Improving my clears

[MikeBee]

I have had problems with (overhead) clears (backhand and forehand) for a long time now, in that they do not go far enough, from the back of the court they usually end in the middle of the other side (covering 3/4 of the length). Now I am tempted to blame my equipment which is now 10+years old and has never been restrung, would this make the difference?

But equipment aside, is there anything specific I should look to change?

[xt6666]

Do a search...

There are so many threads about that...

Why don't you try the racket of the guys that play against you in training?

[m_hael99]

your strokes and footwork? but if both of them are alright for you, why don't you try new stings and new racquets?

[MikeBee]

Thanks, I'm going to get a new racquet anyway but I thought it should still be possible to clear from one end of the court to the other with any non-broken racquet.

Sorry I didn't look very hard for other posts about weak clears, but I will look now.

I know my footwork needs some more training but I'm not sure about my stroke, maybe I should find some coaching.

[LuckyBoy]

Maybe its the string tension...not enuf
or maybe its just ur technique

[Mark A]

First thing I'd look at is your impact point - a clear that falls too short suggests you're not taking the shuttle far enough in front of you. Also, try hitting the shot slightly flatter, since depth is more important than height with clears as long as the shuttle passes over your opponent's/s' head(s).

The backhand clear is one of the most difficult shots in the game, so don't be as worried about this as your forehand side clear!

[nafan]

I strongly advise a new racket or new strings, I have just bought a new racket (Yonex Muscle Power 21) and found that the tighter strings make it so so easy to hit clears/smashes,

Nathan

[twobeer]

Just test a new racket to see if it makes much difference (maybe you can try the one your opponent uses just for a few strokes?!)

In general it should be easy to forehand clear base to base with pretty much any racket string, combination given good technique and reasonable forearm strength. So if your old racket is not cracked or otherwise broken, you should in all cases consider to get a coach look at your technique and see if you are using your forearm pronation correctly, using correct grip, hitting the shuttle without slice and on the racket sweetspot etc.

cheers,
Twobeer

[stumblingfeet]

Using a full swing, you should be able to hit a clear with just about any racquet. Most likely it is a technique issue. Since I've never seen you play, I can only offer some general suggestions:

- keep your grip relaxed. If you tense up, you'll impede the energy transfer from your hands to the racquet
- make sure you're using a swinging motion. Many players who don't know how to swing the racquet use a pushing motion - as if they're trying to "punch" the shuttle with the racqet. This works somewhat when the bird has some speed, like with drives, but for the clear a swinging motion is more powerful.

[wilfredlgf]

A more expensive solution:

Get the Ti-10 'classic' - you could effortless do clears and if you overdo it the shuttle could clear the baseline by 2 - 3 feet easy! :)

[Cheung]

I also suggest trying somebody else's racquet first to see if it makes a difference. 10 year old strings are really something though. That's older than the age of my children combined! Try restringing as well!:)

[fsnicolas]

Hi Mikebee!

Racket and strings do matter a lot (with more emphasis on the strings), so these should be taken into account.

As for the proper stroke for clears, it is important to hit the shuttle at the top of your swing with your arm fully extended. This means you start your hitting stroke when the shuttle is just beyond your reach so that you hit the shuttle when your arm is fully extended. This, in coordination with the throwing action of your hand, forearm and wrist, generates a lot of speed and, with your racket face square on the shuttle, should strengthen your clears. We could go into the physics of it but that would make things complicated.

Getting the timing of this stroke takes some getting used to but the benefits are well worth the effort.

[fsnicolas]

Shuttle placement is also important. Ideally the shuttle should be slightly in front of you but once you've mastered the stroke I described above, even clears directly above your head should reach the baseline on the other end.

[DivingBirdie]

does your opponents clear easily? if everyone finds it hard it might be because of the shuttle......lol

apart from that...do a search on forehand stroke techniques

[MikeBee]

Just a quick update, played last night and tried a few different racquets and found that the racquet did make a difference adding maybe 10-20% to the distance of my clears. However this is still not enough because that only covers 90% of the way from one end to the other. I suspect that I might be slicing the shuttle slightly.

