PROBLEM

SOLUTION
While executing a low-to-high swing, try to hit the ball with the top edge of the racquet. This will be difficult to do at first, but the exaggeration will give you the feel of the vertical sweep up the back of the ball that you need for topspin. After that, try leading with the top edge of your racquet, but hit the ball on the strings. The resulting shot should have plenty of topspin. Watch the seams of the ball as it leaves your strings, paying attention to the spin and not just if it goes in. When pro players such as Rafael Nadal are on the defensive, they still hit with topspin. But since they’re late making contact, their racquets on their forehands will follow through behind their heads. I’m not encouraging a late contact point, but mimicking them is a great way to learn the vertical sweep necessary for topspin. Be careful not to hit your head when practicing this technique. If your shots don’t make it over the net, pick a higher target. Bonus: If you get this shot down, you’ll also have that topspin lob you’ve always wanted. 

Article by David Mix, Photos By Manuela Davies/Double Exposure – Tennis.com

PREPARATION

RACQUET:
Moya brings his racquet back above head level. Starting his swing from this point will enable him to generate plenty of racquethead speed. In order to take such a large swing you need time to measure the ball.

GRIP:
Like many claycourt players, Moya uses an extreme Western grip on his forehand. This closes the racquet face, which allows a player to drop the frame below the ball and brush up for heavy topspin.

RIGHT ARM:
Moya’s hitting arm is almost completely straight and extended away from his body. This is good for power but problematic unless you have superb timing. The average player would be wise to bend the arm a little, keeping the elbow closer to the body.

LEFT ARM:
What you do with your non-hitting arm is important on a forehand. Here you see Moya bringing it over to the hitting side, which naturally rotates his upper body (his chin is over his left shoulder) and counterbalances his racquet arm.

RIGHT LEG:
By loading up and hitting off his back leg, Moya is using open-stance footwork. He has started to flex his right knee and will probably bend it a little more to further load his weight onto that leg and explode up and through the shot.

RIGHT FOOT:
The toes on Moya’s right foot are pointing to the side, which facilitates his hip turn. If the plant foot is more perpendicular to the net, it’s much more difficult to get that rotation.

CONTACT

HEAD:
A trademark of a top-notch ball striker is the ability to keep the head still at impact. Here Moya’s face is relaxed and expressionless. If your head is jerking around when you swing, it can affect your balance and your ability to make solid contact.

RACQUET:
This is a splitsecond after contact and the racquet head is already above the ball. Moya definitely came from below the ball and brushed up the bottom part of it to get some serious topspin.

RIGHT WRIST:
Notice how the wrist is laid back and the hitting elbow is tucked in close to the body. That’s the perfect leverage position from which to rock the ball on the forehand.

HIPS:
After coiling his body so well in the previous photo, Moya really unwinds into the shot. This rotation creates tremendous power and helps get the racquet, which Moya brought so far back, to contact on time.

RIGHT LEG:
Even though he is hitting from an open stance, Moya still has plenty of forward momentum. He takes all of the weight he loaded onto his right leg in the first photo and launches himself up (he’s off the ground) and into (his right foot is now pointed forward) the shot.

Article by Tom Gullikson, Photos by Bryce Vickmark – Tennis.com

PROBLEM
You’re late getting to the ball on your inside-out forehand. As a result, you don’t hit the shot properly and end up out of position and on the defensive for the rest of the point. This usually happens because you use side steps to move to the ball, which dramatically slows you down.

SOLUTION
The footwork needed to hit an inside-out forehand is just as important as the stroke itself. When moving to hit the shot, the first step is crucial. Immediately get your body sideways to the net by bringing your right foot behind your left (left foot behind your right for lefties). Now you can literally run backwards by backpedaling toward the ball and setting up for the shot after planting your back foot. Most club players attempt to get into position by shuffling with side steps, which not only slows you down, but leaves you with more work to do once you get to the ball. By running backward, you’ll be ready in plenty of time and can explode into the shot, leaving you in good position to recover for the next ball.

Article by Dayne Gingrich, Photos by Clark Jones/AP Photo – Tennis.com

To hit the inside-out forehand, or runaround forehand, remember to backpedal quickly and keep your racquet up high as you move into position. Once there, be sure to swing out and give the ball a ride.

