Beating the Penholder

Strategy

lawrence harvey Asked 9 years ago

Hi coach, I'm puzzled about my weakness against the average penholder. what could I be missing? it seems i'm not able to keep them from attacking me close to the net, particularly after misreading a serve. to top it off i don't seem able to take advantage of their anticipated backhand weakness. these players aren't particularly strong but i'm struggling more with them than against much stronger shake hand grip players, so what do you think I could do differently? I'm all ears coach...

Alois Rosario Answered 9 years ago

HI Lawrence,

It may be just a matter of not having played against a lot of penholders before.

One thing that often helps is playing with more spin rather than speed as it is more difficult for the penholder to turn the wrist over the ball.

If they are always attacking you wen the ball is close to the net, then play a little longer or flick the ball so that they are getting something different. This applies to all players.

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Beating player who uses placement Fifth ball attacking

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Tactics Against Penhold Players

When playing penhold players it is important to remember to first analyse your opponent as you would if they used any grip. What are their strengths and weaknesses? A common weakness of penhold players is their forehand block especially against a slow spinny topspin. Their backhand may be a weakness if they use the traditional style, or you may wish to explore the crossover point if they are using the reverse penhold backhand.

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