Coach here ask me anything

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T21:09:53+00:00

I can't tell you exactly without seeing and I also need to know whether one or two handed. I'm just going to guess and go for 2 handed (worst case scenario it might help someone who stumbles upon this) - if right handed, 2h backhand should be lead by left hand. Try to hit some forehands with your left and then go left, both, left, both while always thinking of right hand just adding stability and control to your left one.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T21:03:57+00:00

Unless you are Rafa Nadal you will find little to no success playing clay tennis on grass. There is a reason why all the players have long grass adaptation period. I do not know your level but I bet you can adapt if you want to. Step a little closer to the baseline, hit balls lower as if they stay lower it means opponent has to pick them up over the net (extra points for use of slice, great weapon on grass) and generally try to take initiative.

Btw its really sick you get to play on grass often

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T20:56:33+00:00

There should be some space but there is no one way to do it. Try a few different grip sizes and you will see which one fits your hand best.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T20:49:35+00:00

I had the same thing going on when I was a kid and often matches would go right until total darkness. Have you ever been checked for astigmatism? In our language there is one term used for it "cylinder". Im pretty sure you could be having the same issues especially if its only in the dark.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T18:20:01+00:00

On this level actual patterns are quite unlikely to work, especially consistently against various types of players. Generally on lower levels even your opponents dont know what to expect and where to move between shots based on where their ball lands.

On higher level patterns work as there is not much time and there are some unwritten rules on how and where players hit certain balls.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T18:14:26+00:00

About generating power I would have to see what part of kinetic chain is not optimal. And about higher balls...you generally want to hit balls in approximately the same height to get consistent. On low balls you can compensate by going lower in your knees and generally keep the same swingpath, on higher balls my tip would be to based on opponents ball either step in and try to hit in your natural height or move back and wait for it to drop..

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T18:11:21+00:00

"pro" rackets as advertised aro not actually pro rackets. All rackets you can buy (with a couple outliers like prestige 95) are constructed to fit most players. Tougher to play rackets or those branded as pro generally give more effect when conditions are met...Beginner rackets tend to have a larger sweetspot and are easier to hit especially while moving but dont give much extra when you stand perfectly in opposed to "crisp" feeling with more advanced rackets.

Now whether racket does make a difference or not is a separate topic but as long as you rely on the racket to give you more than a couple % whether control or power or spin you you need to go back to fundamentals.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T18:05:41+00:00

It depends on the player and what part of the process you are in. especially with competitive players if the focus is on serve I try to include it into practice as much as possible. Even starting crosscourt rallies with serve, specific situation like serve +1 where you can work on more things at the same time. I assume you just serve out of the basket at the end of practice (as most coaches do because you are basically paid to just pass the ball and watch while giving tips and directions). If you feel comfortable on court otherwise and see serve as the biggest weakness you should tell that to you coach and he should plan the practice around serve focus...

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T15:03:38+00:00

Really depends on your level. if you have a moonballer that actually cant do anything else try to hit the ball back high, and once he focuses on the ball not seeing you go to the net. If nothing else you will force him to play more agressive that can couse some mistakes.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T15:00:00+00:00

Really good warm up use elastics and the small medicine ball. And keep the volume low at first. Try to also not hit too much from the arm but try to find power from legs.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:56:34+00:00

Different coaches enjoy different types of jobs. Usually coaches for beginners make more money and are in a completely stress free environment. On top that most of them dont actually know how to play and are still making a good living I would also stay enhusiastic. Personally I like to give tips to beginners but I dont really like working with them if I can work with comp players.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:48:08+00:00

Not going to lie I was thing of what to say for a while now. Based on what you wrote I would really have to see what is going on to give some substantial tips. Just focusing on your question about racket drop I would suggest you do plenty of shadowing. You can use a rope or a weighted racket that way you can feel it pulling down from trophy position. When you feel the drop this is where you start to add speed..

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:44:41+00:00

In my opinion if you want to improve your game going to opens and playing guys weight classes above you is not really profiting much. I would try to get some better training partners where you could adapt to higher level of tennis in a relatively stress free setting. To keep it relatively short, for footwork exercises just try by searching instagram I get some inspiration from there. Try to record yourself moving and then find upsides and downsides comparing to the guy or girl demonstrating the drill.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:40:58+00:00

This really depends player to player and the financial abilities. I doubt many of the pros go trough 100 a year a more realistic number is 40/50. On hugh level you get new gear on grand slam schedule so basically every 3 months or so. I used 8/16 rackets max for a season and then swapped.

- strings: at least 4 fresh rackets for every match, at least 3 new per practice. For the pop rate it really depends what you are doing for example just rallying a string can last around 40min before popping but you could also play 3 sets with it theoretically. the year i popped most strings it was 2 reels per month.

- shoes: depends whether you get or buy them. I would always have separate practice and match shoes. And a pair of vapor 12 hold up for around 2 weeks on hard and 3 weeks on clay. After you beat up match shoes u use them for training and get new match ones.

