4. The latter has been a key element of Roger Federers defensive game for a number of years. Im extremely passionate about the mental and technical part of the game. This is basically a drop shot played at the start of a rally, so the same arguments set out in the previous paragraph apply. The major difference is that the racquet shouldn't be pointing straight up, at a 90-degree angle, like a bat. The slice serves name comes from the brushing action, or slice, applied to the tennis ball to produce sidespin. Slow pace and the flat trajectory give your opponent two big advantages: more time and an ideal height, at about a foot above the net, to smash away a winner. But don't use it as a substitute for your flat or topspin forehand. There are basically three major types of court surfaces: Hard Courts, Grass Courts, and Clay Courts. When you are playing tennis its all about getting the ball over the net and trying to hit a shot your opponent cant return. For the taller opponent, who might not move as well as a shorter player, you might hit a slice serve at their body because theyll struggle to reposition themselves quickly when returning. The drawback of a slice serve is that it is easy to read. This photo was snapped at the height of the toss so you can get a sense of accurate placement. disadvantages of topspin -easier to judge it's bounce pattern -requires more technique -if too much is applied it may go too low and hit net advantages of slice -low bounce -harder for opponent to read bounce pattern -doesn't require as much energy as topspin disadvantages of slice -it's a defensive shot -slower bounce -gives opponent time to think A "tennis slice" is when the ball hits the ground and bounces back into play. The essence of a slice is that it is the opposite of a topspin. The racquet head instead should be pointing at the back fence, at about a 45-degree angle. 4. Its subtle, but hopefully, compared with the flat serve, you can tell the racquet is coming toward the ball at an angle with a bit of upward motion. To slice in tennis, a player must angle their racquet and swing downward in a slicing motion.The manner in which the player angles their racquet while slicing downward can be anywhere between fully flat and entirely diagonal. What Was The Battle of The Sexes In Tennis. When you reach it, the ball may only be a few inches off the ground, meaning that a topspin is not a realistic option. It gives the opponent more time to get to the ball. Using this technique, you can make it very difficult for your opponent to return your shot with topspin, making the slice a great defensive shot. Think of your racquet face as an elevator that you need to move to the right \"story\" or height to pick up the passenger, a bright yellow tennis ball!
\n4. To be successful with this tactic, you will need to stay low and develop plenty of racket-head speed, to allow you to control the trajectory of the ball. By using the proper topspin or backspin techniques during your next competitive match, you will be able to easily keep your opponent on their toes, making it much more difficult for them to adjust to your techniques throughout the entirety of your match. One of the best ways to increase your racquet head speed is to incorporate a wrist snap as you extend your arm to make contact with the tennis ball. Slice always imparts control. Ive had the chance to play against great names of the new generation, like Christian Garin, Cameron Norrie, and Kyle Edmund. Serve and volley: Due to the shorter reaction time that you may have fielding your opponents return, it can be challenging to move forward and volley. Return of serve. Another essential element to the kick serve is racquet head speed. The same can be set for other net approaches. When the racket and the ball make contact, the racket should be continuously moving in a direction close to perpendicular to the ball. Basically, a slice causes the ball to rotate backward (toward the person who hit the ball). Only a few top players will use a forehand slice routinely for a rally ball, but on a low-bouncing surface like grass the shot can be effective in preventing an opponent from attacking and keeping them on the move. Your email address will not be published. The ball will follow a low, flattish path through the air and then bounce up (but not far forward) on a grippy court surface like acrylic.
\nIf you hit this shot from a comfortable, set position (at about the center of the baseline), your racquet should be pointing toward the right netpost.
","description":"Slice, or backspin, causes the tennis ball to spin back toward the source of impact (you). Thats because racquet head speed is required to create topspin. When executing a tennis slice, the player will swing downward in a "slicing" motion, angling the racket anywhere between fully flat and entirely diagonal. Advantages of a Tennis Slice 2. Instead, the best option is to stretch wide, perhaps in an open stance, and move the racket from high to low and through the line you want the ball to travel. In this section, I will look at some of the circumstances in which a forehand slice shot can be played successfully, and the broad technique which should be used. As a result, the overuse of a hard flat serve can lead to giving away too many free points or forcing you to rely heavily on your second serve. If you remember, the flat and slice serve toss is about 12-18 inches in front of you and approximately 6 inches to the right of your tossing arms shoulder at the peak of the toss. There are a few disadvantages of using a slice in tennis. Even at pro level, doing damage is still all about the forehand. The forehand slice is a shot which is rarely taught or discussed in modern tennis.
