Grip selection is an integral component of tennis that will impact the quality of your shot, racquet angle and optimal contact point. Each grip offers distinct advantages and disadvantages.
Your choice of grip will have an effect on both hand/wrist strength and motion, as well as how much topspin is generated. Every grip has a specific bevel that rests under index knuckle and heel pad for best performance.
Forehand
Forehand shots require proper technique and the appropriate grip in order to be successful. No matter if you want topspin or just need an effective flat shot, there’s sure to be one out there that suits you!
There are four primary varieties of tennis grips – western, semi-western, eastern and continental. Each offers their own advantages and disadvantages; to find what works for you it is important to experiment.
Beginners typically start off using a continental forehand grip because it’s simple to pick up and provides plenty of power. As players progress further, however, they typically switch over to using the semi-western grip; this enables more topspin while giving more options for switching grips when coming close to the net.
When choosing a tennis grip, it can be helpful to know the bevel that your heel pad and index knuckle rest upon. To do so, use your palm’s hypothenar eminence ridge as a reference point – for continental grips this bevel will be bevel 1.
For a semi-western grip, it is optimal for heel pad and index knuckle to rest on bevel 2. When using an eastern grip style, these elements should rest on bevel 3. While using western style grip, heel pad and index knuckle should rest on bevel 4 instead.
Once you’ve selected your ideal tennis grip, the next step should be practice. Hit some forehands using each grip and pay close attention to how it feels; no tennis grip is perfect and plenty of wiggle room exists; it’s key that you find something which feels natural and works well for you – coaches or instructors that push a single approach should be avoided as these could end in disaster for players; successful players tend to experiment until they find what works for them individually to maximize their potential and enjoy playing the game they love most!
Backhand
Backhand shots can be one of the more difficult shots to master and may require different grips depending on the style desired by players. A strong backhand stroke can win many matches for its player.
The continental grip is the go-to backhand grip in professional tennis, used by notable names like Juan Martin Del Potro, Roger Federer, and Steffi Graf. To create it, place your non-dominant hand on the racket with your index finger’s bottom knuckle touching either bevel #7 (for right-handed players) or #3 (for left-handed players). Rotate counterclockwise (in right-handed cases) or clockwise (for left-handers) until your index finger’s bottom knuckle is against bevel #2 before rotating counterclockwise or clockwise until your index finger’s bottom knuckle hits bevel #2 (for right-handed).
Full eastern grips are another popular backhand grip option, similar to continental but providing additional topspin on backhand shots. To achieve this grip, place the non-dominant thumb against bevel #4 and index finger knuckle base against bevel 5. To secure it properly, put both thumbs against bevels #5, respectively.
This slightly more aggressive backhand grip allows players like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori to generate lots of topspin on both forehands and backhands.
For an aggressive backhand, try the Semi-Western grip. It is an alternate version of the Western grip that closes more fully than usual; perfect for players wanting to produce heavy topspin. To form this grip, place the non-dominant wrist at 11 o’clock on top bevel (ridge of 11 bevel), and index finger on bevel #2.
Players should experiment with various grips until they find one that feels natural and best suits their game. It’s important to realize that each grip has strengths and weaknesses; no single one fits all players perfectly. Be wary of coaches or instructors that promote one-size-fits-all solutions at the risk of their players taking “the easy route out.” There is plenty of room within this sport for creativity and experimenting with your grips!
Serving
Grip choice is an integral element of serving, as it dictates both the type and distance from which you can hit the ball. Your grip should be comfortable yet firmly held to enable pronation (rotation) through contact and maximize power in strokes. While this technique may take practice to master, its significance cannot be understated when looking to enhance one’s serve.
There are multiple ways to hold a tennis racket, each offering different advantages and disadvantages when used for different shots and grips. A number of factors influence grip choices: hand/wrist strength/motion/optimal contact position/spin generation etc. To gain more understanding, consider watching some professional players serve. They typically employ continental grips that allow them to produce various spins/serves while moving towards the net after every serve.
The Continental grip is one of the easiest and most stable beginner racquet grips to learn, offering both consistency and control to beginners. Position your racquet face perpendicular to the ground while placing your index finger on bevel 5 and heel pad on bevel 1. Practicing this grip regularly will aid with consistency and control for beginners.
Once a player has mastered the continental grip, they can begin experimenting with other types of serves. It is crucial that each individual finds their ideal grip as there can be many advantages to mixing up their serve.
Players can use overgrips to increase the thickness or tactility of their existing grip, making their existing one thicker or tackier. Overgrips come in different textures and may help players who sweat heavily or play in hot weather – though these devices may not make much of an impactful difference to the quality of their tennis performance – ultimately it is up to individual players and coaches alike to determine what works best.
Volleys
Contrary to ground strokes where body force is used to generate power, when playing volleys the goal should be keeping your arm movement small while using forward momentum as your primary driver of drive through the court. To do this you need to create the ideal volley stance – starting with a split step which brings weight onto both balls of your feet, so you can move quickly up towards the net while your opponent remains reactive – to generate success with this kind of play.
To successfully hit volleys, it is also important to possess strong grips and wrists. Because you will be striking the ball before it has bounced, and without needing to swing as hard, grip strength is critical. A useful technique would be to squeeze the racket handle on contact then release your hand once the ball leaves its strings; this will stabilize your racquet as well as focus your energy onto striking the ball for greater control and power in your volleys.
Volleys work best when used with a continental grip because this aligns the face of the racquet strings ever so slightly open at point of contact, which explains why many professional doubles players utilize continental grips on both forehand and backhand volleys. Doing it otherwise would make it very difficult as your hand would likely come too close to touching strings leading to balls hitting into the net more often. Trying volleying with an orthodox western or semi-western grip may prove too challenging; professional players (especially doubles players) often resorting to continental grips over those used by professional doubles players when switching hands during forehand and backhand volleys.
Each tennis grip has a distinct natural tendancy with respect to how its impact will cause the racquet head to move through impact, the angle at which contact occurs between face and racquet face and optimal point of contact. Players should experiment with various grips in order to find which works best for them – be wary of coaches or instructors who take an overly simplistic approach when selecting grips; there are plenty of tennis grips out there suitable for every style of play that each has its own set of benefits and drawbacks!