Anticipation is not something that I have found to be covered in much depth either by coaches or in books and magazines, yet it is something intrinsically important to the success and growth of a player; it deserves a lot more serious study, thought and comment from players and coaches at all levels.

I have noticed amongst the players that I coach and train, especially the better ones, that it is a constant challenge (useful and enervating one) to keep improvements moving ahead and at a rate that motivates student and teacher. I am therefore always searching with an open mind for the little and less obvious idiosyncrasies in each player that makes the differences in how they learn and how swift their improvements are. Many changes come from a variety of cross training experiences in other sports. These have positives and negatives but the key here is a greater understanding of how to train each individual having gained a profile of their other activities past and present.

One of the key observations that slapped me across the face recently was the disparity in anticipation ability and activity of various players and I use the word anticipation in specific contrast to reaction. Anticipation is something that most people reasonably take for granted or simply don¹t worry about. For example if you look at a tennis, or volley ball player who sometimes plays squash you may often notice the player fixate on the front wall. In doing this the player has lost the opportunity to observe his opponent and to antcipate the shot. As such all that can be done is to react to a shot and you will see how different the resulting time onto a shot can be. Contrast this with a hockey or soccer player, who generally will be more predisposed to anticipate their opponents moves and shots.

Recently I have been experiencing some tremendous playing growth in my clients , yet some have started to inch ahead of others quicker. This of course can be attributed to a number of factors but one Key is ³anticipation².
So how do you teach this? First there is no quick answer but contibuting factors to learning this skill include experience, persistence and integrating training and thought into each player¹s game. So here are a few thoughts.

1. Follow the ball at all times (365 degrees), and be aware of where the ball is and where your opponent is (Sounds obvious but observe).
2. Consciously log the position of your opponent, openness of racket face expression on face and how prepared he/she is for a shot.
3. Be aware consciously and unconsciously that as long as you are looking and thinking you are logging this information on a player¹s tendency and abilities. Over time you will simply develop the skill of anticipation from simple observation incrementally gained by patiently just watching. Remember to be an active looker not a passive one. In other words be focused on what and why you are looking where you are.
4. Follow that ball intensely to where it lands and be aware every time whether you are placed well for a shot or not and keep correcting yourself.
5. Use the cause and effect method of game play, in other words what recognize what the possible outcomes that can result from any given shot that You can then move to an area where the ball will likely be. Better still, set goals for total control so that you know exactly where the ball will be. Play squash as though you are moving chess pieces around the court. Shot selection then becomes a major key to effective anticipation.
6. Learn to create more space onto the ball, this gives you a greater panoramic view of the whole court and gives you more time.
7. Take steps to improve reaction speed. There are numerous exercises that I use and have developed for this, which also add incrementally to a player's overall abilities in anticipation, flexibility and speed.