Correct Way to Structure Your Tennis Agility Workouts

Why Tennis Court Movement Should Be a Top Priority

If you’ve been watching the French Open this week, you’ll notice something the best clay court players all have in common — they move exceptionally well.

Clay is a surface that demands precision, balance, and a deep understanding of movement. And it’s not something you figure out in a match. It’s something you train for.

Why Movement Matters

Court movement is the glue that holds your game together. It allows you to get into better positions, recover faster, stay balanced under pressure, and execute the shots you want — even after a tough rally.

But this doesn’t come from general fitness or random training. It comes from tennis-specific movement work — especially speed and agility drills that match the intensity and patterns of the game.

The Science Behind Tennis Movement

Research shows that the average point in tennis lasts between 4 to 10 seconds, with players typically getting 20 to 25 seconds of rest between points. During those few seconds of action, players are constantly making explosive, multi-directional movements, with a heavy emphasis on lateral movement. In fact, lateral movement accounts for more than 70% of all on-court footwork in high-level tennis.

This means your training needs to reflect these demands — short bursts of high-intensity movement followed by controlled recovery, and drills that mimic the rapid lateral shifts and directional changes seen in match play. Are you doing specific movement training?

Learn from the Best: Novak Djokovic

If you want to study tennis movement on clay, there’s no better example than Novak Djokovic. His ability to slide into shots, recover with control, and stay balanced in the most demanding rallies is world class.

Watch this short clip of Novak practicing on clay. Notice how he stays low, leads with his hips, and maintains incredible stability through each shot. This level of movement doesn’t come by chance — it’s built through repetition, intention, and tennis-specific training. When you watch the pro's play on clay next, focus on their movement. You will see they are excellent at sliding into shots and staying balanced. 

(Watch Novak's movement video above)

Practice for the Surface

The French Open is a great reminder of how much the surface plays a role in movement. On clay, sliding into position, controlling direction changes, and maintaining body control are essential.

If you’re preparing for a tournament on clay, you should be doing drills on clay. The more familiar you are with the way your body moves on the surface, the more confident and efficient you’ll be come match day.

Don’t Rely on General Fitness

We often see players doing general gym circuits, random cardio, or field-based speed work — and wondering why their movement doesn’t improve on court.

These methods might keep you fit, but they don’t teach your body how to react and move like a tennis player. Tennis is a sport built on quick transitions, lateral movement, explosive recoveries, and stability under fatigue. You need to train that directly.

Train Smarter, Not Just Harder

That’s why we build our programs around tennis-specific movement patterns and game-based scenarios. We want players to feel sharper, more reactive, and in control of their movement — not just during drills, but in real match play.

Specific court movement training should be performed for 20–40 minutes, twice weekly. It’s also a great way to kickstart a practice session — getting your feet active and your intensity levels high right from the start. This not only improves movement but sets the tone for your entire training session.

6 Key Guidelines for Effective Tennis Agility Sessions

To get the most out of your agility training and ensure it translates to actual match play, every session should follow these six principles:

1. Specificity
   Drills must mimic the movement patterns, intensity, and load experienced during a tennis match. Train like you play.
2. Duration
   Each agility drill should last 4–10 seconds, aligning with the average duration of a point—especially on clay courts.
3. Rest Intervals
   Allow for 20–25 seconds of rest between drills to match the typical recovery time between points.
4. Distance Covered
   Focus on drills within 2–2.5 metres of movement, as 80% of tennis strokes are played within this range. Only 5% of movements exceed 4.5 metres.
5. Reactivity
   Tennis is a reactive sport. Your drills should involve unpredictable, reactive movements—not just pre-set running patterns. Respond to cues, not cones.
6. Lateral Emphasis
   Since approximately 70% of tennis movement is lateral, the majority of your drills should emphasize side-to-side agility.

Right now, during the French Open, we’re offering a special bundle sale on all our Tennis Fitness programs. It’s a great way to get access to our full library of strength, speed, recovery, and agility-based programming — without the guesswork.

It’s not about training more. It’s about training with purpose. If you’re serious about improving your court movement and performance — especially on clay — this is your chance to take that next step.

All of our programs are designed with these exact principles in mind.

Don’t just train randomly—train the right way. For a limited time, get up to 80% off any of our Tennis Fitness Programs. This special offer is available this week only.

Start training the smart way—and start noticing the difference.

Better movement = better positioning = better tennis. Let’s make it happen.

Enjoy the French Open and get training

Team Tennis Fitness