Alex Daniels's Page

This is a follow up, to my post on how to become a great returner. Most recreational players are enamored with the speed of fast serves. And I'll agree, it's fun to swing away on the first serve. But in terms of importance, it's consistency, placement and then power. Keep it in this order. Because you can't have a good serve without consistency.

I equate consistency with topspin. When you hit with topspin you are adding safety to your shot. With this in mind, it makes sense…

It's time for the next installment in my series. For those who don't know. This is where I pick an active player, who's playing style I find interesting and create a dream match scenario. Complete with court surface, strategy, and my reason behind why I'd want to have a match with them.

#9 Nicolas Almagro

Coming in ninth on my list is Nicolas Almagro.…

I found something interesting at tenniswarehouse.com.  A thread on the Roddick vs Nadal 2004 US Open match. I was delighted to find a link to the highlights, because I've never seen the match before.

This was the first meeting between them. At the time Roddick was playing some of his best tennis and Nadal was years away from his prime, especially on the faster courts. Roddick destroys Nadal, then goes on to reach the quarter-finals where he lost an epic 5 set match to Joachim…