#3 – First /vs/ second serve

Welcome to my new “Teach yourself tennis” series, using the best YouTube videos

I’ll be your video curator / instructor ! selecting the best free coaches out there…

Serving is often a big problem for many tennis players. A weak serve sets your opponent up  for an easy winner; forcing yourself to hit it harder  often makes you double fault (which is even worse, a winner on a plate). We therefore often see the second serve being a slowed down version of the first serve which makes it so weak and predictable that it gets put away.

The key point is to understand that a second serve should be very different from a first serve:

  • The first serve should be trying to win you the point with an ace. It is powerful, hit flat for maximum speed and precisely placed.
  • The second serve should be different: the aim is to reliably put the ball it in play while making it hard for your opponent to return a winner. There are usually two common options: a sliced second serve or a kick second serve.

Back when I was a teenager, I use to make the same mistake. The coach then forced me to only ever hit second serves (for the first and second) until I was confident that I would get my second serve in if I went for a big first serve. To this day, I serve many more sliced and kick serve on my first serve than flat serves, and I find that, when well executed, they are nearly as effective at my level of play.

This video explains the difference between all three serve types and demonstrates them in not too much detail. I will cover each serve in a lot more depth in later posts. I just want to keep it to the end of this series so that the people I play tennis with don’t copy my favorite weapon too soon 🙂

Hope you found this serve “teaser” video interesting…Join me for further shot and serve specific videos soon.

Whisky Sour

Some say its the most popular cocktail in Stockholm this winter !

Ingredients:

  • 2 measures (50ml) of bourbon wisky
  • 1 measure (25ml) lemon juice
  • 1/2 measure (12.5ml) sugar syrup
  • 1/2 measure (12.5ml) egg white
  • Small orange (or clementine)

How to mix:

  • Put all the ingredients (bar the orange!) in a cocktails shaker along with ice cubes
  • Shake vigorously to cool the mixture down
  • Strain into small whisky tumblers with an ice cube
  • Garnish with a half slice of orange

#2 – Topspin one-handed backhand

Welcome to my new “Teach yourself tennis” series, using the best YouTube videos

I’ll be your video curator / instructor ! selecting the best free coaches out there…

I am like this guy in the first video. I use to slice my back hand and that worked fine in singles because of placement but in doubles, the other guy at the net had too much time to see the shot and move in to volley it back. I therefore wanted to hit my backhand harder while keeping it in court. I started working on the magic topspin backhand !

The first video gives you the 4 basic key points of a topspin backhand:

  1. The grip
  2. The back swing
  3. The contact
  4. The finish

This next video decomposes the backhand movement more precisely into 5 key steps:

  1. Initiate the turn
  2. Elbow and hand position
  3. Dropped racket position
  4. Contact position
  5. Stretching the chest

This older gentleman is great (you might even relate more with him…). He explains the movement in great details and gives you his best tips for an effortless one-handed topspin backhand:

  • Good grip
  • Rubber band effect
  • Release the forearm and the wrist
  • Loose shoulders

The next video explains the most common faults:

  • Bad grip
  • not turning your body
  • not going from low to high

This last video has good slow motion shots of a non-professional player

And finally, for advanced coaching, how to get more power on your backhand….

Hope you found this video selection useful and join me for further shot specific videos soon.

Hake wrapped in Parma ham with Mediterranean vegetables

from “Cook with M&S Food”

Difficulty: Easy

Serves: 2

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2x hake fillets
  • 4x slices Parma ham
  • 1x bag of chunky Mediterranean style mixed vegetables
  • 1x bag of puy lentils (pre-cooked)
  • 1x jar of M&S Mediterranean paste
  • Some basil leaves

Special Equipment

  • Medium frying pan
  • Large oven-proof pan

Preparation

  • Hake
  • Wrap 1 or 2 sheets of Parma ham around the hake fillets, front and back, and then put to one side

Cooking

  • Step 1 – Vegetables
  • Add 2 tbsp of oil to an ovenproof pan, saute the vegetables for 8-10 minutes on a medium heat, season to taste
  • Add 1/2 the jar of the Mediterranean paste and 100 ml of water to the pan. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for a further 10-12 minutes
  • Step 2 – Hake
  • Preheat the oven for later at 190 degC /Fan 170 degC /Gas
  • In a separate frying pan over a medium/brisk heat, cook the wrapped hake fillets for 2-3 minutes on each side, until the ham is crisp and caramelised
  • Step 3 – Combine
  • Place the hake fillets on top of the vegetables in the ovenproof pan
  • Transfer the pan to the oven to finish cooking for 5-7 minutes
  • Reheat the Puy lentils for 1 minute in a 900 degC microwave

Presentation

  • Use heated plates
  • Serve the lentils in the plate, with the hake fillet on top and the vegetables around
  • Garnish with basil leaves

Nice, easy and quick recipe!

Goes well with a crisp Semillon Sauvignon Blanc from Australia

#1 – Get a grip !

Welcome to my new “Teach yourself tennis” series, using the best YouTube videos

I’ll be your video curator / instructor ! selecting the best free coaches out there…

I am trying to improve my tennis, and the first thing you hear is that tennis has changed and that you need to change the way you hit the ball. No more flat forehands and sliced backhands… you need topspin and for this you often need a new different grip.

So here are a couple of good videos explaining the different grips to use:

Summary:

Continental Grip – Index knuckle on bevel 2

  • Used for volley and serve. Can be used for flat/sliced or for double handed backhand instead of Eastern backhand grip (see below). Was also used for forehand in the “olden” days…

Eastern Forehand Grip – Index knuckle on bevel 3 (large flat)

  • Used for topspin forehand (easier for topspin) – preferred choice!

