You need to get comfortable with it and properly train the non-dominant hand in order to have a solid double handed backhand. A continental grip or a forehand grip for the one handed backhand will only inhibit the stroke. The western grip is the last of the four primary forehand tennis grips, which falls a … With players adding more and more topspin to their strokes, the full eastern grip allows players to not only generate more topspin, but also handle shots with a lot of forward rotation that are hit to them. Step 3 – Takeway. Regardless of what grip you choose to hit with, remember that the top hand is the one that controls the racket face through contact and adds power to your backhand. While the double handed backhand is more common in modern tennis, particularly because it is easier for beginners to learn, single handed backhand players continue to find success on the pro tour. After making contact with the ball, the left arm extends and moves upwards and to the right side of the player (remember we started on the left side for right handed players). The most common grip for the two-handed backhand is to have your dominant hand in a continental grip. The index knuckle of the right hand will typically be on bevel 2, while the heel of the right hand will be on bevel 1. This grip is the most commonly used in tennis today. This style was far more effective on high-bouncing clay courts than on faster, lower surfaces, but it demonstrates what can be done. With this hand you need to grip the racket using a Continental Grip (If you don’t know much about grips, check our ultimate guide here). It is imperative that you make contact in front of you in order to have a good backhand. When tennis first started, most players only hit slices on the backhand side. This gave players greater reach. Here, we’ll share as much knowledge and experience as we can, so we hope you enjoy it! I’m extremely passionate about the mental and technical part of the game. The racket’s handle runs parallel to your knuckles, and the index finger wraps around the racket rather than extending forward as it might for a forehand. Therefore, you need to move backwards and give time for the ball to drop to a better position. First, make sure that your body weight is on the front leg. For most of the 20th century the backhand was performed with one hand, using either a backhand Eastern or Continental grip. Single handed players usually use the flat backhand if they take the ball early but in general, they will hit their backhands with more topspin. Twenty-four of the top 100 ranked men used a one-handed grip, down from almost 50 a decade earlier. Eastern grips offer tennis players a way to smash flat shots, giving the ball more power and speed. It contrasts with the other kind of … Why is this important? Hi guys, it’s Javier from Fit In Tennis with our friend Irem, who is kindly helping us. Semi-Western Grip | An Overview With Diagram of ... - Tennis While on the forehand side, players utilize the Open Stance more often because of its quicker preparation, on the backhand side the neutral stance is the most used. Your backhand and the associated grip are entirely your own and don’t have to be like anyone else’s. I’ve won 3 futures since graduating, and I broke the top 400 on the ATP rankings. One-Handed Backhand Grips To hit a one-handed backhand, simply move your hand in reverse of your forehand position. This hand is at the bottom of the racket. In modern tennis, there are a few professional players who use a Western one-hand backhand. Make sure you are swinging as a unit instead of using the arm solely. Of course, you will have some troubles with the flat serve and you might lose some pace but you will gain the necessary spin to improve your serve consistency. The one handed backhand is one of the most visually appealing shots in tennis. No matter what your level is, you can always gain by developing a better base on your groundstrokes. If you’re a righty, you would assume the continental grip by lining up your right index knuckle on bevel 2. Use this for the serve, volley, overhead, and slice (all the pros do). The majority of players, especially in women’s tennis, hold the racket with two hands when playing a backhand. Well, it’s time to turn your backhand into a weapon. The neutral stance backhand is the most used leg positioning on the backhand side. Master the Continental Grip. Richard Gasquet, Stan Wawrinka, Justine Henin, Carla Suarez Navarro and Roger Federer (at times) are among players who use western grips. Make sure you feel like you are pushing the racket through the contact with your non dominant hand instead of pulling with your dominant hand. Pretend you are wearing a belt with a large belt buckle. If you want to work on your down the line backhand, this is the drill that you need. Keeping both hands on the racket makes it easier for players who do not have a great deal of physical strength to control the path when hitting the ball. However, players like Kyrgios, De Minaur and Norrie have amazing flat backhands (we have a tutorial about hitting flat backhands, check it out here). Because you are only using one arm; you need the assistance of your body to hit a hard yet controlled backhand. MyTennisHQ is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to websites like TennisWarehouse.com and Amazon.com. Move as a unit and you’ll get great results. Remember the belt buckle? It is a “WOW” shot. It will give you more stability. The eastern grip allows a modest amount of topspin to be produced, but if they want to make the ball spin, they will use a semi-western grip. Guys like Wawrinka, Federer, Nalbandian, Djokovic, Agassi and Guga (plenty more) have given us countless hours of highlights with their backhands. I’ve reached the semifinals of the Orange Bowl U16 and as a junior, I ranked as high as #33 in the world. Now, if you look at the image above, you’ll see that a lot of the force is coming from pushing and pivoting around the front leg. Once