in January. The films seek to show not only the Serb’sprofessional trials and triumphs, but also hisrelationship with his first coach, Jelena Gencic, andhis life as a boy in a war-torn country. We certainly expect the films to show a man wealready know relatively well.

Djokovic has always been an inspiration both on andoff the court, engaging in various philanthropicactivities in-between winning major competitions.But though he is proud of all his accomplishments, atthe moment the only thing he cares about is his son."Everything revolves around my son," he saidrecently. "I love traveling, seeing new places and in my freetime to play other sports. “But in my second life thereis a child, and I am focusing on helping my wifeJelena, who has had to do everything on her ownthese past few months.”After the break, Djokovic will start the arduous taskof defending his number one position.

47 - Tournament wins in his career. Six of thesecame in 2014 (Indian Wells, Miami, Rome,Wimbledon, Beijing and Paris Bercy).

He not only faces stiff challenges from a number offearless youngsters, but also from establishedveterans who have shown they can beat him on anysurface. It certainly won’t be an easy journey, but it isone that he is well prepared for.His career numbers certainly show that he is capableof ending as world number one once again: 600- career matches won by Novak Djokovic.20 - Masters 1000 titles won. 3 Indian Wells (2008,2011 and 2014), 4 Miami (2007, 2011, 2012 and2014), 1 Monte Carlo (2013), 1 Madrid (2011), 3Rome (2008, 2011 and 2014), 3 Canadian Open(2007, 2011 and 2012), 2 Shanghai (2012 and 2013)and 3Paris Bercy (2009, 2013 and 2014).1585- Points ahead of Roger Federer in the ATPrankings.

Djokovic,s quest for akingdom

by Princy James

Fast-forward to 2014 -- Djokovic is a happy man.

When Roger Federer looked invincible on the courtin the noughties, along came Rafael Nadal, provingfalse all the convictions; together, the duo redefinedrivalry, thereby setting the standards of the gameeven higher for their predecessors.With those twomonopolising the game, the scene looked prettytaxing for every player out there. For NovakDjokovic, it wasn’t easy either. The 20-year-old whomade history by becoming the first Serbian to win aGrand Slam when he won the Australian Open in2008 soon thought about quitting, frustrated by hismany losses to Federer and Nadal. Luckily, he didn’tgive up. He was determined to change his fate.Fast-forward to 2014 -- Djokovic is a happy man. Hewon a second Wimbledon crown, taking his GrandSlam tally to 7; tied the knot with his long-term loveJelena Ristic the same month; became

a father to baby Stefan in October; won four Masterstitles; above all, he finished the year-end as No: 1 fora third time in four years! Quite an achievement forsomeone who mulled over retirement in 2010.However, when it comes to Grand Slam stats, theSerbinator is way behind the Swiss maestro and theSpanish matador. While 10 majors separate him andFederer, he has won only half of that of Nadal, who isolder to him only by a year. But when it comes toparticulars, Djokovic is the most-feared player on thetour right now. He may not take over Nadal orFederer, but he is the one responsible for slowingdown their Grand Slam haul.A few days back, Nadal’s coach and uncle Toni Nadalwas all praise for Djokovic, saying he is slightly abovehis nephew, and is as close one can get to Federer.Toni had his reasons to make such a comment,considering the Serb’s clinical baseline precision andmental acumen. His head-to-head stats with Nadalstands at 19-23 and with Federer, it is 17-19,something which he has been closing in on in therecent years. There is a likelihood of him overtakingthe two in the near future.

Djokovic has proved that he is the best player inthe circuit as of now

Yes, Djokovic has proved that he is the best player inthe circuit as of now. He has high hopes for 2015, andwill be looking at reclaiming the Aussie Open, theGrand Slam event he has excelled most. But morethan that, he will have to break his French Open jinx.Like Federer, on red dirt, he still hasn’t been able totopple Nadal, his real nemesis. Djokovic had been tothe finals twice - 2012 and 2014 - losing to Nadal onboth the occasions. Apart from that, Nadal hadcrushed him in the semi-finals thrice -- 2007, 2008and 2013. For the Serb, it takes a win in RolandGarros to be considered on a par with Nadal,regardless of what Toni Nadal thinks. Djokovic mighthave a better technique, but what really matters isthe stats.

