How can we get power and control of our tennis strokes at the same time?
To answer that, we need to go beyond the mechanics of the stroke and see how we can answer that from the feel perspective…
And from feel perspective we can describe all tennis strokes as a combination of a throw and a push.
This is not about technique, which is how the body and arms should move, but it’s about how we execute that technique based on different feels.
In other words, how should you imagine your arm and racquet movement towards the ball?
For some of you, this may be the first time that you ever consider different feels you can use when you swing towards the ball, and hopefully that will help you go beyond the mechanics of the stroke and find that it’s here – in the different feels and their ratios – that the real power and control come from.
Everything Begins With A Throw
“Throw the racquet in the ball” has been one of my most successful instructions with my students.
Even when it was sometimes not possible to do much change in the technique of their groundstrokes and serves, the biggest effect was made when they imagined throwing the racquet into the ball.
The reason is that, when we imagine a throw, we relax and focus on accelerating the object in our hand.
And only when we relax our muscles, we allow them to stretch first and from there on we pull and very effortlessly accelerate the racquet.
The idea of "throwing" the racquet relaxes the muscles and therefore allows for the kinetic chain to function.
But, most tennis players tend to push too much into the ball and muscle it or fight it as if the ball weighed 2 pounds.
I’ve already explained the most common reason for that in the effortless strokes article, so I suggest you jump over there, check the 3 main reasons and come back.
By focusing on a simple mental image that recalls our natural throwing dynamics into our body, we can instantly improve the power of our strokes since we shift from muscling the ball into accelerating the racquet head very comfortably, and that generates much higher racquet head speed, which then translates into a faster ball.
And Everything Ends With A Push
If we simply throw the racquet (without letting go) into the incoming ball, we will discover that the ball flies off the racquet effortlessly but also with not much control.
That’s why we transition from a throw into a push (or a drive) just before we make contact with the ball.
End of the throwing part and start of the pushing part
The drive “tames” the throwing energy and directs it where we want it.
With a drive we control the direction, height, speed and spin of the ball, therefore also controlling depth.
The drive part of the stroke is fairly short as it very quickly transitions into a follow-through where we let go and allow the inertia of the racquet to take over so that we don’t strain our muscles trying to stop that inertia.
In my experience, most players push too much anyway through strokes but also for too long.
I often see follow-throughs made instead of letting them happen, and it’s often because we may be copying the pros in their technique and not knowing which parts are done and which just happen.
How To Implement Throwing And Pushing In Your Strokes
The best way to learn this is by exaggerating both sides of the spectrum.
Have someone feed you balls and simply throw the racquet at the ball (without letting go of it) and see what happens.
Don’t worry about putting the ball in because the purpose of the exercise is not to put the ball in for now; instead, the goal is to discover how effortlessly it is possible to send the ball over the net.
Try the 100% throw as I showed in the video.
Note also that you don’t have to swing (throw) too fast as this will send the ball really far.
If I rally with a partner and try to feel how far I would throw the racquet if I let go of it, it would land in the service box on my side. That is still a 100% throw feel.
Throwing doesn’t define speed; it simply tells your body to let go, and that generates very effortless power even at low speed.
Once you’ve “thrown” a few strokes into the ball, try the other extreme: push the ball 100%.
Make yourself very tight, lock your body so that there is no free swinging, and simply push the racquet very tightly into the incoming ball.
Hit a forehand with a "100% push" to see how that feels
See how that feels and what the resulting shot looks like.
After a few repetitions, you’ll now know and feel that you have two more tools or variables to use besides the stroke mechanics.
Note that once you transition into a push, it doesn’t have to be a tight one.
Try to push gently and still allow the momentum you’ve generated with a throw to pass on to the push.
If you push too abruptly and too tightly, you’ll lose the effect of the throw.
Throwing And Pushing Ratios
The ratio between throwing and pushing changes ALL THE TIME.
While I can give you a general idea of where they are for major strokes, you cannot stick to that as every ball you receive is slightly different and you’ll need to adjust.
