When a slice shot bounces, the ball stays low, forcing your opponent to really stretch to get to the ball. Third, it can be difficult to keep the ball in the court. Now that you know what to look for when hitting a flat serve, heres a video that shows the entire flat service motion. 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. 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. The flat serve gets its name from the fact that minimal spin is applied to the ball when making contact. 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. Members of a larger team often take on different roles, and there will generally be a captain to lead. Up a set and a break, Medvedev served into the deuce court to . Disguise is key, so you will prepare as though you intend to hit an aggressive topspin, and, at the last second, cut under the ball with a high-to-low action, perhaps adding some side-spin for good measure. When hitting a flat serve, youll want your toss to be roughly 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. 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. Many leading players will use the block-slice return and forehand squash-shot described above. And, an athlete like Mima Ito, proves beyond a doubt that the banana flip can be even more effective . Your email address will not be published. If well placed, the flat serve can be extremely challenging to . Learn with comprehensive resources to help you improve your game. The result will be a more fluid motion that helps you achieve a better serve. The Austrian said: "Very difficult because, I mean, I . 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. In fact, hitting a slice serve at 75% of your max swing speed can be a great tactic because the sidespin combined with the change in pace will often throw off your opponent. Related Tags. The same goes for court surfaces. 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. 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. Underarm (Underhand in the US) Serve. Reference: tennis slice vs topspin. For example, if youre 6 tall and playing a 54 opponent, then you might be able to take advantage of their height by hitting a kick serve thats way out of their strike zone or even over their head, making it challenging for them to return. Research Design and Testing Procedure . The ball often stays low to the ground after it bounces. Tennis toe. Even at pro level, doing damage is still all about the forehand. Heres a photo to show you what your contact point should look like for a slice serve. This requires care, however, as the ball may be low, and will not rise off the racket as readily as a ball which comes to you with topspin. On slice shots, the racquet doesn't come around and up, making an arc. ), your position on the court and the direction you want to hit. 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. In this article, well cover these topics for each type of serve: Well start by talking briefly about why you should learn the three types of tennis serves. Here too, it is necessary to make a distinction. If you look at the top players in the world they know exactly how to use topspin and slice shots to their advantages. 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. If 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. But don't use it as a substitute for your flat or topspin forehand. It moves forward and down, coming around to your right side only at the tail end of your stroke, long after the ball is gone.

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Make contact with the ball, with the racquet \"slicing\" under it, when it's at a point about even with your right shoulder. Speed: The faster a serve is hit, the less time your opponent will have to react, which can cause players to make contact with the ball late or mistime their shot. Hopefully, youve enjoyed this post on the three different types of serves. There are many variations of the topspin forehand where players will choose a desired Western or Eastern grip depending on their style of play. Release the racquet with your left hand as you do this. . Whether it's to pass that big test, qualify for that big promotion or even master that cooking technique; people who rely on dummies, rely on it to learn the critical skills and relevant information necessary for success. Its strength lies in its speed and difficulty to return. This leads to a higher bounce and less spin on the ball after contact with the ground. Disadvantages Of Slice In Tennis Slashes are disliked by many lower-level recreational players. If you are a beginner or recreational player, or a junior just considering your first full-sized racket, you will be pleased to know that Babolat offer a range aimed squarely at you. In tennis, a slice is a type of swing that puts spin on the ball.Players will utilize a slice when serving or returning volleys to give the ball an irregular bounce, making it harder for their opponent to track and return. 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. 5. If players like to attack the net and volley, they slice a lot.

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The slice can be a useful weapon, but it does have some disadvantages. On slice shots, the racquet doesn't come around and up, making an arc. 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. I went with that for a bit then went back to try and develop topspin, at which point it was infinitely easier because I could get clean contact and not have the racket face twist back on me during . 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. Similar to the flat serve, youll want to place your toss 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, allowing for natural contact with the ball. Believe it or not, when the pros hit a kick serve, their racquet is traveling at roughly the same rate or faster than their flat or slice serve. Like all slice shots, the forehand version is hit high-to-low, with the strings brushing under the ball. My slice backhand is more dangerous than my topspin backhand to some of my opponents. A tennis slice is a means of hitting or returning the ball that puts a particular spin on the ball. 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.

