Smart tips to help you choose the most robust court shoes for optimal performance

Tennis is a very fast paced sport demanding speed, agility and endurance. This requires a pair of shoes that could handle the quick pivots, the back and forth to the net, side-to-side court coverage, running, jumping, and lunging.

A good pair of tennis shoes will provide stability for side-to-side movement, built of heavier and stiffer materials than other athletic shoes, their flat, durable soles are designed to prevent stumbling or sliding, and the toes are reinforced for stop and go action. When choosing the perfect pair of tennis shoes, one should consider his or her playground, game style and foot type.

There are three types of tennis courts to play on which are hard court, clay and grass. Designed with durability in mind, hard court shoes require ample cushioning to help absorb the impact of running on hard courts and flex grooves to assist with natural motion, while a clay court surface demand shoes with more lateral support and traction on the sole. The outsole of a clay court shoe usually features a full herringbone tread pattern. While tennis shoes designed for grass court have an outsole that is a lot flatter and features small rubber nubs to provide more grip and traction on wet grass.

Whatever your style of play, whether you are a baseline player or a ‘serve-and-volleyer’, choosing the right shoes that is suitable for your feet is important. A baseline player usually plays along the back line of the court. This requires lateral support and a highly durable sole due to constant lateral motion. A serve-and-volley player frequently charges the net and often slides their back foot along the court during the serve, so a shoe with a durable toecap and medial inside the arch is essential.

To find the right fit, it is crucial that you know your foot type to decide on how much cushioning, lateral support, and arch support are required in your shoes. There are three types of foot which are pronated, neutral or supinated. Essentially what this means is how your feet are aligned determines your feet placement, whether you are standing, walking, or running. Shoes with a lot of wear on the inside of the soles or around the ball of your foot mean you have a pronated foot. If the outside of the heel or toes show wear, you have a supinated foot. Lastly, if there are even amounts of wear throughout your shoe, then your foot type is neutral.

By admin