Here are the typical ratios of throwing and pushing for major strokes (when you’re receiving an easy ball!):
- forehand: 80% throwing, 20% pushing
- one-handed backhand: 70% throwing, 30% pushing
- one-handed backhand slice: 40% throwing, 60% pushing
- two-handed backhand: I can’t say for sure since I don’t play it but very likely around 70% throwing, 30% pushing
- flat serve: 95% throwing, 5% pushing
- spin and slice serves: 90% throwing, 10% pushing
- volleys: 20% throwing, 80% pushing
Remember, these are just the guidelines based on how I approach hitting balls as well as on the input of some highly skilled tennis players with whom I discussed this idea and asked them to share their “ratios”.
You may approach hitting the ball differently, but note that effortless groundstrokes and serves definitely carry an element of throwing.
Just take a look at Roger Federer warming up here and check if you see an element of throwing in his groundstrokes.
Adjusting The Ratios
Once you’re in the rally, you’ll adjust unconsciously. No need to think about what percentage of each feel you’re doing.
It will happen if you have a clear intention on what you want to do with the ball.
Here is again a clip from the above video where I receive different balls. I’ve included my ratios for each shot.
You can also take a look at Federer here in two extremes.
On the first shot, he really throws the racquet into a topspin, and on the second shot, where he is returning a fast serve, he is simply pushing the racquet through the contact zone.
Roger Federer is throwing / pulling his forehand on a slow incoming ball but...
... pushing it much more when returning a fast incoming serve.
In general, the more challenging the incoming ball is, the higher the push ratio in the stroke.
What About Pulling?
You may also come across the idea of pulling when describing the feel of the strokes.
It is a valid idea, but I’ve found that players can’t really relate to it or apply it to their strokes UNLESS I use rubber bands to pull them back at their hips, body or arms.
Only when they really feel the pull can they apply the pull into their strokes.
So “pulling” is a good idea, but I’ve found that it is difficult to feel without a rubber band.
So, it’s simpler and yet still very effective to focus on throwing transitioning to pushing as you hit the ball.
Note that in order for pull effect to happen, we need to allow the muscles to stretch first.
That means that as soon as you think that you want to hit the ball hard, you will contract and tighten the muscles, prevent the stretch and therefore have no effect of the rubber band / pulling going through your body.
Therefore you can only muscle the ball and that’s NOT how an advanced tennis player really hits the ball.
The best way to allow the stretch and pull effect to happen without any mechanical instruction is to play nice and easy!
Hit a lot of balls in easy non-competitive situation where you’re not looking to hit hard or looking to “beat” someone.
Simply look for the most comfortable way of rallying with your partner and you’ll see that you will allow the stretch & pull effect to happen naturally.
The stretch happens through the core first going from the left hip to the right shoulder (for a righty forehand) and continues through your arm (shoulder, upper arm) where the next major stretch happens in the forearm if we properly allow the racquet to lag before we pull it forward.
Just one very important warning: we don’t DO the racquet lag, we allow it to HAPPEN because just before we accelerate the racquet forward we let go for a moment.
This requires excellent timing and racquet head control so it’s not something I teach beginners to do, but I do teach intermediates already how to implement it.
The exact drills will be in my upcoming Effortless Forehand course.
The Psychology Of Letting Go VS Controlling
Although this section comes towards the end of this topic, it is actually the most important.
Throwing and pushing in the physical sense correspond to letting go and control in the mental sense.
The reason why almost every recreational tennis player has such a big element of pushing in their strokes is because there is such a strong desire to control the shot and avoid mistakes.
And that is very likely because you mostly play for points.
Since losing points in matches is costly, and you’re getting some success by not missing, you’re now content on some level with your game.
But, on another level, you see that you lack power and penetration of your shots, and you’re looking for information on how to add more power to your strokes.
As you search online for “more powerful forehand” or “faster tennis serve”, you’ll probably find articles saying that power comes from your legs or that you need to create more angular momentum and so on.
