Latest Video Update (November)
They say that football is a game of two halves, well I
guess the same could be said about Andy Roddick's season. Struggling
with his form during the opening half of the year, Roddick has turned
his season around with a fantastic run in the later half. He compiled
a 18 -2 winning record in the summer circuit after teaming up with
Jimmy Conners. This included a Masters tournament victory at Cincinnati
and a final at Flushing Meadows. Andy recently had three match points
against Federer in Shanghi and finished the year as the number one
ranked American.
The video clips are fantastic for showing you just how explosive
Andy Roddick is. There are some great service clips, however, my
personal favourites include his inside out forehand clips.
(October)
This months video and article updates
We have included some brilliant video clips and photo sequences of US Open Champion, Maria Sharapova. Just check out how fantastic her footwork is and how cleanly she strikes the ball. These are definitely some of the best clips on the site.
We had a great response from the September newsletter in which I discussed the role of the parent in the development of children in tennis. Roger Geraghty, Director Of Tennis Development, Tennis Ireland, very kindly replied to my request for feedback. He has allowed me to include his views on the importance of the parent in a child’s development, his article makes for very interesting reading.
As always we welcome any feedback and as I
mentioned earlier we would love some requests so we can make this
site very practical for you, the Procompare member
(September)
Fernando Gonzalez
Gonzalez had a great junior career finishing 1998 as world number 4 in singles and number 2 in doubles. He captured the 1998 Roland Garros junior singles title (def. Ferrero) and doubles title (with De Armas). He also won the 1997 US Open doubles title (with Massu).
His first ATP title came in 2000 when he defeated fellow county man Massu at Orlando. In 2003 he joined John McEnroe as the only players to go undefeated (8-0) in singles and doubles at the ATP World Team Cup event in Germany and he won the Olympic bronze medal in singles and the gold medal at doubles in Athens. This year, Gonzalez broke into the worlds top 10, joining Rios and Massu as the only Chileans to rank inside the top 10 (since 1973).
Gonzalez is a great competitor, he has
won many matches from match point down and the size of his battling
spirit is matched only by the size of his devastating forehand (having
said that I have just watched Andy Murray take him apart in the
fifth set at the US Open, never mind I guess everyone is allowed
one blip). This month we are pleased to feature a large selection
of quality video clips that will help you identify how he hits the
ball so hard!
(August 2006)
Elena Dementieva
Elena is an educated woman who can speak Russian, French and English; if she wasn’t a tennis player she would like to be a doctor. Elena enjoys playing chess and when she was younger looked up to Martina Hingis because she was (is) a thinking player.
Elena is one of the top players not to have
won a Grand Slam (losing in the finals of Paris and New York 2004).
Therefore, it may come as a shock to you that her game and character
have been put under so much scrutiny. Not many top players have
had their games analysed and ridiculed as badly as Elena. During
the 2004 French Open final she performed poorly and lost 6-1 6-2,
prompting doubts about ability to handle the big occasion. Then
‘experts’ ridiculed her serve. Granted her ball toss
was a ‘little’ wayward and she could only hit them to
the forehand side, however, she has work on improving this and the
fact that she is still out there competing speaks volumes about
character.
John and myself watched her train in Indian Wells. There were not
many players, male or female who trained with as much intensity.
It seems to me that she is doing all she can to predict a bright
future, I wonder if she has listened to the ‘Luck Factor’?
We have included some highly detailed clips of this fantastic player. She is a great athlete and has incredible groundstrokes. You will notice that her serve has improved as well!
Latest Article Update
‘Power Tennis’ By. Ray
Brown Ph.D.
The power / control debate is always
a big issue. Lots of club players enjoy hitting and often only remember
hitting the one screaming winner, forgetting at their peril the
previous ten mistakes they made trying the same shot. In this article
Dr Brown presents an in depth view of how to improve the ability
to hit the ball with more power, whilst not sacrificing consistency.
