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The Two Best Scored Tennis Drills for Intermediates

Power, Depth, and Consistency

By , About.com Guide

"Power, Depth, and Consistency" is an outstanding groundstroke drill for rewarding the three major virtues in its name. It also rewards topspin, because the scoring system is based upon the depth of the bounce after the ball lands in. Any ball that lands in is worth at least one point. An in - bounce - fence (total of two bounces before hitting the fence) ball is worth three. An in - fence (lands in and then hits the fence) ball that hits the lower half of the fence (below the crossbar) is worth five points, and one that hits above is worth seven. Each player gets ten feeds alternating to the forehand and backhand corners, so the maximum possible base score is 70, but if a player remembers to side-step back toward the center before running to every next shot, she earns a bonus of 20%, which would bring the absolute maximum score to 84.

Group of Players: While one player hits, the others tally her results. Assign one person simply to count how many shots land in, another to count all the three-point shots, and another to count all the fives and sevens. The counting isn't difficult, but kids especially tend to space out and lose track now and then, so if you have enough counters, it's a good idea to have two people count each type of ball independently. You'll be able to deduce the number of ones from the total number in minus the threes and higher.

Individual Player: It's almost impossible to maintain the proper feeding rhythm while turning around to watch each ball land and reach the fence, so you'll need at least one scorekeeper to assist.

Difficulties: Some players do much worse on their first tries than they expect to. Let them know that this is common and encourage them to keep working at improving their personal bests. Many players show huge improvements in their match-play power, depth, and consistency as a result of this drill.

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