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Drills for Forehand and Backhand Groundstrokes The following drills are presented in a progression from basic to advanced skill level. Some Special Olympics athletes will be able to move quickly through the progression and others may stay at certain levels for a prolonged time. Be flexible and monitor athlete success in these drills. Be cautious of using athletes as training partners, as delivering the ball to each other may be difficult, hampering their success.   Shadow Drills These drills are done without a ball and are an excellent way to monitor proper stroke production. Examples of common game formats include the following.   Follow the leader: athlete or coach leads the group and coach checks technique. Simon Says: athletes follow the leader's instructions only when he says "Simon Says, hit a forehand." Freeze: the coach calls out a command for forehand or backhand and then calls out "freeze." Check for proper grips and technique at this point.       Self-Drop Forehand and Backhand Drills These drills can be also be modified to become a relay race. Each team has 20 balls to hit over the net. Start with a drop hit groundstroke. If the ball lands within the court the athlete repeats the skill; with a maximum of 3 balls per athlete and then switch. If a mistake is made, the next person in line takes a turn. The first team to hit all the balls is the winner. An adaptation is to have the coach stand to the side of the athlete and drop the ball.   The athlete should:   Hold the racket with the proper grip and stand sideways to the net, with the racket pointing toward the back fence. Drop a ball from the non-racket hand, in front and to the side of the body. Step toward the ball with the front foot and stroke the ball over the net and into the court. Record the number of successful drop hits and monitor improvement as the season progresses.     Alley Rally The athlete stands on the singles sideline facing a coach or partner on the doubles sideline 3 feet away. Place one tennis ball on the singles sideline and another one on the doubles sideline. Have athletes stand just behind the targets and, using the proper grip, gently bump the ball the partner's target. Partners rally back and forth. Monitor how many times the target is hit. To increase or decrease difficulty, use smaller or larger targets.       Tossed Ball Drills A partner or coach tosses tennis balls to the forehand and backhand sides. Athletes contact the ball after the first bounce and bump it over the net and into the court. Use targets, count consecutive hits and keep score between players. Be creative and keep athletes interested. Have a line of athletes "shadow" the hitter. The hitter stands at the service line and athletes follow the movements of the hitter.     Basket Feeding Drills Coach feeds balls from a hopper to students. Students form one or two lines on one side of court (depending on the number of athletes). The coach gently hits balls to the forehand or backhand side. Athletes hit a designated number of shots and return to the back of the line. Coaches can make the feeds easy or more difficult. Keep score, aim for targets or have "fielders" who try to catch hit balls. If a ball is caught by a fielder, they become a hitter. Have an athlete on the same side of the net as the coach and play out the point. Be creative and create different combinations of forehands and backhands. Let athletes help create games.       Ground Stroke Rallying with a Partner or Coach As players progress, they can rally the ball consecutively over the net. Start at the service line and complete 10 consecutive hits. After successfully completing 10 hits, athletes move to the mid-court area and then to the baseline area. Rally using a variety of balls and targets. For example: forehand to forehand cross courts; backhand to backhand cross courts; down the line shots; or all shots must land beyond the service line. Rally a number of consecutive hits. Set realistic goals!       Ground Stroke Points Athletes play points (no serve) using ground strokes. Play a game to a designated number of points (first to win 6 points, 11 points or 21 points) depending upon skill level. Have athletes play as a team. If they win a point the athlete stays in the game; if they lose the point a teammate takes their place.     Around the World (requires rallying skills) This is a large group drill with a minimum of 4 athletes per side. Two lines of athletes stand at opposite ends of the court. A drop hit starts the point and the rally begins. Each player hits one ball and runs to the end of the line at the opposite side of the court. The next player in line keeps the rally going. When a ball is missed, the player is out. The last two players play out the point, but do not have to run to the other side of the net. For lower skills players, the coach feeds most of the balls. Variation: Play as a team. After the team returns a ball, each player returns to the end of their respective line.  The team with the last remaining player wins.       Around the World: Forgot My Racket Variation Athletes play Around the World (above), but all team members share one tennis racket. This drill requires athletes to pay attention to the game.       King (or Queen) of the Court; (three to six players) if more players use two courts The king or queen returns the serve or a drop-hit serve from a member of the group. The players in the group alternate points until someone wins two points in a row and becomes the king or queen. The new king or queen replaces the old king or queen on his/her side of the court. This game is immensely popular and can be played for a long time.

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