Drills to Improve Tennis Reaction Time in Tennis

One of the main things that make a tennis player a successful one is the ability to move quickly in any direction the game wants them to. Moving around in the court at winning speeds calls for agility and swift reaction speed.

Don’t worry if you are not good with reflexes and reaction time. We’ll tell you how to improve reaction time in tennis

Effective tennis ball reaction drills to improve your reaction time

Here are some tried and tested methods that can drastically improve your tennis reaction time.

1. Ball drop reaction drill

  • Ask a friend to stand 5 meters from you with a bouncing ball in their hand.
  • They have to drop the ball from shoulder height randomly.
  • Your task is to catch the ball before it bounces off the ground for the second time.

This drill is great for coordination as well as reaction time improvement.

2. Reaction split step

  • Position a friend 5 meters from you, holding a tennis ball in each hand.
  • Your friend has to raise both his hands to shoulder height and drop one of the balls at random.
  • Your task is to catch the ball before it bounces off the ground for the second time. 
  • Return the ball to your friend as quickly as you can and restart the drill.

It is one of the most effective tennis reaction drills to improve your reaction time, agility, and decision-making skills.

3. Blind reaction drill

  • Position a friend 10 meters behind you with a tennis ball.
  • They have to toss the ball towards you at random.
  • You are required to turn around as soon as you hear the ball bounce off the ground and catch it before it bounces again.
It is also among the popular tennis ball reaction drills, as it teaches you to respond to the sound of the ball.

Take it from the experts

Jamal Liggin

Owner of JLT Performance Gym

"Reaction and reaction time are the main pillars of training athletes. BlazePod is the best way to challenge your athletes' reaction, especially at the end of a long session. This is a vital element of being a pro athlete and BlazePod helps my athletes grow with each session."

Kostas Chatzichristos

Head of Performance, CSKA Moscow

"Reaction training was always an integral part of our movement training. I love the variation, training options and ease of use that BlazePod provides during our session. One of our most-used training tool"

John Achterberg

Liverpool FC GK Coach

"Top-tier athletes train not just to build muscle, but also to increase hand-eye coordination and reflex speed. BlazePod can do all three at once."

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