HOW TO PLAY TENNIS

Position and Stroke for Biginners (Part-3)

For the beginner and average player the best time to meet the ball is when it drops from the top of the bound. Later when the stroke is mastered and the player learns to put a top spin to his ball it is advisable to meet the ball on the rise of the bound, that is, just before it gets to the top. By meeting a rising ball your re­turn is quicker; you force your opponent more, and you have a better chance of keeping the ball in court.

A top stroke (one that puts top or over spin on the ball) is difficult and dangerous for beginners and average tennis players to learn com­pared to the follow through stroke. It is ad­visable for beginners to learn hitting the ball full and straight (the follow through stroke) before trying to put spin on the ball. The player who learns his follow through first learns to hit the ball in the center of his racquet, next to make his swing steady; third, to follow through well. He has the three most impor­tant points of a stroke and has an advantage over the player who begins to learn tennis by topping.

If the player can hit the ball in the center of his racquet and follow through on his stroke learning to top comes easy later. To go from a follow through stroke to topping, a player when meeting the ball has only to roll his racquet over the ball just after the ball has been met. It is a rolling motion of the arm from the shoulder, and during the rolling motion one should feel the ball still against the racquet. The common faults of players when topping the ball are:

I. Topping the ball too soon, i. e., making too sudden a turn over of the racquet. This comes from turning it over with the wrist suddenly rather than slowly from the shoulder

2. Not following through after the top. When the player has the ball on his racquet ready for the topping roll be sure that the return is high enough.

The advantages of a top stroke are:

1. The ball is more under the player's control on height, direction, and keeping in court

2. The ball travels faster after hitting the ground, due to the over spin of the ball.

3. A ball in traveling over the net begins to dip, which makes it hard for a volleyer to return it.

4. The player can meet a ball on the rise of the bound, which forces the opponent more, as the return is quicker.

5. Because of the sudden dip or drop of the ball on a top stroke after it crosses the net, the return can be made at a wider angle and still kept in court.