Low backhand power

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I was wondering if anyone have a few tips for my backhand topspin. I have played for many years so i am a decent intermediate player but i have always lacked in the power of my backhand loop. I can block very well and my technique is pretty good aswell but somehow i still struggle to get power in my shots. Any tips would be appreciated :)
 
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I think the obvious requisite is to see your technique . generic tips would be take the ball as early as possible to use incoming power and also to work on the timing ... the simple exercise of opening from deep pushes should also help ... but all this is pure speculation without a video .. for all we know your level might be already a lot higher and it might need professional coaches' expert eyes to see whats going wrong
 
Probably you need to work out on your timing or contact point with ball, how deep your sponge compression is and the way you use your arms and wrist when doing backhand loops but we need an idea how you do it first.
 
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Obviously without seeing the OP it is impossible to say what is going on, and all I can do is mention two things that have helped me.

My power, spin, and accuracy increased from two things: One is working a lot on my footwork with 2-2 drills to really make sure I am in the right place to hit the ball, even when I have to move to get it. The second is that I concentrate on not hitting the ball in the middle of my blade, but rather a little bit further out towards the end of it. Say, around 60-65% of the way to the end of the blade. This is especially important for generating power from the BH. This later aspect helps me on ever kind of BH topspin I hit, including opening loops, counter loops, blocks, flicks, you name it.
 
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Obviously without seeing the OP it is impossible to say what is going on, and all I can do is mention two things that have helped me.

My power, spin, and accuracy increased from two things: One is working a lot on my footwork with 2-2 drills to really make sure I am in the right place to hit the ball, even when I have to move to get it. The second is that I concentrate on not hitting the ball in the middle of my blade, but rather a little bit further out towards the end of it. Say, around 60-65% of the way to the end of the blade. This is especially important for generating power from the BH. This later aspect helps me on ever kind of BH topspin I hit, including opening loops, counter loops, blocks, flicks, you name it.

You are hitting the proper sweetspot of the blade. There are people who will tell you that carbon blades have larger sweetspots than regular blades. The truth is that the reason why my backhand is so good is that I have always hit the sweetspot with it even when I was 1400. You see the marks bunched up towards the top. My forehand was more towards the true center until recently. I sometimes forget, but there has definitely been an improvement even if inconsistent. But the bottom line is do not believe anyone who tells you that carbon blades have larger sweetspot.

BTW: When I write that, I am not talking about the truth of the size of the sweetspot, but the impact of consistently hitting it on practical play.
 
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It is true that we could only figure out what you are doing well and not as well if we see what you are doing.

However, regardless of what you are doing or not doing, there is a multiball drill or two for you.

Baal is right about those 2-2 drills and precise foot placement before the shot.

He and NextLevel are also correct about wanting to hit the ball near the tip of the blade, particularly for BH.

Paul David told me many times to contact near the tip. For FH he showed me a slightly different contact point on the rubber for looping. But it is not the center either.

In addition to 2-2 drills, this multiball drill can be very useful in helping you increase BH power:

Bucket after bucket after bucket of backspin to the BH.

Oh, and of course the 2-2 drill can be done as multiball or as one person blocking. The blocker/feeder needs adequate control. But it is not hard to the blocking.


Sent from The Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy
 
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Just to clarify, are you talking about an opening BH topspin to an underspin ball or topspinning subsequent low balls?

I could be wrong but I think he just means on any BH shot.

Low has nothing to do with the height of the ball in this context.

The title of the thread is "Low BH Power". It may not be ideal English. I am guessing English is not Qwerty's main language. But the title gets across what he means.

Here are some alternative titles for the thread:

1) I Want to Increase the Power of My BH.

2) How Can I Generate More Power with My BH

3) BH Not Powerful Enough, What Can I Do to Change That


Sent from The Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy
 
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I increased my BH power in one of two ways depending on ball placement. Firstly, if the ball is wide to my BH side, I twist my torso (right shoulder facing opponent's side) and whip my torso and arm into the ball. I get really good power and spin this way. Secondly, when the ball is coming into my body, I drop the head of the racquet and cock my wrist (paddle head pointing at my left thigh) and explode into the ball at the top of its bounce. This all has to be done in one smooth motion to be effective. Since I consciencly began developing these strokes, my opponents have mentioned on a few occasions that my BH is more powerful than my FH. The BH is a compact, explosive stroke that can be recovered quickly, whereas my FH takes a little more time to recover to get the same ball speed.
 
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You are hitting the proper sweetspot of the blade. There are people who will tell you that carbon blades have larger sweetspots than regular blades. The truth is that the reason why my backhand is so good is that I have always hit the sweetspot with it even when I was 1400. You see the marks bunched up towards the top. My forehand was more towards the true center until recently. I sometimes forget, but there has definitely been an improvement even if inconsistent. But the bottom line is do not believe anyone who tells you that carbon blades have larger sweetspot.

BTW: When I write that, I am not talking about the truth of the size of the sweetspot, but the impact of consistently hitting it on practical play.

I should note that I made that realization a long time ago, in the 38 mm ball era. Even so, I periodically need to remind myself of it. I have seen a lot of people who are unaware of it.
 
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It is true that we could only figure out what you are doing well and not as well if we see what you are doing.

However, regardless of what you are doing or not doing, there is a multiball drill or two for you.

Baal is right about those 2-2 drills and precise foot placement before the shot.

He and NextLevel are also correct about wanting to hit the ball near the tip of the blade, particularly for BH.

Paul David told me many times to contact near the tip. For FH he showed me a slightly different contact point on the rubber for looping. But it is not the center either.

In addition to 2-2 drills, this multiball drill can be very useful in helping you increase BH power:

Bucket after bucket after bucket of backspin to the BH.

Oh, and of course the 2-2 drill can be done as multiball or as one person blocking. The blocker/feeder needs adequate control. But it is not hard to the blocking.


Sent from The Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy

I find the 2-2 drill is most effective with someone able to block that way, and it should be done close in at first, and then at a more middle distance.
 
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That's interesting. To me it feels like I'm hitting near the middle, maybe even closer to the handle sometimes. Never payed attention to this. Is it so important?

It is incredibly important and you are not alone in being unaware of it. The simplest way to think about it is that the center of of your blade is not moving as fast. But it is also not the most powerful part of your blade either. And of course, if you are thinking about where to hit the ball on your blade, you tend to time better. It needs to become automatic for zen reasons, but it will have a major impact on your shot. By the way, it also tends to help you get the wrist position some other people have mentioned here. It is a really good mental shortcut.

But it won't help you if you are not in position to hit the shot.
 
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It is incredibly important and you are not alone in being unaware of it. The simplest way to think about it is that the center of of your blade is not moving as fast. But it is also not the most powerful part of your blade either. And of course, if you are thinking about where to hit the ball on your blade, you tend to time better. It needs to become automatic for zen reasons, but it will have a major impact on your shot. By the way, it also tends to help you get the wrist position some other people have mentioned here. It is a really good mental shortcut.

But it won't help you if you are not in position to hit the shot.
I knew the whole physics behind it, but I didn't know that it makes THAT much of a difference.

What exactly is happening differently when the ball hits the sweetspot compared to when it doesn't? Is the blade just harder there?
 
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I knew the whole physics behind it, but I didn't know that it makes THAT much of a difference.

What exactly is happening differently when the ball hits the sweetspot compared to when it doesn't? Is the blade just harder there?

I don't know exactly but big difference. I could speculate but IANAPOE (I am not a physicist or engineer).
 
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