Hey, we gotta have some fun out there, right?
I mean, this tennis thing can’t always be a serious activity.
You may have heard of Mansour Bahrami. This guy played on the men’s pro tour and was good enough to get to the French Open Men’s Doubles final in 1989.
3 minutes of fun …
Please leave a comment below after watching this video. Thanks in advance …
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Hey guys.
I’m heading out the door to the Berkeley TC for some singles with Cliff.
I’ll be back later this afternoon and will respond to your comments at that time.
Hope you had fun with this video.
Brent
Fun fun fun. I literally laughed out loud. Who cares whether this has any relevance to my own game. It’s all about loving tennis period.
Brent,
Yes, I”m old enough to remember Mansour Bahrami… he is quite the entertainer! Great hands! Kind of reminds me of the tennis equivalent of the Globetrotters. He is fun to watch for awhile. He and Ilie Nastase would be a great team!
Thanks much!
Bill
Tennis first and foremost should be about having FUN!
Man I’d love to be good enough to goof off like Mansour! Tennis’ version of soccer freestyle! Learn to do stuff that has nothing directly with your ability to win matches, but improve your feel for the ball!
Shanker. We should all spend at least a few minutes every week just goofing off on the court and trying trick shots.
You’re right. You can develop some feel that can translate to matches, maybe not the shot itself, but a little better feel.
You liking Fed’s chances next week at the AO?
Brent
I can attest that some shots that became part of my regular repertoire developed out of goofing off: the FH squash, the BH chip shot that lands short and the reverse FH. Still want to develop the screwball underhanded serve (use an Eastern BH grip), the tweener, and the polo shot.
Fed’s chances for Oz aren’t bad. Funny how so many (journalists) were writing him off through the Djoker’s run, but during the winter season, when Murray, Rafa and Djoko were succumbing to the toll of the tour, Fed really shined. Besides Fed’s obvious talent and feel for the ball, you have to admire his ability to stay injury-free, fit and fresh at a high level.
I totally agree with your admiration for Federer’s “ability” to stay fit etc. But I believe, from what I’ve read, that it is more than ability; it’s lots of hard work on and off the court aimed at just that goal of staying fit, flexible, strong, and balanced.
Loved it. These guys make it look simple but it is NOT. Last summer at our tennis courts in NC we had 3 on 3 matches as part of a fun day of tennis. It was fun to watch and very hard for the players who were not communicating. We also did “mini tennis” using just the service boxes. Great fun.
Hi John.
Right. They do make it look easy. Love the mini tennis reference. Once a week for 10 minutes and you’ll develop feel like no other drill can provide and you’ll be smiling the whole time!
If folks want to read more about Bahrami, here’s a bit more info:
http://www.atpchampionstour.com/bahrami.html
He’s two weeks older than me, so that gives me a little inspiration as I head toward the backside of my fifties!
If you really want some inspiration, play against Brent. He’s going to be 65 soon! And he has a 5.0 rating!
I would definitely love to hit with Brent. Brent, if you’re ever in Tucson, let me know! Of course, Brent will tell you that his singles game is only 4.7, but that’s still going to be tough for a 4.0 like me.
Let’s make it happen Richard. I might be in Tempe for MLB spring training for a few days.
Maybe then.
Brent
If you’re coming down to Tempe send me an email. It sure would be fun to meet you and knock a few balls back and forth!
Cheers,
Richard
Thanks Dave. That 5.0 rating lately is only because of playing 10.0 mxd with Mai.
She’s a fearless mxd player and we’ve had some good wins over 5.5 guys.
My true singles is between 4.5 and 5.0. I can still hang with enough of the 5.0 guys in dubs that I can’t get my rating down to 4.5 where I’d really like to play with my senior pals.
Maybe I should play a series of 5.0 singles tournaments, gett beat up, and let the computer do its thing.
Brent
I hear that it varies from state to state, but in my part of the southeast, they don’t count tournament matches in yer NTRP rating only league matches. Had a really screwy rating for a long time because of it.
As to Bahrami, I’m a huge fan and spend *way* too much time practicing and experimenting with that kind of stuff – but it *is* fun.
