How do I return this slice?

It sounds like it is slightly different. But they still will be covering the details of how to return that.


Things to note are the angle of the racket when he is returning the backspin shots. All you have to do, to start, is to put the racket out and touch the ball lightly, while having the racket angled so it is facing up to some extent. The more spin the opponent's shot has, the more up your racket should face.

I would watch all of this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ8jiI0mVOM&list=PLbi5LUlkUf6VROXOtxdfq1Hl4I3E2sjju

and especially forehand and backhand push will allow you to return balls with underspin easily. Interestingly if you watch the recent Chinese games you see the top players still push back and forth a lot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuFdFxgeM4o
Of course they try to get out of the pushing as fast as possible and attack with top spin.

Ah when the Padawan starts to become the master

Haha i love this! Try to mirror him.

Push it back with an open racket angle or loop it.

Buy a Schildkrot 900... you hit him with a shot from that bat, he will get zero further points... but that shot might leave a mark...

Superdragon said:

I flat with my my 11-year-old nephew. Neither of us have had any training. If I try, I can still beat him in games all of the time, but he figured out some slice shot that I can't return over the net. If this becomes a high-percentage stoke for him, I'm doomed! I'm hoping that some strong player can give me some beginner advice.

I'm not going to post any videos, but think I can explain what he does reasonably well: He'll hold the racket head high at around a 45 degree angle and hit the ball as he slices down. This comes back at me differently, and when I try to hit it back, it usually lands low in the net. What do I need to do to return the ball? What kind of spin is this?

Click to expand...

For starters, the short answer is: whatever your opponent is doing just mirror him so in your case you will have to hold your racket at about 45 degree angle or even more opened (30 or even 15).Later, after you gain some experience you are going to attack those balls with a flip (check out the YouTube how to perform that stroke) or with a loop if the ball is longer.
A more detailed answer is: Apart from the angle at which your opponent holds the blade, you need to pay attention to see where he contacts the ball using which part of his racket.
Based on that contact point you may have to deal with 3 possible spins in your case (you will have to experiment by yourself and adjust):
1- heavy backspin - your opponent hits the ball underneath with the bottom of his blade- you hold your racket very opened , maybe 15 degree angle
2- light backspin - your opponent hits the ball underneath or slightly below the middle with the middle/bottom of his blade - hold your racket at about 30 degree angle
3- no spin - your opponent hits the ball underneath with the top part of his blade/the part closer to the handle of his blade or slightly below the middle of the ball - hold your racket at about 45 degree angle which is not quite a good option ; the best option is to learn to flip the ball

If you are playing against an experienced player he will be able to generate almost every spin with the same motion of the racket by using fake motions.