Adding a weapon, no matter what the stroke, can significantly elevate your game. When you have a shot that you can use to dictate points and that your opponent is afraid of, you’re going to win a lot of matches. One of the best shots to develop, and possibly the easiest, is a dominating forehand.

The first step in this development is to learn to hit the runaround forehand. That’s where you move into position to crack a forehand from your backhand side. So if you’re right-handed, you’re hitting your forehand while standing in the ad court. The one thing you must do when hitting a runaround forehand is give it a ride. You’re leaving a lot of room open on your forehand side, so you can’t be passive with this ball. Too many players push this shot and get burned. I know from experience because I used to do that myself.

Here’s one good drill, which I used to do often with Andy Roddick: Have someone feed you a series of four to six floating balls that land several feet from the singles sideline on your backhand side. Run around your backhand, smack the forehand hard, and move back to the center. Make sure that as soon as you’ve hit the forehand you slam on the brakes and work your way back to the middle. Remember to move your feet quickly and keep your racquet up as you get into position.

Players tend to go inside-out with the runaround forehand because the net is lower going crosscourt, there’s a bigger target area to hit into, and it’s generally to an opponent’s backhand. But don’t neglect the down-the-line forehand from this position. Practice both shots so you don’t get predictable.

Once you can rip five to six penetrating runaround forehands in a row, then you can progress to the next step. When you’re successful with the runaround forehand, you can catch your opponent by surprise and get a short ball out of it, so you must learn how to move up and take advantage of this by hitting the next forehand with direction and purpose. Have your coach or partner feed dozens of short balls that you can drive from inside the court. I remember seeing Jim Courier practice once when he was No. 1 in the world. He hit nothing but short forehands because that was his money shot. If you want to feel confident about finishing points with your forehand, that’s what you have to do.

You won’t turn your forehand into a hammer overnight. I’m still working on it, and I’m 43. But if you’re patient and dedicated, it’s one of those shots that, with some simple practice, can eventually bring you huge dividends.

The best way to practice your runaround forehand is to stand in the center of the court and have a practice partner feed a series of soft floating balls to your backhand side. Move into position and rip the ball inside-out or down the line.

Article by Brad Gilbert, Photo by Manuela Davies/Propix, Illustration by Trevor Johnston – Tennis.com

Over the past 20 years, the technique used for hitting a forehand has evolved. Advances in racquet technology and player conditioning have resulted in a more powerful stroke, and the positioning, footwork, and grips commonly used in the last generation have changed radically.

Before the mid-1970s, the emphasis was on hitting with an Eastern grip from a square stance and moving your body weight straight through the shot. Many of these principles still apply, but the players with big forehands these days use a more Western grip, hit from open stances, and get more body rotation and weight transfer into the shot. If you want to see the personification of the modern forehand, look no further than defending U.S. Open champion Andy Roddick. When Roddick was a student in his early teens at the Evert Tennis Academy, he worked on developing the technique that years of practice and physical maturity have turned into a huge weapon. If you’re looking to get some extra zip on your forehand, or even if you’ve been playing for years and are happy with your stroke, emulating aspects of Roddick’s shot can potentially benefit your game. Let’s take a look at what makes his forehand so special.

1. PREPARATION
The first thing Roddick does when he spots a potential forehand is to get his racquet back. When he makes this move, he tends to handcuff the throat with his left hand. It’s a bit of a style thing (you don’t have to squeeze the racquet), but it does help facilitate a full shoulder turn. At this point, the racquet face is slightly closed and above his shoulders in a cocked position. This will help him create a long, looping, and powerful swing with the racquet face brushing up through the shot.

As the ball approaches, Roddick will line it up with his back (right) leg and keep his left leg off to the side. His back foot is also turned out, which will allow his body to coil and then fire into the shot. This is basic open-stance footwork, and it’s effective because it creates an opportunity for Roddick to rotate his hips, trunk, and shoulders to produce momentum and power. And it’s also the best way to deal with his opponents’ pace and position himself for his next shot.