'Movement Drill:
Tennis ball drill' By. Pat Etcheberry, Fitness trainer of many
world class players including Pete Sampras and Justine Henin-Hardenne.
A tennis ball drill designed to improve movement around
the ball. Pat shows how Henin-Hardenne has adapted it to make it
physically tougher.
(July 2006)
Marcos Baghdatis
Proving that his run in Australia was no flash
in the pan, Baghdatis, whose favourite surface is a hard court proved
that he is a force to be reckoned with on the Wimbledon grass. This
former junior world No.1 has now reached a career high ATP ranking
of No.10. From the age of 13, Marcos developed his solid all round
game at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris. This year he took
the tennis world by storm at the Australian Open, defeating three
top 10 players in a row, Roddick, Ljubicic and Nalbandian before
losing in the final to Federer in four sets. During his first round
match at Wimbledon he struggled past British player Alan Mackin
7/5 in the fifth set before recording victories over notable grass
court players Grosjean and Hewitt. He finally bowed out to Nadal
in the semi finals.
Baghdatis has shown great spirit over the year, I feel positive
that he can establish himself as one of the top players on the tour.
Enjoy the selection of high quality video clips brought to you this
month; he is a great model to learn from!
Latest Article Update
'Is Nadal Sending Out The Wrong Message?' By Paul Gold M.Sc. Sports Science and founder of powertennistraining.com. Are players focusing on developing powerful bodies more suited to weight lifting than tennis? Paul discusses the necessity of training specifically for your chosen sport.
'Nerve Busters' By Simon Grieve
B.Sc. LTA Performance Coach and Procompare Co-Founder. Thoughts
on how to handle nerves under match pressure and also tips from
leading ATP Tour players, Federer, Nadal and Blake on how they deal
with tense situations on court.
(June 2006)
James Blake
With model looks, incredible speed and a Current ATP ranking
of 8, you would think that life is pretty sweet for James. Nevertheless,
he has had more than his fair share of significant hurdles to overcome.
When he was 13, James was diagnosed with severe scoliosis (curvature
of the spine) and had to wear a back brace for 18 hours a day. In
2004 his father passed away and later that year in practice he suffered
a fractured vertebrae in his neck. To top it all off he fell ill
with ‘Zoster’, a condition that affects hearing, visionary
senses and caused temporary paralysis on one side of his face. More
injuries were to follow over the next few months, these could have
proved to be the final straws, but he chose not to let them bring
him down.
From August 05 to March 06 he compiled a 43-12 match record with
four ATP titles and two runners up showings. As a result he was
named ‘comeback player of the year, 2005’
The video clips show just how great an athlete James is, the fact
that he is still playing the game and getting to the top level shows
just how much character he has!
Ana Ivanovic
Currently No. 21 on the WTA Tour this young (19) lady from
Serbia has been on the tour since 2003. She is a good athlete, her
groundstroke game is technically very solid and she has already
recorded two victories over current world No.1 Mauresmo. Enjoy the
clips and keep an eye on yet another Eastern European girl who I
believe is going to do very well.
Latest Articles
'Federer - Whats the secret to his success?'
By Tomaz Menzinger Sports Psychology Consultant and founder
of tennismindgame.com
Federer is arguably the best player to ever play the game, nevertheless,
he has had to overcome some huge obstacles to get there.
'Nailing the basics, part III' By
Steve Jarrett LTA Performance Coach and Kent Boys U18 County Cup
Captain.
Steve gives some great tips about how to become a tougher match
player, someone who is hard to beat.
(May 2006)
Rafael Nadal
We have uploaded some incredibly detailed
shots of arguably the tours toughest player, Nadal. These clips
will allow you examine closely every detail of Nadals devastating
game.
Even though his forehand grip is fairly extreme notice how he still
manages to keep the swing path through the ball; it's great to watch
how he crushes through the ball! The clips of his serve allow you
to study exactly what happens throughout the entire swing and in
particular around the contact point.
