Adding more forwards component into my topspins
Strokes
Adam Lee Asked 6 years ago
Hi coaches,
To start off, I want to tell you guys that you did a great job at the Australian open, I was so surprised to hear you commentating as well as seeing alois interviewing players.
My question today is that I have a very bad habit of having a upwards topspin stroke especially of the backspin ball. Yes, I know the vertical stroke is the way to do it against a backspin ball and by having that very upward stroke, I can reach 80% consistency and at the same time generating tremendous spin which even my coaches have difficulty blocking it.
But my biggest problem is that I have no speed on my topspin. Yes, my topspin have that high kicking bounce which make it awkward for the opponent but it does not have the forward force. My coaches tell me to improve the quality to more or less like Jeff which is fast and spinny.
I tried to hit more forwards with the stroke like my coaches advise me but whenever I do it the ball will land in the net and my consistency drops. How can I overcome this problem?
Alois Rosario Answered 6 years ago
Hi Adam,
Thanks for the kind words about the Australian Open. It was a great thrill for us too.
Consistency will tend to drop if you are moving more forward and hitting the ball faster. It is always a trade off between the faster flatter contact and the slower with more spin. You don't need to do one or the other. You can change it up depending on the shot you want to play each time and what your opponent is ready for. To get the water focus on the flatter contact. However, there still needs to be an element of spin on the ball as well.
If you think of it in percentages, the slower ball is 80% spin and 20% flat. The faster ball may be the opposite but there are plenty of possibilities in between that as well.
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Adam Lee Posted 6 years ago
I understand that variation is great for adding deception to my game. But that's not what i meant. What i really meant was my stroke contains TOO MUCH upwards force. On the forehand side it's not too obvious as i've been training it for years. But my backhand topspin contains nearly vertical with no horizontal movement at all and that causes the ball to go too high and very slow. Yes, it's spinnier than a lot of players in the club and can be very difficult to return. But my coaches would love me to add more horizontal movements on my stroke to balance out the speed and spin. I want to know how i can achieve this.
Focus primarily on the contact. If you feel that your stroke is too vertical think about the contact being much flatter. You can also listen to the sounds the ball makes with the bat on contact. It will be a louder sound when you hit the ball flatter.
Nigel C Posted 6 years ago
Adam,
If you are doing a near vertical stroke then I can't see how your finish position would be right for a faster topspin shot. Alois has video on here that will show the correct start and end position. Then it will be a matter of what happens in between. I'd suggest that you start slowish and keep the ball low, as you get faster you will add more topspin to keep the ball down on the table. Hopefully you will end up with a faster shot that still has lots of spin and keeps low.
D K Posted 6 years ago
Wel..it does not have to be flatter....only closing the bat.....or am I wrong?
Rohan Keogh Posted 6 years ago
And what does your topspin against topspin stroke look like Adam?
I am breaking out of the same habit - a very vertical stroke against backspin. I think it stems from a lack of confidence that a forward stroke can lift the ball. To make matters worse, the vertical stroke started to creep into my topspin against topspin so I was getting high spin but slow loops there too. A fellow club member spotted it and helped me correct. So I figured if a habit can creep one way then a different habit can creep the other so I have been focusing on using a topspin against topspin stroke against backspin too. To start with I was putting all the balls into the net but have been making small adjustments - a slightly more vertical stroke and a slightly more open bat. I'm getting close to the right combination for some reasonable consistency, just a little more tweaking and I will have a stroke I'm happy with. The upside is that I can still play that old shot when I want to.
I'd suggest completely putting aside your current stroke. Think of it as a particular shot you have now perfected for when you want a high, high spin, slow loop as a surprise. Start from scratch to learn a new stroke - a low, fast loop against backspin.
Cheers
Jean Balthazar Posted 6 years ago
You don't have to change all your slow vertical spinny topspins into fast forward powertopspins. You have to be able to do both and use them when it's efficiant. Slow spinny topspin for opening shots, fast power topspins after.