The numero uno should be focussing on adding moremajors next year, so that he will be consideredamong the all-time greats of the game. Nadal is the‘King of Clay’, Federer is the ‘King of Grass’ andMelbourne is where Djokovic can also build hiskingdom. Two more Australian Open wins will placehim alongside Roy Emerson, who holds the all-timerecord of six. This season, Djokovic had seven titlesout of the eight finals he played. Considering hispresent form, we can say that the 27-year-old is quitelikely to duplicate that success in the forthcomingseason too, if not better. With Nadal recovering fromhis injuries and no sign of retirement from Federer,2015 offers ample hopes for many more rivetingmatches between the amazing trio.

Rafael’s Return

by Marco Di Nardo

It has become almost expected.

It has become almost expected. Rafael Nadal buildsup huge momentum and wins just about everytournament he enters, only to sustain a serious injuryand be forced out of the sport for months. He then returns to build up momentum again andrestart the cycle from scratch. It has happened tooften that people are starting to assume that the willbe able to produce great results after an injury everysingle time. As he returns from various physicalailments in the new year, will he be able to pick upwhere he left off?The past year was, of course, a tale of two halves forRafael Nadal. The first part of the season was tremendous, but thesecond was a disaster, with a wrist injury forcing himto miss the entire North American hard court swing,and appendicitis taking care of the remainder of theseason. Since Wimbledon, Nadal has been able to play justseven matches, which has of course had a disastrouseffect on his ranking, though thanks to a strong startto 2013 he is still in at number 3.

But that quick start to last season might come backto haunt the Spaniard in 2015. He has a ton of points to defend in the first fewmonths, including a win at the ATP 250 event inDoha and a final appearance at the Australian Open.Even repeating at Doha, which would seem relativelystraightforward on paper, is infinitely complicated bythe fact that world number one Novak Djokovic willalso be playing at the tournament. Indeed, it will bevery difficult for Nadal to regain his number oneranking in 2015. That being said, he made it look soeasy the last few times he returned from injury, will itreally be any different in the coming year?The first major injury layoff Nadal suffered was in2009, when problems with his knees put a stop to ahistoric run of dominance in the preceding months.He lost his first (and so far only) match at RolandGarros, and was forced to skip Wimbledon as well. Thanks to his absence and a resurgence in his ownform, Roger Federer returned to the number onespot and won the French Open for the first time.Nadal eventually returned to the court at the Masters1000 event in Canada, though his form was muchdiminished.

Time will tell if he can defy the odds once again.

He would not win a title at all that year, and wasdestroyed in the round robin stage of the ATP WorldTour Finals. The 2010 season also started slowly, butonce he hit the clay Nadal started playing some of thebest tennis of his career. He went on to win threestraight Slam titles (Roland Garros, Wimbledon andUS Open), becoming the first player to win threeSlams on three different surfaces in the same year.That string of victories returned him to the top of theATP rankings.The second period of extended downtime due toinjury was in 2012. He was again forced to missmuch of the latter half of the season due to kneeissues, and further physical troubles saw him sit outthe Australian Open in 2013. After nearly sevenmonths out of action, he hit the clay in Vina del Marand immediately reached the final.

From that point on, he saw an impressive series ofvictories, totaling ten titles, four finals and two semi-finals. His only major failure was a first round exit atWimbledon.Despite the fact that he missed a Grand Slam, hemanaged to reach the top spot once again. Nadalthus became the first tennis player to return to thenumber one spot twice after losing it.So what of 2015? As always, Nadal is downplayingexpectations, but given that this is his go-to tactic, wecan’t put too much stock in his doubts. Taking intoconsideration his past results, it is certainly possiblethat he plays near his best next season, and evenwins some Slams.However, the field looks much different now than itdid two years ago, with young talent constantlymaking great strides.

How Andre Agassi masteredpreparation for the AustralianOpen

by David Cox

During a career which spanned three decades at the top of the game, AndreAgassi became a master of fine-tuning his off-season preparations,resulting in four Australian Open titles.