Yes, in theory, that’s all true, but unless you allow yourself to LET GO more of the outcome and therefore apply more THROWING dynamics into your strokes, you won’t get more power!
Add more "throwing" into your strokes for more power!
You might add more trunk rotation and more drive from your legs, but in the end you’re still going to hold back on your stroke and forcefully push through the ball, which might feel strong, but the ball won’t actually be very fast.
Pushing namely slows down your arms, no matter how strong it feels, as you’re contracting both the muscles that should accelerate the arm as well as the muscles that decelerate the arm!
If you observe a skilled player and wonder how they hit so effortlessly, you may forget that the fluid technique you’re seeing is the result of mentally letting go of the outcome.
A player with a fluid technique is almost surely a type of person who doesn’t get upset much when they miss.
And the opposite is also true: the more you are upset when you miss and the more controlling you are, the tighter your strokes will look and the higher ratio of pushing they will have.
Therefore, if you want to add more effortless power to your strokes, you will need to let go more of the outcome.
And this ability is developed only through free hitting when there’s no penalty for missing.
That’s where you can experiment and start pushing yourself out of the comfort zone and see how much you can let go and how freely you can throw the racquet towards the ball while still being able to keep the ball in court.
In this process, you’ll need to hit many balls too long so that you see what is too much of a throw and then adjust on the next shot.
So, while reading this article and testing this idea tomorrow on the court might give you that “aha” moment and unlock your strokes, it may happen just briefly because very soon you’re going to start playing for points and your main desire will be to control the ball rather than to let go.
I’ve personally played for thousands of hours through the years, just hitting balls with friends looking to hit a nice ball back to them but also to let go as much as possible as I could see that letting go and hence “throwing” gives me the most effortless way of hitting any tennis stroke.
It just takes a lot of repetition to find that ideal ratio of power and control – or, in other words, of letting go and control.
The Ideal Mindset For The Long Term
Your long-term goal should be to constantly try to move your strokes more towards the letting go and throwing side of the spectrum and away from control (which is based on fear) and pushing.
Click image to enlarge!
Fear of missing will always feel bad on some level and leave a sour taste after playing tennis even though you love it so much.
The only way to experience real joy and satisfaction on a tennis court (and in life?) is to move away from fear and focus on what you want while letting go of the outcome.
Here’s a mindset I suggest you adopt:
I want to hit a good, deep, effortless shot, and I don’t mind if I miss.
It’s just practice, and it’s a long-term process, so missing is simply receiving feedback from each shot I make, whether there was too much letting go or too much pushing.
Every shot I make gives me feedback on how to adjust on the next one.
And as I hit the right shot here and there, I enjoy it fully and try to recall the same feels on the next attempt.
That is how your mindset should be as you’re hitting balls for one hour with a partner back and forth without playing for points.
Your transformation of strokes will have to include the transformation of your mind as you’ll let go more of the outcome and therefore experience much less stress and much more joy on the court.
And only that mental state will allow you to enter the zone, play “out of your mind” and play your best tennis.
Tomas, This video on How to Hit with Power and Control is great, fantastic. As are many of your previous videos. I understand it and I can use it on the court. Its kind of a philosophy and deeper understanding of tennis and life. I will remember and think of this lesson often. You seem to come up with the right ideas and put them into words, clearly and simply. Its even more awesome in that english may not be your first language. I been following you for years because you’re a philosopher, a tennis guru, or genius, and a scholar. Thank you for publishing your work freely on the Internet. Thank you to say the least.
Much appreciated, John. I’ve been in tennis for 25 years and eventually there are deeper insights into how the strokes are best produced and what’s really going on in tennis and our minds. Happy to share that…
I agree completely with what John said. If you ever do a clinic in the US, I would really try to make it
This time, instead of struggling with my English and try to say something original, preferred to join the clear and strong words of John, with whom I agree 100%
Thomaz thank you very much, best regards.
