There's More than One Way to Hit a Backhand

Greg Moran

A few years ago, I was teaching at a corporate event in California. Barry, who was coaching at one of the countries top academies at the time, was there as well. The company had flown us in to conduct clinics for their employees and customers as well as give some private attention to their upper level executives.

Barry began working with a middle-aged salesman named Rob, a 3.0 player who played once or twice a week for fun. Rob was terribly frustrated because he couldn't hit his backhand with any consistency. He'd taken hours of lessons at his local club to no avail, and it was widely known that if you wanted to beat Rob, all you had to do was hit it to his backhand.

For three days I watched Barry struggle to teach this man a topspin backhand. They hit thousands of balls, with roughly one out of 20 successfully going over the net and landing in the court. With each passing day, both of their frustration levels were rising. On the fourth day as we made our way to the courts, Barry said to me, "I can't face another day with this guy. Will you give it a try?" “Sure,” I told him. “I’ll take a shot.”

When Rob walked onto the court and saw me, he immediately smiled and said, "What's the matter? Barry couldn't take it any more?" We both laughed. As we began to hit back and forth, Rob told me about his "backhand issue." After a few shots, I could see that he was right—his backhand was, for lack of a better word, terrible.

When hitting forehands, Rob was relaxed, confident and smoothly stroked the ball back with consistent depth. As soon as I hit one to his backhand, I could see the panic in his eyes as he tried to remember everything his pros had told him and anything that might bail him out.

He hit the frame, the fence, the lake behind the fence—you name it and Rob put a ball there. I looked over to the next court towards Barry, who was smiling as he was hitting with a couple of pretty secretaries. He was mouthing the words, "Are you having fun yet?"

After breaking the tension with a few jokes (“the good news is it can’t get any worse.”), I asked Rob about the instruction he’d received. He’d tried both a one-hander and a two-hander. He'd gotten into tremendous shape so that he could run around his backhand and avoid hitting it altogether. He even tried a left-handed forehand. That was how desperate he was.

It seemed like he'd tried everything—everything that is, except a slice backhand. When I suggested the slice to Rob, he immediately made a face as if he smelled a skunk. “Slice is for wimps,” he said.

Though topspin gets all of the press today, legends such as Roger Federer, Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf know that slice is a great way to enhance both your control and consistency.

I showed Rob a few of my slice backhands which, though nowhere near the level of Roger or Steffi’s, has always been one of my better shots. Ultimately, I convinced him that “real men” do hit with slice,” and he agreed to give it a try. After all, what did he have to lose?

I showed him the basics, and after about 50 balls he started to get a bit of a feel for it. Within 20 minutes, he was actually able to rally back and forth with his new backhand. Was it pretty? No. Did it go in the court: a vast majority of the time! Needless to say, he was thrilled and couldn't wait to try out his new backhand on his buddies back home.
For those of you that are struggling with topspin on the backhand side (and even those that aren’t), a slice backhand can be a tremendous addition to your game. It’s an effective shot for many reasons. Here are just a few:

• It’s easy to execute. Because the slice is hit with a high-to-low racquet motion, gravity works with you and helps with your swing.

• It can be used on a ball at any height. It’s especially effective on very low or very high balls.

• If you’re pulled out wide, the slice can be a solid, defensive shot that will keep you in the point

• When a sliced ball hits the court, its low bounce will keep the ball out of your opponent strike zone and drive players with extreme western grips crazy.

• When you’re inside the court, you can drive a deep, low, skidding slice that will allow you to attack the net.

• It’s great for returning wide serves or for using the “chip & charge” tactic when facing a second serve.

• Slice is also the motion from which a drop shot is born.

All in all, it’s a great way to develop a consistent shot on the backhand side that for many players is a real weakness. Or, if you’re like Rob, learning a slice backhand could be your lifeboat in a sea of backhand errors. Here’s how it’s done:

Whether you hit a one hand or two handed backhand, when slicing, use the continental grip. If you use a two-hander, you’ll probably want to hit your slice with one hand. Though it is possible to hit a slice backhand with two hands most players find it awkward.

As you prepare your racquet, turn your shoulders so that you opponent can see your back. Bring the racquet back so that it is at roughly 6 inches above the oncoming ball. Adjust your backswing lower or higher according to the height of the ball.

As the racquet moves into position, open the racquet face slightly so that your knuckles are facing towards the sky. Lock your wrist and keep your elbow tucked in towards your body so that your racquet and arm form approximately a 90 degree angle.

When the time comes to swing, step into the ball and lean forward. Move your racquet along a forward and slightly downward path. As you brush down the back of the ball, try to feel as if the ball is touching each one of your strings.

Many players, when beginning to slice, will swing down to severely. This causes them to, in essence, put too much spin on the ball. The result is often a soft floating ball that your opponents can eat up. Though you’re swinging down, you still want to drive through the shot. Remember, it’s a gradual descent.

As your racquet continues down through the ball, push your non-racquet arm back towards the fence behind you. This will keep your shoulders from opening up and help you hit completely though the ball. Just after impact your racquet should slightly ascend. This ascension becomes increasingly more important the deeper you are in the court as it will prevent you from driving the ball down into the net.

Finally, be sure to keep your head still and eyes focused on the point of contact for a split second after you’ve struck he ball. Your head is the heaviest part of your body and even a slight movement can through your stroke off.

When you venture into the world of slice, keep in mind that there are varying degrees of spin. Trial and error will help you develop the proper feel so that you can put as much (or as little) spin on the ball depending upon what you’re trying to do.

You may be in for quite a few laughs when your first attempts at hitting slice come back and hit you in the chest or shoot straight up into the air. Remember, it’s all part of the learning process and with practice you’ll master the techniques of hitting with slice. As you practice you’ll begin to see that there are more and more things you can do with the ball depending upon how much, or how little spin you apply.

In case you’re wondering what happened to Rob and his new backhand, there’s a cute ending to the story. Three months after the clinic, I received an envelope in the mail. In it was a picture of Rob holding up his league championship trophy. At the bottom of the photo he had written the words, "Match point—slice backhand down the line for a winner. Thanks!"

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