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Long Yang
Final Draft
English 2
Tennis
Tennis is a sport played around the whole wide world by many different continents to
many countries for ages. Tennis was called Jeu de paume which is French for "game of the palm
(hand) in the 12th Century"( Athletes Edge).People have been playing tennis since they were
little kids and some are still playing even until the age of fifty. The sport isn't only based on your
physical strength but also your mental strength. The reasons why are because tennis is usually
play by sets. There are three sets in every game and in every set you have to win six games total.
The game of tennis is based on both your mentality and physical strength. For the game of
tennis to hit a ball constantly and precisely your muscle memory but for this to happen you must
have had to play tennis for a while for your body to get used to playing tennis. Also to do this
you must have proper training and be taught the best and suitable technique to hit the ball
correctly. A lot of new players come to the courts of tennis and just start swinging the rackets
recklessly without thinking about the strains on their muscle and joints. This leads to my
argument of why more tennis clubs or groups or even coaches should be made to help new tennis
players keep themselves from danger and get better at tennis at the same time.
I remember the first time I played tennis with my friend Evan Hoke. He was trying to
teach me how to play tennis and I was starting to get how to play tennis. We were just hitting the
ball back and forth to warm up ourselves. So I went on to practice my serves I had control of the
serve but I did not have power so I tried hitting the ball as hard as I could and as I watched the
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ball fly over the net I thought it was going in but the ball kept going up. Thump the sound of the
ball hitting a rackets string luckily my friend was ready for the serve and blocked the ball with
his racket. That could have been a dangerous play or mistake if my friend wasn't ready and
prepared. My friend who has been playing tennis for a while now has had some proper teachings
about tennis. Such as how to protect yourself from the ball when in a tight situation. He was
taught this in his tennis club that he joined during the fall semester. As we kept on playing tennis
the sport just became more and more exciting because the both of us were getting better and
better. We were addicted to the sport, we went to play tennis three times a week and three to four
hours a day whenever we could. We felt like we could play tennis as much as we like and how
ever long as we could. I guess that is why they call tennis a sport for a life time just because you
want to keep on playing. As time went on you could say that tennis became one of my
Communities of Practices I got so involved with tennis that even when I go back home I would
ask anyone that goes to play tennis to take me to play too. Tennis is a fun sport to play but most
of the times rookies do not know how to take care of themselves. They often tend to play tennis
too much such as using their wrist to hit the ball too much without knowing that they were
straining it. In Tennis you can get a lot of injuries just playing tennis wrong you can get injuries
in your elbow, back, and ankles or just not stretching enough before playing.
Tennis has some basic rules to the game such as opponents stand on opposite sides of the
court. The player who delivers the ball to start the point is called the server. The player who
stands opposite and cross-court from the server is the receiver(Uric). In tennis every game will
have a winner unless if stopped. Then if the game comes to a draw the game should be decided
to whoever wins by two sets of games so the winner should have a lead like seven games to five
games. So with basic rules there are basic training tips. Some tips are to stretch well before a
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game so that you don't pull a muscle, toss the ball above or in front of you not behind and so on.
Even though those are basic tennis steps not a lot of players take those steps the reason why is
because they don't know it. So you can't blame them when they get injuries such as strained
ankles or back. A coach from a tennis group or club to help teach you the basics such as warming
up or just playing tennis correctly. For example who do you think will most likely be a better
tennis player someone who just started playing tennis for a year or someone who has been
getting training from a coach for a year. "One of the big benefits of a coach is that they aren't tied
to the organization, your friends, or anyone else," says Washington, D.C.-based executive coach
Linda Finkle. "They are tied to you only, so they support what you want and where you want to
go(Paul).
In tennis a lot of player do not need to rely on others they lack a coach and do not utilize
what a coach can do for them. To play tennis all you have to do is rely on yourself and play but a
player can only get so good playing by their selves. With a coach now it is a different story the
coach will be able to see what you can't see and the coach will work on your problems with you.
If you win you win if you lose you lose but if with a win or lose your coach will still make you
practice and give you motivation. While without a coach when you win you celebrate but when
you lose you get angry without any feed backs.
Tennis itself does has its own flaws such as what do that one player do when he gets
injured during a game the only thing he can do is play with an injury or forfeit the match. Roger
Federer, Andy Roddick and Andrew Murray have all suffered sprained ankles(PhysioRoom).
This is when a coach really comes in and helps by encouraging the player to get better and
remind him his goals and why he played tennis. Playing tennis can be really harsh if you are at
an disadvantage against your opponent where he can hit harder serve fast slice the ball better
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again you can't do anything, but with a team sports like soccer or foot ball the coaches can switch
your position where you can play better and someone else to the spot where you couldn't. In
tennis you also have to be a wide ranged player by that I mean you have to be able to defend and
attack at the same time. So by being in a tennis group a player can be able to play against a lot of
different tennis player. Not only by being in a tennis group you get better but you are able to
socialize more with others around you.
