Tap with fingerpower, please revise.

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by Mikael, Aug 6, 2008.

  1. Mikael

    Mikael Regular Member

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    Hi

    Could someone please give me some feedback on my fingerpower techinque. It should imitate a forehand tap in front of the body and thereby with a panhandle alike grip.

    There are two versions. For the first tap my hand and fingers ends tightly around the handle. For the second tap I loosen up again very quickly, so the handle rebound.
    Please have a look:

    http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=GRpgATEN7rA

    Sorry about the quality, that is the best I have at the moment.
     
  2. KazeCloud

    KazeCloud Regular Member

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    Is this tap used to perform a netkill, or is it for an overhead swing?
     
  3. Athelete1234

    Athelete1234 Regular Member

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    It's a kill. You wouldn't use such a downward angle for a drive, and you wouldn't take the shuttle that low or with a panhandle if it was an overhead stroke.
     
  4. stumblingfeet

    stumblingfeet Regular Member

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    It looks to me that you're using too much range of motion - around 90 degrees it seems, compared to 30 degrees or less for me. The problem is that you're getting this range of motion by rolling the racquet onto your fingertips, into a position where you can exert less control over the racquet. Besides, this also negates the advantage of finger power which is decent power with minimal backswing.
     
  5. Mikael

    Mikael Regular Member

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    Yes, it is suppose to imitate a netkill.

    Stumlingfeet: Thanks, so what you mean is that the gap in my hand is to wide, actually generating to much unstable and unnecessary power??? This is not made on the court, so maybe I have to much time in this situation.

    So the art should be to do a powerful netkill, with as little range/movement as possible?
     
    #5 Mikael, Aug 7, 2008
    Last edited: Aug 7, 2008
  6. Gollum

    Gollum Regular Member

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    Both look good, but I agree with stumblingfeet: your range of motion is too large.

    As well as making your swing larger, you may lose control of the racket head -- it might wobble in your hand, since the base of the handle has come out the fingers completely.
     
  7. stumblingfeet

    stumblingfeet Regular Member

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    Of course, finger power doesn't really work on its own - your arm has to be moving at least a little bit towards the shuttle. For example, just before you hit, you should keep a very relaxed grip on the racquet. When you reach your hand out for your shot, the inertia of the racquet pushes back slightly into your hands. When grip the racquet suddenly, it will snap forward and into the shuttle.
     
  8. Mikael

    Mikael Regular Member

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    I am not sure about your point.
    I will argue that the arm should be hold out straight. If you bow the elbow first and then strike, there is a tendency to drag the shuttle downwards into the net...
     
  9. cooler

    cooler Regular Member

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  10. azn_123

    azn_123 Regular Member

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    If you are approaching the net for a net kill, you should slightly bend your elbow before contacting the bird. Then at the moment of contact, you should slightly straighten your elbow because it adds more power to your net kills. If you keep your whole arm straight throughout, it would be more difficult to kill the shuttle. Gollum and stumblingfeet, please correct me if I am incorrect.
     
  11. Athelete1234

    Athelete1234 Regular Member

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    I think you should keep your wrist straight; you're cocking and uncocking it in the video, and that see like the reason why your motion is so big.
     
  12. stumblingfeet

    stumblingfeet Regular Member

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    Yes, you're right, fully extending your elbow would limit your ability to articulate that joint, therefore limiting control. However, my point was that the backswing to the stroke an be an implicit part of the getting your racquet to the point of action, as opposed to something you do actively with your fingers. This goes back to the concept of the kinetic chain. If one part of the chain is moving the wrong way, it can result in lower speed further up the chain.

    One simple demonstration/exercise you can do is to bounce a shuttle for height using finger power. The height of the shuttle indicates how much energy you transfer into it. There are several observations that can be made using this exercise:
    • if your arm is moving slightly upwards to meet the shuttle, you'll get more power than if your arm is moving away or if it is held immobile
    • using a larger range of motion in the fingers may result in more energy spent but not necessarily much more energy transferred to the shuttle. In addition, quickness of movement is lost
    • the more relaxed your hand, the more power you get when you tighten your grip.
     
  13. Gollum

    Gollum Regular Member

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    It's worth noting that "finger power" is more likely to come from the contractions of the upper arm muscles, than from the fingers themselves. The finger movements are mainly there to transfer this power.

    And yes, keep a slight bend in the elbow. Avoid locking the elbow out unless you are forced to play the shot at full reach.
     
  14. Mikael

    Mikael Regular Member

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    I try again :):

    http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=dP185U-g8yk

    I have skipped the rebound thing showed in the first video, as I could not find any reason for that.

    In this video the first tap/dab/net kill shows (I hope) a relative smaller range between the fingers and hand. Further more my elbow is almost straight/slightly bend at start and then it is suppose to show that I fully straighten it out at impact (or maybe I just push my arm ssshh...).

    In the second version in this video, my elbow is bend much more, close to 90 degrees. I would rather then do a full net kill including forearm rotation!!! And also as mentioned there is a risk for dragging the shuttle into the net.

    A relaxed hand with the panhandle grip in this way I find very difficult, as mostly control the racket with thumb and index finger, if I loosen up more the racket will bounce around in my hand...
     
  15. Gollum

    Gollum Regular Member

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    That looks better -- especially the first one. :)
     
  16. Mikael

    Mikael Regular Member

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    Thanks for the review :) I believe that sometimes it can be a good idea to show an oppose-alternative (sorry if that is not proper English) to emphasize the point.
     

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