Understanding the mysteries of clay courts at La Manga’s Racquets Club

The WTA Finals in Cancun have highlighted the challenge of playing in demanding conditions, but what is the toughest surface to play on in the sport? 

Tennis is unique as it takes the game’s top players from fast hard courts in Australia at the start of the year, through to the high-bouncing and attritional slow clay courts, through to low-bouncing grass courts and then slick hard courts at the US Open.

The tennis year concludes with the top players competing on fast indoor hard courts, with the challenge of mastering all surfaces the ultimate test in tennis.

Tennis365 writer Kevin Palmer spent a week with the coaching team at The Racquets Club, La Manga Club in Spain playing on their clay courts and here is his verdict on why the red dirt is the toughest surface to master.

UNDERSTANDING CLAY COURTS

Unless you have grown up on clay courts, they are a big challenge to master.

Top spin shots spring off the uneven surface in unpredictable fashion, meaning you need to get used to hitting a lot of shots out of your comfort zone.

They also take some getting used to under your feel, with the moving clay tough for some novice players to grip on as they move around the court.

The key on clay is ensuring you give yourself time to get into position to hit shots and the coaching team at The Racquets Club persistently remind their clients of the need to ensure your starting position is well behind the baseline when you receive serve.

If you are used to playing on slow and low-bouncing carpet courts at your club, you may opt to stand closer to the baseline to ensure you get a good play on the ball, but that position would not give you enough time to react to the bounce of the ball on clay courts.

FINDING YOUR FEET

Finding your feet on a clay court is the key to success.

Make sure you have the right tennis shoes before you start playing on clay as all of the top brands offer trainers that will help you make the transition to the red dirt.

Clay court masters like Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have mastered the art of sliding into their shots when they play on clay and while you may want to try that method, it is not as easy as the great of the game make it look.

Timing your slide is the key to success and that takes a lot of practice and you need to try and stop just before you strike the ball.

USE OF SLICE

A slice backhand is often viewed as a defensive shot, but the coaching team at The Racquets Club were keen to highlight how effective the shot can be on clay.

While your forehand and kick serve can take an opponent out of their comfort zone, a low and skidding backhand is also a great weapon to deploy on this surface.

Nadal has used this shot with great effect during his 14 wins at the French Open and it can rush an opponent is gets into a rhythm of hitting high shots on the high-bouncing clay courts.

LOOK OUT FOR

The lines on a clay court throw up bounces that are impossible to predict.

The vinyl strips that are nailed to the court to make the lines can fire a ball high or shoot it at your feet and this is especially challenging when the shot you are receiving hits the service line.

A deep shot onto the baseline can also be very challenging to control, and if you can move your opponent around the court and pick out a few lines with your shots, there is a good chance you will enjoy a lot of success on a clay court.

LA MANGA RACQUETS CLUB

The ultimate tennis holiday location in Europe has been given a huge revamp in recent years, with the tennis academies at the heart of the club providing players of all standards with a chance to learn the game from scratch or improve over the course of five days of top level coaching from Monday to Friday.

With 28 courts to play on, the picturesque Centre Court has staged major matches such as Billie Jean King Cup contests featuring host nation Spain and the clubs will be hosting a major ITF Masters event in November.

The Racquets Club is also a thriving hub for padel players and offers an academy to learn the game that has been hailed as one of the world’s fastest growing sports. There is also boutique gym on site, while a kids club enables adults to take part in activities at the club while their kids are in good hands.

The improvements at The Racquets Club include a new terrace bar and restaurant that is buzzing throughout the day, with visitors