Andre Agassi has gone down in Australian Openhistory as one of the greatest champions ever tograce the hard courts of Melbourne Park. Despite boycotting the tournament at the start of hiscareer, Agassi rapidly fell in love with the event,winning it on his first appearance in 1995 anddominating in the first part of the noughties,claiming three titles between 2000 and 2003.In the eyes of Agassi and Reyes, such sustainedsuccess was no accident. While many players were still shaking off the ring-rust in the first few weeks of January, Agassi wasseldom far from his best.. From the age of 24, hebegan to realise that the off season was critical to hischances of lifting the world’s biggest prizes, and fromthen onwards the pair took a clinically scientificapproach to ensuring he was in peak condition by thestart of the year.“Andre actually refused to call it the off season,”Reyes recalls. “He called it pre season. The second his last match ofthe year was over, he would be already talking to meabout what we were going to do

over the next 6 weeks, and that was his way of tellingme he was ready to go to work.”They prepared for the sheer brutality of theAustralian summer heatwaves by dividing the offseason into multiple phases, with the first and mostimportant stage being detailed conversations withAgassi about everything ranging from his diet to hisconfidence levels and his state of mind.“You can’t just dive in straight away, saying ‘Ok, thisis going to be the toughest training camp ever’,”Reyes explains. “First of all, you somehow have totake stock of everything that’s happened over thepast year. For most weeks, you’re guaranteed to leavewith a loss and you kind of sum up your year thatway for the most part. You go through the personalsatisfactions and then the things which needimproving and need to change. And also, do they justneed a few days off? Sometimes the answer’s yes butsometimes no. It may seem surprising butsometimes with Andre that would have been amistake because too much rest did not fit well in hismindset. You have to be in tune with your athlete.”By the time November rolls around, every player isphysically drained after ten months of competition,but it’s often the mental beating that tennis inflictswhich can require the most healing.

Apart from a rare few, most players lose every singleweek they compete and the accumulative effect cantake its toll psychologically. But there’s a danger withstepping away from the sport for too long.US Open champion Marin Cilic says that you can’tswitch off completely from tennis, even for ten daysas your body is used to doing something every dayand if you take two weeks off, you’ve already startedto lose muscle memory. Reyes agrees. “The game isso physical now and I’m fairly certain that theathleticism is just constantly on the rise and at a levelnow which has probably never been seen before. The speed, the power of the game, the beating whichyou administer to your body, and the amount of timeyou need to recover are all increasing. So you can’tjust turn it on and turn it off.”For Agassi, an athlete who wore his heart on hissleeve, it was the mind which needed the most restand so rather than taking a holiday, he preferred toput the rackets away and retreat to the solitude of thegym.

So instead we would take mental breaks where theworkouts would be a little more bearable. Even onChristmas Day and New Year’s Day he was still in thegym and running Magic Mountain (a 320 yard hillnear their base in Las Vegas).”“We had a war cry in the gym where we said, ‘Pushyourself beyond tired. The best things are on theother side of tired.’ And he would say to me, ‘Get me there. Let me relateto who I am when I am past my point of fatigue. Who am I when I am past my point of exhaustion?What can we count on from me when I’m beingpushed and pushed physically or mentally in amatch?”

Just like professional cyclists, he was obsessive aboutkeeping his legs in good condition, remarking ‘Theharder I hit the ball, the harder it’s coming back so Ineed my legs and I can’t afford to lose that.’“Andre always felt it was a mistake to let yourself getout of physical shape to any extent,” Reyes says. “Heused to compare the fatigue at the end of the seasonto a lingering cold. The cold lingers so long because you don’t feel likeeating and so when the virus has passed throughyour system, you feel terrible because you haven’teaten for four days. If you don’t keep up the gym work while you’re tired,once you’re fresh again you’re going to struggle.

But when it came to teeing it up on the court again,Agassi also had to strike a balance betweenrepeatedly pummelling his body into the conditionhe would need for the months to come, and beingable to give his all when working on his game.“We would arrive in Australia and he wouldsometimes point to another player and say ‘Look atthat guy, he looks a little tired. Please be mindful ofthat with me. We need to manage things so I lookfresh.’ It damages your state of mind if your body isso tired that you can’t give your all in practise. That’s especially important as it gets closer to thestart of the season because you need to be able togauge your level.

