It is a well known fact that watching good and professional players can really help your game. Studying top players technique and temperament can add many factors to your game and give you top pointers how to improve.
In this blog we focus on Angelique Kerber, who reached the top ten for the first time in 2012 and made it to Wimbledon semi-finals.
Biography
Angelique hails from Germany and was born into a tennis family. Her coach for many years was her grandfather who also runs a tennis centre in Poland.
Technical
Kerber has excellent groundstrokes and loves to play a powerful baseline game.
- Forehand
The forehand is Angelique’s best shot, she prefers to dictate and dominate points and with her powerful forehand she can hit with a lot of variety.
The forward motion is short and compact which makes the shot very reliable and leaves less room for mistakes.
Her racket grip is rather conservative and as a result she tends to hit the ball rather flat, her down the line forehand is probably her biggest wedding.
- Backhand
Ms Kerber’s backhand is a very solid shot, her grip is good and her motion starts with a great upper body turn. When you watch Angelique’s action you can see the kinetic chain at work when she unwinds from the ground up into the shot.
- Volleys
Ms Kerber is not afraid to follow short balls up to the net, although this is not a particularly strong part of her game. However, she has a good topspin volley that she normally puts away.
Her volleys do tend to float, especially her forehand as the racket moves down too much.
- Slice
Angelique uses the slice backhand occasionally particularly on low balls that are rather too short, and also in defensive positions. She normally hits a pretty good slice shots in these situations, ensuring it keeps low.
- Serve
Probably the biggest weakness in her game. She does not keep the correct key body positions and her second serve can be a gimme.
Technically, she opens her upper body too early and is too frontal when contact is made with the ball. She does not turn away from the target as she begins her backswing.
Tactical
Angelique prefers to play a powerful baseline game and is at her best when she is dictating the game with her forehand. But she also has a delicate touch and can play some lovely drop shots.
Being a left hander helps a lot, often she can open up the court with her forehand to the opposition backhand in order to finish the point with her flat forehand down the line.
Attacking second serves with her flat forehand is another strong point of her game.
It is sometimes advantageous to watch a video of top players with your tennis coach and agree what parts you may include in your own play.
