Round Trip

Of the three videos in Tennis.com's series, Round Trip is my fave.

Two players begin across the net from each other at their service lines. They begin hitting volleys to each other, moving in with each shot. As they get to the net, they reverse and move back toward the service line with each shot.

Progressions
Too hard? Have your students toss the ball rather than hit with the racquet.
Too easy? Specify which volley is to be hit (forehand/backhand) or alternate forehand/backhand volleys.

Cross Country

Thanks Tennis.com for this series of three net skills videos. Cross Country is a simple but effective drill that focuses on lateral movement at the net.

Two players face each other across the net at one of the sidelines. As they volley to each other, they move laterally to the opposite sideline and back.

Variations

• Specify which volley is to be hit (forehand or backhand) or alternate the two.
• Perform at varying distances from the net to work on timing and touch.

Progressions

Too hard? have your beginners perform by tossing and catching rather than hitting the ball.

Passport

Tennis.com recently offered the Passport drill video on their website. I like it and plan to modify it for Red and Orange ball players to get them comfortable with coming to the net.

It is a simple activity, as you will discover if you watch the video. Coach is at baseline. Player is across the net at service line. Coach feeds a ball that bounces in front of player. Player hits it after it bounces, comes in, taps net with racquet, and returns to service line. This reinforces the idea of following a short ball in.

Variation
Player takes ball out of air (volley) rather than letting it bounce before they hit it.

Mystery Ball

Inspired by yesterday's Fruit Salad game, Mystery Ball also uses a variety of ball types. Fill a hopper with foam, red, orange, green, and yellow balls.

Players play singles against each other with one end of the court designated as the Champions side. Players need to win only one point to become the new Champion. Coach feeds first ball to challenger from the net post. Coach picks blind out of the hopper and announces to the players which ball will be used for that point. Players must play corresponding court size accordingly. So for example if a red or foam ball is picked, they play the service boxes only. Orange ball = blended line 60 foot court. Green or yellow ball = full 78 foot court. Player who is Champion when all balls from hopper have been played is the winner.

Fruit Salad

I came up with this game on the spur of the moment recently when I had a mix of playing levels in class. It was a big hit. Fill a hopper with a mix of red, orange, green and yellow balls. If you have foam balls, yes, add those also. Play either mini tennis or Squirrel Crossing depending on the number of players. Coach feeds first ball quickly. Players must adjust their game quickly also to whichever ball is fed. If you are playing mini tennis with an even number of players and therefore no need for player rotation, give each player 10 points and take one away each time an error is made. Last one standing is the winner. If you are playing Squirrel Crossing, no need for points, just play until the basket is empty.

Three Rallies

Here's another great consistency drill from Daniel Spatz. Simple, no extra equipment needed, and you can work on it as long as you have time for.

The goal is simple: ask your player to complete three rallies, five times in a row. If you have time, keep working on this until the goal is met. If you have a large group or limited time, keep track of how many times the student is able to complete the task. Once? Twice? None? Either way you have a simple but achievable goal for them to work on.

This would also be a great warm-up activity between players for larger groups. Have all working on this as a singles drill. First court to complete it successfully wins, and signals the end of the warm-up period.

Master and Servant

Sometimes it's hard to tell
who is in charge

This drill is for more advanced players. They will need to be able to rally as well as direct the ball. I saw it on the ProTennisDrills.net website.

Two players play singles against each other, beginning on respective deuce halves of court. One player is Master; the other is of course Servant. Coach feeds first ball to Master. Master must hit shots to Servant alternating between deuce and ad sides. Servant may only hit back to Master at deuce side. First player to 15 points wins. Switch roles. After both players have had a chance to play both roles, switch to ad side of court and repeat.

As you have probably figured out, the Servant will be doing a lot more running!

Progression
Easier: for young beginners, have them tossing and catching the balls rather than hitting with racquets.
Harder: require X number of rallies before points are awarded.