Okay so we know that tennis requires for you to be able to play both defense and offense
at the same time. So how does this effect a player who just started playing tennis. It is going to
start making him mentally stronger by playing by himself he is going to focus on every single
point and play it like his last, so what if a player cannot do that by himself. Once again this is
why joining a tennis group or getting a coach helps. The coach can just easily teach you what
you are doing wrong and when you start to do better your tennis mentality gets stronger. Tennis
mentality is important for a tennis player because it is what determines a winner when you are
deuced and both players are struggling to win. Other sports have mental strength too but tennis is
just the mental strength of that one person alone and he can raise his mental strength high enough
to make a comeback to win a game when his is down. While other sports as football will just
plain out lose if they think they are going to lose because their mentally strength isn't connected
together making one bad player into multiple bad players. If t tennis player is having a bad day
no one can be there to support you or pick you up. The tennis player will have to stand there
alone and face defeat by himself. While a team of soccer or footballer have their team to raise
their morale during a game to hype-up the intensity to play better. The only help the tennis player
can get is the motivation from the words of a coach or the audience that is cheering for the
player.
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Tennis is said to be the sports for a life time. That is said because many tennis players
can play from a young age to the age of forty to fifty. These old man can still run and hit the ball
better than other old people trying to play other sports. One of the oldest pro tennis player is
Arthur Gore, 1909 Wimbledon champion, attained the century old glory by winning the third of
his singles titles at the age of 41. Born January 2, 1868, he didn’t retire until he was 54(Lynch,
Lauren). Some of the main reasons why they are still able to play at such an old age is because
they know how to take care of themselves. At such an old age now you don't really need a coach
because by that at tennis steps and basics should be a natural instinct for older players. Because
their coaches taught them every single day to stretch properly to hit the ball correctly.
Playing tennis gives you a good work out every time you play. Tennis works on your
upper body and lower body at the same time. Example is to hit a ball you have to have your legs
positioned correctly and than your body has to be able to shift accordingly to the ball and then
your arm and racket has to be at the right spot to hit the ball how you want it too. All of that has
to be done in about three to five seconds every time after you hit a ball. It will take every player a
while to get a stance that is proper for them but with a coach he can adjust how you should make
your stance and what you are capable of doing. While other sports such as soccer on focus on
your legs more and doesn't focus on your upper body. They barely use their hands in soccer and
the most they will do is a throw in unless the goalie which has to use his hands. An American
study found that 18 to 34 year olds who played tennis, ran, jogged or power walked were less
likely to be obese than team-sport players(Tennis.com.au). Tennis is also good for your hand eye
coordination, you have to be able to find the ball and with a racket in hand swing at the ball on
its sweet spot. If you are able to hit the ball on your rackets sweet spot it will make the ball fly
better and have a good spin or slice.
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Becoming a professional is what every player dreams of becoming but the
chances of going pro in any sport is really small but everyone has an opportunity in tennis. But
most and almost every pro tennis player has a coach that have helped them reached their goals. A
statement made from an article I found said, "Once the basic skills had been learned, the huge
benefit was the accountability. It was both an encouragement and a “forced discipline” – that
helped me to achieve success in the specific areas I desired.(Burg)"To become a pro you have to
be playing from an early age as a kid and have a coach there assisting you already. The reasons
are simply because of you will need to get used to tennis when you get older already and a coach
will always be helpful. Compared to late beginners when they start in high school giving them
the disadvantage and without coach to begin with. Tennis will always be a sport for everyone to
play but tennis can be better with the right group of people and the right coach for you!
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CITATION
West Lake High School, Uric. "Tennis Rules Simplified." Rules of Tennis Simplified.
Westlake.k12, 2001. Web. 10 Oct. 2012.
<http://westlake.k12.oh.us/hilliard/whspe/tennis/tennis_rules.htm>.
PhysioRoom. "Tennis Injuries Introduction." Top 5 Tennis Injuries. PhysioRoom.com, 2012.
Web. 11 Oct. 2012. <http://www.physioroom.com/sports/tennis/injuries-introduction.php>.
Lynch, Lauren. "Top 10 Oldest Tennis Players." Top 10 Oldest Tennis Players. Tennisnow.com,
17 Nov. 2011. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. <http://www.tennisnow.com/Blogs/Tennis-Stars-BurningBright/November-2011/Top-10-Oldest-Tennis-Players.aspx>.
Tennis.com.au. "Health Benefits." Tennis Australia. Tennis.com.au, 2012. Web. 11 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.tennis.com.au/play-tennis/health-benefits>.
Athletes Edge. "Tennis." Tennis. Athletes Edge, 2007. Web. 11 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.athletesedge.info/tennis.php>.
Michelman, Paul." What an Executive Coach Can Do for You" 13 June 2005. Web. 1 Nov. 2012.
<http://hbswk.hbs.edu/archive/4853.html>
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Burg, Bob."The Real Benefit of Having a Coach" 18th July 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2012.
< http://www.burg.com/2011/07/the-real-benefits-of-having-a-coach/>