Outstanding perspective once again, with very practical actionable items. My only concern is to be able to implement all those useful tips one at a time or I’ll be victim of paralysis by analysis.
Hi Slimane, the crux of the article is that you should try and “throw” the racquet into the ball on your groundstrokes.
There’s nothing to think at all, just to feel the throw and see what happens with your strokes…
As usual great stuff. I still want to get you to Texas!! Thanks, Thomas, Regards, Athena Cajas
Thanks! Texas will happen too one day…
Awesome lesson, Tomaz!
I don’t know about everyone else, but I find I am more confident about the “letting go” or “throwing” state when I have a nice overgrip on my racquet handle.
Although there are times when I can absolutely feel the racquet float through contact, sometimes, I worry that in an awkward moment I could drop or loose the correct grip on the racquet.
This is where an overgrip can help. They’re pretty inexpensive, and they’ll last a few weeks generally.
Good point, Joshua, a sticky new grip allows to let go more, very true.
Since watching your videos on the serve I’ve broken two racquets that have slipped out of my hand when serving.
Obviously I was holding the racquet a little too loosely, but maybe I should replace my overgrip more often, too.
Your explanations are always succinct. You made very clear the difference between throwing and pushing.
I always love your videos and watch them several times. Thanks very much.
Thank you Tomas. This video adds to what I have learnt from your “Unlocked Serve”. I feel I can apply it through more practice and experience.
Hi Tomaz,
There seems to be a third type of action (or “non-action”) that comes into play, which is absorbing the energy of the ball, which is sort of like a catching feeling.
You explain this really well in your videos on the volley, and in this video you can see it perfectly in the last little forehand volley you do right before moving on to examples of the backhand volley.
I also feel this on some groundstrokes, especially defensive one, like when I return hard serves.
I guess some people might call this “blocking”, but to me it feels more like absorbing and recycling energy. I actually find it to be one of the most pleasurable parts of tennis!
Yes, Zac, I played with this idea in one of my older articles on how to feel the ball better on groundstrokes.
So yes, absorbing energy and allowing the ball to “push” the racquet backwards slightly…
Hi Tomaz,
Another great video, keep on the good work:)!
One question I have:
Don’t you think we have to get the control by adding more spin on the ball instead of more pushing/guiding (except on receiving really fast balls like a return or volley)?
If I lose control by throwing the racket, I will try to throw the racket more across the ball instead of through the ball or pushing.
One last thing to point out: on receiving fast balls I would say it’s more of a guiding feeling rather than a pushing feeling.
The difference is that by pushing there Will be a lot of tension while guiding is quit relaxed. So in my view we should never try to push the ball.
I’d like to here your thoughts on this?
Kind regards,
Paul
Hi Paul,
Good questions…
First, I am talking only about feels and not technique or the racquet path.
I am also talking about the most fundamental ways in terms of feels on how to control the ball.
Adding spin simply HAPPENS because of an upward swing path. We can simply swing more upwards while we do what I say, namely throw and push.
And as you saw in my “ratios” videos, this changes all the time. You also saw Federer push the return with NO SPIN whatsoever.
You also saw him and me do a “85%” throw into topspin since the ball was easy.
So there is no single answer on how to control the ball.
We all want certainty, meaning, “tell me exactly what to do”, and yet there is no such thing in tennis.
What I share are “controls”, like levers on a remote control. Use these “controls / levers” in different ratios to control the ball.
We control the ball not only by adding spin, we can also aim higher or lower and change the speed in order to keep the ball in the court.
I am adding to the mix the feels, the dynamics of a stroke that adds the most fundamental way of accelerating the racquet and yet having some control over the ball.
99% of the recreational tennis players got this completely wrong as they look for pushing or “pushing harder”. Or “hitting harder”. That is their only way of adding speed to their racquet.
99% of rec tennis players have no concept at all about “throwing” the racquet into the ball in order to start generating effortless speed of the racquet and creating some stretch through the arm and body.
So look at this as an eye opener for most people reading this.
“Hmm, I can start my stroke as a throw and then do everything else I did before.”