So you do the intense gym work earlier on in the offseason and as it gets closer to tournament time,you’re getting more of the cardio workouts throughyour court sessions.” Agassi was notoriously wary ofoff-court distractions, particularly in the latter stagesof his career as he strived to remain a force at the topof the game well into his thirties. But tennis in 2014is a world of ever-abundant distractions, even for themost dedicated top ten pro. There are foundations topromote, sponsors to satisfy and lucrative exhibitionopportunities. The International Tennis PremierLeague kicks off this month, a brainchild of formerdoubles star Mahesh Bhupathi which aims to do fortennis what the IPL has done for cricket. And withmillion dollar contracts being offered just to showup, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic,Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova have all takenthe bait, despite a schedule stretching across multiplecontinents. Pete Sampras quipped earlier this year,‘If someone’s gonna be stupid enough to give you amillion dollars, you’ve gotta be stupid not to take it’but Reyes cautions that extensive travel during thiscrucial part of the year does run the risk ofinjuries. “Sometimes an exhibition can simply be alucrative practise session and there’s nothing wrongwith that,” he says. “But if you’ve lost 3-4 daysthrough all the travel, media and everything whichcomes with it, you have to seriously think aboutwhether it’s a smart decision in terms of yourpreparation.

Navratilova Returns ToThe Court

by Laura Saggio

Martina Navratilova has always been around tennis.

Martina Navratilova has always been around tennis.Even after she retired, she was constantly involved,in one way or another, with the sport she dedicatedher life to. Now, a new phase of that involvement willsee her step up as a coach.“I am very excited, although getting back in gamemode with all the stress of competition will not beeasy,” she said of the move. “The thought alonemakes me lose sleep!"She will be taking over coaching duties for AgnieszkaRadwanska, the Polish sensation who has been nearthe top of the women’s game for some years.This is also another example of the current trend ofhiring former top players to be coaches.

Stefan Edberg is currently working with RogerFederer, while Boris Becker is on Djokovic’s staff.Michael Chang has teamed up with Kei Nishikori, ashas Goran Ivanisevic and Marin Cilic.The challenge before her is, of course significant,largely because expectations will be great. Herstudent is also coming off the back of anunderwhelming year, with her ranking havingdropped to six in the world. But the enthusiasm is there for both, which is a goodstarting point.I cannot wait to start this new phase of my life," shesaid. Navratilova will be supported in her work byRadwanska’s current coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski.

They will start working together just after Christmas.Radwanska, a finalist at Wimbledon in 2012, choseNavratilova in order to win a Grand Slam trophy.“Her triumphs speak for themselves,” she saidrecently. “I hope I can learn something from herimmense experience, I am sure that Martina will begood for my career". Certainly, if they can enjoy even a fraction of thesuccess together that Navratilova enjoyed as a playerin her own right, the next few years will prove veryfruitful indeed.

Doping And Reputation

di Adriano S.

These days, nobody is safe.

These days, nobody is safe. If you win at any level,especially at the very highest level, a great manypeople will automatically wonder if you are doping. Itis simply the new reality of professional sports.The trend of always assuming the worst has latelyeven fallen on the cleanest of the clean, namely RogerFederer. How, cynical critics ask, is Federer able tocompete against such strong (and young)competition at the age of 33? It is impossible, theysay, without chemical assistance of some sort. Theyare even applying this new cynical viewretrospectively, loudly wondering how the Swissmanaged to cope with his bout of Mononucleosis fiveyears ago. He seemed to recover a little too quickly,or so they claim.Reactions have been relatively muted to theseaccusations.

The Swiss are, naturally, horrified at the prospectand dismiss it out of hand. Some of the morepartisan Spanish fans have loudly applauded the factthat talk of doping is shifting to another top player,and away from Rafael Nadal.Indeed, while Federer has never been mentioned as adoper before, there have always been whispers aboutthe Mallorcan’s physical capabilities, and whetherthey are all natural. His muscle mass andinexhaustible stamina are legendary, so much so thatmany have wondered whether he does it without anyhelp. But although the topic has been muchdiscussed, there has never been a shred of evidence,and most mainstream news outlets have never evenrun stories on the subject. Yet there is no doubt thatwhen Nadal returns next year fully fit, as he is sure tobe, the whispers will start again as soon as he winshis first event.Nadal’s fans will defend him to the hilt, of course, asthey have done before. When Novak Djokovic startedto win just about every tournament he entered, theyaccused the Serb of nefarious activity.A simple change in diet, they said, cannot explain thekind of physical changes he underwent.

But as with Nadal, no evidence has ever been putforward that Djokovic earns his results withanything other than talent and hard work.

