Racquet/Hand Orientation at Trophy Position

[rosheem]

I notice that some of the pros have the palm of the hitting hand supinated through the trophy position, while others have the palm more in-line with the forearm at this position.

Andreev, Stosur, and Kohlschreiber are a few examples of players who seem to take the racquet up through the trophy position with the hand already supinated, which causes the hitting surface to face more towards the net at this position.

Federer, Sampras, and probably the majority of pros have the hitting surface facing more towards the right fence as they transition through the trophy position.

They all seem to find a similar position at the bottom of the drop, so the issue is really the timing of supination...early or late. I'm also guessing that grip may be a factor, with the Andreev-types possibly going a bit further east (eastern bh) with their grips.

The question is...what is the practical implication here? To me it would seem that early supination might good for putting some natural kick-action on the ball, but the more traditional take-back (Federer) may harness more of the stretch/reflex power because the transition from supination to pronation happens closer to contact. As I watch the two styles, it does seem like the Federer, Sampras, and Del Potro styles generate a looser, more lively, whippier motion, wherease the early supination model seems to rely on muscle a bit more. That's just a theory.

Any thoughts?

[johnyandell]

You could be on to something but my personal opinion is this is flair not fundamental, in the words of Nick Saviano. The racket is traveling relatively slowly. The key point is whether the trophy position leads to the pro drop position, and then if it does, how fast twitchy are you on the way up to the ball.