Reverse Forehand Help

[Roforot]

Hi,

I'd appreciate some help w/ developing this shot. I'm a 4.0 lefty and have a solid FH overall. I'd like to learn to use the Reverse FH to deal w/ two situations.

1) Being pulled wide and having to hit a passing shot w/ a lot of topspin on the run.

2) Getting a short ball on the AD side but w/ a lower bounce. Usually this happens off a cross court rally from the deuce side. I run to the left and have been hitting a FH slice DTL and followed it to the net.

I'm cautious though as it goes to a Righties FHs and while players may have recovered to the middle they're still there. I'll throw in then a FH slice cross court and back up to the baseline. It's awkward for me to try to change directions and momentum to follow that shot to the net plus I feel out of position to cover their BH DTL passing shot.

What I'd really like to be able to do is whip it cross court aiming for the service and side line. This is also a running shot much like the 1st situation.

-- With this background, let me first make sure the reverse FH is a good answer to either of those situations. Next, I need a basic brakedown of the shot? Is it all or mostly generated by the arm; specifically biceps/pecs? Is their a shoulder turn/hip turn? When I've tried it I basically end up bringing my fist up like an uppercut? So the racquet ends up stopped at eye level. In the slow motion videos it looks like they do something to twirl the racquet over their head. I'm not sure if this is intentional or a result of a correctly hit shot?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rb3smnR6NSc&feature=related

In this video BTW, it looks more like Nadal hits a Windshield Wiper FH and then pulls the racquet back? Freeze at :13 and his follow through is to the right?

I have a semi-western grip and open/neutral stance. I typically finish the FH following through on the right side. Slice FHs are obviously hit w/ continental grip and a more neutral/closed stance.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Jay_The_Nomad]

If you can hit a regular shot just hit the regular shot.

If you have to hit a reverse forehand, you'll automatically hit one.

 

[Manus Domini]

what is a reverse forehand?

 

[Jay_The_Nomad]

what is a reverse forehand?

the "combing-your-hair" forehand motion.

 

[Manus Domini]

what do you mean by that?

 

[Power Player]

He is right. you kind of automatically learn the reverse forehand. There are a few keys to it though.

Your racquet and your stroke style are the biggest factors. I used to use the Rafa Babolat stick and ironically, the reverse forehand was not an easy shot for my stroke. I would usually rip it long, same with the topspin lob.

Now that I have a lowered powered stick, I hit reverse forehands all the time. I usually use them if I am pulled wide and can't hit my regular shot. I also use them during rallies, it just depends on the ball and my footwork..I don't think too much about it.

So if you are hitting the shot long, then tighten up your strings and reexamine your stroke. The reverse forehand kind of automaticaly develops. I never practiced it to be honest.

 

[LeeD]

Call it what you want, it's just a forehand with lots of topspin to hit to the shorter DTL court, and also for short angles sharply CC. Finish high and hitting hand side, and try to hit the outside of the ball.

 

[Manus Domini]

oh that's the reverse forehand? didn't know that.

 

[Lefty5]

oh that's the reverse forehand? didn't know that.

me neither, so essentially every forehand Nadal hits is a reverse forehand? Am i understanding correctly? I thought it was when you hit a forehand with your opposite hand instead of a backhand, in real desperate situations.. oh well.

 

[defrule]

Do you mean this kind of shot?

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

Nadal served out wide, Federer sliced it back short, Nadal approached hitting crosscourt to Federer's backhand but is passed down the line.

 

[MichaelChang]

A regular forhand is you finish your swing over the hand side, eg if you righty, your forehand followthrough finish at your left shoulder (be it above or below shoulder). A reverse forehand you finish at the same side, eg, a righy finish his forehand above his right shoulder.

 

[Power Player]

me neither, so essentially every forehand Nadal hits is a reverse forehand? Am i understanding correctly? I thought it was when you hit a forehand with your opposite hand instead of a backhand, in real desperate situations.. oh well.

No..thats just weird...lol.

Nadal hits a reverse forehand often. It allows you to put more sidespin on the ball. I actually have a lot of control when I hit this way and have started using it more often. The wierd thing is that I never consciously thought to do it, it just kind of happened.

 

[Roforot]

If you can hit a regular shot just hit the regular shot.

If you have to hit a reverse forehand, you'll automatically hit one.

"have" is a tough word... I think that as I progress this sort of shot will be key. By no means do I wish to replace my normal FH but for certain situations. Right now, it's hard to feel confident about hitting a "new" shot.

I like the imagery of "combing your hair."

I guess this is something I'll try in mini tennis warm up and see how it goes.

In this Nadal video, it looks like he's hitting a windshield wiper rather than a reverse FH?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djdOlErNwZI

 

[LeeD]

Looks like a poor choice, CC forehand approach, normally a big loser.
I don't know why you choose to call it a reverse forehand. It's just a vertical finish to get exxagerated topspin to keep the ball short enough to land inside the baseline.

 

[Slazenger07]

The reverse finish is an excellent one to have. When I choose to hit this finish I prepare the same way as I would for my across the body finish but once the racquet head drops below the level of the ball I whip straight up the back of it and naturally let the racquet head create a "halo" of sorts over my head. Just like with the across the body finish the arm should stay loose and relaxed. I always hit this type of finish with an open stance. I find that my shots with this finish have a tendency to kick up a little higher and less forward than my across the body finish, which makes perfect sense when you think about the swing path. I probably use the reverse finish 60% of the time and the across my body finish 40%. The reverse finish is particularly useful when Im on the run or robbed of time, it is also a great swing for the return of bigger serves because the swing can be much shorter while you can still generate good topspin on your return for safety.

The forehand is definitely my best shot and the reverse finish is a big reason why.

 

[supineAnimation]

One of the most important things to remember about the reverse forehand is that you can't get it over the net with topspin alone. You need to get enough forward momentum and even upward momentum to get the ball over the net and then allow the topspin to bring it down. So what you need to do is, first, keep your hand open and loose with your last three fingers off the handle so that the racquet can rotate in your hand fast and free. And as your wrist extends in the stretch-shortening cycle (the wrist lays back in extension) supinate your forearm (rotate the forearm towards the pinky) so that you open the racquet-face under the ball before you swing up and forward, pronate the wrist (forearm rotates towards the thumb) as you squeeze your hand by engaging those last three fingers, which increases the racquet-head speed at contact.

It takes some practice and you'll probably park a few before you get the feeling of getting the racquet under the ball before you whip over it, but, at least for my students, this is the one component that, once they get it, allows them to hit the shot effectively and consistently.

Opening the racquet-face allows you to impart some upward force along with the topspin because it's difficult to get depth with only the topspin. Hopefully that makes sense. Good luck; great shot to have in your arsenal.