new groundstrokes videos, need help on technique

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIg6jxJYDkg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veD6-ZNBWeI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg4X2qhzKAE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-UgDQoNkt4

BACK VIEW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTnWM82o5EI

I have an eastern forehand grip, and i would appreciate any advice you guys can give on my technique so i can hit a more consistent, solid, and powerful forehand. Any backhand advice or other advice is welcome too of course. I only have 1 of about 5 short videos uploaded now, so the other four will come in the next couple hours, and i will be taking more footage these next couple days ,hopefully of some actual/longer rallies.

Thanks, and by the way, does my forehand look more modern or classical?
 
Last edited:

cesarmo03

Rookie
need more footwork for prepare your backhand, and i kind of notice that you use both of your arms to hit the ball, try to control the racquet with your right arm, and use the power with your left arm.
 

Devilito

Legend
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIg6jxJYDkg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veD6-ZNBWeI

I have an eastern forehand grip, and i would appreciate any advice you guys can give on my technique so i can hit a heavier ball and cleaner shot on my forehand. Any backhand advice or other advice is welcome too of course. I only have 1 of about 5 short videos uploaded now, so the other four will come in the next couple hours, and i will be taking more footage these next couple days ,hopefully of some actual/longer rallies.

Thanks, and by the way, does my forehand look more modern or classical?

take footage from behind yourself or at a slight angle so we can see where in the court the ball lands as well as your stroke.
 

ms87

Rookie
forehand:
- stance is way too closed. this SEVERELY limits your rotation and you end up almost entirely arming the stroke. this is definitely the single biggest technical problem on the forehand side.
- your hitting arm passes the plane of your shoulders on the takeback.

backhand:
looks pretty good. a couple smaller notes, though:
1) your front foot is turned parallel to the baseline when you hit the shot. this again limits your rotation and you awkwardly move it after the stroke so that it points towards the net. it should be facing this way the entire time.

you look pretty tense and cramped on both wings, but rather than address that separately, I'd like to see you make the above adjustments and most likely the tension and spacing will improve (albeit likely not disappear altogether).
 
forehand:
- stance is way too closed. this SEVERELY limits your rotation and you end up almost entirely arming the stroke. this is definitely the single biggest technical problem on the forehand side.
- your hitting arm passes the plane of your shoulders on the takeback.

backhand:
looks pretty good. a couple smaller notes, though:
1) your front foot is turned parallel to the baseline when you hit the shot. this again limits your rotation and you awkwardly move it after the stroke so that it points towards the net. it should be facing this way the entire time.

you look pretty tense and cramped on both wings, but rather than address that separately, I'd like to see you make the above adjustments and most likely the tension and spacing will improve (albeit likely not disappear altogether).


On my forehand, How should I go about making my stance more open? How can I stop arming my stroke?
Thanks, I knew something was very wrong on my forehand side ..
 

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Yeah, you have a quick swing ala Courier....nice.
When you have time, you should employ more legdrive and trunkturn into the stroke. When the ball comes at you fast, and you don't have time, your stroke works and looks fine as it is. So you hit great against hard fast hitters, and maybe your shots get sprayed on soft against soft junkball pushers.
With the forehand grip you use, forget about opening your stance. Openstanced openshouldered forehands are for SW and W grips.
Your swing has lots of sideways motion...not bad against flat, fast moving incoming balls, good for control
But when you get a softer moving incoming ball, you should prep the same but followthru more in line with your target, straight into the court more, so you generate more forward, less spin movement onto the ball.
You, right now, can probably beat 60% of the guys answering here if they try to hit hard.
Most would beat you slicing angles, moonballing boredom, and mixing spins and pace to not beat you, but to bore you to death while you make the enough errors to lose.
 
S

StuckInMalibu

Guest
You have nice footwork. Very active and always positioning for the next shot.

What are your goals? A heavy shot is typically associated with spin, so an eastern grip can only take you so far. I don't know what a clean shot means. To me, a flat shot feels "clean" because the racquet cuts thru the ball instead of brushing it as in a topspin shot.

Right now you may getting most of your power from the weight transfer and forward momentum from your stance. That's still a valid way of generating power.
 
i guess what i really want with my forehand is a more balanced, solid, and powerful stroke. I end up reversing it a lot of times because i dont feel balanced i think. Somebody here says i need to change to a more open stance and that i am arming the stroke, while somebody else said that i am fine with my stance and my stroke looks fine.

I am confused as to what changes I should be making to my forehand technique...
 

mordecai

Rookie
Your strokes look fine but your positioning is poor in a lot of situations. Your partner is hitting shots that bounce before the service line and you're taking them 4 feet behind the baseline. Practice moving forward into the court on shorter balls and then unless you want to close the net, resetting back behind the baseline. You seem afraid of moving in, or you just have developed the habit of always staying back. Your shots don't look rushed, you just need to work on taking the ball a little earlier when you get the chance. It opens up your angles and lets you dictate the point, and lets you control where your contact zone will be more easily. Hope this helps.

Your forehand takeback is a bit large, but then again look at Gonzalez. If it feels awkward to you I'd say try keeping the racquet a little closer to your body for the take back.

If you keep trying to improve you could be playing pretty high quality tennis in a shorter time than you think.

Also if you really do have an eastern grip(i can't tell), your follow-through should almost always finish with the racquet head higher than where it was at contact. Your follow-through looks stunted.
 
Last edited:
also, can someone tell me what forehand grip i use? I know i start out with eastern but it seems like i slip to semi western during teh stroke but im not sure exactly. thanks
 

ms87

Rookie
so much bs in this thread.

to answer your question: to open your stance, move your front foot (left foot) back and to your left. try a completely open stance (feet positioned parallel to the net).
 

aimr75

Hall of Fame
forehand:
- stance is way too closed. this SEVERELY limits your rotation and you end up almost entirely arming the stroke. this is definitely the single biggest technical problem on the forehand side.
- your hitting arm passes the plane of your shoulders on the takeback.

What are you on about? Neutral to closed stances are still used and is dependent on the shot being executed. Not all shots are hit with an open stance

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNm-Vo38Jeo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo_zuz7bcLQ
 

aimr75

Hall of Fame
that neutral stance shot sucks and the closed stance shot IS AN APPROACH SHOT

are we here to help the thread starter or to find ******** exceptions to the advice we give?

i said it was dependent on the shot being executed.. or cant you read?!

They have a place in the game but based on your post they should never be used.. or at least you allude to it.. youre advice is questionable at best..
 

Dreamer

Professional
No ms87 has it right, your stance is too closed on forehand side, this is okay on short balls but too slow to respond to deep balls. Your take back is also very far back. These two factors makes your preparation way too long.

As for your backhand, it should lead with the right arm then transfer and contact with the left arm.

Both strokes you use too much arm muscle and not enough of your core. You need to work having a consistent contact zone. Your timing is all over the place. There's this well known exercise called bounce-hit(from inner tennis) where you verbally or mentally recite each time the ball bounces and is hit(or should be hit). It should help you recognize and maintain a consistent idea of when to strike the ball.
 
Top