This is the first stroke every player should learn. Once you have mastered this shot, you can easily build upon it and learn more advanced strokes.
Dear Alois Good evening, i have been working on my forehand drive and i like to clear up some technicalities, when jeff demonstrates a forehand drive is the starting position for the drive, does he start above the table at net height so he is taking the ball at the peak, the reason i ask this is because when i practice my drives the ball is not going to where i want it to go, when practicing my topspin i am happy and my start position is at waist to above the table.
Hi Derrick, the start for the forehand should be around waist height or table height.
Awesome video, this is very thorough and informative, well done PingSkills team. This was the video I was looking for because I can never get forehand right, backhand was good but forehand always seem to get me.
Glad to help Rahul.
Those new videos are great with that HD camera because I can hear Alois very good when talking and I can see much better how Jeff plays the stroke. Thank you. I am hoping that the forehand and backhand topspin video lessons will be like this one.
We are working on it.
Dear Jeff and Alois,
Excellent job with the HD quality of your videos. Now I have no doubts what I see and hear. Thank you very much.
Yours,
Przemek
It's a pleasure Przemek.
Hi Guys,
Great video, however I have 2 questions as I am picking up the game again after a 10 years break.
For the forehand:
1 - is the swing to hit the ball arm driven or more shoulders/hips driven?
2 - is there any wrist action during the swing, contact and immediately after contact? From the video it appears that the wrist is flexible but stays in position with no flips or actions.
Thanks and regards,
Paul
Hi Paolo,
The basic stroke is completed with the arm. As you want to produce more speed you start to incorporate other parts of your body like the waist, legs and wrist. The basic stroke we show you has little wrist to make sure you are getting the consistency of the stroke first.
Thank you very much Alois and Jeff! Your videos helped me TREMENDOUSLY! I'm a much better player, and I also get to help out my fellow mates with techniques I learned from here. Cheers from Mexico.
Great to hear Felipe. Glad to be able to help you and now your friends.
Hi Alois,
In this counter hit, u don't have to brush the ball just flat hit. am I right?
Yes it is a fairly flat shot but you do put a very little bit of topspin on the ball to add control to the ball.
Hey Alois,
Why are you showing the stroke with your right hand? You are not showing it very good with it. I recommend you to show the rest of the strokes with the hand you feel more comfortable.
ping skills is awsome!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey PinGskills the video is awesome but i have one doubt that when i play the forehand counter hit with my friends he always say me that why are you spinning the ball. how can i control this spin..?
Hi Dilip,
Just contact the ball a little flatter. This will give you a stroke with less spin. Glad you like the video.
Thanks Sir.....!!!!
Since i learnt the topspin first, i have a tendence to close my bat a bit more and brush it instead of flatty hitting it and it is more of a mini topspin, is this alright.Also, is a speed drive a sped up counterhit?
I think it is better to make sure you can hit the ball with a flatter contact as well. This is a better base stroke to be able to do to make sure the ball goes on the table.
oh, okay
espectacular pero en la practica es mucho mas dificil
Hi Aldo,
It does take practice, but if you concentrate on the start and finish position, this will help you greatly.
Sin embargo, toma práctica, pero si usted se concentra en el inicio y la posición final, esto le ayudará enormemente.
Hi,
how many should you be able to d until you should move on and how long would yhou think it would take? Also, i noticed that jeff had his bat a bit closed when he did his stroke. Is that alright to do after you've mastered the flatter contact hit?
When you feel comfortable. At least be able to hit 200 in a row.
When you increase your level you can turn your bat forward a little and put a little more topspin on the stroke.
thank you.can we use it as a return for a nospin fast serve ?
Yes this would be a good stroke to use in that situation.
Hi Alois/Jeff:
Can I smash the ball by using this technique if the ball is approximately 1.5 to 2 feet above the table? whenever I try to smash the ball using this technique, I end up sending the ball to the net.
Thanks!
Vijay
Hi Vijay,
I think a good guide is shoulder height. Once it is that height or higher it is in smashing territory.
is footwork important when first starting out?
Footwork is important. First get the arm actions correct but make sure you have good balance while doing it all.
which bat ur using?
Company of the bat???
and how can i choose a perfect bat for me????
We both use the PingSkills Touch with XIOM Vega Pro.
Hello Alois and Jeff,
At what racket should the racket be? I think it affects my ability to do it correctly because the ball usually goes into the net or goes off the table.
Hi Wasiq,
Have the racket at 90 degrees to the table or close to it at the start of the stroke. really focus on the start and finish positions and yo uwon't go wrong.
If the incoming ball is bouncing higher, e.g. at shoulder height, does that affect the starting position? Otherwise, if you keep the same start and finish positions it seems like you would hit ball upwards and off the table (?)
Hi Richard,
Ideally you should move in or out to get the ball at the right height. If the ball is up at shoulder height you can probably smash it rather than counter hit it.
hi, i have a tournament this monday so this video is totally help me.but i have problem with my stamina.
That is something you can work on over time. You can do more aerobic work, such as long jogging, swimming, bike riding etc. to improve this.
hello,
i have trouble with getting the ball to go over the net and sometimes to keep it from going off the end of the table. i try to reposition my bat angle, but i am still having problems. do you have any hints for me?
Hi Jimmy,
Slow the stroke down first. Then really focus on the finish position of your bat. This is crucial to the ball going on the table consistently. For Premium members we have a lesson on this in particular. The Finish Position.
I think this technique is not good for beginners, they should better first learn to hit the ball with flat and straight stroke without much vertical movement, it has better control and it is not dependable on rubber. I experience big differences while playing your "little lifted" forehand with different rubbers - if the sponge is hard, it goes into the net, if it's soft it goes behind table.
Hi Jan,
You are right at the start it is important for the player to be able to get the ball on the table by pushing forward on the ball with a flat bat. This is covered in one of our earlier lessons we did on The Most Important Skill.
Thanks, this video contains main moments and good simply explanation.
good
Also note - this motion is optimum: simple and effective
It is effective for push and counterblow
I want see completive blow
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