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You Don't Need Power to Make Your Forehand a Weapon

Dave Kensler – Peter Burwash International (PBI)

One of the basic tenets of my teaching is help students have as many options as possible. Successful businesses do the same. McDonald’s began as a burger, fries, and soft drink type of business; now they serve breakfast!

In tennis we read and hear all the time, “Try to make sure you have at least one stroke which is a weapon.” What does “weapon” mean though? I bet most tennis players would define it as being able to “crush” the ball.

Yet by comparison with those on the professional tour, the overwhelming majority of average tennis players are not going to be able to generate the same kind of velocity with their strokes. Therefore, mistakenly in my opinion, they believe there is no chance for them to have a “weapon” in their tennis games.

Click photo: Notice how Serena Williams stays tight to the baseline. She also keeps her lower body in an open stance position but her upper body is more closed. The ball is on the rise but she strikes it before it even comes close to getting to shoulder height. Once the balls gets at shoulder height level or more, you have lost the advantage of "taking it early."

Most people from the casual observer to the die-hard fan will agree that on the professional tour the two primary weapons are the serve and forehand groundstroke. With good reason. When Rafael Nadal began his professional career he just hit a nice spin serve to get the point going. Most recently, he essentially served his way to a US Open championship!

At that same US Open Novak Djokovic claimed to have “closed his eyes” on the shots in which he saved two match points against Roger Federer in their semifinal match! That approach is not one of my recommendations but let’s take a look at how you can make your forehand groundstroke into more of a weapon without having to “crush” the ball. Here are three options in no order of importance.

Hit the Ball on the Rise 

In the “old days” of tennis the general approach to hitting groundstrokes went something like this: Let the ball bounce, reach its apex and begin to descend before hitting it. The idea of hitting the ball on the rise, even before it reached its apex was major no-no and thought to be too “risky” or “advanced.”

Today on the professional tour, most balls are contacted no later than the apex and often before it reaches that point. For the average player this concept is actually much easier than it may seem. Like everything else it takes practice.

What are the advantages of hitting on the rise?

  1. The ball has more speed coming up off the ground than when it is descending so just on that point alone you too will have more pace on your shot i.e. Using the pace of the opponent.
  1. There is less time for the opponent to react / recover because you are striking the ball sooner. In other words, you are robbing your opponent of time.
  1. Less work is required on your part! The more time that elapses after a ball strikes the ground, the slower it becomes so, in order to generate power the person hitting has to use more effort!

The simple concept to understand here is “hug the baseline!” Despite a common misperception, you will not be continually hitting half-volley groundstrokes! How many of your opponents can hit the ball within 2-3 inches of the baseline every time? The pros can't even do that!

Click photo: There is no player on the tour who hits a heavier ball than Rafael Nadal. Here he executes a classic “low to high” swing to generate the topspin. Many observers are “distracted” with Nadal’s wide variety of follow-through motions. Remember, the ball is already gone from the racquet! The follow-through has no impact on the result. It is simply for injury prevention. Also, like Serena (above), notice how Nadal stays right on the baseline.

Technique-wise you may want to experiment adjusting the length of your backswing until you become comfortable with it. (Remember, because you are hitting the ball on the rise you do not need a big backswing to generate pace!)

I have taught many 2.5 to 4.5 players to hit the ball on the rise and every single one liked their forehand better afterwards! I am not suggesting you should always hit on the rise but rather have it as an option.

Add Topspin

Spin is a control factor whether it is topspin or underspin. It is important to remember you do not have to hit the ball hard to generate topspin. But, by using topspin you can hit the ball with more pace and still keep it in the court because of the added control!

What are the advantages of hitting with topspin?

  1. The ability to hit the ball with more pace and still keep it in play.

  1. You can have a higher net clearance and still have the ball stay in the court. Generally a higher net clearance means more depth and a bigger safety factor.

  1. More angles will become available to you! We have all seen players like Nadal send the opponent running off the court chasing a ball which bounces around the Side-T. Also, when your opponent comes to the net you can make the ball “dip” at their feet which is great for doubles!

Click photo: Venus executes a perfect drop shop with a nice open racquet face and “soft” hands. What is also important to notice is after she hits the shot, unlike many tennis players who tend to stand and observe their ball, Venus keeps moving towards the net and into a better court position in anticipation of the return shot by her opponent. Her feet never stop moving!

Adding more topspin makes your forehand a better weapon without having to “blast the ball.”

Develop a Drop Shot

It was impossible not to notice how many drop shots were hit during the recent US Open. The shot has become a key “weapon” for players like Federer and Nadal.

Personally, I am enjoying the return of some “touch” to the game and the drop shot is one such example.

What are the advantages of a drop shot?

  1. The ability to move stubborn baseline players out of their comfort zones.

  1. It is effective against people who do not cover the court well or dislike being at the net.

  1. Think of a “change-up” pitch in baseball. It is a great tactic to alter the pace of hitting back and forth; throw an opponent off their rhythm and make your opponent run!

Bonus Idea: Use the Swinging Volley

Twenty years ago this shot didn't even exist but now it's in every pros arsenal. And yes, the swinging forehand volley begins to cross the line of “crushing” the ball and no it is not the same as a groundstroke, but it is still a forehand! However, again as I have noted earlier in this article, it is about adding options to your game and making your forehand more of a weapon.

Click photo: If you want a text book version of how to hit a swinging volley, Tomas Berdych is the perfect model! Once he decides he is going to take the ball out of the air, he keeps moving even through the swing. The mistake many people make is to stop and wait for the ball which usually results in the ball dropping too low. Also, his swing stays relatively level…He is not moving his hitting arm dramatically up or down but rather through the contact. You can tell this by the way ball leaves the racquet in a straight line.

I would always argue for first learning the traditional way to volley because that will be used more frequently than a swinging effort. However, here are two examples of when this shot might be helpful to you.

  1. You like coming to the net and this shot adds another dimension to your attacking game.
  1. Some of your opponents tend to float or “loop” the ball back to you and this is a great way to attack balls like that out of the air.

Technique-wise a key factor of course will be the height of the ball at contact but generally you want to avoid swinging up or down too aggressively. You are hitting through the ball with your swing.

How Can You Practice These Options?

The great thing about all these shots is that you can practice them using a ball machine if not with your teaching pro! Think of it this way, one hour on the ball machine; four options for fifteen minutes each!

The first step is to realize your forehand can be a “weapon” without ever having to “rip” the ball! Then it is just a matter of adding any number or all of the options I have presented in this article. Good luck with your forehand weapon! You will love the results!

Your comments are welcome. Let us know what you think about Dave Kensler's article by emailing us here at TennisOne.

Dave Kensler has 28-years of teaching experience with Peter Burwash International (PBI), the highly successful international tennis management company. PBI directs tennis programs at exclusive hotels, resorts, and clubs in North America, Europe, Caribbean, Asia, Middle East, Pacific, Central America, Mexico, and the Indian Ocean. Over 3 million people have received instruction from PBI Professionals during the 35-year history of the company. All PBI Tennis Professionals play with PRINCE racquets and wear PRINCE shoes. For information on PBI tennis destinations and employment opportunities please go to www.pbitennis.com.