The Jensen Zone: Shaping Your Game Through Practice Preparation

January 27, 2014 | By Luke Jensen
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As we head into another year of opportunity, a proper mind set is critical towards your enjoyment and improvement in our great game of tennis. I would really like to stress having a plan towards your tennis. If you are a competitive player at any level, you will know what parts of your game are letting you down and what parts of your game are winning pressure points for you.

Having balance with your approach to your practice sessions will help you prepare for success in your competitions. I like to start most workouts with serving drills. Serves are the most important part of the game because it is the one shot that begins every point of the match. The serve is usually the shot worked on the very least and at the very end of practice what I call garbage time when the coaches are just trying to kill time and serving practice becomes all too social.

I like to make serving drills competitive, by including targets and result-based scenarios where the players are serving under pressure.

After serving, I get right into transition tennis drills that stress the improvement and confidence in the approach shot volley area of the game. It is another area that is very important, but rarely done well or worked on. Approach shot drills and volley drills for singles and doubles really improve your results in matches.

By this time, groundies take over between consistency and power … lots of balls hit here. Most points played in singles and doubles today are played with players hitting from the baseline and the winners usually have the best ground strikes.

I finish with volleys and overheads to work on my front court attack game. This part of my game helps close out points with confidence and beat players who outplay you from the baseline.

Make sure your sessions are played with a ton of positive energy to duplicate the intensity of a match. As a coach, I am responsible for a sound practice plan and raising the passion of a positive practice. I really try to make sure the sessions are fresh and fun. Boring practice plans produce bored players that are not ready for the game speed of a match.

Make sure you bring new ideas to your pro next time you have a private or group lesson. Let the pro know what is working for you and letting you down in matches. This will give the pro some hints how to shape a more productive practice.

Finally, if you are a player who gets nervous under the pressure of match play, change your mental approach from a practice mindset to a rehearsal mindset. A rehearsal approach is directed to the urgency faced in a match. Using the word “practice” is too casual for me, and often results in casual sessions.

Rehearsing with the right intensity and mental approach will help with nerves in tough match situations. You will be ready to play and ready to win!

Have a great winning new year! Go for the lines!


Luke Jensen

Raised in Ludington , Mich., Luke Jensen’s resume includes 10 ATP Tour doubles titles and singles/doubles victories against Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Ivan Lendl, John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg, Jim Courier, Patrick Rafter, Michael Stitch. Jensen and his brother, Murphy, won the 1993 French Open doubles title. He was also a member of the US Davis Cup Teams that reaches the finals in 1991 and won in 1992. His ambidextrous play, including his ability to serve the ball with either hand at 130 mph, earned him the nickname “Dual Hand Luke.” Luke is currently director of racquet sports at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, N.Y.. He may be reached by phone at (315) 403-0752 or e-mail lukejensen84@yahoo.com.

 

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