The Backswing

I'm not an early riser.

I don't like getting up at the crack of dawn, which is typically around 6 AM.

However, one of the better shows on Tennis Channel is On Court with USPTA. You can tell these shows aren't perfectly suited to the 22 minute segment because they were meant to go on DVDs where people want to see more stuff, closer to an hour's worth of material.

One simple question in tennis is this: when do I get my racquet back. Most teachers of tennis tell you "get it back as soon as you can". I was watching Ravi's wife hit shots, and felt she was getting set up too late and wanted her to get her racquet back as soon as she could.

Indeed, when I took a recent lesson, that was the advice I was given. Get the racquet back.

On the surface, that makes sense. If you see someone struggling to get their shot off, more than likely, they haven't prepared quickly enough.

But, as you get better, you're likely to play other people who don't hit a particularly hard shot. So you're waiting.

And waiting.

And waiting.

Should you get your racquet back as soon as you can? As you get better, you'll be able to get that racquet back really quickly. But suppose your racquet is back and you have to track the ball down, meaning you have to take several steps to your left or right? Having your racquet back too early will slow you down. You want to get to the ball first, then get the racquet back.

When do you get the racquet back?

For the forehand, the key is this. Watch the bounce of the ball. Once you see the ball bounce, the racquet should be pointing up. As it is traveling to you, get the racquet back and swing. The racquet pointed up is a neutral position, and coincides roughly with the bounce.

If your opponent is hitting slow, then you don't need to get the racquet up until the bounce, and you can wait to get setup. The bounce is used as a timing reference.

I'll be trying it out next time on the court.