Scouting Your Opponent: Tips from Brad Gilbert

Brad Gilbert is known famously as the coach of Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick but he was a great player in his own right. By his own account, he had average skills as a player but made up for it in hustle, guile and smarts. During his playing days, he hung around and watched matches even of obscure players and took notes in what he called his little black book.

His tips on scouting opponents are helpful to pro players, college players, high school and juniors and even recreational players. From his book, Winning Ugly, when scouting a player, take note of the following:

number of unforced errors

winners

forcing shots on particular plays

mistakes and winners on backhand volleys, overheads, forehand and backhand groundstrokes

what does he like to do in specific situations?

numbers, patterns, tendencies

what shots does he try to avoid under pressure?

where does he make mistakes?

what shots does he like to hit?

does he pound the overhead but miss the volley?

does he hit a great angled cross-court forehand but misses it down the line?

is he fast getting to the net but slow in changing directions?

does he have a great first serve but no second serve