Getting to the ball more quickly starts with your first step.

The great players make it look so easy. They can compete for more than three hours and still glide across the court for a drop shot or wide forehand. Sure, they’ve been training and conditioning for years to get to their level, but there’s something else that stands out—the explosiveness of their movement.

Good anticipation skills are definitely part of their success. These talents can be honed over years of playing by reading opponents’ cues, but it’s just as important to get a good jump on the ball. Because pros are able to read where the ball is going, they can respond quickly and efficiently.

This split-second decision about where to move is known as your response time. It’s the combination of reaction time (your brain sending a message to your muscles) and movement time (your muscles contracting). It’s extremely difficult to speed up your reaction time, but there are plenty of ways to improve your movement time and respond more quickly to the ball. Listed below are some tips to help you get an explosive first step.

BEGINNER

OBJECTIVE: Train yourself to split-step every time your opponent makes contact with the ball.

Most players have been taught to perform a split-step as they return serve or as they volley. However, the top players perform a split-step before every shot, just as their opponents initiate their forward swing. If you make this a habit as you’re learning to play, it will benefit your movement greatly. Why is the split-step so important? Simply put, it’s the best way to prepare yourself to move to the ball. If you figure that an average point on a hard court lasts about four or five shots, and within that time period you will have to make three to four direction changes, it becomes clear that it’s imperative to get to the next shot as quickly as possible while maintaining your balance. The split-step allows us to stay balanced (keeping our center of gravity over the base of support) and prepares our muscles for the next shot. A proper split-step should look like a slight hesitation. It’s a very similar movement to what skiers use when turning. By quickly unweighting (it looks like a small hop) and then landing on the balls of your feet (increasing the force against the ground) you’ll be balanced and ready to move in any direction. To practice, try this drill. Stand on the baseline with your back turned and have your playing partner stand at the T on the same side of the court. When he calls out “turn” and tosses the ball to either your forehand or backhand side, quickly jump around, split-step, and sprint to the ball and hit the appropriate ground stroke.


INTERMEDIATE

OBJECTIVE: Try to read where your opponent is directing the ball as early as you can.

When you first learn to play tennis, all of your focus is on executing the various strokes correctly. As you improve, however, you should also start to pay attention to your opponent to see if you can pick up certain cues which will give you an advantage in moving to the ball early. Research shows us that there is a big difference in how various levels of players focus on their opponents’ strokes.

A study conducted at the University of Florida revealed that more skilled players focused mostly on the upper body and racquet of an opponent, while beginners had no consistent focus. Next time you get on a
tennis court, pay particular attention to your opponent’s positioning (what are the angles available to him?), the path and speed of his swing, the choice and direction of the shot, and the amount and type of spin he puts on the ball. Experience in this area is obviously a great teacher, but you can train yourself by trying to predict where and what type of ball your opponent is going to hit before he even makes contact.

For example, if your opponent’s service toss ends up behind his head, you’ll most likely see a kick serve. If it’s out in front of his body, expect a flat or slice serve. As your ability to pick up on cues progresses, you’ll find both your anticipation and response time improving.


ADVANCED

OBJECTIVE: Strengthen your legs to make your first step as explosive as possible.

Although the serve is hit from a stationary position, you need significant leg strength to hit a powerful delivery. And stronger legs also help you get to the net more quickly when serving and volleying and enable you to recover faster after the serve when staying in the backcourt.

Of course, the legs are critical in every stroke in tennis, allowing you to get from shot to shot as quickly as possible while remaining balanced. The more muscle strength and endurance you have, the faster you’ll be.

Your legs will get stronger just by playing tennis, but they’ll benefit even more if you perform a few simple leg exercises that are designed to prepare you for the on-court rigors of tennis. Although there are many good exercises for the legs, I’m a big proponent of the lunge. I think it’s great for tennis players for three reasons: (1) It’s a multijoint exercise working the muscles surrounding the hips, knees, and ankles; (2) it’s simple and safe to perform; and (3) it’s a tennis-specific movement pattern.

To perform a lunge with proper technique, stand in an upright position while holding a light weight (3–5 pounds) in each hand. Take a large step forward and position your body over your front leg. Bend your front knee and position it over your ankle. Do not let the front knee project in front of your toes. Return to
the starting position by pushing your body weight backward and straightening your front leg. Keep your upper body upright and look straight ahead.

See video below

Alternate legs. Another great exercise, which focuses on strength as well as agility, is the alley hop. To perform, jump back and forth from singles sideline to doubles sideline; focus on spending as little time on the ground as possible.

You’ll increase both quickness and leg strength. For a more advanced version, you can bend your knees to approximately a 90-degree angle and hold each position for a couple of seconds.