There’s a difference between coaching tennis and simply delivering tennis activity—yet, for many coaches, that line is blurred.
A common trend I see when observing coaching sessions is that most coaches don’t coach what they see—they coach what they know. They default to:
✅ Technical buzzwords and common phrases (“finish over your shoulder,” “low to high,” “bend your knees”).
✅ Classic copy-and-paste drills—ones they’ve seen, learned, or used hundreds of times before.
✅ Generic feedback that sounds professional but often doesn’t match what’s actually happening on court.
This is a huge problem.
The Mistake: Coaching a Pre-Planned Lesson, Not the Player in Front of You
As a coach educator, I watch a lot of lessons. The majority follow a familiar pattern:
- Structured session—well-planned, well-executed, everything runs smoothly.
- Technical focus—most of the coaching lens is on how the player moves (biomechanics).
- Very little attention on the ball or decision-making.
But here’s the issue: a lesson can be perfectly structured and still completely miss the point.
Real Example: A Lesson That Looked Great… But Missed the Mark
A recent mentee of mine submitted a session for review.
On the surface, it looked brilliant:
✅ The structure was clear.
✅ The transitions were smooth.
✅ The technical knowledge was high-level.
But there was one big problem: nothing the coach was saying was actually relevant to what the player needed.
The coach was giving technical interventions—adjustments to grips, swings, and footwork—even though the player was achieving the outcome set for the drill.
So I asked, “Why did you give that feedback?”
Their response? “It’s all I know.”
A well-planned, well-executed lesson that completely ignored what the player actually needed.
The Difference Between Running a Drill and Coaching a Player
Running a drill is easy. You:
- Set up the exercise.
- Deliver a set of instructions.
- Correct technique based on a predefined model.
- Move on to the next part of the lesson.
Coaching, however, is completely different.
It requires you to:
✅ Observe, adapt, and respond in real time to what the player is doing.
✅ Shape and encourage behavior change based on the actual needs of the player.
✅ Coach with intention, not just knowledge.
A good coach doesn’t just deliver content—they interpret the game as it unfolds in front of them and adjust accordingly.
The Biggest Flaw in Traditional Coaching: Over-Focus on Technique
Most coaches focus on the biomechanics of the player—where their feet are, their swing path, their follow-through.
But very few focus on the most important factor in tennis—the ball.
Tennis is a perceptual-motor sport. Movement is not pre-planned or robotic—it is a response to the ball, the opponent, and the game situation.
If we only coach movement without considering why the movement happens, we are coaching in isolation.
Imagine a player is consistently sending the ball deep and with pace. But their grip is slightly off from the “ideal” position.
🔹 Old-School Coaching: “Fix the grip.”
🔹 True Coaching: “Are you happy with your outcome? If so, why change?”
If the shot is effective in a real game scenario, why force the player into a technical model that might actually reduce their effectiveness?
Why Coaches Struggle to Change What They See
A friend of mine, a highly experienced and qualified coach, once admitted something to me:
“I struggle to change my lessons based on what I see. I just think about my lesson structure, my progressions.”
And that’s the problem with traditional coaching—coaches are conditioned to follow a pre-planned framework rather than letting the lesson emerge organically.
- If the player isn’t getting it, they just repeat the drill.
- If the outcome isn’t right, they force technical changes rather than changing the task.
- If the drill is running well, they assume learning is happening, even if it’s not transferring to match play.
The Constraints-Led Approach: Coaching What You See, Not What You Know
This is why I believe the Constraints-Led Approach (CLA) is the best method for developing adaptable, independent players.
With CLA, instead of teaching players how to move, we:
✅ Give them the game of tennis.
✅ Manipulate constraints based on what we see them doing.
✅ Encourage them to find movement solutions organically.
It’s real coaching—not pre-planned instruction.
There are no fake lessons, stock answers, or one-size-fits-all solutions—just authentic learning through exploration and self-organization.
The Key Takeaways for Coaches
If you want to move beyond just running drills and actually coach players, ask yourself:
1️⃣ Are you coaching what you see, or what you know?
- Are you adapting to what the player needs?
- Or are you just repeating what you were taught?
2️⃣ Are you prioritizing technique over outcomes?
- Is the player’s movement your main focus?
- Or are you considering the ball, decision-making, and adaptability?
3️⃣ Are you flexible enough to adjust on the fly?
- Can you change your lesson if the player’s needs are different from your plan?
- Or do you stick to the plan no matter what?
Coaching is not about copy-pasting drills or repeating technical jargon. It’s about helping players develop solutions to real game situations.
Are You Ready to Coach Tennis, Not Just Deliver It?
If you’re tired of coaching in rigid, traditional ways and want to learn how to:
✅ Coach in a way that actually transfers to match play.
✅ Adapt your sessions based on what you see.
✅ Build players who are independent, adaptable, and problem-solvers.
👉 Join My Tennis Coach Academy today to access:
🎾 Game-based practice designs that actually work.
🎾 Exclusive coaching videos and real-life session breakdowns.
🎾 Mentoring and coaching support to help you evolve.
🔗 Join Now and start coaching tennis, not just delivering it.
