Technique with topspin off backspin

Mariano Rodriguez Asked 12 years ago

Hi coaches, i ve got a question about topspin.

I have a partner in my club who likes to play all the time with a hard backspin, he is all the time doing that close to the table waiting for the moment you make a mistake then he attacks you. 

He told me to practice a bit then i told him to help me lifting his backspin so i tried to do the movement from low to high in a very vertical motion (like the jeff's video).

I tried hard but I always put the ball into the net so i tried something different. When i did the movement from low to high, i put my wrist down when the movement began and in the moment i hit the ball, i quickly moved the wrist up so magically the ball went over the net! 

My question is, is it fine to do that technique? or should i continue practicing without moving the wrist?

I hope you understand my explanation because english is not my main language.

Thanks!

Alois Rosario Answered 12 years ago

Hi Mariano,

It sounds like you have found a solution for you which is great.

I tend to start with the wrist not moving for better consistency.  You can try moving your arm through faster with the same stroke.  This will effectively do the same thing.  The stroke relies on some racket head speed to lift the backspin.  You are achieving it with the wrist movement, but you may also be able to achieve it with the full arm moving faster.

Try both and see which feels comfortable for you.