Madrid training week

06 May, 2009 | 17:05

So, what looks like a week-off on paper turns out to be anything but once again: such is the life for a soon-to-be World No. 3. 

Once Andy had finished his one proper day-off  (spent on the go-Kart track, again), he was back into the NTC for a week that took in everything from hitting balls and gym work, to gut wrenching track sprints and ice baths.

The focal point of each day remains on court with a couple of hours of tennis each morning....

 

 

 

 

With the arrival of sunshine and warmer air, the clay courts need the occasional bit of TLC from the players. If you don't hose them down every so often, they become pretty unplayable. There's a real knack to getting just the right amount of water down: too much and you turn into mud, too little and the surface blows away.

With clay requiring a different approach in terms of movement, the guys will spend a lot of time working on surface-specific drills. 

One thing that remains the same is the emphasis on accuracy, which these two images highlight.

The target in the background represents the forehand down the line, the one in the foreground (and the one about to take a pasting from the ball) is the shorter forehand crosscourt.

You can generally count on one of the targets exploding along the ground once in every twenty shots. The drill stops as Miles runs forward, puts the target back up again, and feeds another ball in.

Here's the point just after impact.

Tennis work done, and lunch digested, they hit the gym in the afternoon for another couple of hours.

Just as clay court tennis asks for a different tactical approach, it also asks very different questions of the body. And the devil is in the detail: Andy is in ridiculously good shape, but they'll do a lot of work on the legs, because they take a real beating on the dirt.

here's some Sumo squats with a weight I wouldn't suggest anyone tries at home.

And there's some explosive jumping stuff in there too. both off the ground....

...and side-to-side over a box.

There's also some secret stuff that the team keep under their hat. no sense in giving out your trade secrets after all. The attention to detail is amazing.

Another aspect of Andy's training is what he does after it: his recovery. That's not just resting between training and playing, but things like the ice bath too. And the ice bath has become an area where the day's forfeits are played out.

Guess which one had to go in with no shorts on?

No prizes for guessing who found it funniest.

More tomorrow...