tips and tricks for the overhead smash

watungga

Professional
Know where the ball will drop immediately after it is hit. So you'll arrive there first than the ball.
 
Although a smash that is hit extremely hard as to go over the fence may seem rewarding, a well-angled smash is just as effective (if not more) and is generally easier to hit. Make sure to be patient and keep your head/chin up while you're hitting the ball and remember to exhale (simply breathing out, not grunting) as you hit it.
 

Moveforwardalways

Hall of Fame
1. Move your feet.

2. Move your feet.

3. Move your feet.

4. Watch the ball all the way to contact - don't look down.

If you are whiffing on overheads it is because you are likely standing too far forward and the ball is coming down directly over your head or even behind your head. If I've seen this once, I've seen it a thousand times. When that lob goes up, get happy feet. Go riverdance on it. Move yourself to where the ball is coming down just in front of you. This is the problem with 95% of rec level overhead misses.
 

SystemicAnomaly

Bionic Poster
Ana+Ivanovic


http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-skvKLcZjsNE/TZgCdCKIwOI/AAAAAAAACRo/i6MIWj1YklY/s640/4701519810_f7a6bb8208_b.jpg

Try some catching drills.

Have a partner hit some very high lobs to you. When the lob goes up, turn side-on and assume an overhead "trophy" position similar to one of the 2 positions illustrated above. Pull your right arm and racket back directly into this position -- do NOT use windup motion as you might use for a serve.

Extend your left arm up and slightly to the right for this drill. Let the ball bounce for these high lobs. Position yourself, by moving your feet, so that you are somewhat behind the bounce. While maintaining this position, catch the ball in your outstretched hand. Do you move your arm to catch the ball -- move your body position, instead, to make the catch.

After you mastered lining up to catch these high lobs, try some catches with some low trajectory lobs. Do not let the ball bounce for those lower lobs -- just get your body quickly into position to catch the ball on the fly. The left (off) hand might be somewhat lower for these lobs (as shown in the link below)

http://m8.i.pbase.com/o3/30/52730/1/117028978.lhpoqErM.usopen0900050.JPG

After you've mastered both of these catching drills, try some actual overheads. Line yourself up in the same manner. Of course, you will need to contact the ball with the racket some 2-3 feet before it reaches your left hand.

remember that overheads are hit not over your head but your right shoulder

Agreed. For a righty overhead, I would contact the ball more or less in front of the right shoulder rather than directly over your head.
.
 
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LeeD

Bionic Poster
We don't know your technique, so can't know where your problem lies.
Practice a lot. Get sideways, toss arm pointing at ball, racket arm already in trophy position, WATCH ball descend, swing 3/4 speed, slicing at first, then working on flat overheads.
 

blip

Rookie
I take them like they are serves. Get in position (past it actually and step forward) and wait for it to get in striking range. Think of it as an easy serve, you have the entire court!
 

watungga

Professional
I take them like they are serves. Get in position (past it actually and step forward) and wait for it to get in striking range. Think of it as an easy serve, you have the entire court!

Not easy. The ball is dropping faster compare to a toss.

Now we know that you must have an excellent skills for telling us that.
 
D

Deleted member 23235

Guest
Move as if you're trying to bounce the ball on top of your head. Works great for me.
Lol, probably advise from a soccer player!

Alternatively I just try to "catch" the ball with an extended (left) arm, directly in front, and above my head. The height I "catch" the ball is also approximately where I'm making contact. If my overhead is particularly off I will just literally catch the ball in the air.

70% of the time I miss overheads because I'm not takeing the extra step (usually letting the ball get behind my head)
20% of the time i miss overheads because I'm dropping my before contact
10% misjudging swing timing because the ball was too high and coming down fast, and/or I'm not used the background of ball (eg. dark indoor ceiling, lighting on indoor ceiling, bright blue sky, sun, etc...)
 

user92626

G.O.A.T.
I great tip that I learned recently is that you have to strike the ball in the manner that it rolls across the string bed.
 