Semi Western Forehand Grip – knuckle on bevel 4 (small one)

  • Used by some players to generate even more top-spin on forehand

Eastern Backhand Grip – Index knuckle on bevel 1 (top one)

  • Used for topspin backhand – preferred choice!

This second video reinforces in a different way the first video and also talks about the two-handed backhand hand placement:

But the best video is this next one which, towards the end, explains how to go from one grip to the other while you are playing.

If you are like me, and always wondered how you switch between forehand and backhand grips and how you find the time to do it in between shots. This video reveals the secret !

And finally, only if you are not sure about which forehand grip to use and wonder what the difference brings. And provided you can stand this guy’s cheesy attitude (!), go through this last optional video….

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T71daxDN4ig

Hope you found this video selection useful and join me for further shot specific videos soon.

Winter Daiquiri

A classic daiquiri, but with a twist. Perfect for cold winter nights.

Ingredients:

  • 2 measures (50ml) dark rum
  • 1.5 measure (38ml) clementine juice
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 cinnamon stick

How to mix:

  • Put all the ingredients (bar the cinnamon stick!) in a cocktails shaker along with ice cubes
  • Shake vigorously to cool the mixture down
  • Strain into cocktail glasses
  • Garnish the top of each glass with cinnamon stick shavings

Pork loins with mushroom sauce and beans

from “Cook with M&S Food”

Difficulty: Easy

Serves: 2

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2x lean pork loins
  • 1x packet of brown mushrooms
  • 1x packet of green beans
  • 1x bag of shallots or onions
  • 150 ml of double cream
  • 1x jar of M&S mushroom & roasted garlic paste

Special Equipment

  • Large frying pan
  • Medium frying pan

Preparation

  • Vegetables
  • Wash mushrooms thoroughly and then cut them into thick slices
  • Peel the shallots, slice them in half (length-ways) and then cut them into 1 cm thick half moon slices
  • Cut ends off the green beans and then cut the beans in half

Cooking

  • Step 1 – Vegetables
  • Add 2 tbsp of oil to a large frying pan, sauté the mushrooms for 8-10 minutes on a medium/high heat, until golden and caramelised. Season to taste
  • Remover the mushrooms from pan and set to one side, cover to retain heat
  • Add another tbsp of oil to the pan and sauté the shallots for 6-7 minutes or until softened
  • Step 2 – Pork
  • Season the pork loins to taste on both sides
  • Using a separate frying pan, add 2 tsp of oil and cook the pork on medium heat, 4-5 minutes on each side
  • Step 3 – Combine
  • While the pork is cooking
  • Return the mushrooms to the large frying pan with the shallots
  • add 150 ml of double cream and 100 ml of water to the pan along with the green beans
  • Stir thoroughly and simmer for 5-6 minutes (or until beans are no longer crunchy), stirring regularly

Presentation

  • Use heated plates
  • Serve the pork loins surrounded by the creamy mushroom/shallots/bean mix

Nice and easy Friday night recipe!

Goes well with a nice bottle of red wine to start the week-end…

Which internet browser are you using ?

Just started a French book that the person sitting next to me on a plane was reading recently and recommended. The book is about becoming more efficient at work so that one can feel more on top of things and improve the time spent on life vs work. A noble cause !

Apparently people who use Chrome or Firefox as their internet browser are more productive than people who use Internet Explorer or Safari…

This is not because of the browser but because these people look for alternatives to the obvious/default that is presented to them in life… Oops !

The book says that becoming more efficient is a journey full of little steps that don’t gain you much but add up in the long run a bit like compound interest.

This Kaizen quest is all about regularly investing a little in the short term to gain long term benefits. We need to constantly challenge ourselves and the way we work to find better ways of doing lower value, tedious and repetitive tasks.

The concept is certainly worth thinking about and sounds promising.

I’ll let you know in future blogs if this book “La 25e heure” by Declair, Dinh and Dumont is worth a read.

Tempus Two… or three

A lovely Sauvignon Blanc that is different. Not as powerful as the classic ones from New Zealand, not as sweet as the classic ones from Chile, a very well balanced and enjoyable drop.

I visited the Tempus Two winery in the Hunter Valley in Australia on my last trip and enjoyed the tasting there so brought back an example of one of their more expensive wine.

This one though is easily available from Waitrose right in the UK for £7.99 and I think that it’s nicely priced for this wine.

Hope you enjoy it this summer.

Viognier only in Verbier ?

Last night in Criccieth, Wales, I found myself in a restaurant (Dylan’s) with a Viognier looking like the best white choice on the wine list…

My good friend Helen loves her Viognier but others love their Pinot Grigio (which I don’t particularly care for)… so I was not necessarily immediately convinced ! But feeling adventurous, I decided to try it.

Well… it turned out a tasty choice: dry yet rich and aromatic, with intense hints of peach and apricots. It was well rounded and fresh, went down well with our various fish courses and got praises around the table.

I read that the Viognier grape variety was originally brought to France by the Romans from Croatia. The most famous Viogniers are now made in the Rhône valley but other fine examples can be found in South Australia, South Africa and also from the south eastern Langudoc-Roussillon region of France like this example here.

So in summary, do give it a try. It was a good reasonably priced find and provided a new alternative to the ubiquitous Sauvignon Blanc (if you are like me and a bit fed up of always drinking the same thing).

Oh, and if you are still waiting for the link to Verbier, I am afraid that there is none! I just could not find anything else to vaguely rhyme with Viognier ! But hapy to receive your ideas for a better title…