Specific Tennis Footwork and Movement Skills By Cinto Casanova
ovement is a key performance factor in tennis. As tennis coaches, we are responsible for developing player’s movement skills, as well as their racket swings. The goal in this article is to point out which are the specific movement skills required in tennis and to give a basic guide about suitable activities to
M
develop those skills within the tennis program. Below are four of these key tennis specific movement skills, with a breakdown of each: Footwork coordination Players have to be able to control the rhythm of their steps and to increase
or decrease the frequency of them as needed. However it is not only about how fast they can move their feet; its is also about the control and accuracy of the steps; it is about stepping where you want (at an appropriate angle and position). Dissociation is an essential skill related to footwork too. Left and right feet should function independently without interference in different movement/rhythm patterns. To develop this footwork and coordination skills, our tennis programs have to allocate time to agility ladder programs, stepping exercises, aerobic step platforms or any other type of exercises that focuses on rhythm, control and dissociation of our player’s footwork. Explosive first step To be fast and powerful to start the movement is not only a matter of power and strength. Our players need to master the “split step” and its different variations (split step from one or two feet, static or in motion). It is crucial to learn how to recruit
60
New York Tennis Magazine • March/April 2022 • NYTennisMag.com