We were using a plastic shuttle and I don't think anyone else was hitting clears further than mine. But maybe my friends have poor technique too.

[hellspar3]

Are you hitting as hard as you can? Try putting more emphasis on snapping your wrist at the highest point of your swing. Sounds weird if NOBODY around you can clear it to the baseline. Even if you slice it, unless you're like 5 years old you should be able to clear to the baseline.

[xt6666]

Perhaps you should send as a video of you, playing clears...

I think all the "guessing" about what COULD be your problem is nearly senseless...

Nobody knows how you play, nodoby knows your racket, your string, your shuttles or your "friends"...

Without that perhaps we tell you the opposit of what is actually good for your game...

[twobeer]

Just a quick update, played last night and tried a few different racquets and found that the racquet did make a difference adding maybe 10-20% to the distance of my clears. However this is still not enough because that only covers 90% of the way from one end to the other. I suspect that I might be slicing the shuttle slightly.

We were using a plastic shuttle and I don't think anyone else was hitting clears further than mine. But maybe my friends have poor technique too.

Maybe the plastic shuttles are just to slow, r u sure thay have the right speed? if you do a std speedtest (stand behind the baseline and do an underarm stroke as long as youu can, how far does it go?? )

/T

[XKazeCloudX]

We were using a plastic shuttle and I don't think anyone else was hitting clears further than mine. But maybe my friends have poor technique too.

well one thing is for certain it is not because of plastic birdies. if you are hitting it correctly anybody can clear very far baseline to baseline with a plastic, providing that you hit it with proper technique. my whole school district use plastic no problem.

string tension does affect how you need to hit the birdie harder or softer depending on its tension, however again with proper technique it shouldnt matter either way. ive seen many players take broken up school racquets all probably 18lbs string tension and clear with ease.

my tips are: get there faster so you wont be moving while hitting. then stop then hit . make sure you pronate with your wrist (there's a thread) and hit it at around 11-12 oclock.

[erazr]

I also have problem clearing the shuttle from the back of my court, normally it only goes to the middle of opponent court.. but I know that I'm lacking technique. So when I play single, my opponent service to back of my court and I can't clear it.. can somebody explain the clearing technique (very very basic). I also know that I have problem in footwork, but there's many footwork topic I can read in this forum. However, I really need the clearing technique (overhead).. will be really helpful if somebody can post link to slow motion clearing teachnique video

[Mark A]

It's possible you could be slicing the shot and not knowing it. Try doing some clears with the grip rotated slightly.

This most often happens because the grip is too "open" i.e. somewhere between a backhand thumb grip and a "normal" grip - this will make sense if you're holding a racket! In this case, twist the racket so it's between a normal grip and a forehand pan handle (i.e. close the racket face slightly). This simple adjustment made a huge amount of difference to ALL of my overhead shots (smashes, clears, punch clears etc).

With regards to footwork, one really simple and effective tip is to do a little "bounce" at the exact moment your opponent hits the shuttle. Nothing spectacular - your feet don't even need to leave the floor. The act of your weight descending onto your feet at the instant your opponent hits gives you more explosive power to push off and move wherever you need to go. Believe me, I thought it was pretty daft looking when I first tried it, but I now do it EVERY time automatically.

[badboy4life]

movement and racket impact are the main things.

use a better newer racket and better strings..... any BG65 strings will b gd!

[MikeBee]

I just wanted to add that it is not the shuttles its me, I've played with several different shuttles and I have played against better opponents who could clear easily with the same shuttle.

Also I changed strings which has helped but not solved the problem completely.

I'm very grateful for all the pointers and suggestions offered and I am going to continue to practice and hopefully find a coach in the near future. I'm also joining a club so maybe they can point me towards a good coach.

Thank you

[badboy4life]

the best thing is for example if u r right handed....

keep ur left hand up 2wards the ceiling with ur palm facing the ceiling...
get under the shuttle....

whn u hit the shot..... ur left foot shud b infront and ur right foot behind it.... then whn hitting the shuttle... move the right foot infront of ur left and move off into the middle of the court again.....if u explain this 2 ur coach im sure he'll understand!

