Hey everyone,

If you've ever stood on a tennis court and thought “Where the heck should I hit this ball?”—you're not alone.

I used to feel that all the time too. You get caught in between options. Down the line? Crosscourt? Change direction? Stay safe?

It used to feel like guesswork. But it doesn’t have to.

Today, we’re sharing the single most useful mental cue we’ve found for eliminating all that hesitation—and hitting a solid, high-percentage shot no matter what’s coming at you.

It’s called “the directionals”—a dead-simple idea I am using every day and guess what? It’s something top ATP and WTA pros use too, even if they don’t always talk about it this way.

Let’s break it down like we do on court.

🧠 The Big Idea: Crosses Your Body = Go Crosscourt

Here’s how to instantly decide where to hit:

If the ball crosses your body — like a crosscourt shot coming into your forehand or backhand — then you should go back crosscourt.

Why?

Because your racket face, your body, and the direction of the ball are all working with each other. It’s a natural swing path. High percentage. Easy to repeat. Less effort. And you stay in the point.

Changing direction here (going down the line) means you’re fighting against the ball’s momentum and trying to create a 90° angle out of thin air. That’s a recipe for errors.

✅ Crosses your body = Go crosscourt

If the ball doesn’t cross your body — like a forehand that comes straight to your forehand side or a backhand to your backhand side — then you’re good to change direction.

Now the swing makes more sense going the other way. It's easier to redirect the ball away from where it came from, because your contact point and body angle naturally line up that way.

✅ Doesn’t cross your body = You can change direction

What about short balls?

When you get a short ball—especially one that bounces up in your strike zone—you’ve got options. This is your chance to go down the line or hit an angle that pulls your opponent off the court. Either one can be effective as long as you're balanced and stepping in.

✅ Short ball = Look for a 90° angle or go down the line.

🧩 What This Actually Solves

This whole thing isn’t about advanced tactics or memorizing playbook patterns. It’s about removing the hesitation when the ball’s coming at you.

No more second-guessing. No more overthinking. And weirdly enough—it’ll also help your technique.

You’ll find yourself:

• Getting into better positions

• Making cleaner contact

• Running less and recovering faster

• Winning more rallies, even against “better” players

We use this system every day in our practices and match play. It’s easy to remember, works under pressure, and lets you focus on your execution instead of guessing the right play.

Drill It In:

👉 Next time you’re on court, try this for just 15 minutes.
Don’t worry about winning the point.
Just ask yourself: Did the ball cross my body or not?
Then react accordingly. Keep it simple.

Let us know how it goes.

See you on the court,
Cade & Chris

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