The smash ball

• The basic position
• The starting position
• the time of maximum elongation
• The hammer movement
• The swing

Synonyms

Smash, overhead ball, smash hit

introduction

The ball is one of the strokes in tennis with which a direct point gain is aimed for. In principle, it is possible to hit a ball from the entire playing field, but normally the ball is only played close to the net for safety reasons. In order for the ball to be played at the highest possible speed, it must be hit centrally on the club head.

In order to be able to hit a smack ball successfully, a good starting position is of fundamental importance. Since the approaching direction of the ball is steeply downwards, and the player's gaze is thus directed upwards, it makes orientation in the playing field considerably more difficult, and the ball is thus complicated for beginners.

Differences to the surcharge

Before the player can hit a ball, he must first get into the correct position. In contrast to the serve, there is no back-up movement with the smash ball.

Since the ball is mostly played near the net, the trajectory of the ball is steeper downwards than when serving and the point of contact is therefore further in front of the body.

The basic position

• The feet are shoulder width apart, the knees are slightly bent
• The body weight load is on the balls of the feet
• The tennis racket is held with a backhand grip
• For right-handers, the left hand is on the neck of the club
• The eyes are on the ball

The starting position

• In the starting position, the player stands to one side. The load of the body weight is on the back leg. (! for right-handers the right)
• In order to be able to orientate yourself better in the playing field, the non-hitting arm points to the ball
• The racket is guided backwards with a backhand grip
• The stretching of the abdominal muscles creates body tension.

the time of maximum elongation

• The club head is far behind the body
• The upper body continues to point to the list
• When you hit the ball from the jump. Jump with the right leg, hit the ball, then land on the left leg.

The hammer movement

• The racket is accelerated to the maximum at the point of impact. The knee joints begin to stretch, followed by a rotation of the upper body. Only then does the actual impact movement come from the shoulder.
• The ball is hit in front of the body with an extended arm
• Depending on the distance to the net, the clubface points downwards at an angle
• The load on the body weight is shifted when the ball hits the front foot

The swing

• The swing takes place on the backhand side. The upper body is clearly turned to the side so that the flapping arm is free.

• The body weight is completely shifted to the front foot