But as with Nadal, no evidence has ever been putforward that Djokovic earns his results with anythingother than talent and hard work.The biggest recent storm was prompted by MarinCilic winning the US Open. Unlike the other players,there has been evidence put forward that he usesbanned substances. Indeed, he was even bannedfrom tennis for several months for failing a drug test,though he maintains that it was because heunintentionally took a glucose tablet that contained aquestionable chemical.But the fact that he won the US Open, truly out of theblue, has caused several pundits to wonder if he isnot doping now. The overpowering way in which hewon the tournament, barely losing games in manymatches, is seen as suspicious in some corners.

The debate will, of course, continue. But it isimportant to remember that we must give athletesthe benefit of the doubt. Though many big names insports have been caught doping, it does not meanthat everyone is. By believing that we are completelynegating the importance of hard work and talent,which lies at the very heart of sports. If that becomesour attitude, sport itself becomes pointless.

More about doping:

http://federerisdoping.blogspot.it/2010/11/federer-linked-to-epo-and-other-peds.html

http://www.tennisworldusa.org/Stop-throwing-stones-at-Rafael-Nadal-articolo21384.html

Goal Setting

by Laura Saggio

Setting goals for yourself means laying out achievableobjectives for the near (and far) future.

Before the start of each season, the player and coachshould set out a number of objectives to be achievedin the various tournaments during the upcomingyear. Of course, these plans might be dashed for anumber of reasons, such as injuries or other personalor professional issues. Such issues might cause anoticeable drop in performance that can not onlyderail the plans laid out for a season, but an entirecareer.For these reasons it is necessary to formulate goalsthat are flexible and adaptable during the span of theseason.These goals should be divided into three groups:short, medium and long-term. This helps the playerkeep more accurate track of his progress, and achieveslow but sustainable improvements. There is a definite link between a player’s level ofmotivation, determination, commitment andperseverance, and the type of goals he sets forhimself. Goals serve as focal points for attention,generating better concentration and highermotivation in the player.

Through the technique of goal-setting you can plannot only generic objectives, but more specific anddecisive ones.

There are two different types of goals: OBJECTIVE:These are measurable, such as reaching a certainranking position. SUBJECTIVE: These are notmeasurable, such as the amount of fun had andperceptions of technique.

Once a goal is formulated, the player needs to focuson: -Obtaining results based on that goal. -Better performance as a result of the goal. -Better overall physical and mental conditioning.

Goals also need to be: -Specific: Explain exactly what you want to achieve. -Realistic: You must be able to realistically achievethe goals you set for yourself. -Measurable: You must have some way of knowing ifyou are reaching your goals. -Timely: You need to have a timetable for each goal. -Strategic: Each goal must serve a purpose for youroverall performance.

The Tactical/TechnicalConnection

by Wayne Elderton

You may not have noticed, but technique is the favouritetopic of most people involved in tennis.

You may not have noticed, but technique is thefavourite topic of most people involved in tennis.Players talk about it (just listen to any post matchconversation), coaches talk about it, parents, TVcommentators…the list goes on. The majority oflessons people take emphasize technique. Just lookat tennis videos, magazines and websites, and seewhat’s talked about most. Technique seems to be thebig fixation.The reason is that tennis is a complex motor sport.The coordination, agility and balance required ischallenging even for the best athlete. You could takean athletic phenom who has exceptional mentaltoughness (like Michael Jordan, for example) and, ifhe had no previous tennis training, most 4.0+ clubplayers would take him apart on the court. Theirtechnical superiority would win the day.Learning technique is a critical aspect of tennis. Anyway to improve and speed up the process of learningtechnique would be invaluable for every player andcoach. That process is now here.

A New World OrderIt is obvious that the game has changed in the last 30years. Has coaching kept up and continued to evolveas well? Although the “stuff” that is coached has, forthe most part, modernised (see all the emphasis onthe modern game technique in the last few years),the process used to coach has remained basically thesame. One of the key initiatives addressing this issue toemerge in the last several years is the Games BasedApproach (GBA). It has gained popularity incoaching circles and the term is used frequentlywithout coaches really understanding its powerfulpremise.The premise for the GBA is simple: tennis is a game.Every game needs to be played, and playing is atactical endeavour. Success in any game requiresclear intentions, decision making and problemsolving. In regard to technique, tennis is not figureskating. No judges are at the side saying, “Yourfollow-through was much better than youropponent’s, 15-0 for you!”Technique is second (behind tactics), but notsecondary. Don’t misread this! I am not saying technique is notimportant. It is critical for tennis success.

