Foot Work: Exit Step or Hop

[will2campb]

Mr. Yandell: In examining the male pros hitting open stance forehands and open stance two handed backhands, particularly on wide balls, I have noticed that they frequently take a short to medium length hop onto the outside foot -- what my son's instructor refers to as an "exit" step. Often this results in a wide stance with both feet point towards the net. In addition, when hitting a closed stance two-handed backhand, the pro's left leg (on a right handed player) often swings around so that the weight ends upon that leg. I have not seen an article that talks about the exit step or the hop onto the outside leg. My son's instructor advocates that an exit step is a necessary part of the groundstroke and that if an exit step is not taken, this often result in a spin out, with the racquet coming across the ball. Please give me your thoughts on the "exit step."

Will C

[johnyandell]

It definitely happens! Whether it's something that can be coached or taught, I'm less sure. We are going to be investigating the mysteries of footwork in a few different new articles, and have coaches describe the exact patterns, advocating or at least explaining the many complex patterns of movement.

Another theory, however, is that if you focus on the swing and staying upright and balanced, and recovering to a balanced ready position before the opponent hits, athletes will automatically find the right steps. I'm not an expert on footwork although we have several on Tennisplayer. But my own thinking is probably closer to this.

So if you want to call it an exit step, do you try to do it?

Sometimes I find that focusing on the consequences of motions (another example is the wrap finish) leads to exaggerations that don't look right and hurt the movement or stroke.

I think the answer is always to film and try to match it to the pro model. If it looks right and feels right, then it probably is exactly right. Send us some video and maybe we'll analyze it for Your Strokes!

[will2campb]

Foot Work: Exit Step

The pro my son is working with teaches him the exit step. In his opinion, on the topspin forehand, in which the swing is in to out, the exit step or flow to the outside foot keeps the racquet going on the correct path. Also, in his opinion, if the player instead shifts back to the left, the racquet does not follow the correct path. I notice when my son does not exit the shot and shifts too quickly to the left, he often mishits the ball. I should also note that Brett Hobden in his Modern Tennis videos teaches that typically the weight should flow to the outside foot on the forehand, unless the shot is inside out, where the the weight ends up on the left foot.

Will C

[johnyandell]

As I said it's an interesting question. I just went thru the stroke arhives and looked at about 40 Agassi forehands. Probably some version of the the recovery step happens on most of them, but there are many where it doesn't as well. I have no desire to start arguments between myself or you or any hard working coaches. The only thing I can do is state my opinion. I'm not sure that you can see a relationship between the step to the right and the swing path. If you look at the movie above you'll see that there is a pronounced recovery step, but look closely frame by frame and see when it actually starts. The racket has reached full extension and is starting to wrap. Again I think the uncoling and the momentum are the primary causes rather than a mechanical step. The danger would be of overrotating or rotating too much too soon and coming off the line of the shot.

[will2campb]

Exit Step

Mr. Yandell: It makes sense that momentum causes the recovery or exit step. Momentum travelling in one direction could affect the path of the swing. What my son's instructor tends to say is "flow through the shot" rather than take an exit step. The recovery step is the result of flowing to the right on the forehand. Whether and how much flow is necessary is another question! I do not disagree with anything that you have said. I am simply trying to make sense of what is being taught. By the way, the point you make in your article on the forehand wrap finish is excellent. Just copying the finish does not make the rest of the stroke the same as the pros. The same logic applies to a recovery step. An interesting question regarding extension is how does one achieve the extension of the pros? Does flow or footwork somehow affect extension?

Will C

[johnyandell]

Again, I think it's a matter of comparing visually to a model position. I teach players to physically model a finish position and create a mental image and visualize this when hitting.

To really do this, you need to video and compare to an example. That's one of the things the Stroke Archive is all about!

Regarding momentum and extension I would say it is almost the opposite. Too much movement through the shot, or taking the recovery step too early, will tend to push the swing off the line of the shot sooner and limit extension.

[CraigC]

John--

You and I have discussed this ad nauseum. I concur that the body will move to the right on a forehand, as the right side of the core muscles and drive through the ball will carry the players to the right (on a forehand). Furthermore, the advent of the open stance, the pure athleticism in the modern game, and the lighter racquets, have made athletes incorporate more efficient movement into their games. Consequently, bringing the rear foot around simply facilitates a quicker recovery towards the crossover step.

I would venture that the film you viewed, which showed the player not bringing his foot around, and not hopping, also showed a shot hit from the center of the court. On wide balls, players "ALMOST" always bring the outside foot around in order to gain power into the crossover recovery step. (I include the ALMOST, because I know you!!)

To Will--
I believe the exit step is more a function of recovery than stroke. If you look at the open stance shots, the outside foot hops because it starts slightly behind parallel with the inside foot. In order to bring it to a more efficient recovery position, one which allows it to drive directly back towards the center of the court, it must move in front of parallel to the inside foot. NOTE: Federer often breaks this rule when recivering from his backhand as he recovers with the outside foot (left) going behind the inside foot (right) as he works his way back to the middle.
Also, we can find many examples of a two handed player bringing his back foot behind him as he drives a backhand down the line. (counterbalancing). Generally though, the next step is a step to the left with the left foot and then a crossover step towards the recovery position.
Hope that helps.
CC