| 20 March 2010
Rafael Nadal and Ivan Ljubicic exchanged breaks at the beginning of the second set of their semifinal match at Indian Wells today but I missed it picking up a plate of food for lunch. On my way back I had a fascinating conversation with master tennis teacher and researcher Vic Braden having to do with 12 bottles of vodka and cutting feet up. For real.
I innocently asked Vic what percentage of someone’s game is due to the racket. Does it make a 2% difference in someone’s game? A 3% difference? Vic and his crew wanted to cut open an arm to help them answer the question. I jokingly suggested he should have gotten hold of Sam Querrey when he lacerated his arm last year after a glass table he was sitting on collapsed.
Vic wanted to see how the structure of the arm reacted to a new racket but, strangely enough, he couldn’t find any takers. For the foot, that was a different matter. He was doing research on patella tendinitis – that excruciating pain just in front of the heel - and he spoke to some people in Russia and asked them how much it would cost to get subjects who were willing to have their feet cut open.
Twelve bottles of vodka was the answer and Vic thought the guy was kidding but he wasn’t. Twelve bottles of vodka costs more than many a salary in Russia and the study went forward. Here are the results. If you have plantar fasciitis, curling your toes while you’re walking is at least as effective as wearing orthotics to treat the condition. Who knew?
As for the importance of rackets, one thing we settled on is this: every time you change your racket your brain has to figure out a new pattern to work with it. That means your brain is trying to work out new habits instead of honing old, familiar habits. That means you’re going to put the ball into the bottom of the net because you’re thinking too much.
In other words, change your racket every few years if you must but otherwise cut out. Any technical advantage the racket may have pales in comparison to what it takes away in order to adjust to it.
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