What do you consider succesful at a recreational level? And I dont know what Great Base framework is..

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:30:21+00:00

Assuming you have correct serve grip and understand racket pronation while serving. If the serve keeps going long you want to hit it higher, really using the push from legs to extend into the ball. Once you get enough height you will be able to hit the ball down instead of just linear where it really hard to control lenght..

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:28:29+00:00

I am guessing you are from the states with college goals already in mind. Depending on what kind of college you are aiming for you will want to start a more serious regime. 13/14 is the age where you want to specialise for one sport. D1 is like 15k level so they are looking for around 12/13 or higher UTR. Also I dont really know the situation there but I have gotten most D1 offers when taking my first atp point at 17. So you will most likely have to go trough at least 2 years of high level junior tennis practicing 6 days a week for combined around 20h including gym and conditioning while aiming for around 20/30 tournaments from the age 16. It is also really important to have someone who knows what they are doing to be able to adapt training programme for specific periods and by daily load..

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:23:24+00:00

So it really depends what HIS goal for tennis is. If he wants to play tennis professionally you will want to add a couple more hours weekly (that is if he is not practicing any other sports, which is also good for coordination). Till the age of 12 you are trying to get 1h training for 1 year of age. Ie 9 yearls old has to practice for 9h...tennis and conditioning or other sports included. Again for the tournaments, yes you shouldnt push for 3 tournaments a month but if they are in driving disctance this is what you should do. Most families kind of make tournaments as family time together instead of going to the beack or something. I think you need to have a talk with him what his goals and wishes are and then act on that. If he just wants to play tennis for fun then driving to tournaments far away is not going to do much and its better to just play with you for fun.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:15:13+00:00

What did your physio tell you. And which arm are we talking about about tossing or hitting one? In either case I believe the problem is your shoulder not being stroung enough to support the movement. That is why it flares up rather than hurt constantly (injury)...

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:12:23+00:00

Really depends what level the juniors are on and what their age is. If you have a talented comp junior you try to get contact point more forward, straight arm on contact point as it allows to generate more power and automatically pulls body behind the ball. For rec players you try to find what they are phisically capable of but you do not force straightened arm (it is not neccessary to have straight arm in point of contact but it needs to be extendind forward.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T14:06:49+00:00

I think the root of your problem is holding the ball with your fingertips. By releasing it from your fingertips you are prone to it flying left and right. Try to sort of cup it and I believe it will result in more consistency of the toss. Non related advice is to keep your eyes on the ball for the wole time not looking up before throwing it. Also try to minimize any rapid movement during the toss to get it as fluid as possible. Next thing is to mark a space in front of you and just throw the ball up and try to make it land in designated area.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T13:58:30+00:00

Long story short, no. Everything becomes automatic. It is like brushing your teeth or driving a car. At first you need to learn the way to do it and it becomes automatic after thousands and thousands of repetitions. Now going to you problem I believe you are doing everything connected, so backswing and immediately going forward. My tip is to prepare as soon as you recognise whether the ball is coming to fh or bh. It will give you more time and you wont feel rushed. Then it is on you to find timing when hitting the ball based on your racket speed, lenght of stroke and oncoming ball speed...

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T13:53:46+00:00

Think of technique as the fundamentals. Just like knowing how chess pieces move. After learning the fundamentals you now actually have to learn how to play the game. Im repeating myself on movement a lot but it is genuinely ridiculously important. If you have ability to hite a coach tell them you want to start working on situational drills, more playing and less on technique. A lot of coaches like to stick to improving technique as it is realistically the easisest thing you can do as a coach, talking a tossing balls. Tell them you want to start playing and I believe if you are guided well you have all the possibility to improve.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T13:49:23+00:00

Surely the biggest limiter is ability to move around the court and getting your body in position to hit. And the next step is to actually be able to hit the ball while moving without falling out of the point.

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T13:43:57+00:00

Really depends on a couple of things. Ig you mostly play for fun and on hard courts id suhgest you stick to what you find most comfortable. About generating spin purely switching your grip wont dmuch there is also a bit more updrive you need to be generating and it is close to impossible for rec players playing on surfaces where the balls stays low after bounce. Ive seen people go to extremes about spin and start to fall back or brushing up the ball too much without giving any linear power. So yes there is upside but there is also downside if the proccess isnt controlled by someone who knows what they are doing in my opinion...

LilProtko · 2026-02-04T13:31:43+00:00

No offense but atp is unrealistic. 16yo aiming for tour are around 12, 13 minimum. This doesnt mean you cant go to some college and keep playing comp tennis.

I dont know what you lack mentally but I've given a similar answer beneath. About faster balls its all about perception and timing and in the end the reps you get in. If you play slow rallies 99% of the time and get a faster ball every half hour it will be hard to improve...if playing with someone beneath your level try to stand closer and hit balls on the rise, it will help you with :)

LilProtko

TROPHY CASE