Tennis players require great agility and speed to react quickly when receiving the ball, and great endurance in order to maintain their playing level throughout a lengthy match.
The following drills can help improve a tennis player’s agility. Additionally, they can be included in an interval training routine for optimal results.
1. Ladder Drills
Agility is an invaluable skill for tennis players. Without it, it may be difficult to reach shots quickly when under pressure, saving both energy and resources by moving faster around the court.
One of the best ways to develop agility is through ladder drills. Ladder drills focus on developing footwork patterns and speed while also developing quick side-to-side movements necessary in tennis. Ladder drills provide a fantastic way to work on your footwork anywhere with the aid of an agility ladder.
Some of the best agility ladder drills to perform are lateral shuffle to lateral run and crossover fast feet drills. When performing this drill, begin by running to each sideline before returning back to centre line before shuffling over to opposite sideline before repeating this cycle 3-5 times for optimal agility training results.
The Ickey Shuffle ladder drill is another fantastic ladder exercise to try. Dubbed after former Cincinnati Bengals running back Ickey Woods’ end zone dance, this exercise poses more of a challenge to your agility and speed than most ladder drills do; to perform it you start by standing perpendicular to the ladder then step into each square of the first square with both feet; step across and step into subsequent boxes using either foot at once as you progress down your ladder. Alternate which foot goes into which box as you progress further down your ladder – switch sides as needed as you progress down its length!
The crossover fast feet drill is a fantastic way to practice cross-over movements with any agility ladder. To perform it properly, begin on the far left of the ladder and step back and forth between each box on your lead leg for four counts: In, In, Out, Out. Once this ladder has been traversed with one lead leg only, switch legs and repeat on its opposite side.
2. Lateral Cone Drills
As tennis players strive to avoid being taken by surprise by an opponent’s quick shot, cultivating lateral agility is paramount for their game. Agility drills such as this lateral cone workout are one of the best ways to build up your lateral speed and get quicker to the ball.
This straightforward but effective agility drill is great for honing lateral acceleration and footwork. Start by facing off against each other in service boxes before throwing an underhand ball to each of you with the goal of catching it before it hits the floor – then repeat this drill several times for an effective agility workout!
Suicide Drill: Another Simple but Effective Agility Drill
Add hurdles for an even more advanced and challenging agility drill! Running over hurdles helps develop explosiveness and sprinting ability – essential elements of tennis. This drill also encourages quick bursts of speed needed to win points!
The Lateral Run Drill (LRD) is another great way to develop lateral agility in tennis. Starting from the middle of a doubles alley in an active athletic stance, their coach or partner may point right or left and they will perform lateral run steps towards that direction and back towards the middle before recovering back for another direction. Ideally this drill should be performed for at least 3-5 sets of 7 to 10 seconds each time with 30 second recovery in between each set.
Striking a balance between lateral agility and top speed is of utmost importance for any tennis player who hopes to become the next great one. These qualities will separate good tennis players from elite ones; performing drills regularly will help develop both. Performing such drills may help your overall game as well as develop both of these qualities simultaneously.
3. Footwork Ladder Drill
Tennis players rely heavily on both their lateral footwork and ability to cover distance quickly, which this agility ladder drill helps enhance. This drill will improve both aspects of footwork and athleticism simultaneously.
Arrange an agility ladder on the ground and practice side-to-side movement by stepping quickly in and out of its squares. A low, athletic stance throughout this exercise will keep players focused while remaining light on their feet.
Starting at the bottom of an agility ladder, place your feet hip-width apart and hop into the first box. After landing safely, scissor your legs by placing one right foot immediately after another into successive boxes until reaching the end of the agility ladder.
Tennis requires athletes to recover quickly after shots in order to chase down short shots or lobs, something this agility ladder drill can improve. Starting in an active athletic stance with their coach or partner tossing a ball to them. Sprinting 10 yards before jumping back into their active athletic stance to catch it and prepare for what may come next direction – repeat three to four sets with 30-second breaks between sets for maximum results.
Add cones to increase the difficulty of this agility ladder drill by positioning them level with each ladder rung; when an athlete steps laterally into one box of the ladder they will also be stepping in and out of one of these cones – forcing them to balance on both feet while performing this agility ladder drill.
This version of Icky Shuffle takes the traditional agility ladder drill one step further by using both hands simultaneously in order to increase grip strength as well as agility and coordination.
4. Underhand Throw Drill
Agility in tennis is essential to becoming a great player, helping you move around more efficiently and quickly reach balls when necessary. Agility also prevents overexerting yourself during matches, saving energy. Achieve agility takes practice; however there are several great tennis drills which can assist with this goal.
Underhand Throw Drill: This drill is an extremely straightforward, yet efficient exercise suitable for players of any level. When beginning this drill, players begin in ready position with their partner positioned a few meters in front. Their partner then drops a ball that must be caught before it bounces on the floor; keeping their arms straight while doing this as many times as possible to highlight issues related to hand-eye coordination or quickly moving towards it. This drill serves as an excellent way of pinpointing any difficulties with quick reaction times or hand-eye coordination issues or slowness in moving to it quickly enough!
A drill to develop underhand throwing skills is the alternating rotational throw drill. This exercise helps players focus on arm slot, while simultaneously shifting quickly from side-to-side without losing velocity. To take part, players should begin by facing their partner and holding the ball with hands at 3 and 9 o’clock before shifting them up 12 o’clock so thumbs touch and fingers point upward – this allows for proper arm slot when receiving high throws.
After the player has completed several sets of this drill, they should switch sides and repeat. They should do this until both sides have been completed before rotating again to complete more sets of the drill.
Tennis is an incredibly complex game that demands agile movement and footwork in order to play well. These tennis specific drills will help your players develop greater agility and speed on court – leading to enhanced performances during matches!