I just finished reading another great tennis book for the second time: “Tennis Beyond Big Shots” by Greg Moran. If there was ever a book that should be required reading for ALL tennis players, this is it. Certainly for all beginning tennis players.
His basic philosophy is:
The foundation of a winning tennis player is not power and aggression but consistency and control. From here on out, I want you to forget about the “hit-'em-as-hard-as-you-can” mentality. It's a waste of time and a recipe for disaster.
Those of us who have lost to players we SHOULD have beaten, know how important consistency can be. Moran goes on to explain the shots and the strategies that can help you gain more consistency, more control and (hopefully) more wins.
But I like his book for all of the other things he includes because, like him, I think they are just as important when playing tennis. He spends a few chapters discussing the mental challenges of playing and how to overcome them. He talks about playing with “tennis snobs” who may look down on your game and how to deal with them. He tells you how to find and, even more difficult, how to divorce yourself from a tennis pro. He has a whole chapter on etiquette! His Commandment No. 10: Turn Off Your Cell Phone!
“Tennis Beyond Big Shots” is a book you can pick up, read the chapter or two that you need, put down and come back to again in a few days or a few weeks. And, as with everything, on a second read, I find even more valuable information in it. I highly recommend it.
© Kim Selzman 2009
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