Equipment Tips for Playing

Tennis  in Cold Weather

By Brad Properjohn 

When the mercury gets below 10 degrees Celsius playing tennis can be a disastrous experience especially for players from the warmer climates. When the wind chill makes your face goes numb, your eyes go dry and your finger tips split and bleed you’ll wonder who’s served you up this lovely piece of cold ugly pie.  

It’s not uncommon for professional players to avoid tournaments if they are well known for fringed weather but there are tournaments that you simply can’t afford to miss now that the “championship race” for points is on.  Munich and Hamburg (German Open) stand out as two of the chilliest outdoor events on the calendar and it’s places like these where player’s cold weather management needs to be at its best.   

Here are a few tips on what you can do to minimize the effects of the cold on your game and to hopefully gain a decisive edge.  

Hand/Racket: The biggest problem in the cold is keeping your hand warm to enable you to feel and grip adequately.  

·        Golf Glove; Take your over-grip off so the grip circumference stays about the same. Make sure the glove is very tight when you buy it as they stretch a bit to give a less restricting feel.  Don’t forget that you may need a glove for your other hand as well and it may well be a different size so try them on. You also need enough gloves to keep you going. The same glove solution can be used to protect a blistered hand. Cost, about $10 each. 

    

·        Sock: Cut a hole in a sock (at the other end dummy!) and slide it down the grip on your racket. The other end (the naturally open end) pull over your wrist so that your racket hand holding the racket is totally covered by the sock and is fastened to both your wrist and racket. The sock can get under your fingers/palm or grip changes so it’s probably not a good idea to play matches with it on.

    

·        Terry Cloth Grip: The best cold weather grip to use when the issue is warmth not sweat is terry cloth. You cant really buy the stuff but you can simply tear up a towel (hotel towels seem to work best!) The towels rip straight and if you tear into 3 cm widths and wrap just like an over-grip. Fasten both ends with sports tape and you’re in business. 

·        Pocket Warmers: Can be bought at mountaineering, outdoor or camping stores.  The size of your palm these pocket warmers are reusable and can be instantly activated to approximately 40 degrees C. They last about a set each and don’t weigh much and cost about 10$ each.

     

·        Racket stringing: Strings contract in the cold and become quite dull and heavy. By loosening off the tension, you can with trial, adjust tension to achieve the same feel.  It boils down to about 1 kg less per 5 degrees less in temperature but it is very individual.  E.g. normal 26 kg at about 20-25 degrees = 25 kg in 15-20 degrees and 24 kg’s at 10-15 degrees etc. 

Getting the clothing right can definitely help you sway a match. Fabric warmth, weight, stretch, style, layers and quantities are key factors to consider when putting together your winter bag. 

·        Socks. This is rarely a problem on court but if your trying to give support to friends (club matches) or have to spend much time out-side put on an extra pare of socks. Note: Many Pro’s play with two pairs of socks all the time for added comfort and cushioning.  

·        Bike Pants are a great ass-et to any player’s wardrobe. The rubberised material really keeps in the heat. On the down side the material is slippery so your shorts move around a lot. 

·        Long sleeved T-shirts are terrific at keeping in the heat without the weight of a sweater or the cumbersome warm-up top. Create layers that trap heat by wearing your tennis shirt over your t-shirt. You can also wear the T’s over your tennis shirt by pulling the collar through the T-shirt neck to make it look like a tennis shirt. That way if you get too hot you can take it off easily. 

·        Vests of the sweatshirt variety are the best in terms of (less) weight but you have to get the fit right or they will tend to ride up because of the elastic band piece they put around the hip band at the bottom.  Wool vests are very warm but they are difficult to clean and dry. 

·        Hats & Beanies. The majority of your body heat will be lost out through your head. Try to get used to a brimmed hat, if you don’t like hats with brims (that can be a bit annoying on serve) then use a ski/football hat and have enough to change them as they get wet with sweat. They also don’t dry very quickly so have enough for a couple of matches. 

·        Track Pants are often allowed to be worn on court in the extreme cold. The problem is that the pockets are often too deep or too shallow.  If the pockets are too deep you with find the second ball (when serving) will slide around onto your thigh getting in the way. If the pockets are too shallow it could cost you a point by allowing the ball to pop out of your pocket in the middle of a rally. You lose the point automatically every time this happens after the first time (as the first time is deemed accidental). 

Secret Weapons.

·        Neoprene belt (wet suit material).  Formerly used as a so-called weight reduction aid these belts help not only to support your lower back but also act as a great back warmer.  It is best to put the material side (not the rubber side) against your skin to let your skin breath a bit.  The belts are so warm you may have to take it off or double it over so be sure to wipe away any excess sweat that might be exposed to the cold. The belt is about $20 and sold in Sports stores and some Chemists shops. 

    

·       Super Glue. It may seem a little odd but super glue was invented to stick skin together. Playing in the cold can make your skin hard and subject to splitting especially along the finger crease lines. The racket spinning in your hand on off center hits (that is more prevalent in the modern top spin game) can cause the tips of your fingers to split which is very painful. With a small smear of glue on the surfaces you can repair the splits to near new. You should tape your fingertips in any case but defiantly after using super glue.  

Personal Management is essential when preparing for any tennis match but it seems to be accentuated when playing in the cold. So get your act together and get set up. 

Clothing. Always overestimate on wet cold days. Two sets of clothes per match plus an extra set incase of rain.  If you are likely to play two matches then that’s five sets of clothes including clothes to warm up in. It’s a lot of stuff so get a big bag or take a second bag and leave it in the car if you have that luxury.  Don’t forget if you go to tennis in tennis gear you will most likely not want to leave in (wet) tennis gear so put in some other clothes as well. 

Shoes. Put in a second pair of shoes. There is nothing worse than playing in wet shoes. Leave them in your car with your other clothes. 

Get warm before you go out on court.  Drink warm drinks like tea and soup.  Keep your muscles warm whilst in the club house by moving around a bit and don’t get too comfortable in front of the heater, as they tend to sap your energy. Warm up on indoor courts if available.  If you’re getting cold waiting around for your next match or perhaps for the rain to stop go take a warm shower. Do your stretches when your warm and try to stay supple throughout the day as once you have tightened up in the cold its hard to get loose again. 

Everyone hates playing in freezing weather but by putting together a few cold weather tools you can learn to hate it less than your opponent, and that is often enough to get you back in front of the club house fire with a win in hand.