With two wins over Federer and a Masters series victory already
in his pocket this year, will he be able to push Federer for the
number one position?
Latest Article Update (May 2006)
'Inside out forehand and Backhand Drills.
Plus An Interview With Jim Courier', By Pat
Etcheberry, fitness trainer to the pro's including Agassi and Henin-Hardenne.
This is a large video clip and depending on your internet connection
may take time to download. Be patient though, it's worth it!
'Managing Progress and Expectation',
By David Sammel LTA Head Coach, Leeds National Academy.
A unique and very helpful view of how to maintain development and
deal with expectation.
Video Updates (April 2006)
Andy Murray
What a great introduction to world class tennis
Andy has had over the past ten months. After breaking into the spotlight
at Queens he followed it up with an exciting Wimbledon, a victory
over British tennis hero Tim Henman in Switzerland, a tournament
final appearence against Rodger Federer and now his first ATP title
in San Jose with victories over Roddick and Hewitt. Can he keep
this momentum going. Well as a fellow Brit I really hope so!
We have some great tennis video clips taken at the recent Indian
Wells Tournament. Check out his serve which he considers to be his
best shot and take a look at his slice backhand which is causing
his fellow pro's a little bit of discomfort.
Justine Henin-Hardenne
This petite player must have a giants trophey
cabinet back home in Belgium. Not only has she won the Australian
Open, Roland Garros and the US Open, but she is also the current
Olympic champion. I wonder if she will add Wimbledon to her list?
We recently watched Justine train and compete in California, and
it wasn't a suprise to see just how strong she is. We watched her
work out before each practice session and pound balls against spirring
partners. She works incredibly hard on her game and conditioning
and it is no wonder she wins so much.
We know you are going to enjoy her tennis video clips, especially
her backhand clips!
Latest Article Update (April 2006)
'Learning Points From Indian Wells 2006'
By Simon Grieve B.Sc. LTA Performance Coach and Joint founder
of Procompare.
Three key learning points taken from a week in Indian Wells.
'Fitness Drill For Future Female College
Players' By Pat Etcheberry fitness trainer
to many world class tennis players including Agassi and Justin Henin-Hardenne.
Pat answers a specific fitness question from Womens Head Coach at
The University of Virginia, Mark Guilbeaus.
'Nailing The Basics, Part II' By
Steve Jarrett Boys U18 Kent County Cup Coach.
Steve reminds us of some of the basics of tennis and gives some
useful drills for developing better match players.
'Running An Effective Team Practice'
By Alex Dorato Head Mens Tennis Coach at Yale and Christian Appleman
Yale Mens Tennis Assistant Coach.
Detailed plan of how the Yale mens tennis team practice is put together
and the coaching principles the two coaches follow.
'Goal Setting Principles, Part II'
By John Trehearn LTA East Region National Coach.
How to set short, medium and long term goals. Plus when to re-evaluate.
Video Updates (March 2006)
Robby Ginepri
They say that football is a game
of two halves (that’s soccer to our American friends). Robby
Ginepri, the U.S. No.3, must have been concerned during the first
half of last year after posting a 9-13 losing record and dropping
to a season low ATP ranking of 103. Nevertheless, he showed his
doubters how to fight back and had a magnificent second half recording
a 28-10 winning record which included an ATP title at Indianapolis
and then a fantastic US Open run, scoring victories over Haas (3rd
Rd.), Gasquet (4th Rd.), and Coria (QF) before falling to Agassi
in five sets at the semi-final stage. He is currently No.17 ATP.
I have seen Ginepri play a number of times and have been amazed
by how unpredictable and often how uninterested this talented player
looks. Nevertheless, he has shown he has got a real gift and I hope
that he shows more consistency in 2006.
Fernando Verdasco
Born and raised in Madrid, Fernando
Verdasco has been playing tennis ever since he was four. Unlike
many other Spanish players he has shown that he can compete on all
the major surfaces winning a career high 35 matches in 2005.
