The first tactical key is high shot tolerance or minimizing unforced errors often easier said and done. My 12-year-old daughter just played her first national tournament, the Spring Nationals in Florida. I charted unforced errors in two matches containing 36 games. Listen carefully she lost every single game with three or more unforced errors and won every single game when she had two or less unforced errors, very interesting. Here are some tips and drills that help develop this skill. The first one creates a visual consequence for making unforced errors.
In this exercise two players compete in a regular set or a bounce hit game until one player reaches 15 points. They each place an extra racquet in the same position leaning against one of the vertical poles of the court fence. Then when anyone makes an unforced error that player jogs to the fence and moves their racquet to the next fence pole.
At the end of the game it is very clear how many unforced errors each player made. Just remember that in practice and matches juniors should maintain a solid swing speed for their level.
The next shot tolerance game is all about setting achievable goals. In this example I have asked 12-year-old Kalindy to hit three balls in a row in order to start each point. The idea is to show her what she is capable of and then ask her if this is the standard she can maintain. Remember that the goal is to build confidence and help her love tennis. Other options include requiring a higher number of shots and also that balls must land past the service line.
My theory is that most inconsistent juniors have mixed motivations or they would focus more. Therefore, drills to build shot tolerance needs almost trick them to a new standard of focus rather than trying to force them into consistency by commanding that they stop making unforced errors. Give these drills a try or create your own variations and see the difference that they can make.
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