Nick Bollettieri: What makes the greats great?

I have been watching and consuming sports my entire life, and I absolutely cannot get enough of it. My wife, Cindi, often asks me how every single game whether it be baseball, football, golf, or tennis can be such a special game? My answer is simple – it’s special to me because I enjoy the excitement and observing athletes playing the same game, but with their own style of play and reaction to almost every move.

Let’s take a look at some of tennis’ all-time greats and what makes them so unique and special…

John McEnroe
Serve. His starting position of standing totally parallel to the baseline with his racquet and ball pointing directly at fans made them so nervous that they were just about ducking for safety every time he served. As a result he had one of the very best wide-slice serves to the ad court, and it didn’t hurt that he was a lefty!

Rafael Nadal
The majority of players in the 1960s hit their forehands with an Eastern forehand grip. Little by little, starting out with Jimmy Arias in the early 80s, grips began to shift to Semi-Westerns, the power game, and then the extreme Western grip hit by Nadal. He has perfected this shot and in the process, he has inspired so many youngsters to hit it as well.

Pete Sampras
Sampras had a very simple forehand (Eastern grip), beginning with the elbow of his hitting arm leading the backswing. Pete also had one of the top serves in the history of tennis. He wasn’t as powerful as the guys who hit them today, but he was as consistent as they come and his placement (including his wide slice to the forehand which was hit between 183 and 190 kilometres per hour) was incredible. In addition to this, he had a beautiful one-handed backhand, a devastating attacking slice, and one of the very best simple first volleys.

Roger Federer
I could write volumes of information about this man, but whatever and however much I write, I could not describe the totality of everything he does both on and off the court. He plays with very little physical effort and always respects his opponents. His movement across the court is absolutely beautiful and his charity work off it is also fantastic to see.

Jim Courier
When Jim arrived at the IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy at 14 years old, his mother sent me a letter asking to completely change his Western grip and baseball-swing backhand. I did just the opposite – I told him to forget about your backhand and hit forehands all the time! He did exactly what he was told and became world No. 1!

Andre Agassi
Agassi was known for many things, but most of all for his incredible on-the-court play. He had unbelievable ground strokes, superb footwork, and a few simple strategies that he would use. He would move his opponent side-to-side (Bradenton to Las Vegas and vice versa) and he’d never hit down the line with his backhand unless the ball was inside the baseline. Also, I ensured that Agassi didn’t hit the slice from the backhand side until he had the regular two-handed backhand shot perfected.
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Monica Seles
Imagine a skinny, young girl at 12 years old hitting with two hands on both sides and standing smack on the baseline with great movement. This is what I witnessed watching Monica play at the Orange Bowl many years ago. What did I do? I offered her and her entire family a scholarship on the spot and never changed anything in her game, no matter what people thought I should do! Monica is one of the all-time greats of the game and she couldn’t be a nicer person off the court as well!

Serena Williams
There is no other way to describe Serena other than saying the following:
1. She is a true athlete.
2. She is big and strong.
3. She can play offensive tennis from any position on the court.
4. She has one of the biggest serves ever in the women’s game.
5. She can hit winners from anywhere.
6. She is very comfortable at the net.
When healthy, Serena is one of the best, if not the single best, players in the history of the sport!

Steffi Graf
Steffi was a fantastic athlete who built her game on a very aggressive forehand hit with very little spin. Her athleticism and movement made it possible to hit most of her strokes with her forehand from anywhere on the court. Her one-handed backhand was 90 percent slice and allowed her time to not only recover, but also break down the rhythm of her opponents. Her serve was also a weapon, including a very high toss which actually threw off her opponent’s concentration.

P.S. People always ask me if I would have changed anything in Steffi’s game. I would have suggested she hit with a two-handed backhand, and I think if she would have done this she would’ve been unbeatable! If you could combine her forehand with Andre’s backhand, you would have the ultimate ground strokes!