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Jorge Capestany - TennisDrills TV Continental Grips
Perhaps one of the biggest challenges for a player is the mastering of the continental grip. This is partly because they tend to learn baseline shots first and thus they use the grips required for those shots exclusively in the beginning. It is not unusual for a player to have hit thousands of groundstrokes before they even try to use the continental grip for their serves and volleys. Consequently, they find this new grip too difficult especially when compared to their comfortable grips for their baseline shots. Often the end result is players that neglect to learn or commit to this grip and this can have a very limiting effect on their game down the road. Below is a list of several shots that all start with a proper continental grip.
The list above illustrates the need to have a proper continental grip. I have found it useful to show the list to players who are fighting me on this topic and ask them if they really intend to leave al the above shots out of their arsenals as a player. One helpful concept is to look at many of these shots as being in a category I call “sabotaging shots” This means that they are intended and most often used when you are trying to get your opponent to play worse and not necessarily trying to get yourself to play better. The ability to have skills in your arsenal that are specifically designed to “sabotage” your opponent is a concept many club players do not even consider. This is unfortunate because we all know that we can’t always win with the first plan we take onto the court.
Jorge Capestany - TennisDrills TV Jorge is the Founder of www.tennisdrills.tv - a video based website that shows more than 700 videos of tennis drills and tips. Jorge is one of only nine people world-wide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. Jorge is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. |
