Tennis Game

Watching a tennis match between two promising juniors, one an Australian and the other a New Zealander, earlier this year, I observed a very interesting incident.

At matchpoint down in the second set, the Australian player clearly failed in an attempt to run down a drop volley from his opponent. Scooping the ball (which had clearly bounced twice) over his opponent’s head, the Australian player continued to treat the point as if it were still “live”.

Meanwhile, the New Zealander, certain that the match was over, headed towards the net to shake his opponent’s hand.

With the exception of the umpire, everyone who was there, including the Australian player, knew that the ball had bounced twice. Despite a legitimate protest and an appeal to his opponent’s honesty, the New Zealander “lost” the point, came very close to “losing” the set, and, I’m sure, would have found it extremely difficult to win the match had it gone to a third set.

Had that been the case, had the Australian won the match, would it have been a case of dishonesty, not honesty, being the best policy? After all, when it comes to sport, isn’t it a case of winning being everything, even if it involves cheating?

And even if it isn’t a case of either dishonesty being the best policy or of winning being everything, how do you explain to a young player who has just lost because of his opponent’s dishonesty that honesty is the best policy, and that winning, if it requires cheating, (or even if it doesn’t), ISN’T everything.

Although others may disagree, it is my contention that any attempt to win by means of cheating automatically brands the cheat as the loser — no matter what the outcome.

Aside from the fact that any honest spectator can’t help but lose all respect for a cheat, even more significantly, a cheat can’t help but lose all respect for himself.

No matter how hard he tries, he cannot escape the negative consequences of his dishonest actions. He cannot evade the fact that he has used deceit to gain something (a counterfeit win) that otherwise would not have been his.

In so doing, he must live with the self-knowledge — as well as the knowledge of any spectator — that he has defaulted on the principle of honesty, and instead, become a cheat. He can never feel happy, in the true sense of the word, about his so-called win.

Therefore, I would explain to any young tennis player who has just lost to a cheat, and who, as a consequence, mistakenly thinks that cheats do prosper, that nothing could be further from the truth.

And to make my point, I would then ask him if he’d like to trade places, if only for a second, with someone who has a deserved reputation as a cheat, or if he would feel good about winning through cheating.

Discussing sports ethics with children is extremely important for two reasons:

The first is that sport provides them with one of the best opportunities to formulate the ethical principles which they can then apply in all spheres and stages of later life.

The second is that sports cheats give the purity of healthy competition a bad name, and should, therefore, be roundly condemned.

Rehabilitation for a tennis elbow injury will require patience, and of course the questions that run through your mind are very simple.

What do I need to do?
How do I do it?
When should I do it?
How long is the rehabilitation for my tennis elbow going to take?
The answer to the last question is – As long as it takes!!

The first thing to remember is that Tennis Elbow becomes a chronic problem if it isn’t looked after properly.

In terms of tennis elbow rehabilitation, there is one absolute rule. You must do nothing until you are experiencing little or no pain, and then the rehabilitation process, and exercises can only proceed providing you have no pain in whatever exercise you are doing.

Before you can start playing tennis properly again you must have restored full strength and mobility to your elbow.

There are three different phases to your tennis elbow rehabilitation, and they can be summarized as follows.

The first phase is to reduce inflammation and pain. You need to do two things here, and the first is to begin the healing process whilst also preventing the associated muscles from wasting.

The process here has four distinct parts.

Rest which means avoiding overusing the injury. You must continue to use the muscles to ensure they don’t waste, and a good blood supply is maintained. The activity must not be painful, if it hurts don’t do it!!

Use Ice all the time until you return to full use, as it lessens inflammation.

Use compression and elevation as it helps the blood supply and also reduces swelling.

In the second phase of tennis elbow rehabilitation, exercise comes into play. It is important to increase your elbow strength, and endurance. You need to get the elbow to function again properly.

This flexibility is achieved primarily by extending the elbow gently without flexing it, and holding the extended position for up to 30 seconds, but NOT to the point of pain, and doing this perhaps twenty times a day.

To strengthen the elbow, sit with your elbow on your knee, and with a weight not exceeding 1 lb. In your hand, and palm downwards flex your wrist up and down slowly. Note that the elbow shouldn’t move at all. Do exactly the same thing with your palm facing upwards.

Another useful exercise is to use a tennis ball, and squeeze it in your hand, and keep doing this.
Remember that there should be no pain.

You should gradually increase the weight as your strength grows, and always use an ice pack afterwards.

The third phase is where you gradually return to playing whilst maintaining and increasing the second phase.

In terms of playing you shouldn’t start until your symptoms are gone, but what you can do in combination with flexibility exercises is to just hit gentle forehands in succession and repeat this with backhands and lobs. If you start with fifteen minute sessions, and increase it to an hour, and you get no pain, then you can start to serve, and then return to competitive tennis.

Remember that in Tennis Elbow Rehabilitation there is no gain with pain!!