He considers his forehand to be his favourite shot and when you
watch the video clips you can see why, his racket head speed is
amazing.
Verdasco is a very solid performer and it will be interesting if
he can make a bigger impact at the Grand Slams this year.
Article update (March 2006)
'Nailing The Basics' By
Steve Jarrett U18 Kent County Cup Head Coach
Steve will be writing a number of articles to try and simplify this
great game. In this article he gives some simple thoughts on tactical/mental
effort during competition. He discusses his ideas on 'looking
over the net', reminding us that tennis is a battle between
two people, not a technique and style competition .
'Principles Of Goal Setting,
Part I' By John Trehearn LTA National Coach (East Area)
Breaking development down into more manageable pieces is essential
for maintaining motivation and ultimately reaching your full potential.
John discusses the basics of goal setting.
'Athletic Posture' By
Wayne Dumpleton Head Fitness Coach Gosling Tennis UK and overspeeduk.com
suppliers of fitness equipment.
Good balance allows us to execute quality shots whilst avoiding
injuries. Wayne explains how to work on maintaining balance with
the use of specific fitness training equipment.
Video Update February 2006
Currently No. 30 ATP Tommy Haas has made a very strong start to 2006. He has recorded some very good results and arguably gave Rodger Federer his toughest challenge at this years Australian Open. The video clip library has been improved with some great clips of Haas. They highlight his great ball striking ability off of both wings. Unfortunately, they do not highlight his great passion and desire to get back to the top after an horrendous 2004 in which he was out all year with injury. We wish him all the best for this year and feel sure that a top ten place awaits him in the near future.
Article Update (February 2006)
Oscar Wegner founder of tennisteacher.com and Gustavo Kuertans former coach, writes in his article 'who is playing tennis?' about making tennis an easier game to learn and teach. He provides some very practical ideas about uncluttering the mind in order to make hitting the ball and playing the game more simple and enjoyable.
In the final part of Steve Green's series on 'Dynamic Balance', Steve provides more alternative training exercises. These exercises are designed to strengthen and improve the balance required to execute the most powerful of shots in the most difficult of positions.
Finally, psychotherapist and founder of StayInTheZone.com, Dr Jay P Granat provides an understanding of how to get into the 'zone' whilst getting ready to serve. Before the serve there is a lot of 'dead time' in which thought processes can help or harm performance. Dr Granat breaks the thinking process down into two parts. He calls them the internal and external psychology of serving.
Video Update (January 2006)
This month we are featuring Thomas Johansson, 2002 Australian
Open Champion (def. Safin). As a child, Mats Wilander was Johansson's
idol and just like Wilander, Johansson is very good on all surfaces.
In 2005 he became the first Swede since Stefan Edberg to reach the
semi-final of Wimbledon and currently he is No. 13 on the ATP Tour
rankings. We are sure you will find the tennis video clips useful;
his strokes are fairly uncomplicated and in particular the backhand
could be a good model for beginners.
Article Updates (January 2006)
'The circle forehand exercise'. By Pat Etcheberry, trainer of many worldclass players including Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. This video article provides great information about how to improve the inside out forehand.
'Once Upon A Time....There Was A Car Journey'. By Paul Dent, LTA National Coach. As a parent or coach have you ever experience those silent journeys home after a bad loss? This article will help you provide good feedback to your child or player after matches.
'Decision making'. By Mahboob Khan, High Performance Coach and Director of programming, Islamabad Club, Pakistan. Advice for making quicker decisions in the various tactical situations during a point/match.
Video Update November 2005
This month we are highlighting the talents
of left handed Finnish No. 1 Jarkko Nieminen. 'Jakke' to his friends
had a very good junior career winning the US Open Junior title in
1999. His love affair with New York continued this year when he
got to the quarter finals, losing in a very tough five set match
to Hewitt. Currently ranked No.30 on the ATP Tour Nieminen has performed
consistantly this year and reached the semi finals of four other
Tour events including Munich, Stuttgart, Bangkok and Tokyo.
