How to play against a better player? Tips from Timur Kamilov

“Losing is not my enemy. Fear of losing is my enemy.”  Rafael  Nadal.

There isn't a tennis player in the world that’s never lost. The professionals know this very well. In tennis, the players often know who the better player is before they go onto the court. 

Tennis Tips: How to play against better player:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7sNB-rdd2k

No matter what your current skill level or your ability to hit great tennis shots, the secret to how to play better tennis is in your understanding of the game and the techniques involved.

Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, the legends of the Tennis

"Never slug it out with a slugger." (statement)

No two tennis players have exactly the same game, but most of the opponents you're likely to face can be one of several major categories. Learning to adapt your strategy to a wide variety of opponents is one of the keys to becoming a tough competitor. 

This player is too good!  Tips from Timur:

1. You have to have fun first of all and enjoy being on the court.
2. Make your opponent hit winners.  We all human being, not machines. Your opponent will stop hitting them at some point. Stay very patient, they will not play this well for the entire match.
3. Play within yourself; do not try to play great tennis, these will only cause errors. Stay calm, relax, breathe, stay more focus, and so not get critical of your mistakes. Do not try to do difficult and crazy shots.
4. Everyone is beatable, and worries about the match. Keep the ball in play.
5. Get them out of their comfort zone. Try to change your game a little bit, rhythm. I mean
   use lob balls, drop shots, little crosscourt dinks, and moon balls, all kinds of stuff with primarily little or no speed on it. If you know how to hit sliced forehands and backhands, that may come in handy. Basically, do something to make your opponent to lose his concentration and focus. Your opponent will respect you for steady play and may indeed get irritated that you're working so hard to stay in the points.
6. All my coaches always used to watch all my matches and they always were honest saying when matches are not won- they are lost.
7. Always have a respect to your opponent, if he plays at the same tournament as you, so he definitely qualified to play against you.  But have confidence in yourself at the same time.
8. In between points, take deep breaths or just listen to your breath going in and out. Do whatever you can to keep your cool.

How to Overcome Your Fear of the Net

You may know that you “should” come to the net more often to finish the point, but somehow you resist the urge and stick to the comfort of the baseline. Why is that?

A volley shot in tennis is a shot in which the ball is struck before it bounces on the ground. Generally a player hits a volley while standing near the net, although it can be executed farther back, in the middle of the tennis court or even near the baseline.

Pete Sampras, backhand volley

The primary objective of the volley is to go on the offensive and cut the amount of time for the opponent to react. Also, if near the net, a player has a wider choice of angles to hit into the opponent's court. However, quick reflexes and hand–eye coordination are required to execute this shot. The primary means of countering a volley are the passing shot and the lob.

A lot of players don’t trust their volley and overhead skills. It means that their net skills are really not that good and they make too many mistakes or their net skills are actually good but their opinion about them is negative. In order to get an accurate evaluation of your real net skills you’ll need to ask some friends and pros to evaluate your game and then make the conclusion.

And in case your net skills are really not good, just practice more.

Whether your net skills are good or not so good, you will make mistakes at the net. One common problem with mistakes at the net is that we look funny when we make them. There is one thing to miss a backhand from the baseline, but it’s a completely different thing missing a backhand volley at the net feeling clumsy and embarrassed.

Skills like reactions, balance, coordination, ball judgment and so on need to be at a much higher level to play successfully at the net as compared to the skills needed to play successfully from the baseline. That’s why most women pros don’t approach the net. It’s not that they don’t have good volley technique; it’s because they are too slow and not coordinated enough to make tough shots at the net.

Tennis Video:  http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-play-the-net

Maybe you resist coming to the net because you feel uncomfortable there. So you need to dig even deeper and ask yourself why you feel uncomfortable at the net?

Tips from Timur:

1. You don’t need a great shot just make it.
2. Remember, the net is a reward for good ground strokes.
3. The volley is a simple stroke, keep a firm wrist and hit the ball early.
4. Be ready, the ball is coming fast.
5. Use all the court, hit angles.
6. Once at the net you are no longer trying to keep the ball in play- end the point.
7. Split step before each volley.
8. Follow the fight of the approach shot.
9. Cover the ‘down the line’ passing shot.