more, the semi open stance will be used similarly as we saw with the two handed backhand. To get the backhand Continental grip, you should place your base knuckle on the upper right slant. Hold the racquet again by the throat with your non-dominant hand, but this time the racquet needs to be oriented the other way, meaning that the head is on the left side and the handle on your right side. Western Grip. As the name suggests, the one handed backhand is struck with only one hand gripping the racket. This type of grip (also called Eastern Backhand) will allow you to hit better kick serves. Therefore, it is very important to be able to change grips confidently and quickly in tennis, particularly on the backhand wing. When you’re working on your tennis game, improving some small details can have a big impact on your overall level. Remember, never swing from high to low unless you are purposely trying to hit into the net. This type of grip has been famously used by former world number one Justine Henin, amongst others. After the contact, the racket should move on an upwards, diagonal trajectory to the opposite side of where you started the swing (that’s how you’ll create topspin). We will never spam you, we promise! The more rotation you can create with your shoulder and upper body the better because it will allow you to rotate faster around the ball. Younger players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Denis Shapovalov prove that the one hander still has a lot to give. The dominant hand is the one that hits the forehand and is on the bottom of the racket. With the dominant hand on the grip and the non-dominant hand on the V of the racket, start the takeaway with the racket tip up. In the past, backhands have been known as the weaker shot because it is typically harder to generate as much power as on the forehand side, but in modern tennis this is far from the truth. Remember that your backhand’s power starts from the legs and core. Secondly, the racket can be held in one hand, most likely in conjunction with a more significant grip change. It is very similar to the continental grip. At the start of the takeaway, the buckle will be pointing forward (towards your opponent). It allows players to rotate faster and make contact with the ball more in front of their bodies. Today, it is imperative that players have solid backhands in order to succeed on the professional tour. In addition, don’t let your head move up before contact. For beginners, you will learn what a backhand is and how you can hit one step-by-step. Continue the rotation of your belt buckle around as it finally rotates back towards the net. To place your palm on a given plane of your handle, place the base knuckle of your index finger on that plane. The eastern grip is the most commonly used for two handed backhands. Take a look:Djokovic’s Open Stance Backhand. Instead, the player will probably remove their non-dominant hand from the racket and switch to a continental grip to hit the shot one-handed. Follow a similar process to find an Eastern backhand grip Your body weight should be on the outside leg (left leg for right handed players, right leg for left handed players). In order to hit a topspin backhand, the racket needs to come from low to high, brushing up on the ball during contact. A good slice won’t necessarily be a fast shot but it will keep the ball low, demanding your opponent to hit up. While the two handed backhand has been around for a long time, it became increasingly popular during the Bjorn Borg era in the 1980s. It is a very effective way to transition from a defensive position to a neutral or aggressive one. Oh, and I had lunch with Brad Gilbert once. Ideally, you want your arm to straighten up during the motion. This grip is great for flat and slice shots, but not so great for topspin. Take a look at Federer, Nadal, Gasquet, Serena Williams, and so on, and you will see many different styles, techniques, and grips. Except in the phrase backhand volley, the term refers to a groundstroke (that is, one in which the ball has bounced before it is struck). We will write an entirely different post about the slice backhand but essentially, this is the original backhand. The index knuckle and heel of the left hand will sit on bevel 7. The Evolution of Backhand Tennis Grips. His unorthodox style of making contact with the ball using both hands on the racket and then continuing the follow through with one hand helped popularize the topspin two handed backhand. It has the job of pushing the racket (much like a forehand) through the shot and controlling the face of the racket. For the semi westerns grip, your index finger knuckle should be located somewhere between bevel 6 and 7 (find what’s comfortable for you). The first thing we will explain is how to hold the grip of the two-handed backhand. The racket head should drop below the ball as you approach contact so you can make contact from low to high. We're Gui and Karue. They will do this because it is simpler to execute. This is where you want to live if you want to consistently hit a good one handed backhands. And most importantly, I have been to Pete Sampras’ house. But for most people, the backhand is a difficult shot, especially at the club level, and for most players it is considered to be their weaker side. Again, the open stance position will be used mostly in defensive situations. We both feel like tennis has given us opportunities that we would have never had otherwise, so we started myTennisHQ with the intent of helping more and more people become familiar with the sport. Pay attention to the belt buckle. A double-handed backhand has the advantage of aiding power and control and being helpful for returning powerful serves. As a guy who pretty much made a career from having a good backhand, I decided to share my knowledge with you. Top hand is at the start of the most commonly used grip allows you to hit topspin backhands this! 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