Pro Tennis Player Stroke Library
Welcome to FYB’s pro tennis player stroke library! This area contains video of the top players on the ATP and WTA tours hitting in high definition and slow motion.
These videos were filmed at the 2009 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, CA, and at Washington Kastles and Philadelphia Freedoms World Team Tennis matches. At the BNP Paribas Open, FYB was able to film most of the tennis players in the top 10 on both tours. Some examples, as you can see below, include Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Dinara Safina, and Daniela Hantuchova. At recent World Team Tennis matches we added Serena and Venus Williams, as well as some former players such as Andre Agassi and John McEnroe.
So how should you use the Pro Tennis Player Stroke Library?
In the tennis lessons section, we present the forehand, backhand, serve and other shots in a way that’s designed to get you to understand what the fundamentals of each shot are. Once you’ve got a handle on those fundamentals, you can use this stroke library to compare what you know with what the top tennis players are doing. What you’ll find is that despite the fact that each player’s strokes look a little bit different, they all do a few things — the fundamentals — the same.
Should you copy what your favorite tennis player is doing?
The answer is, “it depends.” You can get yourself into A LOT of trouble by trying to copy your favorite player. For example, you shouldn’t copy Andy Roddick’s serve just because you think it looks cool. You should be copying the underlying fundamentals of the shot. In a sense, you’ll be copying all tennis pros if you do this — not just Roddick. It’s VERY important to understand that the idiosyncrasies of each player do not affect their execution of the fundamentals. Roddick’s abbreviated backswing doesn’t get in the way of the fundamentals. The problem most club-level tennis players run into when they try to copy a particular pro’s idiosyncrasies is that they do so in a way that DOES interfere with the correct execution of the fundamentals. That’s what you need to work very, very hard to avoid. With that in mind, we can definitely learn from watching the pros!
NOTE — THE LIST IS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER.
{ 86 comments }
Hey Will
This library is quite a resource to be able to access. Very interesting and helpful indeed. Any chance of seeing Nikolay Davydenko sometime soon. His movement and stroke making seems second to only a few. The new site design really works.
Thanks.
Hey I really love the website and think the Pro Stroke Library has been a great addition! What “Keith” said i’d like to second and also ask if you you by any chance get James Blake hitting, I’d love to see that forehand practicing the grip he uses.
Cheers and well done!
Thanks folks. Think we have some Davydenko. I’ll check. Not sure about James Blake but I’ll look into that as well. Cheers.
are you going to put your Djokovic vids soon?
Outstanding website! Terrific resource! Keep up the great work!
Awesome site Will. I was wondering if you might be getting some more pro strokes on here…. such as some older players…. Agassi, Sampras, etc.
Very nice !!
But not many one-hand backhands here, except Gasquet and Federer ! That’s a pity
Please do something on Wawrinka or such great backhand hitters
Pleaaaaase
i thought out of the library you would have had sampras in here
We’ll be getting additional pros when we have the chance to film them. Stay tuned!
FYI, I couldn’t get to the pages of Federer and Haas (one-handed backhand rules), and it seems that every other link here just goes to an error page.
Hello,Will.
Can you find and share any videos about Earnest Gulbis’s play?
I think he is a very potential young player.
Would you like to share with me?
Would love to see some Justine Henin strokes on here. Also, old school strokes such as Rod Laver.
Just fantastic and so damn usefull , another great addition
.
Great library, please add the William sisters to the list.
Awesome library. It would be great if a few more players’ strokes were added to the collection like pete’s ,Courier’s and agassi’s. Thanks
Andre Agassi, Venus and Serena Williams, John McEnroe, Renae Stubbs, Leander Paes, Nadia Petrova, and and a bunch of others are coming soon!
Will: I’d like to see some instruction on how to handle low, hard, flat shots. At my level, 4.5, a lot of the players are in their 40s and hit a traditional eastern forehand with a closed stance that stays low and penetrates. Some guys I play are very good at this and hardly ever miss.
The pros don’t seem to have to handle that shot very much because they hit big topspin that bounces higher in their strike zone. I don’t have a lot of trouble with those shots, but low flat ones give me trouble. I’d like to see what you recommend.
How exactly do they give you trouble? Are you over-hitting? If the ball is below the new you’ve got to hit w/a little extra spin & (generally) less pace to get the ball up and down.
If your opponent’s hit w/eastern grips / closed stances (which they shouldn’t be doing on their forehands) get the ball up in their strike zones — in other words, hit them high balls — and see if you can push them back in the court a little bit. Don’t try and blow them off the court — prevent them from stepping into the ball & force them to hit out of an open stance. Doing those two things should take them out of their comfort zone and prevent them from hitting powerful / low / flat balls.