I’ve even fiddled a little bit with that “whiffed” serve thing and then hitting the backhand dropper. Got *nowhere* with it until I figured out that yer right foot has to be in front. I noticed in all the videos I’ve seen of Bahrami doing it that he walks well inside the baseline in order to pull it off. 
*I*, on the other hand, am determined to learn to do it by starting from well behind the baseline. 
Kevin
Don’t forget. Mansour was a top world class player not that long ago.
Looks like he’s stayed in shape and is embracing tennis literally as the sport of a lifetime.
Brent
I loved it. And I bet he attracts people (especially kids) to tennis just like the Harlem Globetrotters do for basketball. Thanks for sharing.-Andrew
Hi Andrew. Mansour is a great ambassador for the game.
Whatever they paid him in Adelaide, it’s probably not enough for all he does to entertain.
Brent
Funny and skilled, very skilled. It’s so easy to do–just watch them.
hahahaha! Bahrami is SERIOUS FUN! Had the opp to watch him live a few years back in Mumbai. The guy is a LIVEWIRE on the court, always up to something- keeping both the opponent & the crowd in suspense for the next TRICK.
But seriously, this guy has an awefullly great control over his racket & his limbs. It all looks so easy, but its very very difficult to execute.
Marvelous Mansour!!
Thanks for the post Brent, brought a smile to my face.
Bloody Brilliant!
Thanks Brent. Laughed myself silly. Usually go to the charity day before the Aussie open but couldn’t make it today so thanks for supplying a great combination of natural talent and great fun.
This is awesome
I enjoyed the video, but I look at it differently. What can I take from it to improve my game?
I came up with several thoughts, or rather confirmations. 1) The way players provide the ball to me provides more or fewer shot choices for me – they are hitting to set up the entertainment shots, just like coaches often do for their students. 2) There is often more time to set up for shots than we think. We need to use our time to split step, unit turn, keep our feet moving etc. 3) The sport is really all about playing the ball. Too often I see/hear players just crucifying themselves on the court and sometimes being abusive to their fellow players – all for nothing as it just makes it harder to work together as a team and to perform at our optimum capability.
As Brent mentioned in his Feb 07 archives, there are levels of competitive play. His five keys to success allow me to play at my top level under pressure and just focus on the ball.
http://www.webtennis.net/nltr-070221-video.htm
Great stuff, Brent. While certainly Bahrami has his own distinct Harlem Globetrotter quality, to me there is no distinction between what he does to entertain and what we can do to improve. Golly, this guy is never fighting the ball. He’s balanced, able to absorb and apply pace and spin, aware of the court and so on. I once had a chance to hit with him for 15 minutes and it was incredibly edifying to see how contained — and focused — he was.
Joel, I couldnt agree more )He has a balance and ease that I would die for ) a great lesson in control!
that’s the way i play tennis,running around no hit the ball back,watching my tennis partner do all the work its sad idont even know why i bother,and yet i coach my son to a divison one univercity with the max. grand in money.the vidio was fun we know its set up but still fun to watch.
Wondering if Santoro will eventually take the place of Bahrami. I watched Penfors and Bahrami in person about 8 years ago and Bahrami seemed to inspire Penfors who almost held his own. Too bad Bahrami was banned from all but the French during his days on the ATP.
Thanks, Brent.
BTW, a little bit of showoff tennis helps with racket control and as one said above, the realization that we do have more time than we think. Kids experiment (like Tiger Woods bouncing the ball on his wedge), but adults who take up the game as adults rarely do.
Great stuff! I remenber Bahrami from his early days on the Amjedieh Tennis Club clay courts. in Tehran. I spent many years there during the 1960s and 70s. At the time, Taghi Akbari was Iran’s No. 1# and Bahrami was a incredibly strong teenager who played a traditional style game. He left the country after the revolution as did several of the other top Iranian players such as Ali Madani. With the proper coaching and opportunity, Bahrami might have been one of the world’s best. Wonderful to watch this amusing clip.
Great way to bring a lightness to the game…Everyone I have shared this with absolutely loved it!
Lets go have some fun out there while we freeze our butts off ( its been in the 30s in Santa Cruz this week…dang the balls are like rocks!
That is great … they look to be having soooooooo much fun !