A useful tennis singles practice plan does more than fill an hour with hitting. It gives you time to warm up, work on a specific shot, practise patterns you can use in a match, and finish with points played under the rules.
The plan below fits a 90-minute session and can be adjusted for beginners or experienced players. You’ll need a court, balls, and ideally a partner. If you have less time, shorten each block rather than skipping the warm-up or match-play section.
A 90-Minute Tennis Singles Practice Plan
| Time | Practice block | Main goal |
|---|---|---|
| 0–10 minutes | Dynamic warm-up and mini-tennis | Get moving and find your timing |
| 10–25 minutes | Groundstroke consistency | Build reliable rally depth |
| 25–40 minutes | Serve and return | Start points with purpose |
| 40–60 minutes | Singles patterns | Practise moving an opponent |
| 60–80 minutes | Conditioned points | Make tactical choices under pressure |
| 80–90 minutes | Match tiebreak and review | Test your skills and set a next goal |
1. Warm Up Before You Hit Hard
Start with five minutes of easy movement: light jogging, side shuffles, shoulder circles, and a few short accelerations. Then rally inside the service boxes for five minutes. Mini-tennis helps you judge the ball and control your swing before you move back to the baseline.
Keep the warm-up cooperative. Aim for smooth contact rather than winners. If you’re practising alone, shadow your groundstrokes and split step, then hit a few gentle balls against a wall if one is available.
2. Build Groundstroke Consistency
Spend 15 minutes rallying crosscourt, first from the deuce side and then from the ad side. Crosscourt balls travel over the lower part of the net and give you more court length, which makes this a good place to build consistency. Try to send the ball deep enough to land beyond the service line, while keeping a safe margin over the net.
Use a simple target: complete a rally of 10 balls, then try for 15. Count only balls that land in the singles court. If one player misses, restart the count rather than turning the drill into a blame session.
For a useful variation, have one player hit crosscourt while the other returns the ball down the middle. This trains recovery: after hitting wide, move back toward a balanced position near the middle of the baseline. You don’t need to stand on the center mark every time; recover based on where your shot forces your opponent to play.
3. Practise the Serve and Return
Serving well in practice means working on placement and routine, not just trying to hit the hardest ball you can. Spend about seven minutes serving from the deuce court and seven from the ad court. Aim for a large target area—such as the body, the middle of the service box, or the wide channel—before narrowing it.
Follow the serving rules during drills. Serve diagonally into the opposite service box, start each game on the deuce side, and alternate sides after every point. You get two attempts to make a legal serve. A serve that clips the net and lands in the correct service box is a let and is replayed.
Use the remaining time for returns. The returner should split step as the server strikes the ball and focus on getting the return back deep. Switch roles every five or six serves. A reliable return that starts the rally is often more useful than a risky attempt at a winner.
4. Rehearse Singles Patterns
In singles, a good shot is often the one that creates the next opening. Try this pattern for 20 minutes: rally crosscourt, then change direction down the line only when you have a balanced position and a ball you can attack. After changing direction, recover quickly because the opponent may send the next ball into the space you left.
Another option is the short-ball drill. One player feeds a shorter ball; the other moves forward, hits to a safe target, and continues toward the net. The defender tries to pass or lob. Practise both the approach and the defensive response, then swap roles.
Keep the court boundaries straight during every drill. Singles uses the inner sidelines, while the wider doubles alleys are out. Calling lines honestly—even on a practice ball—helps you build habits that hold up in a close match. If a ball is hard to judge, agree on the call and move on without a long argument.
5. Play Conditioned Points
For the next 20 minutes, play points with a clear purpose. A condition should guide your choices, not reward a shot that would be a poor option in a real match. Try one of these formats:
- Crosscourt start: Begin each rally crosscourt and play the point out. You may change direction when the ball gives you a sensible chance.
- Serve plus one: The server plays the serve and the next shot; the returner plays the return and the next shot. After those four contacts, play freely.
- Deep-ball challenge: Award a bonus point for a rally winner set up by a deep, controlled shot—not for an opponent’s unforced miss.
Keep normal scoring where possible. Calling the score before each point helps both players track it and keeps the drill close to match conditions. In standard scoring, the server calls their own score first. Change ends after the first game and then after every odd-numbered game in a set.
6. Finish With a Tiebreak and Review
Use the final 10 minutes for a tiebreak to seven, win by two. In a standard tiebreak, players switch ends after every six points. The player due to serve first serves one point from the deuce court; after that, players serve two points each, beginning from the ad court. If you use a match tiebreak to 10, agree on that before you start and still win by two.
Afterward, take a minute to note one strength and one next step. For example: “My crosscourt forehand held up, but I rushed my second serve.” That gives your next practice a clear focus instead of trying to fix everything at once.
How to Adjust the Plan
- Beginner: Use shorter rallies, larger targets, and more time on basic contact. Play points to 7 rather than a full set.
- Intermediate: Keep the full schedule and track serve accuracy, rally length, or errors on direction changes.
- Advanced: Make the patterns more demanding, such as serving wide and recovering for a crosscourt return, or practising defence against an attacking opponent.
- Short on time: Warm up for 10 minutes, spend 10 minutes on your main weakness, then play points for 15–20 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I follow a singles practice plan?
One or two focused sessions each week can help recreational players make steady progress. Leave time to recover, especially if you are also playing matches or doing other hard training.
Can I practise singles alone?
Yes. Work on footwork, shadow swings, serves, and target hitting against a wall. Solo practice can improve repetition, but it cannot fully replace reading an opponent or playing live points.
What should I focus on if I keep losing singles matches?
Look for a repeated pattern rather than changing everything. If you miss many returns, practise getting the ball back in play. If you lose points after hitting short, work on depth and recovery. Track a few matches to find the issue.
Should practice points use regular tennis rules?
When possible, yes. Using the correct singles lines, service order, scoring calls, and changeovers makes match play more realistic. You can modify a drill, but agree on its rules before the first point.
Final Thoughts
A strong tennis singles practice plan balances technique, movement, tactics, and real points. Keep each session focused on one or two goals, follow the rules during match-style drills, and finish by noting what you learned. Consistent, purposeful practice is more valuable than hitting for an hour without a plan.