However, if you really want to set the stage formeaningful technical stroke development, the key istactics (no, this is not a typo).This tactical priority can be a stumbling block forcoaches. Especially since the majority of theircoaching diet consists of technical material. Before acoach can integrate tactics and move from meretechnical coaching to Tactical-Technical coaching,there are some fundamental questions that need tobe asked: • What is the relationship between tactics andtechnique when coaching? • How can coaching flow from tactical to technical?• How does a coach deal with both tactics andtechnique in a systematic way?

Most players and coaches are unaware of the debategoing on in coaching circles surrounding the GBA.Detractors mistakenly think that technique ismishandled or ignored in a GBA. That is only true if aGBA is applied incorrectly. If we understand whatthe current motor learning and brain functionresearch is telling us, the Games Based Approach isthe best and most effective way to learn technique.One of the most effective ways to utilize a GBA is touse what I call "Situation Training" (ST). The goal inST is to identify the situations players encounter inmatch play and improve their performance in thosesituations. Sounds simple enough, however, thetypical technical coaching employed by coachesdoesn't give them the necessary tools.

Two Become OneFor the majority of coaches, technique and tactics aretwo distinct and separate categories. Nothing couldbe further from the truth. In today’s world ofbiomechanical analysis and high speed digitalimaging, the tactical/technical link gets lost all toooften. This false separation causes players to spendthousands of dollars on technical lessons thatimprove the appearance of their strokes, but don’timprove their play much at all. Ask any group of parkor club players, “How many of you lose to opponentswho are technically worse than you?”, and almosteveryone will raise their hand. Everybody can tell youabout the latest techniques, but few know how toplay well.

This shouldn’t be the case.The tactical/technical connection is simple.Technique is only a means to perform a tactic.Technical skill by itself is useless in a game if it is notused in the right way, at the right time and in theright location. The fact is, without tactics, goodtechnical strokes are simply an exercise in lookingstylish. Imagine a soccer player who kicks the ballwith impeccable skill. His shot on net beat the goalieeasily. Although he kicked with great technique, histeam was furious. Why? Under pressure he put theball in his own net. Good technique, wrong tactic.This may be an extreme example, yet in tennis,players execute really bad ideas with nice strokes allthe time.Learning a stroke without a tactical intention is bad.How many players have had a coach feed thembaskets of balls to “groove” a stroke that they wereunable to use in a match? If the coach doesn’t spenda lot of time integrating the skill into tactical play, thelikelihood of the player using it in real match play islittle to none. The reason? The stroke was learnedisolated from reality.

the left hip. This would be considered “wrong” bymany coaches. However, it is excellent techniquewhen the tactic is an attacking ball received high(especially if the intent is to follow it to the net). Thisfollow-through is the natural result of the racquetaccelerating level through the ball from a chestheight impact coupled with a full body rotation. Anyother follow through wouldn’t allow her body andracquet to do what it needed to accomplish the tactic.In Photo 2, the follow-through is a more “classical”over-the-shoulder finish. This was the result ofhitting a deep penetrating shot with some topspin inorder to neutralise an opponent in a rally.

In real match play, every stroke requires decisionmaking. Tactics are about decision making. It is thechoice a player makes of what technique to use,when, where and against whom. No one can play wellwithout tactics, and no tactic can be executed withoutsome form of decision making

The Tactic Determines What Technique is“Proper”As an example, let’s look at the follow-through of aworld class player. Observe the follow-through in thethree photos. Remember, all are forehands, and all ofthem occur in a baseline exchange. Which one is“proper”?Let’s explore the tactics behind the techniques. InPhoto 1, the follow-through is down and around

In the third photo, the follow-through ends upcircling the back of the head. This has been called,the “inverted finish,” the “bender” and the “flip.” Iwill sometimes describe it as a “lasso” finish.Whatever it is called, this strange finish has becomecommon for all pros. The tactic is that the opponenthas hit a shot with pace that has moved her to theside. To respond, she counters with a high arcingtopspin to gain time. The compact preparationneeded to receive the harder shot, the impact at theside (an out front impact would not allow therequired vertical path) and the quick low-to-highaction resulted in this follow-through.These are not isolated cases. Just watch any protournament and you can see these follow-throughsconstantly. Are Photos 1 and 3 wrong? If so, thosepros should give back their millions of dollars!Obviously, they are all “proper” (perfectly fitted tothe situation encountered).Technically, it is not only the follow-through thatvaries when the tactic changes, but the size of thepreparation, speed and rhythm of the swing, racquetpath, body rotation, impact point and

needs to perform (e.g. a forehand crosscourt rallyshot to neutralise the opponent).The Tactics include the intentions, decisions andproblem solving in which a player must engage towin more points (or lose fewer).