And it will do wonders for their tennis, I witness it almost daily with this simple tip.
But, it’s not just throwing because players again stick to this too literally and then if they throw only, they will lose control.
There is an element of push or drive or guiding, how every you want to call it – and there’s a gentle transition to it from the throw.
That’s how I play and that’s how I control the ball really well.
I don’t control it with more spin only, I control the height, speed and depth by “pushing / guiding” the ball into the trajectory I have in mind so that it lands where I want.
As for guiding or pushing on faster balls, it’s a matter of skill level.
To first understand the idea, pushing is the main word I use. But as any word and any instruction we say, it can be misinterpreted, that’s why I said it’s a gentle push.
You can say “guiding”, but to you that relates to a certain feel while for the other thousand people it may mean something else.
So every instruction is very approximate idea, a principle, a concept and NOT AN EXACT instruction on what to do because we cannot convey completely in words what we feel.
I try to show a new idea that players can play with and experiment and if they do that for some time, they will develop a more advanced feel.
Tomaz, you cannot imagine how thrilled I was when I read this article. This nicely puts together all the pieces of some puzzle I’ve been struggling with for long.
It would seem there are so many seemingly conflicting teachings out there about how to hit the ball. Yours nicely reconciles all those out there.
Now I know there’s no such thing as a single perfect formula. You have to balance your throw and push for every shot. And before you can do that, you have to first learn to fully appreciate both aspects.
I’m going to come back to this article again and again. Thank you!
Exactly, Hankyol, there is no such thing as a single perfect formula and I explained this more in my answer to Paul.
Throwing and pushing are the main concepts of how to efficiently accelerate the racquet in tennis and how to tame that acceleration so that you maintain some control of the racquet head.
On top of that you’re adding top spin, meaning different swing path, more or less speed, aiming lower or higher and so on and by hitting many balls, you learn how to hit it with power and have high percentage of them landing in the court.
Very good
Hello Tomaz, a very thoughtful presentation of important concepts! Mental and physically, when I throw the racket at the ball, my wrist is loose and the racket face flops through contact or the racket tip advances to early. How does pronation come into the equation, the idea of turning a doorknob is neither a pushing nor throwing action. Many coaches say to point the buttcap at the ball before beginning the forward swing. What is your interpretation of this concept? Thanks Tomaz for sharing your skills, knowledge, and passion for the game and helping others.
Hi Poida,
Yes, if you just throw (a 100% throw), then the wrist keeps going and you lose control of the ball.
But that’s just an exercise to demonstrate the principle of throwing so you can feel it.
Then you add some push which means you need to steady the wrist and therefore the racquet head so you have some control.
I assume you’re asking me about the groundstrokes so the door knob idea is on my opinion too slow.
Things happen faster when we hit the ball and I would stop thinking about my body and wrist at contact but simply about the ball flight.
Can you control the direction with the face of the racquet while at the same time make the ball rotate?
Just think what you want to do with the ball rather than what to do with your body parts. It just happens.
As for buttcap, it happens if you hold the racquet nice and throw it. 😉 The racquet will lag automatically and that makes the buttcap point forward.
I do not recommend consciously and deliberately pointing the butt cap as it’s too artificial and makes you think about your body parts again rather than finding efficient energy to swing towards the ball.
Stay tuned for my forehand course, I teach this in a few minutes and will show plenty of players “getting it” quickly.
It is interesting Tomaz you always get to the point and give us the solutions we really need to apply.
I get happy when ever I visit feel tennis.
Thank you helping me to get relax and full to deep sleep after long history of sleep disterbenss.
Thans
Eman
I tried this last night during an hour of hitting. I found it hard to focus on the pushing part and my forehand became more tight overall. I then tried to 100% throw and things worked better – I think I still had some push which is engrained in me probably. Eventually, I was able to swing easier and still get good pace and depth.
On the 1hbh, great things happened. I must have had almost 100% push on my backhand and when I did even a small amount of throw, at the beginning of the stroke, I was hitting great balls with good spin. This is a breakthrough for my backhand.
