Ask Nick: Timing troubles, the age of champions, "seeing the ball"

Dear Nick: I am a 4.0 player with a one-handed backhand. I mainly hit it with an Eastern backhand grip. When I face a hard hitter playing with tons of topspin, my form tends to fall apart and my timing goes off completely. I would truly appreciate your thoughts on this issue.—Peter Angjeleski, Queens, NY

Hi Peter: Here are three options for you to offset your difficulties:

1) Without changing your grip, move in and make contact with the ball earlier before it gets too high on your backhand.
2) Move back and let the ball drop down into a comfortable hitting zone, then hit back up on the ball.
3) Adjust from an Eastern to a semi-Western backhand grip, used by most top players today.

P.S. Many top players will chip back these high balls to their backhand if they cannot implement any of the above options and wait for a better opportunity.

Dear Nick, Today’s champions are much older; yesteryear’s were much younger. Will we eventually come full circle? How do you think today’s youngsters should be coached? Should we stretch the development roadmap or compress it? Can we forecast?—Rahul Gupte, Chicago, IL

Hi Rahul: No one can predict the future, but if the WTA and ATP tours have big, strong athletes on top of the rankings, this will make it very difficult for teenagers to make it to the highest ranks. Can you imagine a young teenager playing Serena Williams, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Milos Raonic? All sorts of injuries would be the result. I can never it’s say impossible, but considering the depth of the tours today, it will be a difficult task for a youngster to come up from the lower levels. I advise many young players with exceptional talent to consider playing a few years in college. The cost of coming up the ranks is extremely expensive and risky.

Dear Nick, What are your thoughts on “seeing the ball” as it makes contact with your racquet? Is it a myth, or do the best players really see the ball hit the strings? Most teaching pros ask students to keep your eye on the ball. How much can I possibly see?—Geno Ellison, Atlanta, GA

Hi Geno: I believe it’s a great teaching aid to ask students to watch the ball until it hits their strings. It makes them stay with the ball longer and helps them avoid pulling off the ball too soon. In my opinion, however, it is a myth that a person can actually see the ball hit the stings, in the truest sense. Watching Roger Federer’s head stay with the ball until the ball hits his strings may prove otherwise, but I don’t think a person can actually see what happens in a fraction of a second.

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