Style of Play
Among his strengths as a player are that he is extremely fast and explosive, "quick-footed" with "great feet", "a superb forehand", and what John McEnroe has referred to as "great racket speed"; he is also "a hard worker and a natural leader." He has dazzling hand-eye coordination, which allows him to take the ball exceptionally early. He has all the shots, but his return of serve is his most valuable asset, and he cleverly constructs points. He is a serviceable volleyer, who likes coming in to the net, and is not afraid to move forward as points play out.
He also runs everything down. "He's got a great heart", said Larry Stefanki, who coaches Andy Roddick and has previously worked with John McEnroe, Marcelo Ríos, Fernando González and Tim Henman. "A lot of players today are fast and fit, but just don't seem to play every point at 100%. It's like they're almost on cruise control and then want to play hard when it gets to 4-all or 5-all", Stefanki said.
"When he hears that he's too small, not big enough, well, he just never listened. He says, 'I'm going to play this game.'"
— Nathan Levine, Jesse's father"I think because Jesse's so small and he doesn't want to give any free points, he tries every point 100%. That's a big asset out there."
The average professional tennis player is 3 inches (76 mm) taller and 20 pounds heavier than Levine, who is "generously" listed at 5' 9", 150.
Read more about this topic: Jesse Levine
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