Strokes
Dear Pingskills,
what would be the best way to control the incoming spin of a topspinstroke:
What are the advantages or disadvantages of both ways?
Dear Erwin,
Against strong or spinny topspin: Stay relaxed but keep your form either your stroke — think “soft hands” but not floppy.
Against slower balls or if you’re looking to counter: A slightly firmer wrist and more active stroke is fine.
You can train this feel by:
Blocking loop shots with a focus on racket angle and a relaxed grip.
Practicing "touch blocks" — trying to land the ball short off a heavy loop using soft hands.
How is it that a player can always seem to get back those extremely fast topspins? Is it their incredible anticipation? The key to good anticipation actually lies in tracking the ball well. When you watch the ball closely your peripheral vision will pick up your opponents movements and with lots of practice those signs will help you anticipate what your opponent is going to do. This happens naturally with lots of experience. So it it your job to ensure that you are tracking the ball really carefully.
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