About Tennis

Arthur Ashe: Much More Than Tennis

2010-02-09T14:08:50Z

Few athletes have contributed as much as did Arthur Ashe. Follow Arthur's rise as a tennis star and his exceptional accomplishments after tennis.

Arthur Ashe: Much More Than Tennis originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at 14:08:50.

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Serena Williams Profile

2010-02-05T20:42:46Z

This greatly expanded profile of Serena Williams includes her career highlights and off-court interests. Also updated are her game profile and biographical data.

Serena Williams Profile originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Friday, February 5th, 2010 at 20:42:46.

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The Two Best Scored Tennis Drills for Intermediates

2010-02-05T20:38:05Z

These two fun, intermediate tennis drills give the player a score through which she can track her improving performance. One emphasizes groundstrokes; the other involves six different shots.

The Two Best Scored Tennis Drills for Intermediates originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Friday, February 5th, 2010 at 20:38:05.

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Major Records in Tennis History Maze

2010-02-02T19:13:38Z

Roger Federer's Australian Open victory furthers perhaps the most important of all of his tennis records. Knowing which one will help you on one of the easier questions in this maze.

Major Records in Tennis History Maze originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010 at 19:13:38.

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Federer Defeats Murray for 2010 Australian Open Title

2010-01-31T14:32:07Z

Roger Federer captured his sixteenth Grand Slam singles title Sunday in Melbourne, as he defeated Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(11) in the Australian Open final. Not surprisingly, Roger's forehand, widely considered the best in tennis, was his most effective weapon, producing 40 of his 46 groundstroke winners. Roger's one-handed backhand also performed well, in large part because Andy rarely hit high, heavy topspins that kicked above Roger's backhand strike zone. Murray just wasn't aggressive enough overall to throw Roger off, perhaps hindered by the weight of British hopes for their first male Grand Slam champion since Fred Perry in 1936. That weight was most conspicuous in the trophy ceremony, when apologizing to his nation for letting them down brought Andy to tears.

Andy did start hitting harder and deeper in the third set, thus making it extremely competitive. An extra foot or two of depth and/or an extra few mph of pace can often tip the complexion of a match, and Andy nearly tipped the third set into his column, forcing Roger to to save three set points with some outstanding defense as well as relatively safe aggression.

Murray and Federer are two of the most versatile players in tennis, and they showed off most of their repertoire, with a number of swinging volleys, backhand overheads, drop volleys, and extended duels of slice backhand drives. One shot that didn't pay off well for either player was the drop shot, which Andy has always loved and is gaining in Roger's affections. Both may want to save the drop shot for a less speedy opponent.

Photo Study of Andy Murray's Strokes

Federer Defeats Murray for 2010 Australian Open Title originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Sunday, January 31st, 2010 at 14:32:07.

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Serena's Serve and Justine's Tactics Decide Australian Final

2010-01-30T14:37:42Z

In one of the best women's finals in years, Serena Williams defeated Justine Henin 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 on Saturday in Melbourne to claim her fifth Australian Open singles title. Serena's serve was the deciding factor, as she produced aces and service winners on key points and largely kept Justine from attacking on the return. Serena has one of the most powerful first serves in women's tennis, but it's the slice component of her topspin-slice serve, combined with outstanding placement, that makes it so tough. Whether serving wide on the deuce court or up the middle on the ad side, Serena can land the ball within a couple of inches of the line and produce enough slice to make the ball curve a few feet farther from the receiver than the placement alone would have done. Serena's serve doesn't curve as much as a pure slice would, but she could never get a pure slice to land in at the 100-120 mph she hits on her topspin-slice serve. Serena also has an unrivaled second serve, which is usually close to a straight topspin serve, sometimes with a bit of slice or a bit of twist. She can kick it high enough to avoid the power zone of the receiver, and against a 5'5" opponent like Justine, kicking it to the backhand often draws a weak reply or an error.

Justine was anything but cautious in returning Serena's serve. Even on high serves to her backhand, she tried to hit a hard, topspin reply. Justine's Western backhand grip makes topspin on high backhands somewhat more feasible, but for anyone, it's one of the most difficult of all shots, and she often missed. Most players would use a slice on any backhand above the chest, and Justine's slice is outstanding, but she seemed determined to keep trying the topspin. Justine was also surprisingly set on hitting deep up the middle, especially given that Serena, with both legs heavily taped, had looked less than fully mobile in her two previous rounds; Justine didn't make Serena run much. Hitting up the middle, more or less at Serena's feet, did give Serena some trouble getting out of her own way to take a full swing now and then. It also reduced the potential angles Serena could hit, especially on passing shots, and Justine seemed eager to get to the net when she could. Nonetheless, it would have been interesting to see what might have happened if Justine had tested the endurance of Serena's legs.

