My problem with the split step is not that I don't want to or am too lazy or whatever... It's just that I'm not able to nurture it, “mechanize” it. Even in the most comfortable situations, say during the warm-up with a friend, I start a rally thinking, “he's hitting, split-step”, and every time I forget it and stop split-stepping after a couple of shots. I “think” it's something more serious than a tennis problem...
Try the electrocution strategy. I pretend the court will be electrified at the exact moment my opponent contacts the ball and thus my feet need to be off the ground or I'll be electrocuted and die. A bit macabre but seems to get me off my feet, most of the time);
Check this video on how to practice the split step: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XR83yXLla8w.html. Also, one way to naturally get more light feet and get the feel for light jumps is to use the jump rope. Even just 3-5 minutes per day will do wonders for your split steps without much thinking when you play.
No, the whole point of split stepping is to "land" with legs loaded as springs in case we need to suddenly move. Between points we don't split step, we "dance", most players hop from one leg to another in order to stay alert. Very very few players actually do "baby split steps".
No Heri, we don't know when the split step will be really needed - meaning when will be the moment when we'll have to really push off quickly left or right. That's why we always do the split step just in case. We prepare for the worst case scenario every single time with a split step.
