This is a subject where I would welcome some insight!

There are numerous ways to grip a tennis racquet. These include Western Grip, Continental Grip, Eastern Grip, and I think the Semi-Western..

I have a vague understanding of how the grips differ, but it really is rather textbook, and not sufficiently couched in real-world situations for me to gain a sufficiently thorough understanding of it! Well, not one that I'm completely happy with, at least.

There can also be a difference in terms of which grip is used by a player on their forehand, and which grip they use on their backhand. It is currently something that I have difficulty identifying when watching players, so when I hear a commentator mention something to that effect, I have to take their word for it.. For example, I know that the Backhands of JHH and Amelie differ, possibly due to the grip, but couldn't tell you which one each of them uses.. I just know the basic technique and that they are very solid technically. I feel that the grip is a blind spot of mine in this area.

Why might a player use one grip for backhand and one for forehand? Why do some favour one grip over another? Presumably there are pros and cons.

I'm thinking that technique comes into play here (as with the thread by Braccus about the backhand) but really would be interested in real-life examples. Maybe, how cleanly a player hits a ball is one factor, and possibly the ability to play topspin too? I'm probably talking myself into answering my own question here, but given the profusion of question marks, it is apparent that I'm on slightly shakey ground.

Another thing has just occurred to me. I am assuming that the grip used applies to one-handed shots only. Is this correct?

I have only been taught to play one way, which as it turns out is the Eastern Grip, off both wings. No-one told me about other grips when I was growing up! Well, not having had formal coaching might be the explanation for that!

Anyway, any explanation of the differing grips would be greatly appreciated. I have read about this on various sites and the penny hasn't quite dropped sufficiently, for me at least.. maybe I'm just slow on the uptake on this one! :lol:

Any thoughts would be very much appreciated :)

Hey petalp :)

The semi-western and western grips have only become popular in the last 10 years or so, which would explain why you were never told about them when you were younger.

The western grip is favoured by clay-courters, because it naturally imparts topspin and easier to use on high-bouncing balls. The reason for this is that when you hold the racquet with a western grip, the racquet would face the ground. This forces you to use a severe wrist action in order to strike the ball with a properly positioned racquet face, which explains why this particular forehand is hit further out in front than the other two. The racquet will brush up behind the ball as you do this, causing heavy topspin.

Players with the western grip often struggle to put balls away because they have the tendency to brush up the ball too much, so it sits up for their opponent and doesn't race away like a flat hit. The grip also means that picking up low balls is difficult, as it is tough to get the racquet face under the ball.

The eastern grip naturally gives a flatter hit, because when you swing the racquet it will meet the ball at the correct angle. Thus the wrist action is nowhere near as severe; in fact, a firm wrist will probably result in a better stroke. That said, if you want to put topspin on the ball, you would need to use a more loopy swing, bending the wrist so that you brush up behind the back of the ball. The eastern grip is hit parallel to the body, or just in front. If you hit it too far in front of you, it could result in errant shots and even arm/elbow problems.

Players with the eastern grip will struggle on higher balls, because the grip means that coming over the top of the ball will be more difficult than with the more western grips. Lower balls are not a problem though.

The semi-western grip does present a few of the pitfalls as the western grip, but is a bit more flexible. Lower balls are easier to pick up, providing the player learns to 'lift and roll' the ball back. It is much easier to hit flatter with this grip than with the western grip due to there being slightly less wrist action, and therefore less brushing of the ball.

The semi-western grip is arguably the best grip to use in the modern game, with the courts become ever slower and higher-bouncing. It gives more consistent hitting than the eastern grip (perfect for clay courts), and is more versatile on the other surface (particularly the dominant surface of both tours, hard) than the western.

Great analysis LDF :D

Its amazing how the western/semi-western grips have come into the fore. Pre late80's, the semi-western grip was unheard of, it was very extreme eastern grips that were all the range, especially with players such as Evert, Sabatini etc.

Graf, Seles, Vicario, real pioneers for the semi-western change-up :)

Thanks dl :D

I would do the same for the backhand tonight, but the grip combinations alone would take ages :lol:

The backhand would be a nightmare to differentiate with the constant changes to its grip, espescially with the extreme grips of say venus, Vaidisova, Kuzy, Groenfold( most bizarre grip ever :wacko: )

LDF, many thanks for the fantastic reply!! :bow:

dl, thanks for your thoughts too :D

Am also intrigued by the backhand too... JHH's backhand for example seems very different to the others.. And very interesting that the bh is a much bigger issue..

Wow, great post LDF. :bow: :bow: :bow:

Very interesting as I neve rknew all that. I look forward to the backhand stuff. :)

Are we angling for nominations for Most Knowledgable Poscar? :D I'll nominate you.