D

Deleted member 23235

Guest
Try pointing at it

definitely works for alot of people, but the problem i had pointing, is that it would still not motivate to get into the right position... I'd point to it going over my head, or point to it landing short :p a better cue (for me), would be to make the ball hit the very top of the ball, like you're trying to spike it with your finger.
 

blip

Rookie
Not easy. The ball is dropping faster compare to a toss.

Now we know that you must have an excellent skills for telling us that.

I was thinking of one that I can play off a bounce. If not then, yes, I just try to keep my eyes on it. :shock:
 

AHJS

Professional
Lol, probably advise from a soccer player!

Alternatively I just try to "catch" the ball with an extended (left) arm, directly in front, and above my head. The height I "catch" the ball is also approximately where I'm making contact. If my overhead is particularly off I will just literally catch the ball in the air.

70% of the time I miss overheads because I'm not takeing the extra step (usually letting the ball get behind my head)
20% of the time i miss overheads because I'm dropping my before contact
10% misjudging swing timing because the ball was too high and coming down fast, and/or I'm not used the background of ball (eg. dark indoor ceiling, lighting on indoor ceiling, bright blue sky, sun, etc...)

Haha actually not!
I agree that overheads should be hit out in front, but I find that tracking it by trying to hit it on my head leads to the best contact for me, even though I strike it out in front.
Just my .02, however.
 

happyloman

Professional
Great! Please tell me how it works for you, I hope it helps!

It helped a little. I just bought a machine so I'm practicing with it. (I've hit a total of under 100 overheads in my entire life.. so am a 1.0 NTRP in overheads LOL)
 

Chas Tennis

G.O.A.T.
Hitting Overheads Too Sharply Down Into the Court

For a spell, when I hit overheads they were often likely to hit the net or go at an angle too sharply down into the other court. Look for this problem whenever you dump an overhead into the net or bounce it too high and slow in the opponent's court.

I asked an instructor. He said that hitting the ball too-sharply-down from an overhead hit was usually caused by positioning too far away from the falling ball.

To demonstrate, he held a ball up as he stood in front of me and told me to place my racket on the ball. He demonstrated several positions as he stepped farther away. You could see as he moved back that the racket face has to angle farther down, close, in order to make contact. The racket face closes as the distance away from you of the falling ball increases.

Moving closer to the falling ball fixed my problem immediately.

Also, I believe that high level overheads are usually performed with an abbreviated service motion using internal shoulder rotation. I believe that this motion is less likely to cause the ball error of going too sharply down because racket head speed is developed by both closing the racket and rotating it. Closing the racket causes the ball to vary in the up-down direction while more horizontally rotating the racket causes it to vary side-to-side. Comparing to an overhead where all racket head speed is developed only by closing the racket, a small error in timing there seems much more likely to produce a larger error in the ball's trajectory and cause the ball to go too high or low.

Picture from a Toly post.
2iln4ft.jpg
 
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Chas Tennis

G.O.A.T.
So basically, don't get too close and don't get too far away. :)

Yes, if hitting down too much suspect that you impacted the ball from too far away. Was it a one time stroke error or a tendency?

Also, look into the issue of your overhead stroke technique by comparing your overhead stroke to those of high level players. High level overheads should resemble high level serves. Probably many average player overheads resemble Waiter's Tray Serves. I have not studied this but have seen a few high level overheads that appear to use ISR, as in the Justine Henin picture.

I just saw Djokovic hit an overhead in slow motion at Monte Carlo in the Cilic match. He used ISR.
 
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Nellie

Hall of Fame
If you are having a hard time with overheads, shorten the stroke by starting with your racquet over your head in the trophy pose, and not like a serve. It makes the timing a lot easier because the racquet is only going a short distance before contact. I see a lot of people who struggle with timing because they are doing a giant wind-up starting the racquet head from their ankles/knees and missing the rapidly falling ball.

Also, keep your head up (keeping the toss arm up helps) and don't try to kill the overhead.
 

crash1929

Hall of Fame
forget anything you've heard about foot work or turning your body or etc etc.

instead pretend your back in little league or high school baseball team and imagine you are going to catch the ball that should get you in good position to swing at it.
 
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