Where on bat do you hit the ball?

Where on your bat do you strike the ball?

  • Roughly in the area of position 1

    Votes: 2 15.4%
  • Roughly in the area of position 2

    Votes: 5 38.5%
  • Roughly in the area of position 3

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Roughly in the area of position 4

    Votes: 6 46.2%

  • Total voters
    13
says Aging is a killer
In the old days the coaches all said that we must hit the ball at the #1 position. These days, opinions seem to vary and CNT players seem to specialise in the #2 but some even choose to hit at the #3.
So which are you, and where on the bat do you advise players to strike the ball?


2014-11-22_Bat with numbers (499x322).jpg
 
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If we were able to perfectly control the exact spot on the blade where we impact the ball, we would ALL be Div 1 or higher players!

The goal on most blades for impact on drives and loops is wherever you can consistently keep hitting the ball without missing it, that is usually the middle upper part of the center of blade just below at or just above and near the center axis where 2 and 4 intersect. This is a natural place to impact.

Hey, when our opponent is attacking us, are we REALLY thinking "Alright, I gotta block this ball right HERE on my blade" ???!!! Prolly not, we are lucky just to get to the ball and get a bat on it, let alone worry about WHERE on the bat we hit it. We are much more able to control grip pressure at impact which carries a lot more weight in if the shot returns and how it will go.

There are a number of valid views of where to impact the ball on SERVES. Obviously, there is more tangential speed near the tip of the blade and if you can impact it center axis right where the TWO is or just above it AND be able to do that 100% of time without error, then that is an outstanding place to impact the ball for the best spin (and pace on fast serves). Problem is, that is the most difficult place to impact the ball with 100% accuracy. Even Schlager in his old youtube vid discusses this and says even HE HIMSELF cannot perfectly control that placement (too risky) so he hits it lower to get control (prolly near 2 &4 intersecting area). ON serves with less spin, impacting the ball near the bottom of blade is good and it is easier to do so with high consistency.

In real life, since many of us try for fast blade speed on spinny serves, we actually land the serve in a horizontal band across the blade face near the middle of the blade going along a line (above and below) the bottom of zone 1, the center of zone 4, and the bottom of zone 3. As much as we try for center, our timing may be off a tad, early or late causing this. If we go for too extreme a placement on the bat, we will miss more.
 
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in theory -1 is for underspin, 3 for topspin
I have to use filters to show it due to the red topsheet making marks less obvious._20191003_000146.jpg
Backhand is a bit different though. The patter is more oval shaped and in the middle. Orange 80%. Yellow 95%

And I mainly drive + loop so it make sense that the grouping is more towards the side that encounters the ball.
 
Last edited:
In the old days the coaches all said that we must hit the ball at the #1 position. These days, opinions seem to vary and CNT players seem to specialise in the #2 but some even choose to hit at the #3.
So which are you, and where on the bat do you advise players to strike the ball?


View attachment 6733

I am in between 2 and 4 when looping or hitting
 
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as someone said above, it depends on the shot, and the incoming ball !

for drive, i think 4 is the safest option for many players up to quite a high level. hitting a bit farther from the center will give extra spin, but less control, and the risk of hitting the edge of the racket increases a lot. You can adjust that extra spin, by adding a bit more wrist, or body, or perfecting the timing... only pros need to push themselves to get everything right to get the best possible shot.

for touch shots, or serving, or receiving against short serves, when you have more time to execute, 1,2 or 3 is advisable. For example, for a short FH receive against backspin, i would use 1, or even aim for really the (very) right side of that 1 area.
 
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