Photo Studies

Serena's Serve and Justine's Tactics Decide Australian Final originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Saturday, January 30th, 2010 at 14:37:42.

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Ideal Australian Open Singles Finals Match-Ups

2010-01-29T17:43:42Z

The women's singles final Saturday evening in Melbourne couldn't be more intriguing. Serena Williams comes in as the #1 player in the world, but clearly somewhat injured, with her legs heavily taped. In both her quarterfinal against Victoria Azarenka and her semifinal against Li Na, she only moved (and hit) at full speed when she absolutely had to. It took being down a set and 0-4 against Azarenka to spur Serena into full gear for a 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 comeback , and Li Na took her to two tiebreaks, 7-6(4) 7-6(1). Henin comes in unranked, because she is just returning from a 20-month retirement, but her game seems to be back in nearly full form. She had a fairly tough quarterfinal against Nadia Petrova, 7-6(3), 7-5, but an extremely easy semifinal against Jie Zheng 6-1, 6-0. Justine will have a definite edge in mobility, but Serena clearly has the better serve. Serena will need to force herself to move better and hit more aggressively throughout than she did in her two preceding matches. Justine will need to improve her groundstroke consistency and return especially well. Serena is the more powerful overall, Justine the more versatile.

The men's final Sunday evening features two of the best movers and most versatile players in tennis. Roger Federer is going for his sixteenth Grand Slam singles title, Andy Murray for his first. Both should be healthy and fresh, as Murray will have had three days to recover since his 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 semifinal against Marin Cilic, and Federer will hardly need recovery time after his remarkably easy 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 semifinal against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Andy has won 6 of his 10 matches against Roger, but Roger easily won their only other Grand Slam final, the 2008 US Open. Murray has improved since then, and his outstanding return of serve and defensive skills will force Federer to hit a lot of great shots without much margin for error, so Roger will need to be sharp. Andy is unlikely to rely on the main tactic Rafael Nadal employs against Roger, the high topspin to Roger's backhand, but he will instead send Roger almost every kind of ball one can imagine. Andy has the better backhand and return of serve, Roger the better forehand and serve. Both have extraordinary feel that often produces incredible shots.

Photo Studies

Ideal Australian Open Singles Finals Match-Ups originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Friday, January 29th, 2010 at 17:43:42.

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Lessons and Observations from Cilic Over Roddick and Murray Over Nadal

2010-01-26T16:28:32Z

Here's a look at why Cilic is so promising, why Nadal may continue to struggle, and what we can learn from Murray's net play and Roddick's adjustment to his shoulder injury.

Lessons and Observations from Cilic Over Roddick and Murray Over Nadal originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Tuesday, January 26th, 2010 at 16:28:32.

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Photo Study of Justine Henin's Strokes

2010-01-22T19:53:36Z

Back from retirement, Justine Henin already seems to have regained most, if not all, of her old form, and she should be one of the top contenders for this Australian Open. Here, through photos that capture many details you can't see on TV, is a study of how Justine hits her forehand, her serve, and that famous backhand.

Photo Study of Justine Henin's Strokes originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Friday, January 22nd, 2010 at 19:53:36.

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What to Do on a Day Like Kim's

2010-01-22T14:56:52Z

Sometimes a 6-0, 6-1 score is deceptive, as many of the games might have gone to multiple deuces, but Kim Clijsters's loss to Nadia Petrova was as bad as it looks. Kim won only five points in the first set. Nadia played quite well; Kim was off on everything, especially timing. Most of us have had days like Kim's, and it can feel pretty hopeless, but it doesn't have to. When your timing is way off, try slicing everything, even forehands, as the timing for a slice is much easier, or try giving yourself a huge margin for error, hitting everything high, fairly deep, and away from the sidelines, with heavy topspin if you can manage it or flat if you can't. If you can't sustain baseline rallies as well as usual, charge the net with more daring than usual. You may find that the very different type of ball you send your opponent for lack of being able to produce anything else is exactly the kind of ball your opponent hates to hit.

Slice Forehand Drive: Video and Analysis

One-Handed Backhand Sidespin Slice: Photo Lesson

What to Do on a Day Like Kim's originally appeared on About.com Tennis on Friday, January 22nd, 2010 at 14:56:52.

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