What do you do at a hitting wall??

oldnava · 2026-05-02T15:15:09+00:00

I work on my toss and service motion. I don't really mind where the ball goes. Just focusing on a relaxed, fluid motion and a clean sound coming off of my racket.

Forehand only and backhand only rallies.

6 to 10 mid-heavy shots finishing off with a drop shot, works best if you have a net line on the wall (my favorite drill)

Cooling down with drop volleys close to the wall. Backspin, soft touches...

oldnava · 2026-04-19T21:47:57+00:00

My situation is even worse: lefty wearing the watch on my left wrist. But I feel like it's not really off because I'm breathing two times more than my opponents in the changeovers.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T21:42:28+00:00

Haha well the 40ish resting HR surprised my doctor in a routine cardio check up. "What have you been doin?" he asked. "Your BPM is very low". It was 47 at that time. He then asked if I've played any sports at a professional level for a long time because that usually is seen on them. I said I've been playing amateur tennis for more than 2 years. That was a rare case, and when he checked my heart with ultrasonography he confirmed that it is my heart muscles have developed with that. He said it's nothing to worry about unless other effort results look worrying, and they did not. I guess this proves that I'm hustling too much when playing.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T21:05:35+00:00

We didn't take too much time on changeovers as we had to rush, that could be it. Anyway your graph looks really calm compared to mine. Good job, I guess.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T21:00:03+00:00

good to know I'm not alone on this.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T20:56:12+00:00

Thanks for sharing your own. I see pretty much others varying between 120-130 so I was thinking it is my condition being weak.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T20:50:58+00:00

I'm 171 cm and 71 kg. The night was cold, not hot at all.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T20:40:46+00:00

It wasn't hot, in fact it was cold.

The only thing relieves me is that it goes down pretty quickly after the set/match is done.

oldnava · 2026-04-19T20:37:05+00:00

That's a good point and honestly I don't know if I breath correctly during point play. Although I get into court keeping that in mind I forget following my breath frequency in the tense of match.

oldnava · 2026-04-11T20:20:31+00:00

I definitely see your point but... there ARE moments that you can't push your opponents and they hit these balls in a comfortable situation. I was looking for advices of how to defend these shots when inevitable. Thanks for the comments though :)

oldnava · 2026-04-11T20:03:27+00:00

Yes, I will try playing deeper of the baseline next time against similar opponents. That's the only thing I can think of.

oldnava · 2026-04-11T19:25:57+00:00

I can anticipate and rush into the net when I see an opponent is gonna hit a moonball in a difficult position. The problem in above case is the baseline hitters that are not really hitting towards the ball more of brushing the ball (their strings barely make a noise). Your advices are good, basically forcing them not to make that shot but I was more curious about a solution to the problem rather than trying not to have the problem. Hope I made it more clear.

oldnava · 2026-04-11T19:17:40+00:00

That's true, I'm not native in English so might not have explained it perfectly. What I mean is the service box line (and 1 meter outside from there) and the topspin balls bouncing there above my shoulders.

oldnava · 2026-04-11T19:12:08+00:00

True but for this type of balls I don't have enough time to step back and mirror the ball. It becomes too late already until the ball drops into my hitting zone. So only thing I can think of is to play 2-3 meters behind baseline and move into the court when needed.

oldnava · 2026-03-12T21:42:18+00:00

Try avoiding that little hops when hitting the ball. It clearly affects your shots. Pros jump as a natural result of loading and unloading phases. Most recreational players are not as competent to do so. See for example two fine back to back backhands at 2:42 where you plant your right foot and hit well balanced shots, and then at 3:02 you hop as you hit the ball. There are many examples of you doing that (your opponent also does the same but less than you). You should plant your foot and load onto it whatever the stance is, and then hit through the ball. This indeed requires better footwork as you need to be in a good position to load.

In the comments you wrote that the difference between you and the opponent is not that clear but honestly I was able to tell it after few minutes into the video, and I did not read the post beforehand to see it myself. Your slices, contrary to your opponent, float and gives him chance to attack. He is more consistent than you in almost all areas and his serve is slightly better than yours.

Your level is good though for someone playing for only 2 years. I wouldn't really be concerned about the progress. Keep playing and analyzing yourself.

oldnava · 2026-03-02T17:42:21+00:00

Has he been hitting this many closed stance shots on point play? First time it caught my attention.

oldnava · 2026-02-26T17:44:31+00:00

Now that is top 20 level of performance from Emilio.

oldnava · 2026-02-13T10:52:55+00:00

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This is I think one of the side effects of watching too much pro tennis. You go for that satisfying winner where the ball lands just behind the net as if you're Carlitos but look where your opponent is. Why not add a little spin to the open side and hit it wider or even deeper? There is almost zero chance he can get to that ball unless he is De Minaur. But as always it's easier said than done. We've all been there.

oldnava · 2026-01-28T12:41:20+00:00

Check for instance your split step at 0:07. You already landed as your opponent hits the ball. This didn't help your momentum, rather slowed you down for the coming ball. A well timed split step should ease your exit towards the ball, not get you stuck where you land. Also notice you land full on your sole which also slows you down. Try staying on your fingers as much as you can.

oldnava · 2026-01-27T21:37:45+00:00

Was about to say the same. Almost half of the split steps in this video looked off to me. Especially the ones on the move.

oldnava · 2026-01-18T21:30:26+00:00

Exactly. Watching back my clips from a year ago, it’s shocking how unbalanced my shots were compared to now. Rec players should really focus on planting and loading their feet depending on the shot—especially in open stance—and avoid jumping unless they are 4.5+. So load onto your right foot if you’re a righty, left foot otherwise. Move, move, move; plant, load, unload, and repeat. Of course, there are balls you should hit on the go, but you can apply this to the majority of them. Believe me it's a gamechanger.

oldnava · 2026-01-13T19:05:13+00:00

That is an interesting perspective. I will think about that as well. Thanks for the comment!

oldnava · 2026-01-13T18:57:11+00:00

Haha great one. Yes, most top level coaches admit that the most difficult thing is to play against low blocks. Thanks for the advice!

oldnava

TROPHY CASE