This Post is for my father, T.N. Bala, who passed away this Memorial Day Weekend. It was the saddest day of my life. My father was 85 years of age. May his soul rest in peace for eternity. And God bless all those who offered their condolences. Gary
"[I]f play is brainfood, then ball play is like a high-protein,
calorie-packed energy bar. The ball may be the most animate of inanimate objects in our
material world. . . my own term to describe balls as objects [is]: kinetically
interesting. Balls can bounce, roll, be struck, thrown and caught fairly easily at a wide
range of speeds. They are highly aerodynamic and yet unpredictable in their trajectory, capable
in the hands of a deft knuckleball pitcher of appearing to defy the laws of physics. .
. Balls are also by nature social tools. They draw animals and humans together, inviting either
cooperation or competition, or as in most sports, some dynamic combination of the two."
- By learning from the styles and attributes of the great stars
of the past, says Peter Burwash of PBI in his latest piece for Tennis Magazine,
"Learning from the Past", pp. 38-43 (June 2012)
In this masterful article, Burwash readily admits that there's a
lot to admire in the games of today's top pros such as their remarkable power, accuracy and
fitness.
But he admonishes that today's recreational and club players may
not be able to "copy" such super-charged games.
And he suggests that we "mere mortal" players may profit much
more by simply studying the styles of yesteryear's players.
Here are a few examples: 1. Forehand of Bjorn Borg - Borg's heavy
Western topspin blazed the trail for today's pro forehand, explains Burwash. Lesson: hit with more topspin
and higher over the net.
2. Backhand of Ken Rosewall - The
one-hander will become more important as you get older, says Burwash. Lesson: You can use it to get better
reach to offset the fact we get slower as we age.
3.Volleys of Billie Jean King - King has
the perfect technique on the forehand volley, writes Burwash. Very short take-back, no huge backswing, and an open racket
face. Lesson: "Catch" your volley, don't "punch"
it.
4.Finish the Stroke like Andres Gimeno -
Burwash comments that he never saw any player hit and stay through
the ball into the court as well as Gimeno. Lesson: Staying through the
swing pushes the ball deep towards the baseline, making sure
your opponent cannot hurt you.
5.Move Between Points like Steffi
Graf - For Burwash, no one offered a better example
of footwork, especially between points, than Steffi Graf. You can't play very good tennis, no matter the
quality of your strokes, if you are out of position. Lesson:
Work on improving footwork between points and, for that matter,
before every point.
For more insights and illustrations, check out Burwash's fine
review in the June 2012 issue of Tennis Magazine.
Best,
Gary
Video: The Top Thirty Tennis Players of All Time By: itakse
In
current theoretical physics, the 11th dimension is a characteristic of
space-time proposed by physicists who study "quantum mechanics". It is
used to help explain a larger scientific theory called the "Grand
Unified Theory" or "Theory of Everything" (TOE).
The
11th Dimension of Tennis is about a super state of tennis play - playing
tennis in the ultimate free, loose and relaxed state. Some call it "The
Zone".
Watch, listen and enjoy this video . . . and continuously find new ways to play tennis more free, more loose, more relaxed . . .
Video: Rotational Power of Federer and Nadal By: TUENTRENADOR
Why is a rotating object so pleasing for us to see?
Think
of any rotating object - a ball, a sphere, or even a coin. Why do we
like to watch it? Why are we sometimes even mesmerized by it? Because
there appears to be a "smoothness" or "fluidity" or "flow" to such
an object which the human eye is naturally attracted to. Indeed, there
seems to be something strangely hypnotic and appealing about the
object's rotating quality.
Think again about more rotating objects. Think of a spinning
top. Think of the waves of the ocean at the beach. Think of that
old toy for kids called the "Slinky". Think of a swinging pendulum.
Think also of watching a video of a tennis ball rotating in slow-motion
hit by your favorite pro. And on "contact" the spin of the ball changes,
and it suddenly spins in a different direction.
The sight of rotation for most of us appears to be magnetic.
Why is rotational force so fundamental to our world?
The
power and constancy of rotation is self-evident everywhere in our
world. And it appears to be a primary force in our universe in creating
energy and motion. Our Earth rotates on its axis, and also rotates
around the sun. Our sun and solar system rotate within the galaxy. Our
galaxy itself rotates around its core, and rotates within our observable
universe.
And on the other side of the cosmic scale, at the
sub-atomic level, electrons rotate around protons and neutrons. The
electron itself was recently measured by scientists at the Imperial
College London as the purest spherical object in nature, and itself
always rotating or spinning on an axis.
Thus, rotation is fundamental.
How does rotational power work in tennis?
Rotational
power in tennis essentially comes from rotating your hips and
shoulders into the shot. Your arm and racket head follows from behind
your body and completes a full follow-through in a circular motion.
Some coaches describe this as "sinking and coiling, and lifting and
uncoiling". You are using your body's largest parts to power the racket
head "through the line of the shot", and the shot "through the
body of the court."
This is the bio-mechanical generation of power and spin through the release of the human kinetic chain:
1. From ground to foot & ankle
2. ankle to knee
3. knee to hip
4. hip to shoulder
5. shoulder to elbow
6. elbow through forearm
7. wrist & hand into ball contact point
