Hodgkinson - Game, set and match: secret weapons of the worlds top tennis players

Dedication

For Amy, Molly and Rosie.

This book wouldnt have been possible without the generosity of the worlds finest players and coaches and the assistance of Roger Federers mother. They were generous with their time and also with their insights from the first interviewee, Anna Kournikova, to the last, they were very happy to share their secrets. Im also extremely grateful to all those who facilitated the interviews that led to the tips on these pages, including the communications staff of the mens and womens tours, and the players management teams (most of the tips collected here first appeared on TheTennisSpace.com). Huge thanks also to my friend and colleague in the tennis media, Simon Cambers, who conducted a number of the interviews that appear in this book, as well as offering ideas and advice along the way. Im indebted to Charlotte Croft, Sarah Cole and the rest of the fabulous team at Bloomsbury. And also to David Luxton and Rebecca Winfield of David Luxton Associates this project wouldnt have gone anywhere without their energy and direction.

Contents

Whatever your standard, whatever your age, if you love tennis there is no better way to improve your game than by learning the secrets of the worlds greatest players and coaches. Game, Set and Match is an unprecedented collection of tips from the worlds superstars, who have given advice from inside the professional game, based on their experiences in the white heat of competition on the sports biggest stages and now you can use those secrets at your club or at the local courts.

A veritable Whos Who of players and coaches give you their insight and experience about a part of the game whether technical, physical or mental for which they have the greatest expertise. Among many others, Andy Murray explains how to hit a drop shot, while Maria Sharapova talks mental toughness, Grigor Dimitrov has tips on hitting tweeners, Eugenie Bouchard on playing on grass, and Gael Monfils on being flexible, while Boris Becker passes on his thoughts on hitting a diving-volley, Chris Evert gives advice on how to deal with nerves, and theres no greater expert than Pete Sampras on the subjects of slam-dunk smashes and disguising your serve. Celebrated during her career for her inside-out forehand, Steffi Graf explains how to play the shot that helped her to win so many grand slam titles, while Milos Raonic, who arguably has the greatest serve of his generation, gives advice on how to hit an ace. Among the other leading coaches to have shared their secrets is Patrick Mouratoglou, who has worked with Serena Williams, and Paul Annacone, who has collaborated with Roger Federer, Pete Sampras, Tim Henman and Sloane Stephens. Theres also advice from Rafa Nadals uncle and coach Toni, from Nick Bollettieri, who has coached ten players who have been the world No. 1, and from Marian Vajda, who guided Novak Djokovic to multiple slam titles. Federers mother, Lynette, and Ana Ivanovic are among those giving you guidance on being a better tennis parent. Andy Murrays mother, Judy, and Serena and Venus Williams father, Richard, also pass on their thoughts, as does Gil Reyes, the physical trainer who was so instrumental in the success of Andre Agassi. Do you want to look stylish on court? Venus Williams, who is a clothes designer as well as a multiple grand slam champion, has shared her expertise. Her sister Serena, arguably the greatest female player of all time, has some advice for ambitious juniors.

Covering almost every aspect of the game about which you may wish to enquire, and many others you had probably never thought of, Game, Set and Match is a must-have dip-in reference work for all tennis aficionados. I hope you will enjoy it, and benefit from the advice offered.

Pete Sampras, winner of 14 grand slam singles titles, on HOW TO DISGUISE YOUR SERVE

Practise having the same ball toss for all serves: I didnt have the fastest serve, but I did have the best, and the disguise helped. Theres no point serving fast if your opponent knows where the ball is going, thats worthless. If you can have your opponent guessing, thats worth a lot. People used to say to me, I just couldnt read your serve. If your body shape is always the same, no matter what serve youre hitting, and your service motion and the position of your racket are always the same too, your opponent is going to find it very difficult to read you. Its all about your hand, your wrist and your grip. Its not easy, so the earlier you start practising disguise the better. I did it from a very early age, as a kid, and so that went into my muscles, and my muscles had those memories. Thats why I was able to do that as an adult.

Try this drill: As a kid, my coach would make me do this drill where he would only tell me after I had tossed the ball where he wanted me to hit it. He would shout out wide or down the middle or he would ask me to *handcuff the opponent with a body serve. That was great as it meant that my toss was always the same, and I didnt know myself where I was going to hit it until right until the last moment. You can have some fun with this, waiting until as late as possible before being told where to hit the ball. If you really want to improve your disguise, do this for hours and hours.

Improve your accuracy: If you can hit your spots, youre going to cause problems for your opponents.

Dont get hung up on one serve use as much variety as possible: I think many players get fixated on going for the same spot, and that makes them too predictable, so hit all the serves you can, whether thats out wide, down the T or to the body. And learn to hit all the spins. Mix it up. Of course, I was able to hit the ball hard. But it was mixing it up, and disguising all those serves, that gave me a better package.

Milos Raonic, who can serve at 155mph, and played in his first grand slam semi-final at 2014 Wimbledon, on HOW TO HIT AN ACE

Accuracy is the number one thing: If you hit the line, it doesnt matter whether its at 140mph or 120mph, its hard for someone to get it back. I dont necessarily aim to hit the line but pretty close to it. I aim about an inch or two inside the line. So I give myself some margin.

You need variety: You have to be able to hit different serves, because if you can only hit the line with one serve, your opponent can cheat that way and cover that side. Guys move and return too well nowadays. So you have to be able to hit all the serves and hit them well. Change it up based on what has been happening during the match, and where your opponent is standing.

Improve your accuracy with drills on the practice court you have to keep hitting a certain serve until youre getting at least six out of ten: You can usually feel whether youre serving well or whether you need to do some work to sharpen it.

Never expect to serve an ace you must be prepared to play another shot: I always expect the ball to come back. If it doesnt come back, its a good thing, but you must be prepared for the ball to be returned. You can never think, If I hit that there, its not coming back.

However, if you do hit an ace, recognise that it will help you psychologically: Of course, it gives you freedom, as you dont have to play the point. But its more what it does to the other guy. It keeps them guessing, it keeps them feeling pressure as it makes them think that they need to hold serve. I feel that, if I do get ahead a break, more often than not I will hold out the rest of the set. So me breaking them can mean the end of the set. That pressure helps me out too.