Equipment
Tennis racquet
There are many tennis racquets out in the stores. The best way to know what racquet fits you best is to demo the racquet first. Most stores will let you demo the racquet for a week or two. The key thing is to find the one that fits your game and makes you comfortable.
Tennis balls
There are many good brands of tennis balls such as, Wilson, Dunlop and Penn. The key thing is to change the balls on regular basis. Forinstance the Pros change the balls every 6 games. It’s up to you when to change them as long as they still got some life in them.
Tennis Shoes
Shoes are one of the most underrated equipments in tennis. You need to have the right tennis shoes. Quality shoes are needed most importantly because much of the action occurs in lateral movements. Which means running shoes won’t work since they are made specifically for forward motion.
March 30th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
I also recommend having a wrist band to use for practice and play. Tennis elbow isn’t usually something a beginner will have to worry about, however, the wrist is usually the first thing to feel the difference. A wrist band will help cushion your strokes by absorbing shock that would go to the wrist and elbow. Wearing the wrist band half way down the lower arm is common. However, most beginners will wear it just below the wrist, which is also very good. Good luck!
May 7th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
as a beginner, I agree: “no running shoes” I have been cheap and didn’t purchase tennis shoes, rather using an old pair of running shoes… my lateral movements are hampered by this, I can actually feel my ankles tilting trying to maintain side balance because running shoes have almost no side support. I might be better off wearing my hiking shoes!
May 26th, 2008 at 11:18 am
To what Ben said up there…
i would highly recommend you DO wear a separate pair of TENNIS shoes, because from the experience, it does feel much more comfortable and smooth. It definitely helps your game play.
Good Equipments are just the start of tennis.
September 19th, 2008 at 5:23 am
dude I have a nike shox air pumping shoez is that okk
October 23rd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
I am a beginner and I been playing with cross training shoes and my feet were badly hurting. I just bought some Tennis Shoes the other day and “What a difference it made on movement and comfort!!!”
I will try EquinoxLegend suggestion on the wrist band, my wrist has been hurting too
Thanks for all the good info!!!
October 28th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Cool
You definitely need to get some Tennis Shoes, running shoes are designed for forward movement while tennis shoes more for lateral movement!
November 30th, 2009 at 12:42 am
Hey, I live in Alaska and would like to know what type of rackets would be better for: power, and control. Since I live in Alaska, there are not many shops or “experts” that I could go to, to get an opinion on some brand name rackets.
I’m hoping that someone would be as so kind to give some good suggestions on what type of rackets I could/should order.
Thanks for your time.
November 30th, 2009 at 8:47 am
If you are looking for power. Babolat have some very good power rackets. Andy Roddick’s version is pretty good.
December 4th, 2009 at 4:23 pm
Some handy hints, thanks. Will keep me busy for a while.
May 4th, 2010 at 9:45 am
should i give up on tennis or should i carry on with it and see if i improve?????????? is there any handy tips you can advise to me?
June 12th, 2010 at 11:31 am
Firstly, I have coached tennis pros like Baker and Goodall, and they both started off hitting a ball in their back yard, then progressed (with some help) onto bigger and better things.
Novak Djokovic entered his first ju-pro tennis tournament as a young boy, and there would have been many days when Novak would have felt the same way as you Samantha, but he kept at it and is now very highly rated in the world.
I recommend watching the Aegon Championships which are currently being broadcasted on BBC 1 and 2 and watch the pro players’ techniques and introduce them into your personal tennis style. This will make you feel more positive about your ability, but don’t expect to instantly be amazing.
TO SUCCEED, YOU NEED TO HAVE ENERGY, DETERMINATION AND AN OPTIMISTIC ATTITUDE as well as the correct equipment and training.
I hope I helped you realise whether or not you want to give up or keep trying to succeed in this demanding but highly rewarding sport.
Yours,
June 30th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
i have been playing tennis for over 20 years and i will say that all this is true shoes are important rist bands also and if you are a beginer and would like a good powerful raquet i would reccomend babolat e-sense light cheap and good for beginers aboi 80$
November 12th, 2010 at 5:47 am
Hi there! Is it OK if I go a bit off topic? I am trying to read your website on my Macbook but it doesn’t display properly, do you have any suggestions? Cheers! Kandy