\n3. However, flat shots with little topspin won't bounce high - they'll almost skid across the court. For that reason, its vital to add different types of shots to your repertoire. Copyright 2017-2023 Rookie Road Inc. All rights reserved. However, once you miss your first serve, the pressure equalizes to a degree. To achieve this, play the return rather like a volley, with a continental or Eastern grip, a short take-back and a punchy, high-to-low action. Do you like to hit a forehand slice? The major difference is that the racquet shouldn't be pointing straight up, at a 90-degree angle, like a bat. Add to that the ability to hit your serve at different speeds to throw off your opponent, and you can begin to see why developing various types of serves can be such a huge advantage. This is most easily done if you are holding the racket in either a continental or Eastern grip (see How to hold a tennis racket on this site for details of these grips). What makes the slice serve unique is the sidespin applied, which causes the ball to move from right to left (if youre a righty) and continue to move in that direction off the bounce. If you are defending desperately, you are unlikely to be able to execute a topspin lob. You can find his 2020 book: ', Seniortennisclub.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to. When youre moving forward toward the net and you want to drive a low-bouncing ball into the corner of your opponents court.
\nHigh bouncing balls are ideal for hitting slice shots, but you can play balls at any height with a slice by bending more at the knees and/or adjusting the height of your back and forward swings. All three have their benefits and all three result in a very different bounce of the tennis . Rallying. Your stance resembles the stance you take when you step up to the plate and get ready to swing a baseball bat in both cases, your hands are up around your left shoulder. However, youll also want to hit up slightly to give the ball a bit of topspin so that it drops back down into the court. About a 90-110 degree bend at the elbow. The racquet head instead should be pointing at the back fence, at about a 45-degree angle.
\nWhen your backswing is complete, your right shoulder is close to your chin, and your right elbow points in the same direction as your right foot.
\n2. A player can add slice or topspin to shots by hitting the ball in different places. Many pros, including the legendary Australian champion Ken Rosewall, used the slice backhand stroke as their only backhand. Those two qualities can catch your opponent off guard and screw up her timing.
\nA word of caution: Slice backhands make poor passing shots. The ideal contact point and racquet angle. If youre looking to develop an effective serve thats a weapon, then its crucial to understand and learn how to execute the three different types of tennis serves. The type of tennis court surface that you play on can have a major influence on how the game is played as well as on the effects of Tennis on your body. She has even used the shot effectively on hard courts, which is probably more difficult than employing it on softer surfaces. If youre short, the flat serve is more challenging to execute because you have less clearance over the net, which reduces your margin of error. The Best Babolat Tennis Rackets (for Every Type of Player). Many leading players will use the block-slice return and forehand squash-shot described above. Oh, and I had lunch with Brad Gilbert once. And, an athlete like Mima Ito, proves beyond a doubt that the banana flip can be even more effective . If well placed, the flat serve can be extremely challenging to . At the highest level, many matches go by without a single sliced forehand being played. Lets take a look at how to hit a slice serve with proper technique. By common sense, it is known that in tight situations players have to use larger body parts to lessen the impact of their muscles tightening. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when hitting a kick serve. This motion gives the ball the spin or slice that youre looking for while also making sure theres just enough topspin to bring the ball back down into the court. With the topspin, he forces Federer and other opponents to either be pushed too far backward or to take a risk and hit the ball extremely early. While some players and coaches might suggest that you can use an eastern grip for your slice serve, Id recommend against it for two main reasons. Reference: tennis slice vs topspin. The slice serve is a highly effective serve that can become a huge weapon when perfected. During a slice shot, the racket travels in a downward motion, before slicing underneath the tennis ball. Sometimes, especially on a low-bouncing court like grass, your opponent may hit a low, short ball. Sliced returns need to be controlled with precision or else a volleyer can pick them off, especially in doubles. There are many variations of the topspin forehand where players will choose a desired Western or Eastern grip depending on their style of play. For this reason, they are vulnerable to attack if not hit with enough spin or placement. This will allow you to hit the ball with a slicing action. Slice shots don't bounce as high, either. Reaction time: The same speed that makes it difficult