If you don't have access to a tennis professional for private lessons, clinics or group classes, you can improve your game with a number of free practice techniques, with or without a partner. If you want to get better, practice in conditions that mimic a tennis match so you'll be ready to play matches without experiencing game-like situations for the first time during a match.
Slow it Down
When you're learning new skills, ball control is much more important than power — it doesn't matter how hard you hit the ball if it goes in the net or out of bounds. Learn ball control by playing mini-tennis. Warm up, hit and play points using only the services boxes as your court. This will force you to move your feet and control your shots. Use foam or low-compression balls to help you develop full swings. Regular balls can fly over fences if you mis-hit them, so many beginners hesitate to use full swings as they learn. This leads to short, choppy, weak strokes. Rally balls let you swing away and keep the ball in play.
Hit Up
Based on gravity's affect on a tennis ball, you'll need to hit most shots up, not down. If you want a groundstroke to go deeper into the court, hit the ball higher over the net, rather than harder. To get more serves in, and to get them deep, hit the bottom of the ball up, rather than the top of the ball down. This will help you get the ball over the net and deeper into the service box. Hit your volleys with an open racket face — hitting down on volleys often sends them straight down into the net or in front of your opponent, who can then hit a quick shot back.
Use Two Hands for Backhands
If you hit a one-handed backhand, use your second, non-hitting hand to balance the racket until just before you hit the ball. If you keep your second hand on the racket, this will help you rotate your upper body more, close your shoulders and get more power into your shots. If you have a two-handed backhand, use your trailing arm to hit the ball. This will bring larger muscles, such as the biceps, pecs and deltoids into the shot, giving you more power. If you are right-handed, this means pushing your two-handed backhand with your left hand, rather than pulling your racket with your right hand. If you're right-handed, practice several short, left-handed forehands from the service line, then try a two-handed backhand with this feeling.
TennisTeacher.com: Beginner Lesson -- Two-Handed Backhand
http://www.tennisteacher.com/tennis101g_WindowsMedia-DSL.wmv
Make Your Opponent Lose
Most points in a beginner tennis match are lost, not won. Beginners don't have the skills to serve aces and hit winners point after point. Someone usually makes an unforced error, hitting the ball into the net, wide or long. Instead of going for winners, keep the ball in play until your opponent makes a mistake. Increase the chance that your opponent will lose by moving her around. Your priorities, in order of importance each time you play a point, should be: get the ball in; move it left of right; move it deep or short; add spin; add power. Power is the least important skill for recreational tennis players.
Serve Games
After you've warmed up your serve and practiced technique, finish serving practice with simulated games. Decide where you serve will each time, to your imaginary opponent's forehand or backhand. If you make the serve, you get a point; if not, you lose the point. Even if your serve goes into the correct service box, but it didn't land where you were aiming, you lose the point. Bounce the ball the same number of times you will during a real match to simulate match conditions. Play games, switching sides of the court each time.
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