01 Beginner

I have either never played tennis before, or I am an inexperienced player who has received little or no coaching. I can play a short, slow-paced, gentle rally but need to improve my consistency. I have a basic serve, but it lacks control and accuracy. I would rather let the ball bounce than play an overhead. I have little or no tactical knowledge of the game and make lots of unforced errors.

02 Beginner / Improver

I used to play or am starting to play more regularly but I am rusty. I can rally at a slow pace but struggle with accuracy and control. I cannot apply slice or topspin to my groundstrokes or serve. I can hit a flat volley with some control of the pace and direction of the ball. I can hit a flat smash, but it lacks control and accuracy. I have started to work on hitting a flat lob. I can score a game but have little match experience.

03 Improver

I have some experience of tennis match play, understand basic court positioning, tactics and am comfortable scoring. My groundstrokes are reasonably consistent with accuracy and control. I understand the concept of hitting groundstrokes, volleys and serves with different spins but currently struggle to apply the different spins with control, accuracy and consistency. I am comfortable hitting a flat smash. I can construct a point, serving and hitting my first shot into space.

04 Improver / Intermediate

I am a reasonable all-round player and play regularly. I am tactically astute and am comfortable playing competitive tennis. I can apply slice to my serve and my topspin serve is a working progress. I can direct my serve to either side of the service box. I can hit slice and topspin groundstrokes and rally using a variety of shots. I can hit a flat and slice volley with control and accuracy. I understand how to attack, defend and neutralise during a point. I can identify my opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, but I am not always able to adjust and take advantage of this.

05 Intermediate

I am an experienced club player, frequently play in team tennis and have started to enter tournaments. I can hit a flat and slice serve with accuracy and control. My topspin serve is a working progress. I can use my topspin groundstrokes to play angles on the court. I can hit a drop shot but it is not as effective as it could be. My drive volley is a working progress. I can competently hit a smash with accuracy and control. I am working on my overhead on the backhand side. I can play a flat and topspin lob on both the forehand and backhand side. I can create and control space and time.

06 Intermediate / Advance

I play an advanced level of club tennis and would describe myself as an experienced tournament player. I make few unforced errors and can play a variety of shots with consistency, accuracy and control. I can cope with long, intense rallies and matches. I can hit flat, slice and topspin serves with accuracy and control. I can hit an effective return of serve. I understand the power of serve plus one and return plus one. I can serve and volley. I recognise when to move into the net and finish the point with a volley. I can produce effective patterns of play. I can dictate points and get out of challenging situations.

07 Advanced

I play tennis to county or national standard.