James Blake and Ryan Sweeting have been commenting about how it is unfair to compare USA players in the past with the current players. The media have been harsh towards the lack of results and compare them to Agassi, Sampras, Chang, Courier, etc.
“It could be a little bit unfair,” James Blake told the Memphis Daily News. “But it’s part of what you let yourself in for when you’re on the ATP tour. Guys like (Sam) Querrey and Donald Young are starting to deal with it, guys like Ryan Harrison and Jack Sock, will be dealing with it. I dealt with it, Andy [Roddick] dealt with it, and I know early on Andy got a little frustrated. But you know the questions are going to be part of any press conference. So you just give your stock answer and go on.”
For most of us, coordination is something innate and we don’t believe it is possible to improve it. Let’s look at coordination and see what new concepts and what kind of training is available for it.
Hand-Eye Coordination
We have experienced an evolution in our concepts of coordination. I remember first reading about hand-eye coordination three decades ago. This was the idea that explored the relationship between what we saw and what action we were able to take as a result. So, this concept talked about seeing the ball and being able to take a swing and hitting the ball. It was a very good concept for helping us understand that there was a relationship between what we saw and what actions we could take because of it.
Rhythm and Timing
The latest ideas about coordination are based in the concepts of rhythm and timing. This concept gets us a little deeper into the relationships between our brain circuits and the rest of our body. This concept explores timing circuits in our brain and how they relate to our muscles, our sensory mechanisms, and our perceptions.
It looks at something called “motor sequencing and planning.” Basically, our coordination is about which muscles are fired off, in which sequence, to achieve some action. Coordination happens when those muscles are contracted and relaxed in the proper form at the proper time. I know that this all sounds very complex, and in reality it is incredibly complex. But, we don’t have to know exactly which brain cell or which nerve path, or which muscle gets involved with these actions. All we need to do is swing the racket and hit the ball where we want it to go.
What are Rhythm And Timing?
Timing is about the action happening at the appropriate moment to achieve the outcome. In a tennis serve, if the athlete hits the ball too early, the ball will go beyond the line and if the athlete hits the ball too late the ball will hit the net. Timing is about hitting the ball at the right time.
We often hear broadcasters telling us that an athlete has lost their timing. They (and we) see this when the player starts making double faults and unforced errors. The athlete is not hitting the ball at the precise time needed, so the ball is not going to the appropriate place.
Rhythm is about the flow of events. For the highest level of performance, an athlete needs to recognize and enter the flow of the play (often referred to as the rhythm-of-the-game) and then match it or manage it. Roger Federer is a master at entering into the rhythm of the other player’s game, and then changing the rhythm and ‘confusing’ the other player, which causes the other player to make an unforced error. Broadcasters often refer to Roger “stealing” the other player’s rhythm.
Athletes with the highest capability in rhythm are able to enter any rhythm, can change their rhythm whenever they want, and are not confused when the rhythm changes. The most common problems in rhythm is inability to recognize and match the rhythm of the other player and the inability to maintain themselves steady in their own rhythm.
Scott Hamilton talks about an ice skater entering a jump for 3 revolutions and “popping-out” after only one revolution. I really like that term to describe what I see when an athlete loses their rhythm in the middle of their play. As they lose their rhythm, they stop their own flow of play. Maintaining a steady rhythm and adapting to the existing rhythm are essential for the highest level of play.
What Affects Rhythm And Timing?
Poor rhythm and timing can be improved with proper training. This training involves tens of thousands of reps of very simple exercises maintaining a precise rhythm. It involves testing to track improvement in rhythm and timing.
Good rhythm and timing can be reduced by a variety of things. Injury, surgery, and some illnesses can disrupt the timing relationships between brain circuits and muscles and this requires training to re-establish the proper timing relationships.
Improper diet, environmental toxins, and emotional or physical trauma can temporarily degrade rhythm and timing. These can be avoided with proper precautions or overcome with some mental and physical techniques.
Rhythm And Timing On The Tennis Court
Want to see your favorite tennis player testing and activating their good rhythm and timing? Watch the player prepare to serve the ball. Notice the bouncing they do before the serve? They are verifying their continued good rhythm and timing. If they cannot maintain a good rhythm in that bouncing and catching exercise, they will perform poorly in the next point.
The same goes for receiving a serve. The swaying back and forth is a way of verifying and activating their own good rhythm and timing. Some (like Juan Martin del Potro) even do a little dance to test and re-connect with their good rhythm and timing, when waiting for a serve.
Rhythm and Timing, So What?
From my perspective, Novak Djokovic is doing so well this year because his rhythm and timing are so precise. And, Roger Federer, James Blake, and Andy Roddick are players who could move up dramatically in the standings by improving their rhythm and timing.
If you were to ask the casual tennis fan to name as many American male tennis players off of the top of their head as possible, most would easily name Mardy Fish, Andy Roddick, and John Isner. After these three, a blank would be drawn. The lack of resurgence from American male players since the end of the Sampras-Agassi era has been disappointing in the eyes of many fans to say the least. The only two American players to have reached a Grand Slam semifinal since 2003 are Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick. In the defense of American players, the male game has become very top heavy in recent years with Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic becoming fixtures in the final four of majors.
The letdown of American male tennis players in the last 5-7 years is often viewed the wrong way. Many have been led to believe that there simply has been a lag in American talent. This statement is easily falsifiable. Currently, there are 10 Americans in the top 100 in the world. This is the most of any country apart from Spain, which has 13 men ranked in the top 100.
Now this begs question of has there actually been a letdown of talent or a failure of high expectations? I think undoubtedly the latter is the answer. Following the legacies of greats such as Agassi, Sampras, and Courier is no short task. It would be unreasonable to expect any group of any players from any country during any time period to achieve on the same level as these Americans did during the 80s’ and 90s.
If you go back in history, the only county since the beginning of the open era (1968) to achieve something comparable to what the Americans of the 1990′s achieved were Swedes in the 70s and 80s. Wilander, Borg, and Edberg combined for 24 grand slams over an 18 year period. The combination of Agassi, Sampras, Courier, collected 27 grandslams in 13 years.
A prime example of a player that has “failed” in the eyes of many Americans is Donald Young. When Donald Young was 15 people were sighting him as the next big star and a shoe in as a future number one based on his success at Junior National Championships in Kalamazoo which he was winning. Currently ranked 89th in the world, Young is 22 and already considered a bust. It is extremely premature to declare the career of a 22 year old a disappointment. Recently, many players have enjoyed their greatest successes near the end of their careers. Two examples of this are Mardy Fish, who has surged to a career high ranking of number 7 at age 29 and Jurgen Melzer, a journeymen Austrian who made his deepest career run in every single major coincidentally at the age of 29.
With players on the rise such as Mardy Fish, Ryan Harrison, Sam Querrey, Donald Young, John Isner, Alex Bogomolov Jr. , and Ryan Sweeting the future of American tennis appears to be very promising. And while this group of players will unlikely achieve the greatness of those in the 1990s, it would be wise to hold off on the bust word for a while.
James Blake wasnt really having a great time at Wimbledon yesterday. While playing his match he could hear Pam Shriver talking about him and not being very pleasant about his game!
All happens at about 4:30. Sorry for the intro on the video.
JB: “Amazing you used to play tennis. I can still hear you.”
PS: “James just yelled at me . . . I’m way above the court, but evidently he can hear me. He’s got rabbit ears.”
JB: “You have to be an ass about it, too? . . . And act like I’m at fault.”
PS: “And there he is, talking again. It’s amazing. I had no idea.”
I love how Pam comments and states she is way above the court, but when they pan up at her she is only like five meters maximum.