[taneepak]

Clears are power shots. Power shots are best played with both your playing arm and "playing" leg behind your body. It is easy to do this on the forehand side but most players are not too convinced of the need to do the same with their backhand side. Also drawing a circle for that leverage swing, holding the handle with a loose palm and only tightening it at instant of impact, pronating or supinating your forearm fore forehand and backhand respectively, and finally straightening your arm as you hit the shuttle will almost solve your problem.

[juris]

More importantly, the legs sould be wide apart for maximum leverage when hitting.

[Monster]

I see a lot of similar suggestions but one point which strikes my attention is the "swinging as opposed to punching" movement described by Stumblingfeet. Do you swing much or when you see the bird you just whack it hard by "punching" it as s.ft described without much swinging?


The other thing to check is your grip size. This is based on personal experience. If it is too thick and you have a small palm (I have small palms), it will impede whatever motion you attempt.

Apart from these two, the other suggestions would be the same as the other guys here.

1 question - Wouldn't plastic shuttles be faster? I've never used a plastic one before, but am curious. No one plays plastic ones over here, so I wouldn't bother to invest in one to try out - if I can find one even!

[taneepak]

Actually, swinging doesn't really generate any power. The swing only paves the way and makes it easier for the real power generator, which is the forearm. You can try the following test :
Throw a tennis ball with a full swing like the way you bowl a cricket ball, pivoting at the shoulder joint. Next throw it as far as you can but with the forearm joint the pivot of rotation. You won't get very far with the cricket style of bowling despite the fact that it has a huge swing.

[Monster]

I still see swinging generating a lot of power using the shoulder joint as my pivot pt than my forearm joint.

I think my shoulder is stronger than my forearm and I swing harder when it starts out from the shoulder to the forearm to the wrist.

[Lefty23]

Careful...overusing the shoulder to brute-force overhead strokes led to my injury...

[merkki]

The other thing to check is your grip size. This is based on personal experience. If it is too thick and you have a small palm (I have small palms), it will impede whatever motion you attempt.

What if you have bigger palm and a thin handle like I have? Would I get more power if I would make my handle more thicker (I might not have to grip as hard) but this would limit the movement of the racket in my palm.:confused:

[Gollum]

What if you have bigger palm and a thin handle like I have? Would I get more power if I would make my handle more thicker (I might not have to grip as hard) but this would limit the movement of the racket in my palm.:confused:

It's a balance.

If the grip is too thick, then your ability to manipulate the handle in your fingers is reduced. You will also find it difficult to use grip tightening for power -- this is essential for good technique.

If the grip is too thin, then you will be forced to hold the racket tightly. You will develop tension in your hand throughout your play. The hand must be relaxed before you hit, and a small grip will not allow this.

So you will lose power if your grip is too big OR too small.

[CkcJsm]

I have a similar problem.
I'm 5 feet tall and weak. Female. But my techniques/form is right. As my coaches tells me. But I know I have a problem hitting it to late or to early, like not in front.
But I still cannot hit it to the back even if i do, do it right. When my coach serves high and good birds over and over again. It doesn't go to the back.
But she tells me its because I am not at that point and I am not strong enough. She says if I play an year more then I will probably be able to do it.
Is that true? Or is it something else?

[merkki]

I can easily clear baseline-baselin if I get the bird infront of me. Frequently I end up hitting the bird from behind my body (I arrive late, e.g. I smash, opponent drops to net, I am late at the net and do a drop, he lifts to the back, i am late to the back). Anyway, I seem to loose a lot of strength in my clear when hitting it from behind me. This gives my opponent a clear advantage as the shot goes to his midcourt.

Is there any way to improve this? My footwork/speed is already at a high level (if i put more effort i can only play like 5 rallys per session), thus the only thing I can do right now is not get myself into the situation. Is there any necessary change in technique of a clear if its hit behind you as compared to hitting it in front of you?

