Is Tennis Hard to Learn?
Without any doubt, tennis is one of the most popular sports, having millions of fans worldwide. Nowadays, more and more people try to learn tennis and there are several reasons for this. First of all, tennis is a very active game, which promotes health in general, physical activity, and helps to develop motor skills. You will definitely improve speed of movement, agility, endurance and will have a good sense of balance and coordination after learning the basics of tennis. Secondly, tennis is a great game for mental health, which allows you to relax after a hard working day, bringing much fun and excitement. In addition to this, it gives you social benefits, as you meet people, who share the same interests, so it will be easy to make friends on the court.
You may wonder, is tennis hard to learn? Well, after reading this article you will have a better understanding of this question.
Tennis is a demanding sport and requires continuous efforts in order to master the game and play at the competitive level. The fundamental tennis skills are the following: good footwork, movement speed and agility, proper technique, hand-eye coordination, high focus on the game and mental strength. The player should work on improvement of all these aspects of the game, so, we must say, tennis is a challenging sport. You should have high motivation and desire to succeed in this kind of sport. Be ready, that not everything will be perfect on the first try, so you should be patient and dedicated.
However, if you are not planning to become a professional athlete and would like to play for yourself – it’s never too late to start playing tennis and it’s not so hard to learn. First of all, the beginner should improve his footwork and speed, as tennis is all about the movements. The player should be able to react and sprint to the ball quickly, change directions as well as control his body after hitting and choose the right position before the shot. Proper footwork can become your weapon so it deserves your attention! Endurance, agility, a good sense of balance are significant as well, and the good thing about these skills, is that you can practice them on your own! There are plenty of useful exercises and effective drills to help you improve. These include things such as shuttle sprints, spider drills, exercises with the use of tennis ladder and cones. You can practice these on your own by searching the web, looking up some Youtube videos or can contact us at Tennis School International to get help from a qualified instructor.
What is not recommended to learn by yourself – is tennis technique. Proper technique is the most significant component of success and is extremely important. It’s much better to master this aspect as a beginner, not when you already tried to learn it by yourself and have much experience in playing tennis. Correct technique of performing strokes will allow you to control the ball, sending it in any directions as well as prevent getting injuries, which are rather common, when the player doesn’t have proper technique. Therefore, if you want to learn how to play tennis and make progress in the game – you will definitely need the help of a professional tennis coach. A skilled tennis trainer will explain and show how to perform various strokes, prepare special exercises and drills to improve every component of the game and fix the mistakes at an earlier stage.
Nowadays, there are plenty of tennis trainers to choose from and various options of training process are available. You can either take tennis private lessons, which is the most beneficial variant, as you’ll work with the tennis coach individually or attend tennis group lessons, which will be less expensive. What is more, you will find people, who share the same interests and can make friends there. As soon as you learn basic tennis strokes, which include powerful serve, confident groundstrokes and other shots, you can rent a court and practice with your partner, helping each other to improve your skills. Make sure to hire a certified coach with good experience. There are a lot of misconceptions and myths about tennis technique and as mentioned before it can be quite detrimental to your body.
When you already have a technical base and a better understanding of the game, it’s time to implement certain strategies and tactics in a match. Tennis, in many ways, is a mental game, a player may have amazing strokes and physical skills, but without proper tactical decisions can be defeated by technically weaker opponents. You can discuss strategies with your coach or watch matches of your favourite players, paying attention to what tactics they use, how they cope with difficult situations and implement these in your game.
As you can see, there is a big number of significant aspects, from physical abilities and efficient technique to psychological stability and strategies implementation. All of these areas need constant development and dedication. Tennis is, definitely, a challenging sport, but it’s not so hard to learn, if you have high motivation, love for the game and professional people beside you. Tennis is worth all continuous efforts, as you will get so many benefits as a reward, and enjoy a lifelong sport!