[Groundstrokes] Drills for learning to lower the hitting point

[ChimpChimp]

[red] When I aim to hit at the middle of the racquet, the ball often flies wide to the sides. Depth is ok.

[green] When I aim a bit inward, I don't think that is the sweet spot, but the result is accurate landing. Strange feedback to the hand but it's not a suicide shot so better not to complain. Depth is also ok.

I suspect I don't hit at the spot of the racquet I think I do. If aiming inward works, I should adjust anyway. But I need to think hard to tell myself to adjust. Any drill to make it a habit? or should I play less for points, more on hitting practices?

https://imgur.com/a/g25DIbg

 

[LeeD]

Nobody can control that close, where the ball impacts against a live opponent.
So....hit with a margin for error. That's why pros don't always aim for lines.

 

[Dragy]

[red] When I aim to hit at the middle of the racquet, the ball often flies wide to the sides. Depth is ok.

[green] When I aim a bit inward, I don't think that is the sweet spot, but the result is accurate landing. Strange feedback to the hand but it's not a suicide shot so better not to complain. Depth is also ok.

I suspect I don't hit at the spot of the racquet I think I do. If aiming inward works, I should adjust anyway. But I need to think hard to tell myself to adjust. Any drill to make it a habit? or should I play less for points, more on hitting practices?

https://imgur.com/a/g25DIbg

Aiming for closer to throat might be beneficial. Have you filmed yourself and verified where you actually hit the ball in the stringbed?
I’ve been there by hitting closer to the tip until I paid attention and corrected. That issue spoiled me big time when I tried to find good spacing from the ball and was always on verge of hitting with atrocious part of the hoop...
Whenever I miss towards the dampener spot it’s not that bad as missing towards the tip.

And just to remind we are on the equipment website you can address the issue with lead tape through 10-12-2 o’clock area, as well as using extended length racquet

 

[socallefty]

I wonder if your spacing from the ball is too close at contact and you end up with a shortened, low-speed swing because you are jammed from having the ball be too close to you. That could result in a lot of mishits flying wide as you describe. This kind of issue is more prevalent in those with bunty swings that contact the ball too late and have their wrist and racquet pushed back by the force of the incoming ball.

If you train your footwork to stop with more space from the ball and contact the ball earlier while it is well in front of you after proper weight transfer from back-front, you will be able to swing out more freely and likely generate more topspin and pace. Ideally, you want your misses to be deep more often and not into the net or wide during baseline rallies.

Did you come up with this theory on your own on why you miss wide or did a coach tell you? If you don’t have a coach, you might want to take a lesson or two and have a professional diagnose your issue. Getting jammed, bad spacing, hitting late, lack of wrist lag pushing the racquet back during contact are all much more common issues than what you are describing. Most good players are not thinking so precisely about which spot on the strings the ball contacts. They are usually focusing on a target and a particular trajectory/spin while swinging away with the swing they’ve practiced for thousands of hours under the watchful eyes of an instructor.