[MikeBee]

Merkki~ If your footwork and your technique are not a problem then my only suggestion is that you should learn to read your opponents better so you can anticipate what they are going to do, when they are going to play long shots and where they are likely to play them to.

[Gollum]

I have a similar problem.
But my techniques/form is right. As my coaches tells me...

...she tells me its because I am not at that point and I am not strong enough. She says if I play an year more then I will probably be able to do it. Is that true? Or is it something else?

If you can't hit a forehand clear to the baseline, and you're an adult, then your technique is not right yet. There are ten year old girls who can consistently clear baseline to baseline, because they have superb technique.

Don't be disheartened: most club players don't have great technique. You can compensate with strength to some extent, but that's very inefficient. Technique is crucial.

But it takes time to develop good technique; also, you will develop relevant strength as you learn, providing that you are practising an essentially sound technique.


When my coach serves high and good birds over and over again. It doesn't go to the back.

It's harder to play a good forehand overhead, even a clear, off a high serve. The timing is more difficult, with the shuttle falling almost straight down.


Is there any necessary change in technique of a clear if its hit behind you as compared to hitting it in front of you?

Yes. You need to shift your grip towards a thumb grip ("backhand" grip). This adjusts the angle of the racket face so that you will be hitting directly forwards, not slicing the shuttle. Your hitting motion will necessarily be much reduced, with much less shoulder/body rotation (or none at all); if you have good basic hitting technique, however, you should still be able to play a good clear with ease.

[CkcJsm]

If you can't hit a forehand clear to the baseline, and you're an adult, then your technique is not right yet. There are ten year old girls who can consistently clear baseline to baseline, because they have superb technique.

Don't be disheartened: most club players don't have great technique. You can compensate with strength to some extent, but that's very inefficient. Technique is crucial.

But it takes time to develop good technique; also, you will develop relevant strength as you learn, providing that you are practising an essentially sound technique.



It's harder to play a good forehand overhead, even a clear, off a high serve. The timing is more difficult, with the shuttle falling almost straight down.



Yes. You need to shift your grip towards a thumb grip ("backhand" grip). This adjusts the angle of the racket face so that you will be hitting directly forwards, not slicing the shuttle. Your hitting motion will necessarily be much reduced, with much less shoulder/body rotation (or none at all); if you have good basic hitting technique, however, you should still be able to play a good clear with ease.

Thank you. But, now I do not know what is wrong. Do I have to slowly develop clearing? My coach keeps telling me I do have to the right way, but seeing that 10 year olds can clear far back I do not know what is wrong. So I do not know how to correct it. But My feet sometimes IS to slow, I am practicing on that. But during coaching the coach serves directly to where I am standing. May you give some instructions or tips to see what I am doing wrong. I also sometimes have a hard time doing switch step but that is because I was to used to do it incorrectly. And exactly when should we hit the birdie? At what time? in front and high right?
I also know that I am suppose to use my waist and whole body. I weigh around 98 pounds. I was aneroxic at a point(Stupid I know). I do have a hard time using it sometimes. Since I did have the incorrect form before I got some real coaching I do sometimes get into my old habit. But I am getting less and less of that. Since I am practicing.
Thanks.

[Athelete1234]

98lbs isn't THAT bad...I'm 5 feet 9.5, and only weigh 124lbs.:cool:

Don't forget that clearing isn't just done with the forearms and wrist unless you have insane wrist strength. Remember to incorporate body rotation, upper arm swing, pronation of your forearm, then finally, a wrist snap.

As for where to hit, try to be high, and a bit in front of you.

[CkcJsm]

Pronation of my forearm? I was just reading that around the forums. I think I am going to try it.
But I thought it was pronation of wrist? When do u exactly pronate it? Like what time during the swing? And what does it do? Does it add power?
And do you still snap/cock your wrist while pronating or after? When do u pronate it, before or after you snap your wrist or while you are snapping the wrist?

Luckily I healed from being "fat".
^_^

[Gollum]

The most important part of technique is timing the final part of the swing. If you do not get the feeling of this fast, snappy, precise hitting action, then all the other body movements are just distracting.

