To practice, there are a few steps to a proper slice technique. The majority of slices are going to come off the backhand, but there are forehand slices to consider as well. Everything from having the right grip to using proper footwork is crucial. These steps below will not only help to improve your slice technique, but overall as a tennis player. Off the backhand, the two most common slice grips are continental and eastern. The majority of people should start with a continental grip, seeing if that works for them.
It is usually the more versatile grip, and gives a player a good amount of accuracy when trying to perform at a high-level. Ultimately, grip choice does come down to each player. The important thing is to find a grip that allows for not only short slices, but slices that can go deep into the court as well.
Just like with many other shots, small steps are the key with a slice. It is a finesse shot in a lot of ways, so getting the timing down is crucial. After using a bunch of small steps to get in the right position, that final push forward should allow for a good amount of power. Make sure that the footwork is different from a standard backhand to a slice. This is especially true for people who have two-handed backhands most of the time.
A slice is usually going to be one-handed, so the preparation is different. Backhand stances for a slice is again, up to personal preference. However, standing in a neutral stance or even slightly closed will provide the right amount of balance for most players. Start in a neutral stance, and tweak things slightly until it feels as comfortable as possible. Not only is this going to work best, but it helps to disguise the shot by not opening up too early.
With a neutral stance, a player should align their feet so that they are parallel with the sideline. Remember, this is before the backswing, so do not rush to open up the body too quickly. Once the body starts to fly open, the control for any slice is gone. The backswing of a slice is different than any other shot in tennis. The goal is to create backspin on the ball and give the opponent a different type of look in general. Sometimes it changes pace, while other times, it curves.
Players who develop a lot of touch with their slice can have pinpoint accuracy, especially on dropshots. Yes, add me to your mailing list. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Get notified of our latest articles, recipes, workouts, and contest notifications :- Subscribe. Sign me up! Twitter 1K. Instagram Pinterest Share 1. Tweet 0. Jenny Hall Editor Tennis junkie, computer nerd, chronic coffee reheater, retired Disney princess. League Snacks League Tennis Learn.
View Post. If you approach with the slice though, it means they have to get the ball up and down in a much shorter space of time. You will often benefit from this by finding yourself with a high volley that you can easily put away. To get the ball to stay low when it reaches your opponent, it generally needs to take a low flightpath over the net.
A lot of people find that they get too under the ball and this causes the ball to float and not achieve the desired effect. Rather than hitting under the ball, this spin is created by chopping down the back of the ball, which will get you more revs, and keep the flightpath of the ball low.
Nadal is obviously the other way round, but here you can see him stepping in vs on the run where he is in a very different position. The motion of the slice backhand goes from high to low, so your first movement is up above the shoulders as you can see here with Nadal. To reach this position, he is going to turn his hips and shoulders, loading his weight onto his back leg, and bending his arms slightly in an upward position. From here, he is going to transition his weight onto his front foot as he swings, placing that front foot either across or in front of his body depending on where the ball is.
This is where things start to go wrong for a lot of people. The swing really has to go high to low, not high to low to high. As you swing, the strings are going to slide down the back of the ball, creating the spin and chopping the ball low across the net. We think this is a second serve return, where the Fed is approaching the net off a backhand slice, but it emphasizes the split between the two hands nicely. This action helps you to keep your balance, and get power through the ball, allowing you to keep the ball low over the net and give your opponent less time to react.
With the right technique and practice though you can turn your slice backhand into a weapon and really boost your game. Outsmart your opponent with superior tactics!
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