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JAK'S MONTHLY ESSAY SERIES: Achieving Your Personal Best

Same Grip Volleying Myths

January 2021

Players are only half right when they announce that they use the same grip for both the forehand and backhand volley – that's, of course, the one-handed backhand volley that two-handed backhand professionals and better club players prefer.

The one grip belief is often misperceived.

Typically, that grip is the "Continental," where the "v" of your thumb and forefinger join, and is placed in close proximity to the left handle bevel - the right edge of it for most - with the racket face positioned on edge (see image). This helps facilitate the racket face being slightly open at impact — only a few degrees depending — to generate slight underspin, particularly on the more challenging shin, knee, and even waist high balls that better opponents challenge you with.

Embed from Getty Images

A cocked wrist in the ready position, with the racket head above that wrist at approximately 45 degrees just below your sight line, leading to an elevated take back / prep is in the mix in order to assist the racket face coming down the backside of the ball to create that underspin.

The missing link in that description — this where the confusion begins — is the all-important arm-racket configuration / position at impact. The contact position of the arm / wrist / racket segments on the forehand side will differ markedly from those on the backhand side despite having basically the same continental grip.

But, that "same grip" is actually re-positioned slightly to accommodate the necessitated changed arm / racket position.

In viewing the images of Roger Federer and John Isner's forehand volleys at or near impact, and then viewing the same on Martina Navratolova and Kim Clijster's backhand volleys, it's immediately obvious that their arm-racket positions are clearly not the same even though they are all utilizing a continental volleying grip.

Note on the forehand there's a segmented upper arm, lower arm, wrist-racket alignment. Yet on the backhand version the upper, lower arm, wrist-racket positions are more connected as one unit.

The result is a leveraged, solid, racket-on-ball position that allows for a well in front points of impact.

Embed from Getty Images

Keep in mind that volleying is all about placement, not power. Trying to over hit your volleys will result in your net game being a liability instead of a strength.

Since the majority of you are mostly playing doubles, being a good net player is a must.

Embed from Getty Images

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Essay Archives

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2023

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  • August 2023 - On poaching and fake poaching: Becoming a Force at the Net in Doubles
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2022

  • December 2022 - E. I. D. - Extended Impact Duration
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  • June 2022 - Consider Serve and Volley
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  • April 2022 - Ball Watching and Science
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  • March 2022 - Caving
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  • January 2022 - The Knees
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2021

  • December 2021 - The Match is with You
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  • November 2021 - The Backup Racket in Your Bag
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  • October 2021 - Every Tennis Player Can and Should Have a Weapon
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  • September 2021 - LEARNING NEW SKILLS: First the Process, Then the Results
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  • August 2021 - The Challenge of Visualizing… For Some
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  • July 2021 - Playing with both your feet and your hands
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  • May 2021 - The Focus
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  • March 2021 - The Essential Forehand and Backhand
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  • February 2021 - On Being a Doubles All-Courter
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  • January 2021 - Same Grip Volleying Myths
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2020

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2019

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  • March 2019 - Do You Have Doubles Rally Tolerance? [read more]
  • February 2019 - I Knew Jimy Van Alen: A Historical Look Back [read more]
  • January 2019 - The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste: Mental Toughness Skills [read more]

2018

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  • October 2018 - Older Dogs and New Tricks: Still Improving at Any Age [read more]
  • September 2018 - The All-Important Dynamic of Gripping [read more]
  • August 2018 - The Cinemascope Syndrome: Undermining Your Ball Watching [read more]
  • June 2018 - Serving and Returning Better with a Quiet Eye [read more]
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2017

  • December 2017 - Why Serving is so Difficult in Clubland [read more]
  • October 2017 - Managing your body and mind in tennis space [read more]
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