SPORT & LEISURE
public. For the princely sum of £2.00,
deposited in an honesty box alongside the
two hard courts, non-members can rock
up for a game at any time, provided the
courts are not already in use of course.
A competent tennis player has eight
basic shots in his or her repertoire:
the serve, forehand, backhand, volley,
half-volley, overhead smash, drop shot
and lob.
A serve may be hit under- or overhand,
but members of the RLTCC men’s first
team, which competes in Division 1 of
the Hampshire County League, will serve
with maximum power and placement
using different types of overhand serve,
including flat serve, topspin, slice and kick
serve.
Most of the island’s clubs have coaches
trained to LTA standards, and lessons
will help improve your forehand and
backhand. A backhand stroke can be
executed with one or both hands, and is
more difficult to play than the forehand.
Two hands provide more power, while one
hand can apply backspin on the ball to
produce a low-trajectory bounce. Some
players use two hands on both backhand
www.wightfrog.com/islandlife
life
and forehand.
You’ll also need coaching to help you
volley, which is a shot made in the air
before the ball bounces, generally near
the net. The half-volley is made by
hitting the ball on the rise just after it has
bounced. The lob, hit high and deep into
the opponent's side of the court, is one of
the hardest shots to play correctly and an
underhit lob is likely to result in a winning
overhead smash from an experienced
opponent.
There are plenty of sports shops stocking
tennis equipment on the island and annual
membership can be as little as £90.00, but
check with individual clubs for further
details. What are you waiting for? If you
are enjoying the tennis at Wimbledon, why
not grab a racquet, head off to Brighstone
and start practising those softly tapped
drop shots!
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