Even the size of your tennis racket handle is important to your success in enjoying playing tennis and, sadly, many sports shops sell tennis rackets handles in only one size to reduce the amount of stock they have to hold. It doesn’t seem to bother them that people, not knowing any better, buy the tennis rackets and then develop tennis elbow through using the wrong size tennis racket grip.
One of the biggest problems in getting people to play tennis is that it is such a difficult game to start playing. Just serving the ball to start the rally is one of the most difficult things a beginner player has to do. The whole action, which involves throwing the ball up with the left hand and then hitting the racket head at the tennis ball in such a way that it falls inside the service area on the other side of the net, is such a complicated sequence of events that even professional tennis players regularly get it wrong.
Of course, this is one of the wonderful things that makes tennis such a great game. However much you play, there is always something to learn and there is always the possibility, even on a bad tennis day, you could play a little bit better.
Many beginner tennis players assume that they have to play singles but singles tennis might not always be suitable for a new player, especially if they are not in their first flush of youth. I would always recommend doubles tennis for the older beginner player. It is much more social and you can always blame your partner for lost points – although of course I wouldn’t recommend that because it’s bad sportsmanship.
The strategies involved in playing doubles tennis are worthy of a whole tennis book in their own right.
The different tennis strokes that can be played with a tennis racket are also many and varied. There are also different ways of holding a tennis racket that work with different styles of play. One woman came to me saying that she had always wanted to be able to hit a backhand shot but had never been able to find the right tennis grip. I told her to place the racket under her left arm pit (she was right-handed) and then grasp hold of the racket with her right hand and take it out from beneath her armpit. The resulting racket grip immediately improved her backhand tennis shots and she went on to use the same grip for her forehand strokes, finding it gave her a great top spin shot.
There are many different types of tennis shots too. There are backspin shots, drop shots, half volleys and drive volleys – just to name a few. All have their own special place in the game.