2. Ball Control Next, determine the key Ball Control characteristicsneeded for the tactic to be effective. This includesreceiving the different Ball Controls, as well assending them. Ball Control is a critical bridgebetween tactics and technique.

footwork as well. These are not the expression ofplayers’ styles, but the application of situation-specific technique.Every pro player knows (consciously orunconsciously) that there is a direct connectionbetween tactic and technique. It is only coaches whodon’t get it.This association may seem complex at first, but inmy experience training hundreds and hundreds ofcoaches, it is one of the most important concepts oneneeds to master in advanced coaching (not coachingadvanced players, but advanced coaching).The connection moves from tactical to technical (orfrom technical to tactical) through these steps:1. Tactics First define the Tactic the player

The 5 Ball Controls are: • Height • Direction • Distance • Speed • Spin

In our forehand example, the ball must be higher,with an arc trajectory and topspin, to the crosscourtcorner.How the ball is controlled is directly determined bywhat the racquet does to the ball on impact. Theseare called the P.A.S. Principles (racquet Path, Angleand Speed). For our example, the racquet path would be low tohigh (approximately 40 degrees), the angle would bevertical with the strings facing toward the crosscourtcorner, and the speed would be medium pace butaccelerating through the impact for topspin. Remember, body mechanics don't directly determinewhat the ball does, the PAS Principles do!

players’ strokes (unfortunately, not improving theirmatch performance much).A coach will often see (and comment to the player) anumber of technical issues. However, only the onethat helps the player’s performance should befocused on. Technical instruction should be tocontrol the ball in order to execute a tactic (not justbecause a coach wants a player to look a certainway).

Learning Proper TechniqueSo which technique do you teach? Is there such athing as a “basic” one that everyone should learn?Think about all the hours coaches spend basket-feeding thousands of “forehands.”

3. Technique Finally, the mechanics needed to perform the shotconsistently, at higher speeds, without wastingenergy (economy) and minimising injury (efficiency)would be applied (e.g. appropriate linkage of bodysegments from the ground up). In our Canadianmethodology, we actually include Ball Control in thetechnical category. It is called “the twofold definitionof technique” (what the ball does and what theplayer’s body does).

The key point is that technique is only“proper” if it accomplishes the task for whichit was meant.As a young, inexperienced coach, I spent way toomany hours fixing the “shape” and “look” of

The questions they should be asking are, “Whichforehand is being learned?”, “Is it the one that ismost useful?” and “What about the others requiredfor successful play?”In a GBA, learning the game starts with the rallyshots (since the main goal of starter players is aconsistent exchange). On the serve and volleys, thesame principle applies (shots that allow a player toremain neutral are the best place to start).However, having said that, even for a beginner, assoon as the situation changes, the technique mustchange as well. Every shot in tennis is like a move inchess. The player sees what’s going on with theopponent, their location, and the ball received,decides what tactic to use, and applies situation-specific technique.

If the technique doesn’t fit the situation, a poor shotwill result. Trying to use the “one size fits all”forehand they paid hundreds of dollars to “groove”won’t work. No adaptation = no effectiveness.After the neutral shots, it would be good to adddefensive actions (to maintain consistency whenchallenged more). Then attacking actions could beadded to increase pressure on opponents, and finallycountering actions to handle higher speed play, andto turn the table on opponents.No matter what technique is learned, it is importantfor coaches to keep the connection between theirTactics, Ball Control and Technique. The greater thedisconnect, the more disservice is done to the playerlearning the techniques.

ConclusionFor example, you see your opponent wide on hisforehand side and he sends a mediocre rally ballcrosscourt to your forehand. Which forehandtechnique do you apply? The sharp angled crosscourttopspin? The looping arc deep topspin to the centre?Or, do you redirect the ball with a drive down theline? Every shot in tennis presents choices, and eachone requires very different technique. Your selectionis every bit as important as your form. Learningstrokes in isolated repetition (disconnected fromplay) doesn’t fully equip players to play successfully.Tennis was not created so players can followthrough!

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