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Forehand Problems

Strokes

Ian Costello
Ian Costello Asked 14 years ago

Hi Alois,

Whenever I try to execute a good forehand topspin, I end up.......

1.....hitting the ball off the table because the ball soars too high..........

2.......hit it off the side of my racket.............

&3..........SOMETIMES I get the ball on the table.

SOMETHING IS WRONG!

PLEASE HELP!

Thx,

Ian

Alois Rosario
Member Badge Alois Rosario Answered 14 years ago

Hi Ian,

Take time to perfect the stroke.

Make sure you are getting a good contact on the ball.  The spin is what will bring the ball back down onto the table.

If it is hitting the side of your racket you need to watch the ball more carefully.  Really try to track the ball all the way when yo are making the stroke.

Just keep working hard, like I know you are doing.  It will get better. 

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Forehand Topspin Variations

A great weapon is being able to vary the amount of speed and spin on your forehand topspin stroke. By making your stroke more vertical and brushing the ball finely, you can generate more spin. For more speed you need to swing more horizontally.

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Thoughts on this question (14)

Francisco Cespedes Grau

Francisco Cespedes Grau Posted 14 years ago

I had the same problem hitting the side of my bat, i didnt know why til I readed somewhere Alois saying a player must look at the ball always, and I found like Alois said here, that was my problem, I dont look at the ball when im hitting it so i miss, I still have that problem, but it's working better til i try to watch the ball always, you should do the same you will see you wont have that fail when you watch the ball always
Alois Rosario

Member Badge Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 14 years ago

Thanks for your input Francisco.  It is good to know it works for you.
Debo :

Debo : Posted 14 years ago

Wait for the ball till it comes almost parallel to your body and then try to brush the ball to generate the topspin with as much open face of the bat as you can.  Your action must have enough forward motion also. Most importantly, don't try to attack the ball too early while looping, just wait for the ball to come to the right hitting area. Hope this will help you as far as consistency is concern.
Sam Quek

Sam Quek Posted 14 years ago

This is excatcly my problem too. I just had a game with my friends andi realised that...whenever i tried to loop the ball, i can hit it but i missed the table!! I was wondering, "should i trade control for power?" But after i red how to perfect that stroke, i finally understand where i go wrong, is to look at the ball and consistency an docntrol is far more important than power.
Shaji Alavi

Shaji Alavi Posted 14 years ago

Keeping the head balanced as much as possible is one of the key factors.
Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

U are right.
Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

Hi Alois,

At the moment, even when I really rip the contact, the ball soars over the table!

& also, since I'm doing a lot of slow spinny topspins at the moment, when I try to counter topspin, I kind of tuck my elbow in & I hit the ball off the table.

And then when I try to blast it for a more spinny topspin, the ball.....................

1.....SOMTIMES hits the table........

2......& most of the time, it soars off the table.

And since that I'm bad against topspin, the ball................

1......hits the table SOMTIMES...............

2......... and most of the time, the ball soars over the table [even when I brush over the top of the ball].

Please help!

Ian.

Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

P.S: Against the topspin, I'm afraid to hit the ball fast!

Alois Rosario

Member Badge Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 14 years ago

Ian, slow it down and get the ball on the table more then work on speeding it up again.  If you are getting enough spin the ball can't go off the end of the table.  Slow down and work on the spin again.
Minh Nguyen

Minh Nguyen Posted 14 years ago

Ian, you should practice doing two specific things to address your problems. First, visualize the path of the oncoming ball. Make sure that you place your racket in the path when you backswing, and that you swing forward through the path of the ball. This will help you to more consistently contact the ball with the center of your racket head. Second, you should visualize the trajectory that you plan for your own shot, from when the ball leaves the racket, to its path through the air, and then to where it lands on the table. With a lot of practice, you should get used to making fine adjustments in your technique to more precisely create your planned trajectory. What you want to avoid is using the exact same technique for every oncoming ball without regard for the characteristics of the ball, and you want to avoid mindlessly ripping at the ball - doing that will make it very difficult to determine what is wrong with your execution.
Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

I found out that I was to tense!

Alois Rosario

Member Badge Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 14 years ago

Tension is often a common cause of errors.  It puts your bat in a slightly different position to where it should be.  That is great you have the answer.
Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

It sends the ball down your opponents throat!
Ian Costello

Ian Costello Posted 14 years ago

Hehehehehehe!

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