Ideal tennis lesson is not created by a tennis coach, but mostly by the player himself. The coach is there to help the player, to provide necessary guidance, but the will and desire to improve needs to come from the player. The coach can show the player the best technique, the best drills, but if the player does not want to learn it is all useless.
Before a tennis lesson
Make sure you have packed all your necessary tennis equipment. There are strung rackets in your bag, water, tennis shoes, spare clothing, hat, grips etc. Coming prepared to the tennis court for a tennis lesson does not mean only to bring a tennis bag full of stuff. Being prepared means to come to a lesson with a clear idea of what I want to train, where do I need to improve and what will I work on. Come to the lesson 10 minutes earlier to dress, warm up and discuss all necessary stuff with the coach even before the lesson starts.
During a tennis lesson
Discuss with your coach what you want to work on even before the lesson starts. From the 1st minute work on 100% until the end of the lesson. Warming up small field does not mean you should talk to your coach about the dinner you had last night (which is nice to hear, but if you want to improve and progress you got to get the most out of each lesson and that means staying fully focused and doing your best at every moment of the class). There are good and bad exercises, efficient and less efficient drills, but it does not change the fact that you can learn something from any exercise. If you drill only stuff you like, what will happen in a match when you get yourself into a situation you do not like? You lay down your racket and tell your opponent he/ she has to play differently? Every player in the world will try to find your weak points in a match – if you avoid certain drills in a training you are unconsciously creating weak points for yourself.
If you approach every ball on 100% (yes, even the short high balls right behind the net) you have to improve at a faster rate than somebody who trains only on 90%. If you approach easy balls in training with the idea of making some fun shots instead of playing them seriously, you will notice this will unconsciously translate into a match as well – in important situations instead of hitting a hard winner you will play a clumsy drop shot.
After a tennis lesson
Think about what you learned. Practice what you learned in a practice match. Try to incorporate new shots you worked on during the lesson into your game strategy. Being off the court does not mean you don’t think about tennis. A real tennis player spends as much time thinking about his/ her game on the court as off the court – or even more.
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