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Basically, you hit the slice backhand just as you would hit your standard backhand (both one-handed and two-handed backhands), changing only the following things about your stroke:

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1. Heres a video that showcases the kick serve, including the toss, contact point, and racquet angle necessary to generate topspin. Your email address will not be published. disadvantages of the two backhand strokes in relation to the style of play. However, once you miss your first serve, the pressure equalizes to a degree. 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. 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. Slice shots never travel with a lot of pace. Wrist strains. 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. 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. This is known as a squash shot and a good one will fly low and fast over the net. On your side, there is pressure to hit your second serve in, which forces you to take some pace off the serve and subsequently gives your opponent more confidence in their return. The truth is, a continental serve grip is highly effective for all types of tennis serves. You just need to learn to use it for a great slice serve, which takes time and patience. Many pros, including the legendary Australian champion Ken Rosewall, used the slice backhand stroke as their only backhand. For most players, the kick serve has become the default second serve. When youre first getting started with tennis, your primary goal will likely be to develop a single reliable serve that allows you to begin a point and play the game. Sources: rio2016.com, itftennis.com. Straight flips can be much easier and quicker as the pips are less sensitive to spin. 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. Now that you know the three different types of tennis serves, it pays to keep in mind that each serve can be hit in countless places in the service box, providing you with even greater variety.

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\"figure\"

Figure 1: Hold your racquet at a 45-degree angle to the fence when you slice your backhand.\t

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3. Generally, when practicing a topspin forehand, players will implement a semi-Western grip, as you are able to apply a greater amount of spin to the tennis ball using far less effort. Follow through until your racquet arm is fully extended, with the head pointing toward the ground at a moderate angle. As a result, when the ball hits the court, it stays low, which forces a player to have to bend and get low or return out of their strike zone. First, if youre using an eastern grip, youre most likely overcompensating for poor technique. Swing forward with a high-to-low motion. If youre playing on a clay court, you may love your kick serve, where you benefit from the higher bounces that make this serve even more challenging to return. 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. The racquet head instead should be pointing at the back fence, at about a 45-degree angle.

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High 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. Because of this added spin, the ball will bounce with significantly less height when reaching the opponent's side.The ball bouncing with less height then makes it more difficult for the opponent to return the slice, since they will have much less time to reach the ball from where they awaited the return. If you are happy to slice the ball back, the standard slice technique can be used, making sure that you stay in a low stance, as the ball may stay quite low. If something isnt clear or you have questions, please feel free to submit a comment below wed love to hear from you! Let us know about your experiences via the comments. Advantages of a Tennis Slice It gives the opponent more time to get to the ball. Roger Federer was one of the tennis greats known for his undeniable skill of slicing.He was one of the best modern tennis players, and was renowned for his ability to control the ball with unmatched elegance and grace. The Top 3 Best Babolat Tennis Rackets Under $100. 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. The latter has been a key element of Roger Federers defensive game for a number of years. Those two qualities can catch your opponent off guard and screw up her timing.

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A word of caution: Slice backhands make poor passing shots. Advantages of Clay . MyTennisHQ is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to websites like TennisWarehouse.com and Amazon.com. Second, it can be difficult to generate power with a slice. Hitting up is counterintuitive to many players at first because theyre afraid the ball will sail long.

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If 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.

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Michael Patrick Shiels writes frequently for golf magazines and is the official golf writer of the PGA of America's Michigan section. The answer to this question depends upon whether you are aiming to reply in kind with a slice, or to hit a topspin. A flat groundstroke is usually more challenging to hit while keeping the shot within boundaries of the tennis court since there isn't much topspin. 4. A forehand push is a difficult defensive shot that requires the player to strike downwards on the back and underneath the ball to create backspin. Slice shots that are hit from lack of confidence or in a desperate attempt to just get the ball back tend to float, and they travel through the air slowly. Slice shots that are hit from lack of confidence or in a desperate attempt to just get the ball back tend to float, and they travel through the air slowly. It always adds to the entertainment value when it is played well. However, the shot is not always . Friction and surface area explain why slower surfaces are less effective. The slice forehand has many advantages, but using it for rally balls on slow surfaces like clay and some hard courts can result in the ball bouncing slowly and steeply, seemingly asking to be attacked. Modern-day tennis players utilize topspin frequently, as it can appear that the ball will sail over the net and out of bounds before dropping well within the lines of play. 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). But don't use it as a substitute for your flat or topspin forehand. It doesn't break your bank. To hit a slice, you need to strike the ball with a high-to-low movement, thus imparting backspin. Remember, when you serve, you have a considerable advantage because you begin the point on offense and can control and dictate the point from the start. Turn the racquet face as you bring it back so that the hitting surface ends up facing upward, as shown in Figure 1. At the start, youre content with just hitting the ball flat but as your skill level progresses you need to add variation to your game. Disadvantages Of Slice In Tennis The slice forehand has many advantages, but using it for rally balls on slow surfaces like clay and some hard courts can result in the ball bouncing slowly and steeply, seemingly asking to be attacked. He used the slicing technique very often to outdo his opponents at the highest international stages of the sport. When a slice shot bounces, the ball stays low, forcing your opponent ","noIndex":0,"noFollow":0},"content":"

