Tennis Practice Drills You Can Do Alone (And Film Yourself Doing)

No hitting partner? No problem. Some of the most effective tennis practice happens solo — and when you add a camera to the mix, every rep becomes a learning opportunity. Here are the best tennis drills you can do alone, plus exactly how to film each one to get the most useful footage.

Why Solo Practice + Video Is a Powerful Combination

Solo drills let you isolate specific skills without the chaos of a live rally. Add video, and you get instant, objective feedback on your technique — no coach required. The key is knowing which angle to film from and what to look for when you review.

What You Need

• Your racquet and a basket of balls (or a ball machine)
• Your smartphone
• A stable phone mount — you have two great options:
  • The Racquet View phone mount, which clips onto any fence or post in seconds and keeps your phone perfectly steady throughout your session
  • The Racquet View 2-in-1 water bottle with integrated phone holder — a hydration bottle with a built-in phone mount, perfect for courtside filming without needing a fence or post nearby

5 Solo Tennis Drills to Film Yourself Doing

1. Serve Practice

The drill: Set up a full basket of balls and work through your serve motion repeatedly — focus on toss consistency, trophy position, and follow-through. Aim for a target (a cone or towel) in the service box.

How to film it: Mount your phone on the fence behind and slightly to the side of you (for a right-hander, position it to your left). This angle captures your toss, shoulder turn, and full swing path. Use slow motion (120fps+) to analyze your contact point and wrist snap. Tip: the Racquet View fence mount is ideal here; if there's no fence nearby, prop the water bottle holder on a bench or bag.

What to look for: Is your toss consistently in front and slightly to the right? Are your hips and shoulders rotating fully? Is your elbow high at the trophy position?

2. Forehand Groundstroke Feed

The drill: Drop-feed balls to yourself from the baseline and hit forehands cross-court or down the line. Focus on one technical element per set — unit turn, contact point, or follow-through.

How to film it: Side angle, parallel to the baseline, at about waist height. This is the best angle for seeing your unit turn, hip rotation, and swing path from start to finish.

What to look for: Are you turning your shoulders early (unit turn)? Is your contact point in front of your body? Does your follow-through finish high over your opposite shoulder?

3. Backhand Slice Wall Rally

The drill: Stand 3–5 metres from a practice wall and hit continuous backhand slices, keeping the ball low and controlled. Focus on staying balanced and maintaining a consistent swing path.

How to film it: Side angle from about 5 metres away. You want to see your full body — from your feet through your follow-through. A fence-mounted phone at shoulder height works perfectly here.

What to look for: Is your racquet face open at contact? Are you bending your knees and staying low? Is your follow-through extending forward rather than dropping?

4. Footwork Ladder / Split-Step Drill

The drill: Use an agility ladder or court lines to practice your split step and first-step explosiveness. Simulate moving to a forehand, recovering to center, then moving to a backhand.

How to film it: Behind angle, from the baseline looking toward the net. This is the ideal angle for footwork — you can see your split step timing, lateral movement, and recovery steps clearly. The water bottle holder works great here — place it on the ground or a courtside bench for a stable low angle.

What to look for: Are you landing on the balls of your feet? Is your split step happening at the right moment (as an imaginary opponent contacts the ball)? Are you recovering back to center after each movement?

5. Volley Wall Practice

The drill: Stand close to a practice wall (1–2 metres) and hit continuous volleys, alternating forehand and backhand. Keep the swing compact — this is all about hand speed and racquet control.

How to film it: Side angle at net height. You want to see your elbow position, wrist firmness, and how compact your swing is. Avoid angles that are too far away — you need to see hand and wrist detail.

What to look for: Is your elbow in front of your body? Is your wrist locked firm at contact? Are you punching forward rather than swinging?

How to Get the Most From Your Footage

• Review immediately after each set while the physical sensation is still fresh — this is when the video feedback is most impactful.
• Focus on one thing at a time. Don't try to fix everything at once. Pick one technical cue per session.
• Use slow motion for mechanics, normal speed for rhythm. Slow motion reveals what your body is actually doing; normal speed shows whether your timing and flow feel natural.
• Film the same drill every 2–4 weeks and compare clips side by side to track your progress objectively.

The Setup That Makes It Easy

The biggest friction in solo video practice is the setup — finding something to prop your phone against, getting the angle right, worrying about it falling mid-drill. Racquet View has two solutions for this:

• The Racquet View phone mount attaches to any fence or post in seconds and holds your phone at the exact angle you need.
• The Racquet View 2-in-1 water bottle doubles as a courtside phone holder — keep it next to your ball basket and you're ready to film from any spot on the court, no fence required.

Pick one drill from this list, set up your camera, and hit record. You'll see things in your game you never noticed before.