2. LOADING PHASE
As Roddick plants his back leg, he stores up all the power he’ll unleash into the stroke. He bends his legs but doesn’t lean at the waist, giving himself a wide base with a low center of gravity. His hands separate as his left arm comes forward and the racquet continues back, which gives him the correct balance and posture. What’s important here is the full coiling of Roddick’s upper body and the flexing of his back leg. This builds a huge amount of energy in the large muscle groups of the legs, trunk, back, and shoulders. These constitute the “kinetic chain”; power is built from the ground up through the legs, hips, trunk, shoulders, arm, and finally the racquet. When Roddick uncoils all this stored energy, it gives him tremendous racquet-head speed.

TAKING A STANCE:
The open stance is popular, but even today not every great forehand is hit from it. When players have more time and they’re near the center of the court, they may choose to square their stance and step into the ball. Or, if they’re moving up to return a low ball or hitting an approach shot, they might square up and step forward. While they can get very good linear momentum into these shots, the downside is that they don’t get nearly as much trunk rotation as they would from an open stance. Roddick’s versatile and powerful forehand enables him to produce effective shots from a variety of stances.

3. CONTACT POINT
When Roddick swings, he practically launches himself at the ball. All the energy and rotational momentum he uses lifts him off the court. But Roddick still gets his body weight into the shot, adding forward momentum as well. His right leg is almost straight, as if he has jumped forward into the shot, but he keeps it flexed until the very moment he strikes the ball. Again, that puts extra energy into the stroke. If he straightens his back leg well before impact, he loses power.

As his body unwinds into contact, the racquet accelerates up and through the hitting zone. The extension he gets will give his shot pace and penetration, while the swing path of brushing up the back of the ball with such force rewards him with huge topspin. That’s where having a Western grip really helps (he doesn’t use a full Western, but it’s pretty close). It naturally closes the racquet face more than an Eastern forehand grip does, which permits Roddick to swing harder and apply more topspin.

4. FOLLOW-THROUGH
After contact, Roddick pronates his hitting arm so that the racquet ends up just above his opposite hip. On many of his forehands, his hitting elbow will actually be above the racquet. This may look odd to those of us who were taught to finish with the elbow high and the racquet over the opposite shoulder (which, from a developmental standpoint, I still believe is how everyone should start). The reason the racquet comes across his body instead of over the left shoulder is because Roddick comes over the ball with so much racquet-head speed that it’s natural for him to finish by his opposite hip. Most of the big forehands in professional tennis have a comparable follow-through.

At the completion of the stroke, you’ll see that Roddick’s right foot ends up even with or past his left foot. This is the best indicator of whether or not you’re getting linear momentum (body weight) into the shot from an open stance. When the back leg ends up ahead of the front leg, that shows good weight transfer. The right foot is also slightly turned in. During preparation it was turned out to facilitate his body turn; now it’s angled in, showing the complete rotation Roddick gets on his forehand. Getting the most of both his linear and rotational momentum is what gives Roddick such a devastating shot.

Article by John Evert, Photos by Alessandra Beneditti/Wire Image, Tomy Hindley/Professional Sport – Tennis.com

One of the most common errors among beginning and intermediate players is hitting the forehand with a careful, abbreviated motion instead of taking a full swing. While it’s not realistic to expect a 3.0 player to take the same roundhouse swipe that Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Amelie Mauresmo use on their forehands, a good shoulder turn and full follow-through should be one of the basic goals of every player. A simple way to remind yourself to do this is to go “shoulder to shoulder.”

As you prepare for your forehand, turn your upper body to the point that you’re almost looking over your left shoulder (right shoulder for left-handers). Some players who have exceptional upper-body turns actually touch their chins to their shoulders. After you strike the ball you should try to follow through to the point where your other shoulder and biceps come up to your chin.

Article by Tony Lance, Photo by Manuela Davies/Double Exposure – Tennis.com

SOLUTION 
Instead of looking for more pace by swinging harder, focus on pushing your dominant shoulder toward the incoming ball. This action helps you lean your body into the shot while helping you retain stable posture throughout the stroke. Now the momentum of your swing is going in the direction of the target rather than off to the side. This gives your forehand added pace and penetration, two elements that will increase your chances of hitting an effective shot and taking control of the point.

Article by By Juan Nuñez, Photo by Manuela Davies/Double Exposure – Tennis.com