for your opponent to return a hard flat serve can make it challenging for you to field a well-executed return off of a flat serve because youll have less time to react. When a slice is done correctly, the racket adds a backspin to the ball when it is struck. But don't use it as a substitute for your flat or topspin forehand. One of the biggest challenges of the game of tennis is adjusting your stroke according to the incoming ball (high, low, topspin, slice, fast, slow, etc. Modern tennis is dominated by the use of topspin shots. Like all slice shots, the forehand version is hit high-to-low, with the strings brushing under the ball. Defensive Lob. Nuanced shots can effectively deceive your opponent, causing them to approach the ball incorrectly while increasing the likelihood that they will not be able to return your shot. Your ability to hit more than one type of serve will allow you to be more competitive against different players and on various court surfaces. Knees should be slightly bent and the body should be leaning forward. Discussion Boards Follow through until your racquet arm is fully extended, with the head pointing toward the ground at a moderate angle. Drop Shots. It is possible to play every single forehand shot as a slice, but this is unlikely to be the most effective way to play. However, you can use it to your advantage on certain court surfaces. Babolat have been producing tennis equipment since 1875, and today they manufacture a range of rackets that offers something for everyone. That's just plain easier.
\nMake contact with the ball, with the racquet \"slicing\" under it, when it's at a point about even with your right shoulder. However, on grass, that same kick serve wont jump nearly as high, so you might rely on your slice serve, which stays low, making it challenging to return when playing on grass. Wrist strains. . Its strength lies in its speed and difficulty to return. Topspin shots are also used to come towards the net as previously mentioned it pushes the opponent back, which gives you time to advance to the net. Disadvantages A low margin of error: Easily, the biggest downside of the hard flat serve is that it's challenging to keep it in, let alone place it well in the service box. Just before you start your forward swing, raise the racquet head to shoulder height, open the face so that the hitting surface faces up, and produce slice by cutting under the ball with a long, smooth stroke.
\nThe slice forehand is easy to master, and a fair number of hackers resort to it. Some people love the camaraderie and sense of interdependence that goes with being part of a larger sporting group, like in a football, soccer, or basketball team. You just need to learn to use it for a great slice serve, which takes time and patience. You will have more time to return the ball, have a better stance, stronger strokes, more spin, and more confidence. The same can be said about Federers use of the backhand slice. Nonetheless, the shot can be very useful in a variety of situations, and some professionals have enjoyed quite a bit of success using it as their main option on the forehand side. Rafael Nadal for example knows that with his extreme spin on the forehand he can make it difficult for a player like Roger Federer with his one-handed backhand to generate power. . Even if good spin and placement are used, if the ball lacks pace, it can easily be attacked. Let us know about your experiences via the comments. Former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu is one player particularly renowned for her sliced forehand drop shot, which she likes to play with a continental grip. Hitting a very high lob with some slice, by cutting under the ball with a flattish swing, can give you time to get back into a rally. Disadvantages Of Slice In Tennis Slashes are disliked by many lower-level recreational players. However, it makes it challenging to get under the ball and apply maximum topspin for the kick serve. First and foremost, its important to make sure youre using the correct grip for the flat serve. The best choice is, using a continental or Eastern grip, to cut sharply under the ball with a high-to-low action, following through either straight up the court or cutting across the line to impart additional side-spin. Only people who haven't really played tennis (or have played and don't use a one hander) believe this myth (aka 90% of this forum). As a result, you should aim to toss the ball directly above your head and slightly behind you, so that when you can swing up to contact the ball, youre coming from under the ball. As you work to practice your serve, do so with confidence, and allow yourself the freedom to mess up while you establish the basic feel and rhythm to develop your serve. A "slow" surface such as clay will interact with more of the ball's surface area and there will be more friction placed on the ball. We're Gui and Karue. Approach shots. The result can be a very low-bouncing serve that is hard to return. They are something you should work on and get better at but in the end, are extremely fun to use. An out-to-in movement can be incorporated to add side-spin.
Michael Kernicki is currently the Head Professional at the Indian Creek Country Club in Miami Beach.
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