When I teach players smashes and clears, I ask them to start with a very short hitting action. I actually prefer to start with the smash:

Stand near the net, roughly on the service line. Your partner/coach should hand-feed you shuttles, which you will smash with a very short hitting action. You should start with the racket held up and slightly in front of you, at full relaxed reach. Hold the racket like a knife or axe (not like a frying pan), and stand ready with the edge of the frame pointing forwards, not the strings. Your racket foot will be forwards, as though you are stepping towards the net. Your grip should be relaxed.

From this position, bring the racket backwards slightly (not behind your body), maintaining the "chopping with a blade" posture. Bring it forwards gently during the forward-swing, as though you are going to cut the shuttle with the frame; at the last moment, accelerate your racket head forwards by suddenly tightening your grip, and violently rotating your arm inwards so the the strings face forwards.

The rhythm is: relax, relax....BANG! You must stay relaxed until the last instant. You hardly need any back-swing at all.

It's extremely helpful if your coach or a good player can demonstrate this hitting action. Also, make sure that your coach or partner feeds the shuttles directly into your hitting zone (slightly ahead of you).

Don't worry about the wrist itself. The wrist will sort itself out: focus on explosive grip tightening, with fine control in the fingers. Grip tightening, combined with the arm rotation, is essential for all power strokes in badminton.

Once you get this right, you can move farther back in court and use a slightly longer hitting action. Try to keep it compact and explosive, with a sharp rebound hitting action, rather than a long swing with a big follow-through. Focus on achieving good, sharp half-smashes.

For clears, of course, you just change the angle of hitting: hit upwards rather than downwards (and you will normally be more level with the shuttle for clears, whereas smashes should have the shuttle more in front of you).

[stumblingfeet]

What matters more than what your coach says is what you feel when you hit the shot. If you feel powerful, then all's good. If you don't, then you might not "feel the need" to use whatever techniques the coach might be trying to teach you.

Here's something you might want to try. Holding your racquet in your hand, relax your arm, shoulder, grip etc. so that your arm hangs down as loosely as possible. Proper relaxation is a key part of technique, but something that can sometimes be overlooked by some people.

Now, keeping your arm relaxed, start twisting your torso back and forth slowly. Allow your arm to swing freely - any arm motion being the direct consequence of a torso movement. Try drawing large figure 8s, again keeping things as relaxed as possible. What you're doing here is transferring the kinetic energy from your torso movement into your arm and then the racquet. What often occurs when people try to change their movement is they lose sight of this energy transfer effect- which is the whole point of the technique in the first place!

So, after a few minutes of these arm swings, which are fantastic warm-up exercises by the way, let's think about what you want to do with a smash or clear. 1. Contact the shuttle with power 2. High contact point for the best trajectory.

Remember how your arm movements were the consequence of torso movement? Do the same thing now. Find your contact point, and figure out how to turn your torso so that your racquet swings through that point with speed. Don't worry about doing it a specific way... experimentation is encouraged. What's necessary is that you think about what you're doing, thinking things like "does this feel powerful?"; "does this feel uncomfortable?"
Eventually, you'll figure out what feels right -> and usually this is the same as textbook techniques! The difference is that you've adapted it to your specific body, so it's even better than a textbook technique.

[CkcJsm]

Thanks!
I'll try this out. I always don't seem to relax though. I've been told many times that I hold my racket way to tight. You can tell by looking at my hands, they are red.
Also if I pronate my arm and don't use the wrist how am I supposed to smash or overhead drop?
And for clears if I pronate my arm, the wrist will come naturally right? And do I pronate my arm when the bird comes in contact, or do I do that before the bird comes in contact. Or do I pronate my arm then snap my wrist?
And you turn it left right? Like if your thumb is facing up before you turn it, like shaking an hand and you turn it left and where your palm is facing down?
Sorry for a lot of questions. I become frustrated because I cannot hit baseline to baseline and I see many players who played shorter then me can. And I am a slow learner.
Gollum many thanks to you!

[Gollum]

Also if I pronate my arm and don't use the wrist how am I supposed to smash or overhead drop?

