LTA COACH

Simon Bird is Shropshire's only LTA, PCA qualified coach, he has many years experience in coaching tennis at all levels. Here he explains how using Rebound as an aid to tennis can help improve your game, regardless of ability. You can also see Simon demonstrating Rebound by watching our online video:

Rebound quite literally has no boundaries, designed to be played just about anywhere with firm standing, it is an easy to use, fun for all teaching aid, for players and coaches of all standards, there are no barriers and no limits.

Tennis players are generally broken into 3 main areas of expertise: BEGINNER / INTERMEDIATE / IMPROVER. Let me take you through the 3 areas and show you how Rebound can help take your tennis to the max!!!

BEGINNER LEVEL: At the cognitive stage of learning the beginner has very little idea of how to hit a ball properly, how it feels to hit a ball properly and what results they should expect. It is highly unlikely that 2 beginner players will get maximum enjoyment and fun out of their first tennis experiences. This is mainly because they will struggle to control the ball’s speed and direction and so the art of ‘rallying’ will be very difficult. The rallies are likely to be short so players do not feel that they are benefiting from a serious workout. This is where Rebound can really help. Very quickly beginners when using Rebound will find a speed and control that enables them to have a ‘rally’ and the great thing is if the rally does break down, the player simply picks up the ball which is lying at their feet and starts again.

Using Rebound helps to develop hand-eye coordination, the ‘feeling’ of hitting the ball as well as rapidly building confidence. Once you have control over the speed and direction of the ball you can start working on trying to maintain a rhythm. Physically you start to workout because the rallies are longer and if you play with a partner your movement and receptive skills are put to the test. This is where you really feel that you are ‘playing the game’.

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL: By now you have a much better understanding of the game but will still be struggling to get that consistency and maybe can’t quite get those grip changes your coach told you about? Again this is where Rebound can help. The game of tennis is about repetition; can you get the ball over the net once more than your opponent? Most players of this level are enjoying the competitive side of the sport and don’t want to spend too long practicing their shots ‘Let’s get on and play!!’ What they possibly don’t realise is that if they already have poor technique on some of their shots eg they are holding the racket incorrectly or they loose control of their racket head whilst swinging it could easily lead to ‘tennis elbow’ or other tennis related injuries or at worst their standard of tennis and ability to improve will be effected by their poor technique on certain shots. Rebound allows you (in your own time without requiring another person) to practice correct grips and correct swing patterns so the improvements you want to make to your game can be achieved correctly and when you want to put them into practice in a competitive situation you can.

IMPROVER LEVEL: Once you start playing regularly your game will come on leaps and bounds but like many things time will be an issue. As I mentioned in the previous section Rebound has no boundaries and ‘grooving’ your strokes can be done anywhere at anytime. The great thing about Rebound is that yes, the ball always comes back but it also does what YOU want it to do. If you take Rebound onto a tennis court you will find that you can work on patterns of play, changes of pace, different spins and footwork. If you want an intensive workout set yourself a ‘target’ rally and a time limit and away you go. You can work at whatever intensity you want inorder to get the desired effect. The art of hitting the ball at the same pace over and over again or ‘drilling’ as it is called will improve fitness levels, mental stamina and will give you a solid technique that doesn’t break down in competition.

In conclusion Rebound is an aid to all standards and ages and every tennis player will benefit from having one in their tennis bag.

Simon Bird  

Shropshire County Coach, Welti T&L Head coach, PCA qualified