Mike and Bob Bryan’s farewell tennis season has not quite gone to plan.
The American doubles greats, who have won 16 Grand Slam titles and an Olympic Gold as a pair, were originally planning on retiring this year after one more lap of the tour.
Their plans were, of course, disrupted by the Covid-19 crisis and they are considering extending their illustrious playing careers into 2021 in the hope of having a proper send-off in front of fans. Their home Slam, the US Open, will take place without supporters at the end of this month.
For tennis’ older guard, it can be tough on the body to take extended time away from the sport so the Bryan brothers regularly used the Slinger Bag – a portable ball machine – to keep some skin in the game, while the world was in lockdown.
The doubles duo, both 42, have been using the device for more than a year now and the timing couldn’t have been better, in some regards.
When the coronavirus pandemic struck, tennis courts around the world were forced to shutdown over fears of transmission.
But the portable device, which can easily be used for volleying practice away from court, helped them keep sharp in the months away.
Indeed, during quarantine, the pair would keep their volleys razor sharp in Mike’s California backyard.
‘During this pause on tour, we are trying to keep up our tennis but it is difficult if you don’t have anyone to hit with on the other side of the net,’ Mike Bryan told Metro.co.uk. ‘Slinger Bag has been a great solution to all of this uncertainty.
‘It’s super easy to transport and gets the job done without having to risk anyone’s health and safety.
‘We don’t train on the court for hours anymore, so when we do practice we like to make the most out of it and have specific drills in mind.
‘Slinger has been great to best execute these and keep our time on court limited but effective.’
Jamie Murray, Britain’s seven-time Grand Slam doubles champion, has also tested out the device this summer and now, so has Metro.co.uk.
We took the bag to Four Oaks Tennis Club in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, to see what it’s all about.
One immediately noticeable feature of the bag is the amount of topspin added to the balls.
Far heavier than most recreational players are able to generate, at its highest setting, the Slinger will likely leave you penned back deep behind the baseline.
The settings can be modified to control the loft of the ball, the speed and the difficulty of the feed.
With the “oscillator” – a mount that slips under the bag to allow it to rotate – on and the toughest settings applied, you are guaranteed a fiendishly difficult – and exhausting – workout.
It can also be used to drill a particular shot, with the oscillator switched off, which is ideal if you want to fine tune a certain area of your game.
More importantly, for the average tennis player, it folds into a bag – that also boasts capabilities to charge your phone on court – that can be wheeled around for easier transportation. Not to mention, at £780 per unit, it’s significantly cheaper than the majority of ball machines on the market.
Mike Bryan concludes: ‘Once it was shown to us and we got our hands them it’s been super useful.
‘Bob brings it out on the court when he has his kids with him. It’s been great for all purposes – fun and real-training time.’
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