Hi will how are you doing and i want to be a Proesional tennis player can you guide me through the way?
Hi,
I met your mom and dad on 8/11 at OBX, corolla beach. On 8/12 when I was doing my morning run I ran into your mom again. She mentioned this web site and I promised her I would look at it. The web site is great and you have a nice mom and and dad. Keep up the love of tennis and make your the scores are never love…….
God bless,
Michael
Hey! Nice — I made it down there sometime around then. Was a little sick for most of the vacation so that was kind of a downer… happens. Still got a chance to run my dad around the tennis court later in the week, however, so it wasn’t a total loss =)
This section of the site is a great idea.
I dont like how a lot of things are in slow motion only though. I think it would help more if i could see how some of the strokes look in real time
hope you put prostrokes of davenport, she uses the same grip that i do (eastern) and im actually looking forward to see her forehand. btw is it wierd to hit with a eastern grip although it sometimes happens that the racquet rotates and makes it look like an extreme eastern grip?
Hey how about some Sampras Videos I’d love to see his strokes and serve broken down. I know he plays on the outback champs tour so maybe there’d be some video from those matches
We don’t have any Sampras or Davenport at the moment — we’ll get it if they play at an event where we can easily film.
I would like to join the cry for more one hand backhand videos. I know that there are not many pros that play this shot but many rec players do. Henin, Sampras Muster or Graf videos would be greatly appreciated.
I would like to thank you for the great videos already online! Federer’s backhand clip helped me a lot improving my positioning relative to the ball and my swing. I can now hit better topspin and do not have to slice most backhand shots. I often watch them as a reminder
robin soderling
Some 1H backhands to consider (there are more than we think) besides Federer, Haas, Blake, and Gasquet…
Wawrinka, Youhzny, Llubicic, Sela, Robredo, Montanes, Hanescu, Gonzales, Hernandez, Amalgro, Garcia-Lopez, Volandri, Rochus, Kolschreiber, Acasuso, Lopez, Karlovic, Berrer, Gaudio, Sampras, Pioline…
Besides Hennin…
Mauresmo, Suarez-Navarro, Schiavone, old footage of Sabatini, Navaratilova, and Sukova…
Thanks for all of these videos! I would also love to see Henin, especially her backhand and serve. (As a fellow short female…I want to see her serve strategy….)
This comment is for Torsten: I know what you mean about the low hard shots that stay at knee level or lower and just skid. I have an eastern forehand & those are tough shots to handle. What I learned is that getting to them is half the battle and you have to focus on spinning or chipping the shot with placement. Hitting through the ball with a flatter swing is not going to work like shots at waist level in your wheelhouse. Now is they serve and volley well and have those strokes – then they may eat your lunch no matter what. Just my 2 cents.
thanks all these video, it helps me to improve tennis skill!
sampras ,please!
If we get a chance, certainly! However, nothing is lined up at the moment.
I noticed you have 2009 BNP Paribas Open footage of James Blake in your latest forehand e-mail course. Any chance of uploading a complete video of him hitting?
Marcelo Rios Forehand please… tnx
Pete Sampras serve?? Leyton Hewitt strokes??
Nalbandian too
Hi Will, I found your forehand lesson helpful. thanks. I searched your site for “custom grip” but didnt find anything. I have found that minute changes in grip shape (for instance, holding a forehand on bevel 3 then switching to bevel 7, ie the other side) is enough to materially change not only the “feel” of my shot but the placement as well. I find difficulty also switching between my supposedly identical racquets when a string breaks. Do you have any insights on this subject? Is there a customizing service for grips which might reliably eliminate this problem? thanks
hey will,
i was wondering if you might be able to put up some pro strokes of Pete Sampras, and check out his serve. Thanks, John
hey will,
i was wondering if you might be able to put up some pro strokes of Pete Sampras, and check out his serve. Thanks, John
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Could you, by any chance, please put up Lleyton Hewitt???
Pete Sampras?
john isner?????
Please do a Sampras section!!!
ROGER FEDERER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
grigor dimitrov ?
Viva Fed…..
Dude, get some taylor dent or micheal russell
Carla Suarrez Navarro…awesome backhand and uses a more extreme grip which we don't get to see too often, same with Nicolas Almagro
where is Pete??!!!!!!!
Ferni Verdasco rock!
Ferni Verdasco rock!
Could you post some ivanisevic's serves?
I agree.
He is a rising star!!!
I think Ernest Gulbis would deserve to be in this library. He's got a fabulous technique (especially the serve) and will soon be in the top 5 no doubt about it
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