Jannik Sinner, of Italy, executing a picture-perfect backhand volley against Holger Rune, of Denmark, at the 2022 ATP Sofia Open tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria
When coaches and teaching pros project the ideal future playing style of a promising young prospect, they consider several factors: athletic ability, physique, character, and so forth. Of course, the player has to buy into the technique and tactics the coaches are trying to inculcate.
Recently, I had a discussion after a practice session with a former college soccer and lacrosse player who started playing tennis in his 30s. Touch shots are my forte. He asked me how I hit the drop shots that confounded him. I discussed the variables in terms of their relative importance.
Nobody asked me, but . . .
Daniil Medvedev may not have the most exciting game, but he relishes lively debates. When Tennis Channel’s topnotch interviewer Prakash Amritraj asked him about whether two-handed backhands will endure in pro tennis, Daniil replied, “I think we’ll still have amazing players with one-handed backhands.” He cited No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas and No. 18 Lorenzo Musetti as evidence.
Before the Wimbledon final, seven-time major winner Mats Wilander put Novak Djokovic’s chances of beating Carlos Alcaraz and winning the four Grand Slam events this year at 90 percent. “He’s got too many weapons. He knows everything there is to know about the sport. He’s got it all down to a science. The opponents aren’t ready for him,” Wilander told The New York Times.
The perils of prediction be damned. I say: full speed ahead. This year my crystal ball is quite clear. If it’s wrong, then I’ll just have to get a new crystal ball. Seriously, despite all the talk of the narrowing of the speeds of court surfaces — grass, hard, and clay — grass has several unique and important characteristics. And the best practitioners have the skills and tactics to best exploit these characteristics.
Other Books by Paul Fein
