As with any sport, practice makes perfect with tennis. Using the correct practice methods will help you improve. It can also prevent you from having to unlearn improper techniques that you may develop if you don’t work on your basic skills and form. Follow these steps to start an effective practice routine to help you improve your game.

Begin each practice session by checking for the proper grip on the tennis racquet. An improper grip will result in a less effective stroke and serve.

Start your session by practicing strokes without a ball. Try at least 25 each of serves, forehands, backhands, forehand volleys and backhand volleys. Do the first ten strokes slowly to check the proper form and follow through.

Work on hand eye coordination by bouncing a tennis ball on the racquet. Flip the racquet so you are using the opposite side of the strings after every third bounce for an extra challenge.

Find a wall to hit the ball against and mark a visible line at the height of a standard net. The standard height is 36 inches at the centre and 42 inches at the side post. Try to hit the ball as close to the center measurement as you can.

Practice your forehands and backhands against the wall. Work to control the ball. Focus where it is going. Control will allow you to hit several of each stroke in a row and change when you choose.

Move to the court with a bunch of tennis balls and practice serving. Try to land each serve in the centre of the box opposite the side of the net.

Conduct three of these practice sessions for each match that you play and take note during each match of where you need to improve.

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

The US Open is done and dusted and I think there is only one player we are thinking about- Sam Stosur! What an unbelievable performance she gave to not only battle her way through the tournament, but to demolish thirteen time grand slam champion Serena Williams in the final!

Sam battled her way through many of her rounds throughout the Open, and had to draw on every bit of her mental and physical strength to get her through. While it may have been a weakness in the past, her mental strength was unbelievable for the entire tournament and was arguably the difference between her being eliminated in Round 3 and winning the tournament.

In the final, Sam came up against Serena Williams. Williams is tough to face at the best of times, but when Serena had been in such ominous form throughout the previous rounds, Sam knew she would have to play incredibly well to win. She did just that, and took it right up to Williams. In perhaps one of the few times in her entire career, Williams was simply out-powered, and thus out played. Making few errors, Sam stepped right in on the Williams second serve and hit punishing, deep balls right back at her. On her own serve she used heavy topspin to place the ball away from the Williams hitting zone, and therefore had her always reaching, which allowed Sam to stay on top of each point.

Sam has displayed tremendous class and sportsmanship right throughout the tournament, and throughout her career as a whole. She never lost her cool on court, praised her opponents and showed genuine humility. It is this reason why she is respected highly by the other competing players. Now, however, she will also be respected and known as a US Open Champion! Well done Sam!

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

Have you ever watched tennis on TV or driven past your local courts and wondered, “Gee, I would really like to play tennis?” Have you ever put it off through self-doubt of not being good enough, or perhaps because there is nobody to play with at your level? Well here is exactly what you need to do!

The great thing about tennis is that it is a game that can be played by all people, regardless of gender or age, and regardless of skill level. You don’t often see 80 year olds playing rugby, or people trying backflips at their first gymnastics lesson, but tennis is different. Anyone can play, and remember, it is all about having a bit of fun.

So what do you need to get started? Well first there is the obvious stuff, such as equipment! Of course, you will need a racquet. If you have never played in your life then maybe you can look out for an old racquet from a friend, otherwise you can consider buying a brand new, good looking racquet from Sportsmart! Sportsmart offers tennis racquets to cater for every player, so even if you are just starting out, there is a racquet out there that is just for you. You may also want to grab a can of balls while you are here. It is also a requirement at most tennis courts to wear appropriate tennis shoes with the correct sole. Sportsmart also sell great tennis shoes at a fantastic price, so come in and have a look.

Now with all your gear, where do you play? If you have a friend that you can play against then that is great, but if not, the best solution is to join a tennis club! In general, tennis clubs give you free access to courts, organised social tennis and a new social network of tennis players, some starting out just like you. So don’t be shy, and give it a go!

However, what if it is not yourself, but your child that wants to take up tennis? How do you go about arranging this? Before you worry about equipment and everything else, the first thing you should do is visit a club near you and make contact with a coach. Coaches often run small group sessions for small kids which are fun, interactive and develop tennis skills. And of course, coaching is not limited to kids, but adults taking up tennis should definitely consider contacting a coach too.

Tennis is truly a fantastic sport that you can enjoy for a lifetime, so go and play for yourself and you definitely won’t regret it!

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

The strings that are on your racquet are vital to any player’s performance. After all, you hit the ball with your strings, not the frame of your actual racquet! Yet how do we know which strings to choose, and what tension to string them?

