when receiving, do you stand really close to the service line? do you crouch down a little? a lot? level with the net? or do you actually stand tall and like a little upward reaching?
I stand about a foot length from the service line in case they flick. I stand up normally with legs apart.
its really what your comfortabe with and the level of your play, faster and able to get to the back then you can stand closer not as fast and all then stand closer to the middle incase they flick but then you dont present a big threat and they dont have to have a super tight serve. personally i stand like right behind the line or up to 3 inches behind it at the most with left foot forward and crouched a bit, racquet up and ready to take the serve high. im confident that im fast enough to get to the back and play an attacking shot if they do flick me thats why i stand close to the line.
my doubles stance left foot out at 45 degrees right foot behind me, slightly to the right and on the toes (think running stance at the start line) slightly crouched, bend knees, more weight on the left leg (depending on how far from the service line, closer-more weight) racquet - head flattened out, centered, cocked and held high (not too high) left arm up for balance and block opponent's view of the back line or I copy smash_master's stance....
It is also important to be aware of what to stare at, at your opponent: Playing with beginners, the whole arm. Playing with intermediary, grip and forearm/wrist. Playing with Professionals, be awake and just hoping for the best...
That'd be pretty difficult to achieve if you're playing a female opponent... just kidding, but i think most players can do a backhand service with rather uniform movements and with some deception...so i wouldn't really want to concentrate on his forearm/wrist/ or even the entire arm... trust the shuttle.
thats what ive always been taught by my coaches, never watch a players racquet it can lie to you decieve you because of double actions, deception etc. the shuttle cant lie it can only go in one direction cant pull that kinda stuff. oh and also when im recieving serve i either look the opponent straight in the eye, look at the shuttle or just stare at the white tape on the net.
Okay, maybe it does not only goes for professionals that anticipating seems impossible, but looking at the shuttle after the contact point is not really anticipating. Though the direction that your opponent hold the shuttle, for example in a backhand serve, can be useful information.
My stance,5ft 8in, right handed, right foot ahead of left (as if starting a running race), about 2 ft from service line, crouched so i can see opponents movements under the tape, and about 1ft left of the centre line. i prefer to hit all 'tight' centre line serve's on my forehand
well i think height has a bit to do with it, if ur taller, u can stand closer coz that takes away ppl who are not confident with their flick and u only get short serves and u can jump on some of them when ur confident urself. im not so tall so i generall stand a foot and a bit behind the line, since its easier to move forward than back, left foot front with 70 percent weight, making sure i can push off it to bounce back incase of a flick. and almost straight up, slightly crouched, not much at all. racket up but not very high.
I stand roughly like the picture on this page, although since taking that photo I've started to crouch more and lift my heels ever-so-slightly.
I have a question for you gollum: why do you hold your arm back so far? (well, a couple of inches at most) you elbow is cocked at almost 90degrees, and your racket-face is pointing downward (at least, if you have a forehand grip, which is what it looks like). Is there any specific reason? For me, I like to hold my arm out as (comfortably) far away as I can (elbow at roughly 120 degrees) to reach the shot sooner. I stand ready with a backhand grip mostly, so maybe that's why I hold my racket with the racket head point sideways, not down. But then agian, come to think of it, I'm 6 foot 7 -ish, so I hardly expect to return services above my shoulder level, maybe that's why you position your arm differently... But I'm still a kind of curious to read
That's an interesting question. I think the picture gives the appearance of my elbow being more bent than it actually is. It's certainly wider than 90 degrees (indeed, I would guess about 120). Keeping the elbow completely straight probably doesn't offer an advantage for reaching the low serve earlier. It doesn't take long to straighten a slightly bent elbow; you can do it during the time you're reacting to the low serve. Even when you're hitting, it helps to maintain a very slight bend at the elbow (even finger "power shots" don't work well when the elbow is "locked out"). The main reason for tilting the racket face downwards is that it helps me respond to a drive serve. It's only partly downwards, not fully. However, this may sacrifice some readiness for playing backhands (as may my use of the basic grip, rather than the thumb grip). Bear in mind also that I'm not perfectly consistent. This was a posed photo, and while it conveys the overall situation, it may not be accurate in every detail. And even if it were a perfect representation of what I do, you shouldn't necessarily copy me in every detail, as I'm just an ordinary player with weaknesses like everyone else. Your own preparation sounds fine to me. Using a thumb grip is a perfectly valid alternative to the basic grip in this situation; and if you can bring your arm farther forwards than mine, without becoming vulnerable to drive serves, then so much the better.
Gollum, I have a problem with your right foot, which as shown will not get you anywhere. With the right foot flat on the floor and facing at right angles to the sidelines, how in the world are you going to sprint or move quickly? No one can sprint or move when they are flat-footed. Shouldn't your right foot be on its toes and pointing more forward? The stance looks more like you are glued to the floor instead of being alertly poised to pounce.
Well, I did already say: ...but yes, I think you're right about this. You might also think about how uncomfortable it gets to hold such a pose while the cameraman fiddles with his kit. Nevertheless, I'll try to get a better picture. I haven't yet addressed your point about the angle of the back foot. I find it's helpful to have this angled somewhat sideways and not forwards, as it's more effective for pushing off either forwards or backwards. However, it's probably better to cover the wide flick serve more -- so I think the angle of my whole stance should be slightly different here.
I guess that's perspective then, but I ahve to say, kudos on all the photo's on your site, it's a lot harder than it looks. That's exactly what I was after, those tiny details, thanks Well, I have to be honest, I wasn't exactly looking to copy you, but it's a subject that just intrigues me. You, as a coach, probably have a lot of experience with all those tiny intricate details, so I want to thank you for the insight
I would just like to say that as far as arm positioning goes, mine is pretty close to Gollum's photo as well. Like him, my elbow's not at 90 degrees but it IS bent. And my racquet face actually does point straight down. I tend to rotate my wrist a little bit as I stand - this is a habit in order to keep loose. When you hold your arm straight out in front of you (as opposed to off to the side like Gollum's photo), receiving a flick serve means you have to bring your arm almost straight back, then forward again. When your elbow is bent and your arm is out to the side, I find that receiving a flick serve involves bringing the racquet back almost sideways, around the head, and then down. For some reason, this seems like a more fluid motion than lifting up and then swinging down. As for pointing the racquet face straight downwards... I'm not quite sure why I do it. But I definitely hold it in a forehand grip. The reason for this is because switching from a forehand grip to a backhand grip actually contributes to generating the power for the backhand while the reverse is not true (at least for me). I hope that makes sense. Like, if I start off with a backhand grip and then need to hit a forehand shot (like a flick serve or simply a short serve to my right), I need to switch to the forehand grip, and then contact the shuttle. But if I start off with a forehand, I find that the process of rotating the grip into a backhand is consistent with the power I generate when I use the backhand. So I can contact the shuttle midway between switching and finish the shot by fully turning my wrist into a backhand. I hope that makes sense. Also, take that with a grain of salt because oddly enough, it is only during service reception that this seems to work for me. I drive/receive smashes predominantly backhand.
