Mens Tennis Forums banner

Getting my 4 year old into playing tennis

3K views 8 replies 3 participants last post by  HKz 
#1 ·
Hi guys, I'm needing advice on getting my 4 year old son started with tennis, to a level where he can actually hit a ball consistently.

I play with him out the back garden, using a kids badminton net, as much as I can but I struggle to keep his interest because he can't hit a ball in the air consistently.

The other day I gave him a full size racquet instead of a small plastic kids one and it made a difference, he hit a few balls clean in the air with good force, and I made a big hurrah of it to him while convincing myself he's the next Federer/Nadal. (He's probably not:sad:)

In terms of serving he just places the ball on the racquet strings and moves the racquet forward. I think that's fine for now until he is a wee bit older.

He's a very timid child so lessons are out of the question for now, he'd spend the whole time crying, he has a bit of maturing to do before we can do lessons.

I was hoping for tips to make him more competent. I'd love to get to a stage where I could take him onto a real court, or even a badminton court with the net lowered, and just rally (obviously just trying to keep it in). I really don't know where to go as I am awful at tennis myself, and didn't play until I was 19.

Thanks in advance.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
Well first thing first is to teach him properly. I totally understand that you want to be his coach/mentor/etc, but if you are really wanting him to get somewhere then you certainly may need to get some help with teaching him especially the basics when the brain is like a sponge and they'll develop habits engraved forever.

Secondly, you need to be firm with a schedule even early on. I mean look at Agassi's early beginnings. His father would MAKE him hit balls for hours on end even if Andre didn't want to, and I'm sure that involved a lot of emotional and physical abuse to keep Andre on the court focused. I'm not saying this is the right way, or to even do this, but if you look at how other pros started out, you'll notice similar beginnings where their parents/coaches really pushed them. It isn't like other sports perhaps where the kid has plenty of time to get disciplined, so you have to start now. However, you definitely have to find out how to make tennis enjoyable for your son. You don't want him growing up to be hating it and then get burned out by his teens. This happens very often.

As for bringing him to a court, who cares how good or what age he is. I took my son out to a tennis court as soon as he was able to crawl (of course I have it easy since I have my parents' old house which has a tennis court in the backyard :p ) but really, letting him get a feel of the court early on will undeniably make it comfortable for him later on very quickly.

Finally, in regards to his progression, well that is a tough question. We see just even at the pros, there are early learners and late bloomers. Your son will be the same way. Perhaps he'll pick up certain shots really quickly or maybe he'll struggle. You just cannot get frustrated at all with this!

Good luck! My son is almost 3, so we are making some progress too :)
 
#3 ·
If he,s 4 I would just do a bit maybe 2 times a week and see how he takes it , there are a few things you can teach him right away , like keeping his eye,s on the ball. Being balanced before hitting the ball and swinging threw . Above all though I would make sure he,s enjoying it . Just ask him and if he wants to play more he,ll let you know . I think my mum wanted me to play but I hated tennis when I was growing up .
 
#5 ·
If he,s 4 I would just do a bit maybe 2 times a week and see how he takes it , there are a few things you can teach him right away , like keeping his eye,s on the ball. Being balanced before hitting the ball and swinging threw . Above all though I would make sure he,s enjoying it . Just ask him and if he wants to play more he,ll let you know . I think my mum wanted me to play but I hated tennis when I was growing up .
That is the "PC" way of doing it. It is bullshit. You can't tell me pros "loved" tennis at that age. Agassi's journey of hating tennis and becoming a pro is much more a reality than someone like perhaps Federer loving tennis and becoming pro. Kids are naturally going to get burned out and realize they don't have as much of a childhood as others, so those that become pros are the ones that realize they are playing a privileged sport so they learn to respect what they are doing, just bite their tongue or one day find true enjoyment of playing. Tennis is a very demanding sport early on and requires a constant push.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top