10 Tips For Playing Tennis In The Wind and Rain
It may be wet and windy outside, but that shouldn’t stop you from playing tennis.
But if you’re not sure what to do when it starts pouring down, here are some tips on how to play tennis more effectively in the wind and rain.
10 Tips For Playing Tennis In The Wind and Rain
When playing tennis in the wind or rain, there are some simple tips you should keep in mind that will help you win more matches:
1. Bring a towel
One of the biggest problems with playing tennis in the rain and wind is losing your grip on your racket so it’s important that you come prepared by keeping a dry towel in your bag so that you can dry your hands when needed.
2. Use slice more often on your groundstrokes
If the tennis court and ball are wet from the rain then the tennis ball isn’t going to travel as much as if it were dry.
The tennis ball will also not bounce up as high as it would on a dry court.
The best way to deal with these lower balls is to hit more slice backhands and forehands as it will be easier to hit a slice shot than a topspin shot on these low balls.
By using more slice shots, you will also be making it harder for your opponents to hit their regular groundstrokes.
This can be great against hard hitting opponents who aren’t used to hitting slice shots themselves.
3. Be ready to move
As mentioned above, a wet court and tennis balls will cause the ball to travel slower through the court so you will need to be ready to move to any unexpected short balls.
You may also need to stand closer to the baseline on your return of serve as it will be harder for servers to hit through the court if it is wet and windy.
4. Move into the net
Moving into the net is key to playing tennis in the rain and wind as you will have more control over your shots when hitting volleys at the net.
If you choose to only hit groundstrokes at the baseline then the wind is more likely to push your balls out.
But if you aim to get to the net as soon as possible, then you are reducing the risk of this happening.
5. Use your slice serve
The best serve to use by far in wet and windy conditions is the slice serve as it is the most control oriented of the 4 main serve types.
Hitting a slice serve will make it easier for you to hit the ball into the service box in windy conditions and as a slice serve will cause the ball to stay low, you will be making it more difficult for your opponent to return your serve.
6. Avoid using a kick serve
In normal weather conditions, a kick serve is a great weapon to use against your opponent.
However, a kick serve is less likely to kick up if the court is wet so you may find that your kick serves are going straight into your opponent’s hitting zone.
7. Remember to bend your knees
On a wet court, many of the tennis balls coming to you will be very low and even lower if your opponent is using a slice, so it is important that you remember to bend your knees so that you can more effectively hit these balls.
8. Be smart with your lobs in the wind
A lob can be effective when playing in the wind but it is important that you hit the majority of your lobs when you are playing into the wind as the wind will hold the ball up and give you a better chance of keeping the ball in play.
I wouldn’t recommend that you hit too many lobs when the wind is behind you as it will be too difficult to judge how hard you have to hit the lob to keep it in play.
9. Use drop shots to move your opponent
The drop shot can be one of the most effective shots when playing in the wind and rain.
If the court is wet then even a semi-decent drop shot will cause your opponent problems as the ball is unlikely to bounce very high on their side of the court.
10. Remember to stay motivated
No one likes playing in the wind and rain so it can be easy to lose your motivation to play.
To counteract this, it is important to keep your body moving in between points and while waiting to return serve, as this will help you stay motivated.
