Charlie-SWUK
Regular Member
Yo! So we talk a lot about footwork, and how to improve our footwork. But here's a discussion in particular I want to look at, does increasing your speed (i.e, your agility and strength in your legs) improve your footwork moreso than technique in your movements?
First off, I want this discussion to be reasonable, so we don't want to talk about outliers. We don't want to look at 2 week 26 year old body builder beginners, who have loads of strength and no technique, and we don't want to look at 78 year old long time players with arthritis, tons of technique but no strength. In this regard, I think it's obvious we would all agree that we need some of each, some strength, some technique. What I want to focus on more, is the intermediate and advanced players, and differences in movement styles for professionals.
Some obvious differences in footwork:
Height and weight are two really obvious ones, we could always suggest discipline too. The 7ft tall singles player and 5'4 MD player will move differently. Two people who are 6', but one weighs 100kg, and the other 60, will also move very differently.
What is speed?
Simply put, the time taken from Point A to point B.
What is technique?
Technique includes the details, such as how you lunge, the length of your chasses, lunges etc.
Now, here's the key point of the discussion.
Particularly in tournaments, of all levels, and it's most notable in singles, when a player is losing, and they want to up the ante of the game to try and keep pace, they will increase their speed. They will make stronger movements, deeper lunges, more jumps. They will exercise athleticism and strength to try and achieve their goal. What I've seen in these instances, is that it usually results in a significant sacrifice to technique. Players often rush the net so hard, they can barely stop themselves running into it, with both feet next to each other almost under the net - I'm sure someone here on BC will have seen the same thing.
I've seen someone try to lunge so deep, they've hit their non-racket knee on the ground. I've seen dives, leaps backwards, and all sorts. I am not convinced this injection of speed, to try and keep pace, is actually useful in playing against stronger players. They will be moving faster, and they'll be doing so to try and keep pace or dominate the rally, but it actually results in far greater recovery times and difficulties in movement.
We can sometimes see this even at SS level, particularly with the younger players, who try to up this pace but in sacrifice of technique.
Currently I'm of the mindset that increasing your speed in this way only ends up harmful to your game. It hits your rhythm, your recovery, and burns up stamina. I believe it results in a net loss of time and aptitude in your gameplay. What do you think BC? Is it worth increasing your speed in this fashion, through athleticism, rather than technique and familiarity with the movements?
First off, I want this discussion to be reasonable, so we don't want to talk about outliers. We don't want to look at 2 week 26 year old body builder beginners, who have loads of strength and no technique, and we don't want to look at 78 year old long time players with arthritis, tons of technique but no strength. In this regard, I think it's obvious we would all agree that we need some of each, some strength, some technique. What I want to focus on more, is the intermediate and advanced players, and differences in movement styles for professionals.
Some obvious differences in footwork:
Height and weight are two really obvious ones, we could always suggest discipline too. The 7ft tall singles player and 5'4 MD player will move differently. Two people who are 6', but one weighs 100kg, and the other 60, will also move very differently.
What is speed?
Simply put, the time taken from Point A to point B.
What is technique?
Technique includes the details, such as how you lunge, the length of your chasses, lunges etc.
Now, here's the key point of the discussion.
Particularly in tournaments, of all levels, and it's most notable in singles, when a player is losing, and they want to up the ante of the game to try and keep pace, they will increase their speed. They will make stronger movements, deeper lunges, more jumps. They will exercise athleticism and strength to try and achieve their goal. What I've seen in these instances, is that it usually results in a significant sacrifice to technique. Players often rush the net so hard, they can barely stop themselves running into it, with both feet next to each other almost under the net - I'm sure someone here on BC will have seen the same thing.
I've seen someone try to lunge so deep, they've hit their non-racket knee on the ground. I've seen dives, leaps backwards, and all sorts. I am not convinced this injection of speed, to try and keep pace, is actually useful in playing against stronger players. They will be moving faster, and they'll be doing so to try and keep pace or dominate the rally, but it actually results in far greater recovery times and difficulties in movement.
We can sometimes see this even at SS level, particularly with the younger players, who try to up this pace but in sacrifice of technique.
Currently I'm of the mindset that increasing your speed in this way only ends up harmful to your game. It hits your rhythm, your recovery, and burns up stamina. I believe it results in a net loss of time and aptitude in your gameplay. What do you think BC? Is it worth increasing your speed in this fashion, through athleticism, rather than technique and familiarity with the movements?