Slice, or backspin, causes the tennis ball to spin back toward the source of impact (you). Instead of hitting through the ball as you would with a flat serve, youll want to hit up. Dummies helps everyone be more knowledgeable and confident in applying what they know. Unfortunately, this approach usually lends itself to tension, which is your serves worst enemy and, over time, can lead to injury. A slice ground stroke causes the ball to rotate backwards towards the person who hit the ball. This photo was snapped at the height of the toss so you can get a sense of accurate placement. He enjoys competing in county tennis leagues and ITF Seniors events. Required fields are marked *. Tennis Interviews. Your opponent can do almost anything he wants with them, especially from a position up at the net.

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Mastering the forehand slice

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Slice always imparts control. Topspin and slice shots are a necessity in tennis. The flat serve uses a minimal amount of spin which allows the ball to travel faster and bounce lower. The major difference is that the racquet shouldn't be pointing straight up, at a 90-degree angle, like a bat. As your game improves, learning all three types of serves will allow you to compete at a higher level by bringing variety to your service game. 2. Over the years, many techniques have been developed in tennis to make shots more difficult to hit. If you miss, the pressure is still on your opponent to hit a great return off your slower second serve. Lets take a look at how to hit a slice serve with proper technique. Some coaches will tell you that the short game can be more difficult in terms of short chops and banana flips. 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. A "tennis slice" is when the ball hits the ground and bounces back into play. As the previous tip suggests, you must relax your grip and wrist to allow for the wrist to move freely. Turn the racquet face as you bring it back so that the hitting surface ends up facing upward, as shown in Figure 1.

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This position makes it easy and natural to brush your strings under the lower portion of the ball, producing backspin. Within tennis, the serve is a bigger weapon for men than for women, in part . We're Gui and Karue. Lastly, it can be difficult to hit a winner with a slice. It's a defensive shot that you should use on only three occasions: If you have trouble effectively hitting the flat backhand, you can use a slightly different stroke that carries many players far in the game the pure slice backhand. An out-to-in movement can be incorporated to add side-spin. Second, changing your grip can be a dead giveaway to your opponent as to what type of serve youre about to hit. Disadvantages of Tennis Potential for serious injuries Tennis equipment can be costly Not a team sport Tennis cannot be played alone Lack of tennis courts Tennis takes some time to learn Motivation might be a problem Tennis may be time-consuming Need for a trainer to get to the next level Pressure can be high May conflict with your corporate career Stand quite close to the table, an arms length away. Lets take a look at some of the details that will help ensure you can hit a great flat serve. Topspin has changed how tennis is played due to the fact that you can generate much more power behind your shot with a proper topspin forehand. After all, if you have a question, its likely another reader does too, which helps our entire community. But what is the difference between these two groundstrokes? The middle of the net is its lowest point, so its easier to execute a flat serve at that point of the net on either side. 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. While this might seem like another no-brainer, its common for players to be tentative with their serve, which prevents them from executing to their fullest. Like all slice shots, the forehand version is hit high-to-low, with the strings brushing under the ball. Since many modern tennis players rely on their topspin forehand to dictate the pace of the match, the slice is most commonly seen as a defensive shot that can be used as a last-ditch effort. 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.

Michael Kernicki is currently the Head Professional at the Indian Creek Country Club in Miami Beach.

Michael Patrick Shiels writes frequently for golf magazines and is the official golf writer of the PGA of America's Michigan section. First and foremost, its important to make sure youre using the correct grip for the flat serve. For a slice, you will need to grip the racket with an eastern or semi-western grip. This will allow you to hit the ball with a slicing action. Typically, your opponent will be in defense mode when returning your first serve because they know that you can throw anything at them. Many top players, including male and female Grand Slam champions use the sliced forehand. link to The Best Babolat Tennis Rackets (for Every Type of Player), link to The Top 3 Best Babolat Tennis Rackets Under $100. The slice backhand suited their approach to the game, which was based on control rather than power. The Best Babolat Tennis Rackets (for Every Type of Player). When 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. Get the Intuitive Tennis iPhone/iPad App https://apple.co/3c5IyJpGet the Intuitive Tennis Android App https://bit.ly/3QTK1S7In today's video, I explain. It should go without saying that your legs are critical to your serve, but unfortunately, its not second nature to most players. However, by hitting up on the ball, you generate topspin, which can bring the ball back down into the court even though youre hitting up.

Michael Kernicki is currently the Head Professional at the Indian Creek Country Club in Miami Beach.

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