Just a quick explanation here.Can you see the different strike zones of the two backhands?One is higher and one lower.The grips are slightly different.Justine's is an extreme eastern.Federer's just an eastern.

Roger's grip allows him to change grips between forehand and backhand easier,especially being a faster court type player.
Justine's grip because of her hand being further back will have a bigger change to got to her forehand.Great grip for clay where you have the time.Kuerten,and Muster had the same one.

You can also drive through the high ball with the extreme one as contact is further from your body and higher.
The classic eastern of Roger brings contact closer and lower,so that extra bit of time gives you the extra step to get into position on a faster court.

Grips and grip changes are the deciding factor for your style of play and the court it will suit.
Take grass,Edberg,Becker,and Sampras all played with grips where they didn't have to turn the handle in their hand as much.The court was quick,so you could volley and serve with the same grip.Slightly moving your hand round in either direction then you can find the grips quickly,for forehand and backhand.
For clay then the same applies,but the grips are further round as claycourters play with the western forehand and in the case of one-handers usually an extreme eastern.Great if you have time to switch grips,which is why every Spainard hates Wimbledon.

General rule of thumb,more exterme grip suits slower higher bouncing court,while less severe versions suit fast surfaces,with lower bounce.

I don't want to say more as it could get complicated. roflmao

Look at the difference in raquet preperation as well. Look at venus's extreme open stance to Graf's almost closed stance, with the racquet very close to the body.

The double handed backhand does of course have many grip combinations, but I'll talk about 3 of them.

The most common two-handed backhand grip places the left hand in an eastern forehand position, and the right hand in a continental grip. The left arm generally dominates the two-handed strokes, and having the left hand in an Eastern forehand position puts it squarely behind the racquet. Having the right in the Continental position allows the right wrist to flex upward easily as you execute topspin swings, and it also gives you a reasonable one-handed backhand when you have to let go to stretch for balls or hit a slice or drop shot.

However, much like the forehand, a more 'western' double-handed backhand is developing. The left hand here is in a semi-western position, whereas the right hand is in an eastern backhand grip. This more extreme grip, like the western forehand, imparts natural topspin, because you must perform a severe wrist action to bring the racquet up so it meets the ball at the right position. For this reason, the contact point for this backhand is further in front. This more western grip therefore has more trouble with low balls, but excels at handling high balls. With the courts on tour overall becoming slower and higher-bouncing, more players are also going western on their backhands.

Another combination is the 'double forehand grip', in which both hands are placed in eastern forehand grip. The major drawback here though is that the weak position of the right hand means that if the player is forced to take one hand off the racquet, slicing will be difficult. The grip also makes it harder for the right wrist to flex upward freely when you hit with topspin. Despite of all of this, some players find this backhand most comfortable as the contact point is further back than other combinations. But on the pro tour, this combination is scarcely used, if at all.

Nicely done LDF on both posts :ok:

A lot of fine posts in this thread.. LDF :bow: Braccus, dl :bow: Great stuff!! :ok:

I'll second that :bow:

It's emerging that I prefer players with eastern grips I think.

Heres a question for you all now:

Now, we all understand about the variation in grips. My question is, what grip do you use when you play?


[btw great posts LDF, dl and Brakkus]

Forehand: Between Eastern and Semi-Western
Two Handed Backhand: Left - Eastern, Right - Continental

:)

Forehand-semi-western
Backhand-eastern(single-hander),slice with continental.
Serves&Volleys-continental

I change all the time!

I can hit high topspin, then the next shot nail it flat!
Same with backhand!

Suppose i have quite godd variation!

But i find the courts i play on gives you more of a tendency to hit flat cause they are low bouncing skiddy courts! :wacko: :wacko:

"Now, we all understand about the variation in grips. My question is, what grip do you use when you play?"

I have an unusual (groundstroke) grip, but I'm by no means the only person that plays with it. My forehand is a "frying pan" grip (place the racquet on the floor and pick it up as if it was a frying pan) - this equates to about a semi-western grip. And I use exactly the same grip for my backhand, hitting the ball with the same face of the racquet as my forehand - ie. I have no need to twist the racquet in my hand between groundshots, in both cases I hit the ball with the same grip and with the same face of the racquet. This makes my backhand a pretty extreme Eastern grip (also called a Western backhand grip). B)2

I guess that a lot of other players that use a similar idea probably use a more extreme grip (ie. full western - or even more extreme - a "hawaiin" !) on their forehand - this gives a more traditional grip on the backhand. But I prefer the more extreme grip to be on my backhand ...