

Hey, It’s Different Over Here


Parenting AcesLisa Stone, of the Parenting Aces blog, recently took a lesson at the Global Tennis Team Academy in Spain “run by well-known coach Jofre Porta who has worked with Carlos Moya and Rafa Nadal among others” and it was a real eye opener for her.  Here are some excerpts from her recent article and a link to the whole article:

Before I hit a single ball in my lesson, Veni asked me to hold up my hands in a specific way to create a small triangle.  He then had me look through the triangle so he could determine which is my dominant eye.  When I asked him why that is important, he explained that it impacts the way they teach players to move and to position themselves around the ball.  He went on to share with me that I am left-handed and right-eyed, just like Rafa!  Federer, on the other hand, is right-handed and left-eyed, but many players are same-side dominant with both their hands and eyes.

…this wasn’t your typical “let’s hit 10 forehands crosscourt then 10 down the line then switch to backhands” drill.  Veni stood on the same side of the net as me and hand-fed balls to various spots on the court.  He directed me where to hit each ball and how to recover on the slippery clay, forcing me to concentrate very hard on my legs. …After 8 balls, I was huffing and puffing like I was 80 years old!  Please remember that I’m a fitness instructor who also does yoga twice a week and plays tennis once or twice a week, so it’s not like I’m totally out of shape (or so I thought)!  This drill was ROUGH!


Categories: Clinics
Peter Green

3 Responses

  1. George says:

    Most of the past US tennis greats were striking the ball cleanly by the age of 3. Then according to Maxwell Gladwell’s theory that it takes about 10000 hours to become a “Outlier”. That usually takes 10 years. Agassi at the age of 13 destroyed the football great Jim Brown. Thats alot of commitment by parents before their prodigy enters any type of professional development. Are parents able to sacrifice this part of their lives.

  2. Trevor Rees says:

    Hey Peter,

    Great blog!!! I think it’s cool when you can learn new drills and improve your game. I just started playing tennis again out in the St. Louis Missouri area where I live and the club I belong is into drilling sessions. I have done drills like the one Lisa wrote about it and they have improved my game. I’m glad your still playing and writing about tennis game. Take care my friend. Regards, Trevor Rees

  3. Peter Green says:

    Great hearing from you. I am glad you are playing tennis again. Maybe our paths will cross again sometime.