Thanks,
Tomaz
Excellent. It is very useful to understand and mainly quantify the effortless stroke.
One comment: In order to impart more control with the same throw movement (same throw amount) I drive the racquet forward at the impact moment. I’m not exactly pushing doing this, I guess, just guiding the racquet forward. Does it make sense?
Thanks for this excellent post.
That’ an interesting idea.
I loved your description of how to “let go” vs. the “tightness” and need to control the shot. What’s so very helpful is that you found a TANGIBLE ACTION that we can relate to. It’s much easier to “loosely throw a ball/racquet” (the tangible action) than it is to “not be tight” or to simply “relax”. It fulfills both the mental picture we need as well as the “feeling” we need to recapture. Thank you so much for your excellent coaching.
Thanks for the feedback, Jeebee!
Hi Tomaz, thanks for more fantastic advice, which I look forward to putting into practice. I have been experimenting with grip pressure but the transition from throw to push seems to imply a lighter grip pressure tightening to gain more control at the point of contact. What level of grip pressure should I be looking for at the point of contact? Thanks
Hi Nigel,
Yes, you can also tighten up the grip for the push phase but again it depends as you saw in the video, the ration always changes.
You should hold the grip the lightest that still gives you control. You should have a long term goal of holding the grip lighter and lighter.
The less tight the grip, the better the feel and awareness of the racquet head orientation in space.
Simple, effective and practical instruction that makes sense.
Keep up the good work.
I can not say any more than the others: “Tomas your site is great!” In this regard, I have a suggestion how to play relaxed: Easy to train on the court that no net and/or lines.
Many greetings and constantly we quote you.
Thanks a lot, Misalaki, great to hear from a Serbian coach!
Hi Tomas, great video because I am struggling with too much “pushing” already for a long time!!
Thank you Tomaz for a really great video. It prompted me to re-read Zen in the Art of Archery, which describes the “profound and far-reaching contest of the archer with himself” which is much the same as that involved in attaining the tennis mindset you explain.
Yes, there is always a battle within that is actually the one that matters and not the battle on the outside against your opponent…
Extremely good exposure, both for amateurs and professionals and especially today when most attention is paid to the theoretical consideration of tennis. Thank you so much for this video Thomaz.
I think this text is great for a new discussion that is not so naive at all. My humble opinion is that the problem of “pushing” arises when the inertial acceleration of the arm – pendulum in the formation of the figure eight is less than the acceleration of the racket caused by gravitational force, which occurs at the moment of unconscious pause when guiding the racket down. So the racket is practical at such an important moment it is abruptly slowed down, so that he practically “pushes” the hand and loads the joints of the shoulders and hands. Why this break occurs is a special topic. However, if the speed of the hand in interaction with the body during the formation of the “Eight” reaches a higher speed than the “Gravitational Acceleration” of the racket, the moment of “Throwing” occurs. Controlled – The drive exists only then and everything below that speed is not good. In other words, pushing is not good at any moment and must be avoided absolutely! All that matters is whether the speed is above that moment. For pro players, the speed of the pendulum – “Eight” is significantly above that moment, while for amateurs it is slightly above. However, for those where the guidance of the racket is below that speed, it is bad and must be avoided! Definitely everything must be understood as a biomechanical movement in the formation of the so-called Eight *. All the best!
I think we are all caught up with wanting to win and hit hard. However the other side of the coin is enjoyment. When you let go, you enjoy, then it doesn’t matter whether you hit slow or fast. You can hit really slow and the enjoyment is as much as when you hit fast. So the question is do you want to enjoy, or not? The ‘machine’, or how we are programmed has the upper hand, because its so automatic, to want to hit hard, and win. In effect this is what we are up against, our programming.
Wanted to add to my comment that this refers to ‘throwing’. When you throw slow there is tremendous enjoyment. The feeling of throwing is the key to enjoyment, whether it’s throwing slow or fast.