I've seen time and time again a pattern that separates the winners from the losers. You can see it in tennis clubs the world over, and it's highly likely to be happening right now at your club too.

The secret is this:-

In tennis there are 2 types of tennis players, foxes, and hedgehogs.

Foxes are very intelligent creatures that know how to do lots of things, whereas a hedgehog only knows how to do one big thing. When a hedgehog is under attack it just curls into a ball and puts its spikes out. No matter how many ways the fox tries to attack the hedgehog it will only end up getting a spike in the nose.

It's the same with tennis players. Those tennis players who are able to follow a simple but important instruction and carry it out over and over are the ones who become the best tennis players.

For example, I've watched high-flying doctors and lawyers playing tennis. Although they are highly intelligent, they lack the patience to stick at just one thing and give up too early.

If I were coaching them I would tell them that:-

Let me elaborate. Think back to your last tennis match. How many times did you actually focus on the ball when it bounced? 10% of the time? 20%? Even 30%? A good tennis player will focus on the bounce of the ball every single time.

That doesn't seem too hard - and it's not. It's just that most people have short memories, and they forget to do these sorts of simple things. If you were to make a promise to yourself right now that from this day forward that you will focus on the bounce of the ball every single time you would notice a big improvement in your game.

This commitment to being alert is a fundamental principle that you must follow if you want to become the best tennis player that you can be.

There is a world of difference between a good coach and a bad coach. It is all too common for tennis players to give up the game simply because they are having coaching but are not improving. They come to the conclusion that if everyone in their class can play tennis, but they can't then there must be something wrong with them.

This couldn't be further from the truth, because it ignores the fact that everyone is different. Each and every player has their own personal interests, and every good coach knows that to get through to a player they need to understand what they are interested in. Communicating effectively is all about baiting the hook to suit the fish.

There are a small number of golden rules in tennis. Just by telling them to you normally isn't enough - that's why people pay money to have tennis lessons as opposed to learning from a book. One of the main jobs of a tennis coach is simply to keep reminding you in new and interesting ways to keep practicing the simple yet crucial basics.

However, I've discovered a brilliant DVD that is so good, it's actually more effective than your average club pro.

The best tip I can give you is to watch this tennis DVD over and over. The title is "Jimmy Connors' Tennis Fundamentals" and I put it on once a month and before important matches. Not only is it fun viewing but also a highly effective way of reminding myself of the most important fundamentals.

For me, this is my tennis bible. As they say, "Repetition is the mother of learning", and watching this over and over has worked wonders.

I've watched it at least once a month for around 2 years and can't recommend it enough. It's excellent:-



The DVD is over 3 hours long and has great instruction on grips, ground stokes, serving basics, service returns, and volley basics warm up and mental preparation.

I also enjoyed the interviews on this DVD that Jimmy did with James Blake and Justine Henin-Hardenne. I think at the moment the price is just $40 - that is definitely a bargain ;-)

Wishing you the best of luck with your tennis.