Tim: Another great video. Thank you. Your video approach you use to teach is the best I've seen on the web. I had a question about how you recommend that we practice. Do you have a set practice routine that you follow? Also, what ratio of practice to playing do you recommend as well? Thanks.
Thanks very much. I really enjoy making these videos and love the feedback from players all over the globe. I hope it helps you get more enjoyment out of the sport we all love.
Thanks for posting this. This is great info. I love that you analyze in slow motion. Great pointers! I use to play in the 80s and just recently am playing again (at 60! BUT, I'm also ice skating this past year! Thank God for great health!) :D
Thanks for the question Tom. I'm talking about body position. Definitely keep your eyes on the ball with a slight head turn, but keep your body facing forward, feet wide apart, standing on the balls of your feet so you can move laterally. Common mistakes I see are the one Mike made (turning his body toward his opponent) and facing everything forward (body, head and everything else which means you're not watching the ball or your opponent). Hope that helps. :)
Yep, you're absolutely correct. Trevor and I often joke that he's more comfortable hitting shoulder high backhands than he is easy forehands lol. In a tournament I guarantee he runs around that and hits a forehand. Good job spotting that!
Hey Tim, another outstanding video! Question: At 9:52, do you think Trevor would be better off running around his backhand and hitting a forehand instead of trying that high shot. It looks like he has plenty of time and it might even force Mike to reposition himself, giving him a higher percentage pass play such as down the line.
Thanks Brian, and great question. I'll always remember the following phrase: "There's a time to sharpen the sword, and there's a time to use the sword." Practice, to me, is more important than playing. I recommend at least a 2:1 ratio, practice to playing. I need to post a video with some drills to give you a better idea of HOW to practice, but I try to create game situations. Dropping the ball and hitting it is fine to work on mechanics, but recreating game situations is paramount.
Tim: I saw another racquetball video which stated that you should take a curved path to the ball and not a straight path. Do you agree with this and can you explain this in more detail. Thanks again!
I hit myself ceiling balls and work on each shot (DTL, cross court, pinch, etc). Hit myself lob serves and work on cutting them off, going ceiling, etc. Hit myself high pinches to simulate my opponent leaving one up, and then taking the right shot with perfect execution. Everything that happens in a game I try to recreate. Remember though, practice doesn't make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. Make sure your mechanics are very good before you create and reinforce bad habits.
Regarding your comment "never face your opponent when he's behind you," do you mean body position, not head position? I.e., is it correct that we need to keep eyes on the ball at all times, even if our feet and bodies are planted to face front?
Hi Tim,I am not sure of it but at about 21:44 as the guy is serving it looked like an illegal drive serve as he bounced the ball in drive serve box on the right side
Hi Rudy. Haven't logged in for a while, sorry for the delay. The serve at 21:44 is a lob serve, and you're allowed to bounce the ball in the drive serve box while lob serving. The drive serve zone rules apply strictly to drive serves (low, hard serves).
I am still having a time totally understanding that rule. I thought that you can do a drive serve from anywhere inside the drive serve lines, but in the drive serve lines ONLY a drive serve could be done. That the ball and racquet cannot be bounced or go into the drive serve box at all for any type of serve. You are saying that as long as my feet are not in or on the drive serve box lines I can still do a lob or z serve with the ball bouncing in or my racquet thru??
To make this simple, you can lob serve from ANYWHERE. You can stand anywhere and lob to either side without penalty. HOWEVER, to drive serve, there are a couple of things to consider: If you are standing in left drive serve zone (the second red line from the wall; remember the first one is for doubles), and you begin your service motion from inside that drive serve zone, you CANNOT hit a drive serve to that same side (behind you). You will be breaking the drive serve zone rule, and the serve will also most likely be a screen serve since you are so far over toward the left wall. If you are standing in the right drive serve zone or you drop the ball into that zone and your racquet breaks the plane of that zone as you make contact, you CANNOT hit a drive serve to that same side for the same reasons. You can drop the ball in the right or left drive serve zones (or stand in them) and hit a serve to the OPPOSITE side. That is perfectly legal. Typically, when I drive serve, I stand slightly to the right of center (in the service box) so that I never have to worry about those drive serve zones. From there, I can hit a down the line, cross court, and a hard z serve. Hope this helps!
Thank you very much, but Trevor was already a pretty damned good player when I got to him at the age of 15 lol. I love the frisbee analogy. Swing like you're throwing a frisbee and finish with your belly button facing the front wall, racquet pointing toward the back. Sounds like you probably have a good backhand too. :)
