Think the Point

Good Tennis = Making Good Decisions

Every point presents a new problem to solve.

• Where is your opponent?

• Where are you on the court?

• How much time do you have?

• Where is the available space?

• What is the score?

• Is this the moment to attack, defend or stay neutral?

Think the Point Workshop helps players understand what's happening during a point and make better decisions in response. We look beyond how to hit a shot to explore why that shot is the right choice, and when it isn't. The aim is to develop players who can read the game, recognise opportunities and make purposeful decisions on court.

What You'll Learn

The workshop explores seven key pieces of information that should influence every decision:

1. Your position: where you are and what options it creates.

2. Your opponent's position: where they are, what they can reach and where space is available.

3. The ball: its height, depth, speed, direction and quality.

4. Time: how much you have and how much you can take away from your opponent.

5. Space: how to recognise, create and exploit open areas of the court.

6. The situation: whether you're attacking, defending, neutralising or transitioning.

7. The score: how the competitive context shapes risk and decision-making.

What Is My Best Option Right Now?

Many players know what shots they can hit but struggle to decide which shot to play in a given moment. Think the Point builds a simple process:

See → Think → Decide → Execute → Learn

• See: What is happening? Where am I, where is my opponent, and what is the ball doing?

• Think: What options do I have? What does the situation allow me to do?

• Decide: What is my best option right now?

• Execute: Can I play the shot I have chosen with control and purpose?

• Learn: What happened? What can I take from this point into the next one?

Players learn to identify the best available option based on the information in front of them, test that decision on court, and learn from the outcome.

Developing tennis IQ means learning to recognise the moments that decide games, sets and matches. It also builds independence. Even with a coach courtside, the moment a point is live, you're the one solving it — this workshop builds exactly that skill.

Read the Situation

• Where am I?

• Where is my opponent?

• What is happening?

• What are my options?

• What is my best decision?

Who Is It For?

Think the Point is designed for juniors, adults and competitive players who want to sharpen their understanding of the game and become more effective decision-makers on court.

Develop your ability to read the game and make better decisions under pressure.

08:30–09:00 | Welcome & Introduction

• Introduce the coach and the workshop's purpose

• Frame the core question: "What is my best option right now?"

• Set expectations: this is about thinking on court, not just hitting shots

• Quick poll/discussion: ask players to describe a recent point where they weren't sure what shot to play

09:00–12:00 | Session 1: Reading the Court

Covers the first three of the seven information factors:

• Your position: what options your position creates

• Your opponent's position: where they are and what space they leave

• The ball: height, depth, speed, direction and quality

Format:

• • Short video clips of professional points, paused mid-rally, with players asked to identify position and space before seeing what happened next.

  • Live-ball drills where players must call out their read (position, opponent's position, space) before playing the shot

  • Coach feeds or live-rallies with a "freeze and explain" mechanic: play stops at a decision point and the player explains their read aloud

13:00–16:00 | Session 2: Time, Space, Situation, Score 

Covers the remaining four factors: 

• Time: how much you have, how much you can take away 

• Space: recognising, creating and exploiting it 

• The situation: attacking, defending, neutralising, transitioning 

• The score: how it shapes risk and decision-making

Format: 

• Guided discussion using real match scenarios (score situations, momentum shifts) rather than pure theory.

• Point-play drills built around specific situations (e.g. defending from the baseline, attacking a short ball, neutralising under pressure)

• Score-based constraints introduced (e.g. "this point is break point," "you're down 15-40") to link score awareness to shot selection

• Players verbalise their decision before executing: See → Think → Decide, then Execute

17:00–20:00 | Session 3: Think the Point Match Lab

• Players compete in live points or short sets

• Coach pauses at key moments to ask "what did you see, what did you decide, why?"

• Peer discussion encouraged: other players offer alternative reads

• Recap the five-step process: See → Think → Decide → Execute → Learn

• Group discussion: what decisions worked, what didn't, what patterns emerged

*** Including lunch and breaks

Read the point. Play with purpose.