Tennis strings can be in the form of natural gut or synthetic, with each having pros and cons. Natural gut is said to have a “lively” feel and keep its tension for long periods of time. However, they are also expensive and not too durable. On the other hand, synthetic strings provide a cheaper alternative, are more durable, and come in different forms and designs, including pentagonal shaped strings, etc.

Now there is the case of what tension to string your racquet. In simple terms, a loosely strung racquet offers more power but less control, while a tightly strung racquet will provide less power but more control and spin, and is therefore suited to a stronger player who can generate their own pace.

A “thinner” string is also preferable to a thicker string in almost all areas other than durability. While a thinner string is more likely to break early, it offers increased spin, comfort and feel.

While some players break strings regularly and therefore restring their racquet every time they break a string, other players can be “flat” hitters and will therefore very rarely break a string. For these players it is important to still restring your racquet at least a couple of times a year. The reason is because the string will have worn down a fair amount and may be less responsive to new strings. On top of this, the tension on the strings would have loosened a fair margin since your last restringing.

Luckily, if this makes absolutely no sense to you at all the tennis staff at Sportsmart know everything about strings, and will be more than happy to offer you expertise and advice! Sportsmart offers a great restringing service, with a great variety of strings to choose from and racquets restrung within 48 hours. Come down to our stores and have a look for yourself.

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

Another year has passed, and two new Wimbledon Singles Champions have been crowned- Petra Kvitova and Novak Djokovic!

Few would have tipped Kvitova to take out the women’s singles prior to the tournament, however; she was seeded eighth and made the semi-finals last year, so was no real outsider. Kvitova has an all-round tennis game- a big serve, big ground shots, the ability to come to the net, and crushing returns! She is also left-handed which made her a difficult competitor for many opponents.

In the women’s final she played a near faultless match to convincingly defeat tournament favourite Maria Sharapova. At just 21, we can expect Kvitova to really continue to rise in the tennis world and may be an unstoppable force in times ahead. However, given she was “lesser known” and came through to win Wimbledon, pressure will undoubtedly continue to grow on world number one Caroline Wozniacki, who is yet to win a grand slam tournament.

On the men’s side of the draw we witnessed some fantastic matches which lead to the final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Many believed Federer was nearing his career best form throughout the tournament, before surprisingly falling to Tsonga, who played unbelievable tennis through all of his matches. He quite easily could have taken out Djokovic in the semi-finals. Andy Murray again failed to deliver his best when it mattered, and all of Britain was let down again!

In the final there was some very high quality tennis played, but probably not as explosive as what would have been expected. The ability to rally from both players was amazing, but both could have benefitted from flattening more shots out rather than conservatively spinning them back in play. Nadal has been battling an ankle injury throughout the tournament and I think it made a slight difference. He was unable to put much weight on his ankle when hitting his backhand, which not only lead to more unforced errors, but also lead him to slicing the ball back in play when we are so used to seeing him crush the same ball for a winner. Take nothing away from Djokovic though, as facing Nadal who is trying to out-rally you is arguably just as hard as facing Nadal who is trying to hit winners against you. All in all though, Djokovic’s ability to turn defence into attack was the difference, and he is now a Wimbledon Champion and the new world number one!

On another note, the future of Australian tennis is looking strong, with Bernard Tomic making the Quarter Finals, which is an unbelievable effort. What is more, is that he could have beaten the eventual winner Djokovic, as stated by Djokovic himself. At eighteen he still has lots of improvement to come as well. For the first time ever we also had Australians winning the Wimbledon boys and girls singles titles. If all our young talented players can make the transition to the professional level, then Australian tennis is looking good once again!

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

The French Open is now done and dusted and it lived up to all of its expectations. On the men’s side of the draw we witnessed the top four players in the world battle it out in the semi-finals, before the top two faced off in the final. It is amazing to think that with 128 players in the tournament, the same players keeping showing up in the big finals. There is only that 1% difference between the top 5 players and the top 100 players, but it makes such a huge impact! We witnessed Novak Djokovic lose only his first match for the year (an amazing achievement), Roger Federer returning to top form and having his greatest performance at Roland Garros besides 2009, and Rafael Nadal win a remarkable 6^th French Open title.

On the women’s side of the draw things also went to how they were expected- with that expectation being to expect the unexpected! Three players I mentioned prior to the commencement of the tournament were Sam Stosur, Kim Clijsters and Caroline Wozniacki- yet all were gone by the end of the third round! Li Na came through to win her first grand slam title, and well deservedly too, after narrowly going down in the final of the Australian Open.

