If You Were the Coach - Strategy Quiz for Players
By Jorge Capestany, USPTA Master Professional & PTR International Master Professional
As coaches, we often struggle to get our players to think and deploy strategies as we want them to. I have been doing terrific exercises to help some of my players. I recently listened to the great Dr. Jim Loehr, who talked about the importance of journaling and writing things out. So, I decided to create a quiz, challenge my players, and have them write out the answers to various competitive situations. You can see the concept and quiz questions below. This is very useful, and as a coach, it will reveal how your students think on the court. It may be very surprising to you.
Assignment… You are a college coach, and you are helping the following players while they play a match. The pressure is on, and they are competing in a live match against an equally talented opponent. This is the type of match that your player could win or lose; it's a 50/50 chance of winning.
Player 1) This player is a steady baseliner. He moves well and can outlast most opponents. However, he has poor frontcourt skills, and his overhead and volleys cannot be trusted. He loses only to players who can outlast him from the baseline. So far, he has been unable to switch tactics and bring his opponent to the net. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
Player 2) You have a player that plays solid for the baseline and very well from the front court. But this player was recently injured and is moving at about 50% of their normal ability and can not cover the court very effectively today. They compete well and handle nerves pretty well. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
Player 3) This player struggles with nerves when they compete, and the scoreboard is turned on. They always seem to play better in practice than in a match. They can win against much lesser players but always seem to find a way to lose against players of equal ability. When they compete, they are generally in a state of high negative tension and are not very relaxed. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
Player 4) You have a very solid player from the baseline who can play long points and overpower people. He displays abysmal finishing and front-court skills. He rarely loses, but when they do, it is typically because their opponent can outlast or outhit him from the baseline. He has a decent deployable slice option, but his drop shot is unreliable. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
Player 5) You have an all-court player who is equally comfortable from the baseline or the front court. His serve often gets the “yips,” and he double-faults a lot under pressure. He sometimes loses to players who hit predominantly to his forehand or simply hit winners a lot. This player does not generate much power from the baseline but has excellent hustle and defense. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
Player 7) You have a classic over-hitter and hothead player. She is accustomed to hitting a lot of winners but often struggles to maintain her composure when she competes. This player is usually highly agitated during a match and not very nice to play against. Today, she is playing against a very fast opponent and getting many of her “winners” back. Your player is starting to get angry and lose it. What tactics could you devise to help this player?
I hope this helps you and your players. Good luck on the courts.
Want more from us? Start your $1 trial offer and get FULL ACCESS to our famous 2,000+ tennis drills library for 14 days - CLICK HERE.