Learning this simple technique will make it easier to play cross-court net shots. You should learn this first, before you try adding deception.
In some situations, this simple technique is actually better than using deception.
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Hold the racket out in front of you, using a relaxed bevel grip. This grip will work for both forehands and backhands.
The racket frame should be in an almost vertical orientation. Imagine it’s a hand axe, or a cleaver! This makes the strings face sideways along the net.
The racket head should be above the height of your hand, so that your wrist is in a comfortable, neutral position.
Use a short, controlled hitting action to guide the shuttle along the net; the hitting action should use mainly the wrist and fingers. Use gentle grip tightening to control the amount of force in your shot.
When you are reaching out sideways
If you are forced to reach out sideways, then you will need to adjust your grip towards a thumb grip (for forehands) or a panhandle grip (for backhands).
You’ll also need to bend your wrist more, to make the racket face sideways enough. On the forehand side, this means bending your wrist in a thumbs up
direction (radial deviation); on the backhand, it means bending your wrist backwards (extension); this is the same wrist position you would get if you were signalling traffic to stop with your hand!
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