Now onto Wimbledon. The transition from clay to grass can often be tricky for even the top players. Therefore, those with a longer break in between the two tournaments can expect to do well. Last year the two women’s finalists at the French Open, Schiavone and Stosur were knocked out in the first round of Wimbledon! I think players such as Clijsters, Serena Williams, Wozniacki and Stosur will do well at Wimbledon, and one of them will take out the title. I am afraid to say who though- as I am usually always wrong- but I will go with Clijsters.

On the men’s side of the draw I think it is almost a given that we will see Nadal, Federer and Djokovic in the semi-finals, and maybe even Murray too. Nadal has been cleaning up the grand slams in recent times, but Federer has found some form and his best surface is grass. Meanwhile, despite losing one match, Djokovic is still on his rampage and don’t expect him to slow down too much. As for a tip? I think Federer may just do enough to win, but it will take his best effort if he has to play both Djokovic and Nadal to win the tournament. Either way, it is definitely going to be exciting!

Taking care of your tennis racquet is extremely important. It is also a lot easier now with innovations in the materials used to make tennis racquets. For example, the construction of tennis frames is no longer made from wood which has been replaced by graphite, ceramics and metals.

Taking care of your racquet is not difficult, it is mostly common sense which allows you get good use out of your tennis racquet. Make sure you do not expose your tennis racquet to extreme hot or cold for example, leaving it in your car on a hot day as it can soften the graphite frame and pull the strings out of place.

You should never throw your tennis racquet around and avoid scraping it against the ground. You should also replace the grip on your tennis racquet when it gets too slippery so as to avoid it flying out of your hand and damaging the construction. Not to mention, you could injure someone.

When it comes to restringing your racquet, the rule of thumb is to generally restring per year as often as you play per week. Avoid restringing less than two times a year. You do not need to restring every chance you get as your strings may lose their responsiveness.

Finding a string that you like can require a little experimenting. You may require something that is more durable or something that is more resilient. You might decide that you prefer a tighter strong for more control or a softer string for increased comfort.

At Sportsmart, our tennis staff include qualified Tennis Australia coaches as well as Tennis Victoria State Grade and Winter Pennant players. Our staff are experts in customising your tennis racquet to suit your needs, we also offer a large range of strings to choose from brands such as Uxilon Big Banger, Wilson, Head, Babolat, Prince, Yonex, Volkl, Ashaway and Pacific.

We also offer a tennis racquet restringing service, where our staff can guide you the right choice of strings and tension for your racquet and restring it for you within 48 hours.

The winner of Sportsmart and Wilson’s tennis sponsorship program, Scott Lyons, provides regular blog articles on his favourite topic – tennis …

Well, what a crazy time in tennis. Over the last few years we have debated over who the current (and perhaps all time) best player in the world is- Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal? We have automatically pencilled Nadal in to take out the French Open year after year, with Federer being rated the next best chance at taking him out. So where did Novak Djokovic come from?!

Djokovic is undefeated- yes, undefeated- this year. He has not had a “cruisey” run through the tournaments he has won either, taking out both Nadal and Federer numerous times. Until last month Nadal hadn’t lost on clay in two whole years. However, Djokovic has just recently beaten him twice on clay, both in finals. So effectively we are faced with a three man competition- the player who has been unstoppable at the French Open for so long, the player who is currently unstoppable full stop, and then arguably the greatest player to have ever played the game (at least records wise anyway).

As for my tip? I genuinely have no idea. I would love to see Federer recapture his old form and take out the tournament, but I think he would be the clear outsider to win of the three. I think you have to go on current form, and so I can’t go past Novak Djokovic.

The draw on the women’s side is wide open. Apart from the three titles from Justine Henin (who has now retired), no woman has won multiple French Open titles since Steffi Graf. It is always the tournament full of surprises, which makes it more than hard to pick a winner!

World number one Caroline Wozniacki is yet to win a grand slam title and you can’t help but feel that it is bound to come soon.  She has won six titles for the year and is in very good form. She hasn’t however made it past the quarter-finals at the French Open, yet we must remember she is only twenty still! Kim Clijsters is a popular favourite to win the French Open this year, despite having never won it before. She has won the last two grand slam titles though, so there is a good chance at continuing that grand slam form. World number three, Vera Zvonareva is not without a chance herself, although there are many question marks over her ability to perform well on the big stage, having lost three grand slam finals before. The Williams sisters are both not taking part in this year’s French Open!

As for Sam Stosur, I think she is a big chance to win the French Open and I am tipping her to do so (I’m probably a little bit biased, I’ll admit!). She is healthy, in good form and plays well on clay. Her top spin- both with ground strokes and serves- is the heaviest of any woman in the tournament, and this will help her massively on clay. Let’s hope she is able to win her first grand slam, as I’m sure all of Australia is right behind her!