I'm not saying "don't use the wrist". I just recommend that players focus more on the grip tightening, and let the wrist movement come naturally.

The wrist itself has no muscles -- it's a joint -- but channels power from the arm movements.

The wrist is extremely useful in badminton. It allows you to control angles, such as smashes and drops as you described :) Wrist movement is also part of any powerful swing.

The problem is that many players try to use a "throwing a dart" hitting action, using wrist flexion for power, and a panhandle grip. This is wrong. The action should be more like throwing a ball than throwing a dart.


And for clears if I pronate my arm, the wrist will come naturally right?Probably, but experiment and see what happens. Your wrist should feel like part of the sudden, snapping movement at the end. It should not be held rigid.


And do I pronate my arm when the bird comes in contact, or do I do that before the bird comes in contact. Or do I pronate my arm then snap my wrist?Trying to learn power-hitting by conceptualising the exact sequence of arm movements is not effective. The arm rotation (pronation) comes towards the end of the swing, starting before you hit the shuttle. When you make contact, the racket head should be momentarily facing straight forwards. This takes time to learn, and you can expect to mishit the shuttle at first.

Your wrist should snap forwards somewhat, towards the the end of your arm rotation. It's not a step-by-step action, however: each part needs to flow seamlessly into the next, to make a violent snapping or flicking action with a rebound at the end. Everything happens very quickly, so I would focus on getting the overall snappy motion, with a short hitting action, rather than precise details of what every part of the arm is doing at which time.


And you turn it left right? Like if your thumb is facing up before you turn it, like shaking an hand and you turn it left and where your palm is facing down?That's right :)


Sorry for a lot of questions. I become frustrated because I cannot hit baseline to baseline and I see many players who played shorter then me can. And I am a slow learner.
Gollum many thanks to you!No problem. It's a pleasure to help :)

Remember also that it's really, really useful to see this in action. Look at the best players around you, or even better find some videos of the pros. Notice how they can hit with a sharp, sudden, violent action, and often quite a short arm swing. Especially watch top singles players, and see how they play many clears with a shortened, snappy hitting action.

[CkcJsm]

I'm not saying "don't use the wrist". I just recommend that players focus more on the grip tightening, and let the wrist movement come naturally.

The wrist itself has no muscles -- it's a joint -- but channels power from the arm movements.

The wrist is extremely useful in badminton. It allows you to control angles, such as smashes and drops as you described :) Wrist movement is also part of any powerful swing.

The problem is that many players try to use a "throwing a dart" hitting action, using wrist flexion for power, and a panhandle grip. This is wrong. The action should be more like throwing a ball than throwing a dart.

Probably, but experiment and see what happens. Your wrist should feel like part of the sudden, snapping movement at the end. It should not be held rigid.

Trying to learn power-hitting by conceptualising the exact sequence of arm movements is not effective. The arm rotation (pronation) comes towards the end of the swing, starting before you hit the shuttle. When you make contact, the racket head should be momentarily facing straight forwards. This takes time to learn, and you can expect to mishit the shuttle at first.

Your wrist should snap forwards somewhat, towards the the end of your arm rotation. It's not a step-by-step action, however: each part needs to flow seamlessly into the next, to make a violent snapping or flicking action with a rebound at the end. Everything happens very quickly, so I would focus on getting the overall snappy motion, with a short hitting action, rather than precise details of what every part of the arm is doing at which time.

That's right :)

No problem. It's a pleasure to help :)

Remember also that it's really, really useful to see this in action. Look at the best players around you, or even better find some videos of the pros. Notice how they can hit with a sharp, sudden, violent action, and often quite a short arm swing. Especially watch top singles players, and see how they play many clears with a shortened, snappy hitting action.

Thanks.
Now, I wonder how well you play and how well you coach. How long have you played? You taught me what I did wrong in a minutes, while I had been wondering this for a while. And I assumed my coach was right, but I guess she didn't really pay attention that much. But I personally asked her if my grip was right she said yes. But I knew I held it too tight, but I didn't see that as much of a probelem.(Until now) And that I didn't pronate.
My problems were:
Pan Handling it.
Tightness.
No pronation.
I relied mostly on my arm and wrist during impact.

