Bailey Tennis Footwork

To break someone’s rhythm in tennis …you need to be brave and hit a lower percentage shot

But in the end, it’s worth it if it comes off!

Yet …brave shots are usually harder to do …but …I think …if used about 20% of the time …they can be devastatingly effective ……….take Carlos Alcaraz for example …he is the master of rhythm breaking

However, …they are not easy to execute …and …certainly….they need to be practiced enough so you trust them when under tournament pressure

Here is my 8 top favourite BUT ADVANCED
Rhythm Breaking shots :

1.) Closed BH angle
2.) Runaround FH drop shot
3.) BH Carrioca slice (down the line)
4.) FH Drop Shot
5.) FH Lateral Hop angle
6.) BH Rhythmical low angled slice
7.) BH Drop Shot
8.) FH 1 Foot pivot (High heavy to the BH)

Try them as one complete 8 shot drill ….then throw them in with a Meat and potato 🥔 shot …….and select one every 8th shot…remember they work better as deceptions of sequence …that is…..make it look like you are about to hit a regular shot …and hit a rhythm breaker instead

Be brave!!! and have fun getting deceptive

Interesting note on choreography in tennis from Brain Game Tennis

Novak Djokovic hits approximately 85% to 90% of his drop shots from the backhand wing, with only 10% to 15% struck off his forehand.
A detailed breakdown of his drop shot directional tendencies includes:
• Backhand Down the Line: ~63%
• Backhand Crosscourt: ~23%
• Forehand Crosscourt: ~8%
• Forehand Down the Line: -6%

Carlos Alcaraz heavily favors his forehand for drop shots. 67.8% from his forehand side and only 32.2% from his backhand.

A big difference in their respective Drop Shot preference
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To break someone’s rhythm in tennis …you need to be brave and hit a lower percentage shot

But in the end, it’s worth it if it comes off!

Yet …brave shots are usually harder to do …but …I think …if used about 20% of the time …they can be devastatingly effective ……….take Carlos Alcaraz for example …he is the master of rhythm breaking

However, …they are not easy to execute …and …certainly….they need to be practiced enough so you trust them when under tournament pressure

Here is my 8 top favourite BUT ADVANCED
Rhythm Breaking shots :

1.) Closed BH angle
2.) Runaround FH drop shot
3.) BH Carrioca slice (down the line)
4.) FH Drop Shot
5.) FH Lateral Hop angle
6.) BH Rhythmical low angled slice
7.) BH Drop Shot
8.) FH 1 Foot pivot (High heavy to the BH)

Try them as one complete 8 shot drill ….then throw them in with a Meat and potato 🥔 shot …….and select one every 8th shot…remember they work better as deceptions of sequence …that is…..make it look like you are about to hit a regular shot …and hit a rhythm breaker instead

Be brave!!! and have fun getting deceptive

Interesting note on choreography in tennis from Brain Game Tennis

Novak Djokovic hits approximately 85% to 90% of his drop shots from the backhand wing, with only 10% to 15% struck off his forehand.
A detailed breakdown of his drop shot directional tendencies includes:
• Backhand Down the Line: ~63%
• Backhand Crosscourt: ~23%
• Forehand Crosscourt: ~8%
• Forehand Down the Line: -6%

Carlos Alcaraz heavily favors his forehand for drop shots. 67.8% from his forehand side and only 32.2% from his backhand.

A big difference in their respective Drop Shot preference

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

Tai Chi Tennis Yoga
I like Tennis Tai Chi / Yoga as a group warm up at the very beginning of a lesson where the leader hits and the rest of the group shadow the leader and thus swing at the same time as the hitter out in front

It is called Tennis Tai Chi / Yoga as the emphasis is on :
1.) Strength
2.) Breathing
3.) Balance
4.) Timing
5.) Contact Point
6.) While Freezing the finish and slowing everything down

I particularly like it performed from the service line..... while the ball is thrown over the net by the coach …and …that ….everything is overemphasised..... so it can be better felt and understood !

The 4 boys demonstrating were fly in clinic clients of mine just this week.

Their names where Amrit, Simeon, Reid and Elijah

They all flew in from the
Huether Family Match Pointe Tennis Facility in
Sioux falls South Dakota

They were amazing students and even nicer boys …and so respectful and dedicated

Thanks for putting in the hard yards guys

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

Tai Chi Tennis Yoga
I like Tennis Tai Chi / Yoga as a group warm up at the very beginning of a lesson where the leader hits and the rest of the group shadow the leader and thus swing at the same time as the hitter out in front

It is called Tennis Tai Chi / Yoga as the emphasis is on :
1.) Strength
2.) Breathing
3.) Balance
4.) Timing
5.) Contact Point
6.) While Freezing the finish and slowing everything down

I particularly like it performed from the service line..... while the ball is thrown over the net by the coach …and …that ….everything is overemphasised..... so it can be better felt and understood !

The 4 boys demonstrating were fly in clinic clients of mine just this week.

