The Foundations of Technique: The Wrist and the Shoulder Turn

Coach Dan McCain

In every stroke, whether it is the forehand, backhand, volley, overhead, or serve, the two most important things to know about technique is the turn of the shoulders (and hips), and role of the wrist. Each stroke has its own specific, methods of turning and using the wrist that all of the best pros in the world execute in almost exactly the same way.  By identifying these methods that are common to the world’s top players and incorporating then into your own game, you will realize lasting improvement.

In this article we will briefly touch on a range of shots that illustrate how the wrist and the shoulder turn are used. For more detailed descriptions of the use of these technical elements you can refer to my previous articles, and of course hopefully those to come.

It’s important to recognize that some strokes call for shoulder rotation, where the player will turn a full 180 degrees from start to finish, others call for a shoulder turn where once the player has established a sideways posture, it must be maintained and opening up/rotating can be detrimental to the stroke.

The same can be said about using the wrist. On many shots one must lay their wrist up, or “set” the wrist, creating a U-shape or V-shape from the knuckles to the lower forearm, with the wrist being the bottom part of that shape. Some shots call for the wrist to be set throughout the entirety of the stroke – once it is set it stays locked. Other strokes call for the wrist to be locked until contacting the ball and then relaxed. Still others require the wrist never be set or locked. Not paying attention to these things can be detrimental to a player’s ability to reach potential, and it’s every coach’s responsibility to teach their students how to properly use their wrists and turn the shoulders on each stroke. Below are some simple principles that the pros follow on each stroke.

Topspin Forehand, and Two-Handed Topspin Backhand

The forehand and the two-hand backhand have a lot in common. Most players with good two-handers will tell you the backhand is just a left-handed forehand with the right hand going along for the ride. This is true in two key ways – shoulder rotation on both of these strokes is identical, and the use of the wrist is also the same on both sides.

On both the forehand and the two-handed topspin backhand, top pros meet the ball on impact with a set and locked wrist (locked left wrist for the backhand, and locked right wrist for the forehand for right-handed players). Most players set their wrist while taking the racquet back to ensure that they will meet the ball with their wrists set and locked, which is a position of strength.

The set wrist on both sides is also in charge of taking the racquet back the right way, which means that the wrist guides the topmost tip of the racquet head from initially facing the sky (where the butt of the racquet faces the ground), and then dropping the racquet head below the ball (where the butt of the racquet faces the sky). The wrist also guides the follow through over the shoulder, where the wrist relaxes and straightens from the set and locked position as it moves over the other shoulder, where the butt of the racquet faces the sky upon completion of the follow through. 

In the same way that the two-hander mimics the wrist movement on the forehand, the two-hander also copies the shoulder and hip rotation of the forehand. On both strokes a full 180 degree turn (or close to it) is executed by top pros, where players establish a sideways posture while taking the racquet back in preparation for the shot, open up the hips to face their shot target on contacting the ball, and then finish the turn by facing sideways in the opposite direction at which they began. On the forehand for example, right-handed pros will often point their left shoulder at the ball as it approaches and then point their right shoulder at the ball as it travels toward their shot target after following through.

We can see these concepts at work with Fernando Verdasco and Vera Zvonareva, who both use their wrists and turn their shoulders in a very similar way on both forehand and backhand.

The One Handed Topspin and Slice Backhand

On the slice and the one-handed topspin backhand, the shoulder turn differs from the forehand and two-hander. Both the slice and the one-handed topspin backhand call for players to turn sideways, showing their back shoulder blade to the shot target, and maintain that closed (sideways) posture throughout the entire stroke, from preparation to follow through. Opening up the hips even slightly compromises the contact point, where the closed body positioning allows the player to swing away from his/her body and strike the ball out in front with a straight arm. If the hips open, then the arm will be bent on contact and the player will not be able to achieve any leverage on the ball with the arm and racquet, crippling one’s ability to create power. The bent arm on impact also causes the racquet off line so the face is not square at impact thus killing one’s accuracy.

The wrist should also be set on both the one-handed topspin and slice. Roger Federer sets his wrist on both of these shots, like many other pros with one-handers, and he keeps his wrist locked even after contact during the follow-through on the slice backhand, and he relaxes his wrist from the set and locked position after contact on the topspin one-hander.

While Fed’s wrist guides his racquet under the ball on his topspin backhand, he meets the contact point with a locked wrist as the wrist brushes up the back of the ball to create topspin. The locked wrist also allows him to meet the ball in a position of strength, and also to carve under the ball on his slice.

Volleys

On both the forehand and the backhand volleys, the use of the wrist is critical. The number one rule for any volleyer should be to set the wrist, lock the wrist, and never ever break the wrist for any reason. Once the wrist is set, the less it moves the better, and players will propel the racquet head forward to the ball with their shoulder on the forehand, and use the elbow (bent from a ninety degrees angle as the racquet is taken back, and straightened out on contact) and the shoulder to propel the racquet toward the ball on the backhand. Since the backhand volley is basically an abbreviated version of the slice backhand, the same principles of the slice apply.

On both forehand and backhand volleys, Federer, like many of the great volleyers of today and of the past, turns slightly sideways and closes his hips a bit to help him meet the volley out in front. His wrist remains locked throughout the stroke. If he were to not turn sideways, he would struggle to meet the ball out in front on a regular basis.

The Serve and the Overhead

While many strokes thrive with the wrist set and locked at various moments in the technique, the serve is definitely not one of them. In fact, if the wrist ever does become set during a player’s service motion, creating spin on a kick or slice serve becomes very difficult because the racquet face points away from the ball with the wrist set. Developing a good wrist snap (pronating) on a flat serve becomes even more difficult for the same reason. By keeping the wrist straight (not set, and not too relaxed where the wrist bends downward either), players give themselves the best chance to mimic a good throwing motion and allow themselves a better opportunity for the racquet face to meet the ball straight on. Roddick and Federer keep their wrists straight during their service motions, allowing for an excellent throwing motion.

The wrist is an essential tool for brushing up and across the ball on a kick serve, where the wrist propels the racquet face upward and out to the right for right-handers. The wrist also snaps downward on top of the ball and to the right (pronate) to generate racquet speed and power on a flat serve. Roddick and Federer both use the wrist snap to perfection on their flat serves, and they both use their wrists to brush up and across the ball on their kick serves. 

The flat and slice serve have different shoulder rotation than the kick serve, and knowing how to turn the shoulders on these serves has everything to do with how a player can strike the ball out in front and at the peak of his/her toss, how much power one can generate, and how accurate one can be. Imitating the throwing motion of a baseball pitcher, a server should turn sideways while taking the racquet back and open up on contact, facing the chest to the target. If a player opens their shoulders too early or too late, the contact point will most likely be compromised (too low, not out in front, etc.).

On the kick serve, pros stay closed (sideways) with their shoulders longer than on a flat or slice serve. David Nalbandian, like so many other pros, can brush up and across the ball on his kick serve because of how he keeps his shoulder turn prolonged. Players who open up their shoulders too early will not be able to hit the ball as high as they can and out in front, or properly brush up and across the ball.

The same principles for turning the shoulders and the wrist snap for a flat serve can be applied to the overhead, and similar problems will occur with mismanagement of the wrist and the shoulder turn.

Conclusion

Clearly proper use of the wrist and shoulder turn are essential foundations of good technique.  Misuse of the wrist and an improper shoulder turn can be recipes for inconsistent results. Paying attention to the execution of these two priorities in the right way can ensure every player’s development in a positive direction, regardless of the level played.