more spin with conservative grip?

[stirallyracer]

Hello, just wondering if anybody shared my experiences. I tend to get more spin if I use my extreme eastern grip. The farther western I go, the less spin I get. I also tend to shank more, and my racket twists. It's interesting, because with my normal grip I am able to use my forearm/wrist to provide more spin and pop.

Now, how do I get topspin on my one handed backhand?
I have an eastern backhand grip, and hit low to high. Somehow i still manage to get so little spin I can see the text on the ball. Should I rotate my forearm as I'm hitting to get more?

 

[itsstephenyo]

Same exact thing has happened to me in the last month or two. I used to hit with a pretty light semi-western and switched over to a strong eastern grip and instantly experienced more pace and spin.

On the topic of backhand topspins, I also use an eastern backhand grip for my one hander. The main thing I always need to focus on is footwork. Get into position quickly and set up with your knees bent. Take a nice, steady motion and hit the ball with your arm fully extended. This usually helps me get a little more pace and topspin.

 

[wihamilton]

Eastern = flatter / Western = more spin. That said, you can certainly generate plenty of spin w/an eastern if you swing / follow through properly. This is just a guess, but your swing path is probably more suited for an eastern and that is why you get more spin w/ that grip vs the western.

 

[Teh_pwnerer]

for my style the western worked, everything lands on court and so uncomfortable to return its like i dont need any pace, WONDERFUL =)

 

[Frank Silbermann]

Hello, just wondering if anybody shared my experiences. I tend to get more spin if I use my extreme eastern grip. The farther western I go, the less spin I get. I also tend to shank more, and my racket twists. It's interesting, because with my normal grip I am able to use my forearm/wrist to provide more spin and pop.

Now, how do I get topspin on my one handed backhand?
I have an eastern backhand grip, and hit low to high. Somehow i still manage to get so little spin I can see the text on the ball. Should I rotate my forearm as I'm hitting to get more?

You're comparing an experienced Eastern with a beginner's Western. With the Western grip you use different muscles to apply spin than you use with the Eastern.

If your backhand is "extreme Eastern" (i.e. western) then you can rotate your racket from horizontal towards vertical by rotating your forearm. But your forearm should _let_ this happen rather than forcing it with your forearm muscles -- or you'll get tennis elbow.

If you use a traditional eastern grip, then you might have to rotate your wrist a bit to keep the racket face from opening up. But there's no way to apply heavy spin. The best you can do is to lift up with your legs. Also, I've found that if I shrug my shoulder up and forward, it gives me a bit more flexibility to make a more steeply upward swing.