Tennis Hitting Stances

Tennis Hitting Stances

The 4 hitting stances are as follows:

Neutral
Open
Semiopen
Closed

Neutral Stance
The neutral stance allows the beginning tennis player to develop their ability to shift their weight and rotate their baody toward the target area.

From the neutral stance the player begins the backswing by turning the hips and shoulders, stepping out, and shifting the weight to the outside foot. The player steps foward with the inside foot and shifts the weight onto it before starting the foward swing. The weight stays on the front foot until after contact with the ball. Bringing the back foot up and around naturally to maintain a strong foundation will enable the player to remain balanced and ready for the next shot.

This is the preferred stance to hit both single-handed and double-handed backhands because it allows the player to move body weight in the direction of the target. The neutral stance provides the best foundation to execute, follow through and recover efficiently unless they approaching a difficult ball on the run.

Open Stance
The open stance introduces the player to the principles of stepping out, shifting their weight to the outside foot, hip loading and unit turn. From the normal ready posture the player begins the backswing by turning the hips and shoulders, stepping out, and shifting the weight to the outside foot. The player keeps their weight on the outside foot until after contact and remains balanced during the follow-through and recovery.

The open stance is ideal for situations when the opponent forces the player out of position at the baseline or when the player must react at the net. All high forehands should be hit with this stance because it allows the player to lead up on the outside hip and explode into the shot.

Contact should be made with the ball before the players weight shifts from the outside leg to the inside leg. The hip should not load before or during contact with the ball.

Semiopen Stance
From the normal ready posture the player begins the backswing by turning the hips and shoulders, stepping out, and shifting the weight to the outside foot. As with the open stance the key to the semiopen stance is maintaining a strong foundation. The player must keep their weight on the outside foot until after contact.

The semiopen stance, is ideal for situations when the player has little time to prepare for their shot. Both the open and semiopen stances are products of todays power game.

Closed Stance
It is acceptable and even recommended to use a closed stance when hitting on the run. Hitting from a closed stance delays recovery and leaves the player out of position. The drawbacks of this stance are that the weight does not move in the direction of the target, it is almost impossible for the hips and shoulders to open when making contact with the ball, shot options are limited and it delays recovery time.

Contact Zones
As a rule the more the hand is on top of the grip, the more comfortable a low ball will be. The more the hand is under the grip the more comfortable a high ball will be.