Thank you!

[Gollum]

Thanks.
Now, I wonder how well you play and how well you coach. How long have you played? You taught me what I did wrong in a minutes, while I had been wondering this for a while.

I've been playing about 10 years. I play at a competent club standard, but nothing to set the world alight ;)

I've been coaching for about 2 years, although I did voluntary work assisting another coach before then. I coach senior school students (ages 11 - 18) and adult club players. I've also coached primary school children, and adults with neuro-spinal injuries.

It's hard to be objective about how well I coach. So far, all my customers (and students) seem pleased. Certainly they have improved a lot, especially the older of my school students.

I can only coach up to a certain standard of play, however. Strong club players, or county players, would need a more experienced coach, such as a county or national coach.

I try to learn as much as possible from top coaches and players, and assimilate these ideas into my coaching. For this particular idea, you have Steve Butler to thank: it's how he teaches backhand overheads; I just applied the same method to forehands, because it seemed logical.

Although Steve was my first source of this idea, I subsequently became heavily influenced by Zhao HianJia, in this wonderful smash coaching video (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=eIdXEtOt1JE&mode=user&search=).


And I assumed my coach was right, but I guess she didn't really pay attention that much.It's hard for me to judge that, without having met either of you!

Assuming your coach has a nationally accredited qualification -- some "coaches" don't, but still call themselves coaches! -- then she probably knows her stuff. Nonetheless there is a wide variety in the quality of coaching.

In my view, it's helpful for the dedicated player to get advice from at least two coaches. It can be useful to discover what they agree on, and what they don't; and one coach may spot something that the other misses.

Players have a tendency to assume that their coach is infallible, but this is never the case. In particular, remember that most coaches are low-level coaches like me, not world-class coaches. Most of us are not outstandingly good players. Coaches make mistakes, especially the lower-level coaches. I try to guard against this danger, by applying a certain academic/empirical rigour to my technical analysis.


But I personally asked her if my grip was right she said yes. But I knew I held it too tight, but I didn't see that as much of a probelem.(Until now) And that I didn't pronate.

My problems were:
Pan Handling it.
Tightness.
No pronation.
I relied mostly on my arm and wrist during impact.

Thank you!Using a tight panhandle grip is fatal to overhead technique -- so no wonder you couldn't clear well! Panhandling is arguably the most pernicious technical problem for coaches to solve.

Note, however, that you will still rely on your arm and wrist (and fingers) during impact -- just with a different (better) kind of movement.

Good luck, and don't hesitate to ask again if you get stuck. :)

[CkcJsm]

Thanks!
But do you have an video on what an forehand clear looks like?
Maybe I am doing something wrong.
I tried pronating today by the way. I still can't hit baseline to baseline.

[kinoko]

theres many factors to it. string tension, footwork, wrist power, etc2

try to practice swinging a heavy cheap racket to increase your wrist power. i used an old metal racket gripped all the way up to the frame and all around the frame too. ive been told by my old coach not to use tennis racket coz this might damage your wrist.

[CkcJsm]

Thank you!
I tried it, and I tried to relaxed more, correct grip. And WOAH!
I was like why didn't I do this before?
I was more relaxed and it hit to the same spot as before, except with less force and it was less tiring. Maybe it was a bit further. But I still did not get it from baseline to baseline. I am still trying!

[KazeCloud]

With time and coaching, you will figure out an effective way to utilize your muscles when you swing to clear, just takes practice, not more and more strength.

[Gollum]

Thank you!
I tried it, and I tried to relaxed more, correct grip. And WOAH!
I was like why didn't I do this before?
I was more relaxed and it hit to the same spot as before, except with less force and it was less tiring. Maybe it was a bit further. But I still did not get it from baseline to baseline. I am still trying!

It sounds like you are heading in the right direction :)

Even if you can't yet clear baseline to baseline, you're using less effort to hit the same length. That means your stroke is more efficient.