Their names where Amrit, Simeon, Reid and Elijah

They all flew in from the
Huether Family Match Pointe Tennis Facility in
Sioux falls South Dakota

They were amazing students and even nicer boys …and so respectful and dedicated

Thanks for putting in the hard yards guys

This post is dedicated to to the fantastic song
“ Spirit bird” by Australian singer songwriter Xavier Rudd …”Soldier on boys”

"Let the warrior spirit live on"

One of my favourite ❤️ songs

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

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Coco Uniqueness = Legend to be!

In a WTA Frequency study of
6,167 Ground shots done by me…

The Women players recorded hit
Off 1 Leg 25% of the time
Where Grounded 28% of the time on
Snapped the hips 27% of the time on
Transferred from 1 foot to the other 20% of the time

However
Coco Gauff in the rally above hit of 1 leg 63% of the time
Hip Snapped 25% of the time
Transferred 12% of the time on
And was never Grounded

Yes, it is only 1 rally but Coco is often hitting of 1 leg way more than the other women on the tour…as did her great mentor and role model Serena Williams

Why because it works well for COCO!!

The point is that many of the legends of the game ( those that have won 5 or more Grand Slams (in my opinion are considered legends) ..often have a great uniqueness about their “ Way of Play”

No WTA players have a “Way of Play” or “Playing Personality” like -
Serena and Venus Williams
Steffi Graf
Monica Seles
Maria Sharapova
Justine Henin
Martina Navratilova
Martina Hingis &
Iga Swaitek to name a few

I believe Coco WILL BE a legend

She is too good an athlete and too much of a competitor not to be …AND NO OTHER WTA tour player plays like her!

Uniqueness makes you special !!!

Good luck in the French Open …Coco

👉 TAP THE LINK to learn more about our revolutionary tennis footwork and movement training programs - http://ow.ly/kLFZ50LFmlP 👊🎾

This is Tennis Footwork like never before! 👣💪👣💪

Energy and focused = Locked in!
i.e. 100% mentally engaged and physically present

This is so important even in a warm -up

That’s why I like this a warmup more than service line SOFT hitting back and forth over the net at low intensity, thus getting into lazy movement habits

The good thing about the wall and small hard ball (as seen above) ….is that it comes back faster than a medicine or basketball plus.....you must get the release point accurate

It also targets the Golden 12 Contact Moves and 4 athletic skills of staying grounded, hitting off 1 leg , snapping the hips, and transferring from 1 foot to the other!

Yet…it also warmups the cardio system with good direct breathing on ball release + it is a multi-directional warm up !!!

But... most importantly it can be done by yourself …even off court on wet days....just find a wall!

Plus…it also warms up your energy and focus …my two favourite words on tennis!

Lock in during your warm up...... and you will be ready to lock in during your match or practice!

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

Energy and focused = Locked in!
i.e. 100% mentally engaged and physically present

This is so important even in a warm -up

That’s why I like this a warmup more than service line SOFT hitting back and forth over the net at low intensity, thus getting into lazy movement habits

The good thing about the wall and small hard ball (as seen above) ….is that it comes back faster than a medicine or basketball plus.....you must get the release point accurate

It also targets the Golden 12 Contact Moves and 4 athletic skills of staying grounded, hitting off 1 leg , snapping the hips, and transferring from 1 foot to the other!

Yet…it also warmups the cardio system with good direct breathing on ball release + it is a multi-directional warm up !!!

But... most importantly it can be done by yourself …even off court on wet days....just find a wall!

Plus…it also warms up your energy and focus …my two favourite words on tennis!

Lock in during your warm up...... and you will be ready to lock in during your match or practice!

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

thebaileymethod baileytennisfootwork elitetennisfootwork

I truly believe that having tennis statistics available really helps justify your choice of what Contact Moves you should teach in tennis

The video above shows the frequency of the 12 Golden Moves of tennis from data collected from a frequency study of over 22, 000 shots used by ATP and WTA professional players …such as Djokovic. Nadal, Federer, Alcaraz, Serena Williams to name a few!!

What’s important to note here…. is that the study included not just groundstrokes ….but volleys, approach shots and returns!

The reason that the Power Move can first was that it was used 3x more than the second most common return and was the 2nd most common volley …while the Closed BH was used 4x more than the 2nd most common Groundstroke

However….. just because a Contact Move is used most frequently….doesn’t mean it is more important because some moves like the Front Foot Hop are more aggressive and thus used less…..because it is more common as a. approach shot than a groundstroke!!

Here is the list of frequency of the Golden 12 Contact Moves:

Again ….Note: The frequency study includes groundstrokes FHs, BHs & Runarounds) , volleys, returns and approach shots

1st : Power Move
2nd: Closed BH
3rd: Mogul Move
4th: 1 Foot Pivot
5th: Low Step Down
6th: Lateral Hop
7th: Loaded Transfer
8th: Low Spin
9th: Reverse Spin
10th: Back Foot Hop
11th: 2 Foot Pivot
12th: Front Foot Hop

Importantly …the above list is based on statical information ..it is not educated guess work!

👉 TAP THE LINK IN OUR BIO to learn more about the Bailey Method and our revolutionary Tennis Footwork and Movement Programs.

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