3.5 player, come critique my strokes

[i suck at tennis]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQbi3ws0YQw

I am a 3.5 player that doesn’t practice nearly as much as he should. One of my struggles has always been the forehand. I’ve recently adjusted my grip (semi-western) and that has helped a lot, but I still hit the ball long too often. I think one of my main issues is that I take the racquet back/around my body too far, causing me to have trouble timing hitting the ball early. Any advice you can give from watching the video is appreciated.

 

[luvforty]

the strokes are actually not that bad.... but generally you set your feet too early and you don't have enough small adjustment steps to put yourself in optimal position.

get that going and you shouldn't have so many mis-hits, considering it's not that windy.

 

[Dear Djordje]

Not bad, but yeah, that's a lot of shanking!

 

[beernutz]

Maybe work on watching the ball all the way through impact? You have a nice, fluid stroke.

 

[TomT]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQbi3ws0YQw

I am a 3.5 player that doesn’t practice nearly as much as he should. One of my struggles has always been the forehand. I’ve recently adjusted my grip (semi-western) and that has helped a lot, but I still hit the ball long too often. I think one of my main issues is that I take the racquet back/around my body too far, causing me to have trouble timing hitting the ball early. Any advice you can give from watching the video is appreciated.

You definitely don't suck at tennis. As beernutz mentioned, your strokes look nice and fluid. I suppose they can be improved upon, but I'm not the guy who could tell you how to do that.

I gave your video a thumbs up and subscribed to your channel. So post some good stuff. Also, get some vids from the center back view.

EDIT: I do notice that maybe you might experiment with stepping into the ball to hit just a wee bit more out front with a slight bit more arm extension. I don't know. Just a thought. Looks like you might be a little cramped on some shots. But generally looks pretty good. Your apparent athleticism and fluidity will allow you to make any necessary adjustments with enough practice ... in the foreseeable future, I think.

 

[guitarplayer]

Looks very good. Keeping your head still through impact like Federer does will fix miss-hits. Nice strokes!

 

[VaporDude95]

good. very nice

 

[corbind]

I have atrocious groundstrokes since I spend most of my time at the net. But seems we both have a similar thing with our non-hitting left hand on forehand not using it enough for leverage/twist. Still, I think you do quite well with what you have.

 

[i suck at tennis]

generally you set your feet too early and you don't have enough small adjustment steps to put yourself in optimal position

Maybe work on watching the ball all the way through impact? You have a nice, fluid stroke.

Keeping your head still through impact like Federer does will fix miss-hits

Thanks for the advice guys... When I say things to myself while playing, it is almost always "Move your feet!" or "Watch the ball!", and your comments seem to echo those statements. Guess that just confirms the things I need to keep working on... If only it were as easy as it sounds.

 

[NLBwell]

Did you learn your forehand in a closet?
Are you pretending to be a Tyrannosaurus?
You hit with almost all wrist with a bit of body turn (while you are drinking tea with your left hand).
Relax your shoulders and elbows. Let your upper body, shoulders, and arms move some.
Try to hit some Ernests Gulbis gull-wing forehands for practice to go to the opposite extreme and get the feeling of a more expansive stroke.

Pretty bizarre stroke, isn't it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmixYOD5q04

Somewhere in between your stroke and his would be ideal.

 

[Timbo's hopeless slice]

what on earth is going on with your left hand????

otherwise not looking too bad, actually.

 

[Mountain Ghost]

Strokes

Forehand: You take your elbow too far back behind your side and the butt of your racquet handle is aiming too much toward the right side fence at the back of the backswing. You need to learn to be more conscious of where your elbow is and your racquet handle should never point farther to the right than the net post.

Topspin Backhand: Looks pretty good, though I can't really see what your right arm is doing due to the camera angle. Nice grip change and better balance than on the forehand, though I would have you line up a little farther away from the line of the approaching ball and move the contact point back a bit.

Slice Backhand: Ouch. That hurts to look at.

MG

 

[Irvin]

Your strokes are not bad at all it seems to be your preparation as luvforty said. I think a lot of the problem is you are hitting on a ball machine with no oscillation and you pretty much know just where the ball is going to be. So you aren't reacting to the ball you're reacting then hitting the ball.