racquet speed

[dustyle]

when i am serving and hitting a forehand i cannot get enuff racquet speed especially on my serve can someone tell me how i can get a faster racquet speed.

[Kana Himezaki]

Keep in mind racquet head speed isn't everything. Well, it might be essential if you have a Western grip, but you can achieve solid, fast pace balls with simply clean contact and extending through the ball.

First, what grip do you have on your forehands?

And on serves, keep in mind for full speed your whole body should be working into the shot. Remember to get good separation when taking the racquet back at the start of your serve, and making sure momentum is transferred from the back foot to the front foot, forward and up.

Try to work your body into a mostly upward momentum. Your trunk/shoulders should be rotating in to the shot, and after you've worked out your serve knee bend is essential into getting lift/energy off the ground and into your racquet.


Ah sorry, I did the whole serve instead of racquet speed. A loose, relaxed arm can achieve much higher velocity than when simply muscling the ball through. Think of your arm as a whip, extending over and cracking through the ball.

[JohnAkaB]

Originally Posted by Kana Himezaki

Keep in mind racquet head speed isn't everything. Well, it might be essential if you have a Western grip, but you can achieve solid, fast pace balls with simply clean contact and extending through the ball.

First, what grip do you have on your forehands?

And on serves, keep in mind for full speed your whole body should be working into the shot. Remember to get good separation when taking the racquet back at the start of your serve, and making sure momentum is transferred from the back foot to the front foot, forward and up.

Try to work your body into a mostly upward momentum. Your trunk/shoulders should be rotating in to the shot, and after you've worked out your serve knee bend is essential into getting lift/energy off the ground and into your racquet.


Ah sorry, I did the whole serve instead of racquet speed. A loose, relaxed arm can achieve much higher velocity than when simply muscling the ball through. Think of your arm as a whip, extending over and cracking through the ball.

i agree with your statement

[Tennis Ball Hitter]

edit: deleted .. sorry posted on the wrong thread

[joe sch]

Hitches in your strokes are what slow down your strokes speed.
Once your strokes are totally smooth, you can increase your strenght which will then increase the strokes speed. Try working on your strokes in slow motion to see if there are any hitches which can be removed. Other limiting factors include muscle tension and fatique. If you can remain completely relaxed, you will find you can play with as much effortless power as your bodies strenght and technique are capable.

[MegacedU]

Make sure you're dropping your racquet down behind your shoulder when you serve (backscratch). You'd be amazed at how much speed you can generate by just putting it back there. On your strokes, make sure you're pointing and bringing your racquet back.

[Marius_Hancu]

continuous, uninterrupted loops.
relaxed arms and grips.
gradual acceleration.

[NoBadMojo]

backscratch trophy position is no longer really taught as it can actually be quite inefficient..its like marius sez....and also using the larger more powerful muscles, shoulder turn and a good knee bend to transfer energy on the serve are what you need to do to develop more energy and headspeed

[joe sch]

It is true that backscratch serve is not taught today, just as eastern grips and using close stances. This does not mean they no longer the most effective and correct ways to play the game. I believe they are just not required with the lighter stiffer rackets. If you think about the mechanics and physics involved in stroking you may want to consider some of the teaching from the greater part of the history of tennis. You may even want to consider playing an allcourt game and learning to volley, although with todays rackets you can just perfect baseline blasting and try to beat all the others at this very one dimensional game. Im making this statement because I would like to see more allcourt players develop but I may just get flamed and ignored