1. Just the thought of hitting “hard” will make you tense up and grip the racquet tightly. This does the exact opposite or what you are trying to achieve – it takes away your power.

2. Tension (level 4 or 5 on a scale of 1-5) in the hand can cause the feet to not move appropriately.

3. Inappropriate footwork will not allow you to get into the correct position.  This in turn will not let your hands be in the correct place to use your natural “kinetic” chain that creates a powerful and effortless flow.

4. In turn, these factors can make you grip the racquet even tighter and lead to a tenser swing and faster frustration.

Little kids hit the ball hard even when they have little or no muscle. Because they cannot “muscle” the ball, they find a relaxed grip tension and rely on their natural timing to swing the racquet so the momentum of the swing generates the power. They also use the speed of the incoming ball to reflect the opponents power right back at them.

Your ability to swing easily and naturally begins with the “eyes”.   Seeing the ball well (see the rotation of the ball) helps you to accomplishes this:

1. Keeping the mind and eyes on the ball not the opponent is primary.

2. Once you see the ball well, you will understand “where” the ball is coming and “how” fast it is coming.

3. This will allow you to positioning your feet correctly for the direction you want to redirect it and help you know when to prepare your swing toward the ball.

4. Grip tension is about a #2 on a scale of 1-5 which keeps the tension out of the swing. This tension will allow you to “naturally” use your powerful “kinetic” chain to meet the ball without fear and create the best speed “you” can generate.

5. It is difficult to judge the speed of your own shots.  Most players assume their ball is slower that their opponents – this is not always true.

The eyes are the timing device for the body’s coordination. Most stroke errors and footwork errors are a product of the “disconnecting” thoughts experienced prior to the ball getting to the point of contact. Those thoughts influence your ability to get your feet into proper position and your hands to move the racquet to the point on contact.

Here are some simple techniques to help with tracking skills:

1. See the spin on the ball as it comes over the net.
2. See the “shadow” on the ball. The light, natural or artificial will cause a shadow on the ball.  Seeing the sunlight and the shadow creates a balance in the mind.
3. Count as you contact the ball by saying “one” then count “two” as you contact the ball to develop better tracking and focus skills.

Want to discover more power?  Ease you grip tension, track the ball early and to the contact zone and use your kinetic chain to produce a natural power.

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I am finding that my swing and my backhand grip are much better than my forehand. When I go for a forehand shot, it usually ends up with a tremendous amount of topspin making it difficult to hit. Still, my opponent on the other side of the net seems to see it coming every single time. What am I doing wrong? On the other hand, when I hit with a backhand swing, I feel way more comfortable. I keep my eye on the ball, I swing low, and I have excellent follow through, control and power. How can I create a forehand that is as effective as my backhand and swing?

Answer:

It may be the case that as a tennis player will develop one hand more than the other. In many cases, a player’s backhand grip will far exceed his or her forehand, creating a miss-balance in their play. Common problems include a large top spin or bottom spin, which may make the ball seemingly hard to strike but is actually very easy for the opponent to return. This is in contrast to a comfortable, easy feel to the backhand, and because of such, play with that grip will have much more power behind the ball, more control, eyes are kept on the ball and there is real follow through. A key to good tennis play is to balance the fore and backhand grips.

The best way to begin to improve is to remain calm during the forehand shot. A lot of times what happens is there is a slight imbalance, which causes stress and anxiety and leads to more and more of a difference. Taking ones time throughout the stroke and making sure that technique is followed instead of speed will provide a foundation upon which the player can then work on developing speed. That way, when the player gets up to speed, the technique is sound, it is just a matter of calibrating hand eye thought coordination. This will lead to less stress and more successful swings.

Loosening the grip is also a good way to remain calmer and less tense throughout the stroke. One can develop a scale of grip by hitting a racket that is held tightly and while held just tight enough not to fall out of the hand. Assigning a one to ten scale, many players whom are professionals will use a tension of 40 ~ 60, or half way. Make sure to hold the racket just off perpendicular from the ground. This will better guarantee less of a spin and more power being placed in the delivery of the ball, making much harder for you to strike. This will give the strike much more versatility than simply by relying on spins alone for the technique.

Once the grip issue is addressed, then there are addition areas to tweak, including direction of strike and depth of shot, both of which enable an easy means to target exactly where the ball will land. This will make the forehand much more powerful.

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