Jarkko is a very solid baseline player who exhibits fantastic movement
skills. Check out the new tennis video clips and photo sequences
to see how he uses his athleticism to full effect.
Article Updates November 2005
Paul Dent is an LTA National Coach and leading course tutor for the Performance Coaches Award (PCA), the LTA's highest tennis coaching qualification. This month we are excited to provide two great articles from Paul. They are full of quality information about how to make the tennis journey more fun.
'Pushy Parents - Good or Bad?' Provides thoughts on building optimal support mechanisms, plus how to improve and make more rewarding the child and parent relationship.
'Behind the result - Striving to master the outcome obsession'. This article highlights the dangers of outcome obsession and shares simple strategies to combat it.
Tennis is one of the most popular sports worldwide, perhaps due to the many varied styles of play that are used by the worlds elite and regular players alike. Procomparetennis.net is pleased to provide a very informative article about the various styles by David Sammel, LTA Head Coach, National Academy Leeds, UK and coach to numerous British Davis Cup players.
'How To Counter Specialist Styles'
By David Sammel
David talks about the various games styles that are available to
players. The serve and volleyer, the good returner, clay court specialist,
net rusher, big hitter, deceptive player, sneak in specialist and
more
He outlines the basic game styles and shares ideas on how to counteract
the different styles of play.
Not only a very good coach, David is also the creator of tennis4everyone.com. This site offers a goldmine of coaching tips and analysis, interviews of emerging talents, tour diaries, coaching products and discounted promotions. It is definitely worth visiting!
October 2005
This month we are continuing the 'up and coming' theme with some
great tennis video clips and photo sequences of rising star Maria
Kirilenko.
Maria Kirilenko had a fantastic Junior career, winning the 2002
Junior US Open and the 2002 Canadian Open. With a great Tier 1 Tour
victory at Beijing last month followed up by a semi final appearance
at the Japan Open (she won the doubles title with Dulko), Kirilenko
has reached a career high ranking of number 26.
Kirilenko has fantastic rhythm with her ground strokes and serves.
Her shots follow the 80:20 principle in which 80% of the swing time
is taken in the preparation phase (smooth take back) and 20% is
taken during the forward swing (acceleration/racket head speed).
The short forehand video clip shows this perfectly!
We hope you enjoy these clips and welcome any feedback.
September 2005
Seeded number One at the US Open this year, Sharapova is looking to add to her Wimbledon trophey. This month we have included some high quality clips that will help you identify how she creates so much racket head speed. In particular check out her fluent service motion!
The interesting thing about tennis is who will be the next tennis superstar, who will challenge Sharapova in the future?
Potentially, it could be Czech teenage sensation, Nicole Vaidisova. Along with the Sharapova clips we have included a comprehensive selection of Vaidisova's shots. Keep your eyes open for this child prodigy!
August 2005
The Library has recently been updated with some great new clips of up and coming stars Tatiana Golovin from France and Jelena Jankovic from Serbia
We have also included clips of Alicia Molik from Australia who has really raised her game and stepped into the big time, particularly with her impressive run in the Australian Open 2005.
August 2005
New Articles
Our article library is growing quickly and these new articles provide some fascinating insight into how parents can create a supportive performance environment for their children. Roberto Forzoni M.Sc has written two articles that give great tips for parents who’s children are just getting into tennis and some a very useful insight into how experienced parents raised their Olympic champions. They are fascinating to read
We have also included part II of Steve Greens video articles on Dynamic Balance. Remember Steve has a wealth of experience in this field, not only was he a former Olympic sprinter but he was also physical trainer for Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski.
We hope you enjoy these new video and article updates and as always welcome any feedback that you may wish to give!
Please e-mail us at info@procomparetennis.net
Kind regards
