Have a Question for Me?

[jryle1]

Have a quick question about strings from a friend, I thought Joshua or somebody had a string thread but maybe I was wrong so maybe I can post the question here? If that's ok... here's the "problem":

"...i was usin a mixture of technifibre n black code...loved it but was breakin them every 2-3 weeks in the summer cos i was playin nearly everyday.....then i changed to black code in the whole racket .... dont have near as much control, which is what my game is based on , strugglin 2 get enough spin n up n down on the ball from half court....so im lookin 4 a new string or advice on which 1 wud best suit me.....more durable comfort string maybe or another power string with more control than what is in the black code "


Thanks John/guys. Sorry for posting this in your question thread John but not really sure if it deserves a new thread or where else to ask?

[kishnabe]

For a one handed backhand...like Federer....is it okay to lift the left leg off the ground during extension of the racket arm.

The guys at my club say that it better to be grounded. Then why does Federer lift his left foot or sometimes drag his left foot?

It is not good to copy pros.....but I see an Almagro hit his backhand....and he doesn't lift his leg?

[johnyandell]

I think kicking the left foot a little back to your right helps keep you sideways. I like it myself as I have always had the tendency to overrotate.

Haven't looked at enough of the stroke archive to see who does it how much or when.

Someome go through and count all the one-handers for us ok??

[stotty]

Don't ground...take off!

I don't think hitting off your stance...staying grounded...is a good thing to do once players are hitting over a certain pace...it would be counter productive to do so. There has to be some shifting and rising up...energy has to be released.

It might be different for slice, though...as the stroke motion is a downward one...maybe a solid grounding of the feet here.

[jryle1]

It definitely depends on the height of the ball. Obviously if you're hitting a lower ball then it would be wiser to stay down and even have that back leg drop down into a kind of lunge position as you see Federer doing sometimes when he hits with the closed stance, however the kick back on a higher ball will help the player to stay balanced when they're contacting the ball so high in the air. That has always been my understanding anyway from looking at David Baileys work on footwork.

[stotty]

Racket Rotation

John, I was reading your Backswings article. In the section called Racket Rotation, is this what mean when you say the racket face is turned upside down?

http://youtu.be/J8WnNsIBlvc

[johnyandell]

Yep, the top edge of the racket rotates about 180 degrees usually at about the time the tip points at the opponent. Roddick is probably the most extreme or close to it.

[don_budge]

# of Views...on the Forum

John...why are the number of views significantly lower per reply on the forum than a couple of months ago? If my calculations are correct the average number of views per reply are down to around 15 when they were up around at least 30 a while back.

[johnyandell]

DB,

Probably the time of year. Overall visits are less in Dec Jan and Feb and start to increase in March.

JY

[kishnabe]

I have paid for Jan, and Feb. May I have it changed to the whole year for 60 more dollars?

I keep on wanting to read everything in one month but there so much.....might as well get a whole year and read everything little bit at a time.

[johnyandell]

Glad you are enjoying the info. I have sent you an email regarding our policies and your request.

John Yandell

[jryle1]

John,


It appears to me that there is an over-emphasis placed on the backswing in my club in Ireland by a lot of the coaches, especially with younger kids, there's so much focus on the backswing.

Am I correct in saying that the main function of the backswing is to get the racquet into the correct hitting arm position by a certain time and it merely connects the unit turn with the forward swing.

Is it correct to say that each player will develop their own unique backswing style and that the only reason for correcting this would be if it's not fulfilling it's purpose of getting the racquet into the correct hitting arm position at the right time?


Jonathan.

[lobndropshot]

Adult beginner

John,

Do you use video to teach an adult beginner the spilt step? Or do you take another approach? I find that it is a difficult concept for the adult beginner to get.

Thanks,

Patrick

[johnyandell]

Often times if you just feed a ball a little wider you'll see it'll happen without the player even knowing, as it's a natural way to start.

But yeah if the player is struggling put them on video and compare it to a pro or yourself doing the move. Then have the player rehearse it (and the outstep that follows) and visualize it without the ball.

[ralph]

Speed of Torso Rotation

John,

I have noticed that harder hitters seem to rotate their torsos quicker than players who are not hard hitters particularly off the two hand backhand side. As a coach, is this an aspect that I should be working on? Should I give cues like "turn through the ball faster"?

Ralph