Serena Williams Forehand. How to play a tennis forehand

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Tennis book: Part 1, The Forehand

Chapter One: Building a Forehand

Chapter Two: The Grip

Chapter Three: Rackets in Motion

Serena Williams' Forehand
It's difficult to gage Serena Williams current form, after her French Open drubbing by Justine Henin and playing with only half a backhand at Wimbledon. For sure, Serena's powerful strokes are far better suited to the faster grass and U.S. hard courts than clay. However, I won't be making the embarrassing mistake Pat Cash made in the Sunday Times earlier this year, when he wrote an article...er, not so much writing off Serena's chances of winning in Melbourne, as totally debunking them.

Getting a first set pummeling in her Oz game against Petrova, you could see the match turn around in Serena's eyes, as the fear of losing (and proving someone right, perhaps) dug deep into her features. Like a cornered tiger, Serena clawed her way out of a tight corner and back into the match. Petrova subsequently diminished in direct proportion to the amount Serena roared, and Miss Williams season turned on a growl, a fist and a point.

The test of how good the soaring Justine Henin really is will only come (if and) when Serena hits her best ever form, because the Williams sisters seem to have been working on a part time basis over the past couple of years. To be fair, you can't blame them (opportunity knocks when fame moves in), because there's more to life than tennis and, anyway, both of them know they've enough talent to beat at least 90% of female opposition whilst playing on a part time basis.
I suppose Wimbledon and the U.S. Open will tell us how serious they both are.

The test of how good the soaring Justine Henin really is will only come (if and) when Serena hits her best ever form, because the Williams sisters seem to have been working on a part time basis over the past couple of years. To be fair, you can't blame them (opportunity knocks when fame moves in), because there's more to life than tennis and, anyway, both of them know they've enough talent and raw power to beat at least 90% of female opposition whilst playing on a part time basis.
I suppose Wimbledon and the U.S. Open will tell us how serious they both are.

Spin, Spin Shoulders: Serena Williams Forehand

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This is a return of serve and the most speedy and immediate option for Serena to build up some racket head speed, to power her return, comes from shoulder (body, and racket) spin. In t the left heel has been uprooted from the court as the knee pushes towards us. This allows Serena to turn the shoulders and get the racket head on its way.
As I mentioned in the selection on the Roddick forehand, the height of the elbow on your forehand wind-up determines the height of your overall loop. Serena's gets the elbow pretty high, which predetermines a sizable looping of the racket head (though it's not as high as Roddick's).

Now run the whole forehand sequence and watch how Serena spins the racket through.
Got the idea?
Turn your attention to the shoulders. In t the hitting shoulder (arm and racket) is behind the body, whereas at the end of the shot in o the hitting shoulder has spun through, along with the arm and racket (to be precise, it's the non-hitting shoulder that's spun away). This spinning of the shoulders (racket and body) is what powers the racket head.

Journey around the Body
To understand this further, look at the sequence once again. How far do you think Serena's racket has travelled throughout the entire stroke?
Hard to say precisely, but it's travelled quite a way, wouldn't you agree?
Now then, how far has Serena travelled? That means Serena Williams the person. Her whole, fully formed hooman-being-body. Has she gone anywhere?
No. Apart from a little way backwards, maybe.
So where does her forehand power come from?
Serena doesn't have to physically go anywhere to get power. But her racket head does. Run the animation and you'll see that Serena's power comes from the racket head's journey around her body, which is made possible by a full turn of the shoulders and the looping wind-up of the racket head.

Run the animation again and turn your attention to Serena's right foot. Just before contact, Serena releases the left foot from the court surface, which then leaves her free to pivot, or spin, on the back (right) foot. To be absolutely precise, it is this spinning away of the left side of her body that brings the spun racket head (and shoulder) through and into the shot.
A more aggressive alternative is to spin on the left foot, with the right side of the body swinging through in the direction of the hit, which often requires a shorter ball. Serena's slight backwards shift is compensated for by the aggressively spun racket head.

It is worth pointing out that all of what you see has been made possible by a perfect contact, without which there is only an excuse for a stroke.

THE FOREHAND
3 Sample Chapters (of the full 12)

THE FOREHAND Chapter One

THE FOREHAND Chapter Two

THE FOREHAND Chapter Three

THE SERVE
Two sample Chapters (of the full 12)

THE SERVE Chapter One

THE SERVE Chapter Two

Juan Carlos Ferrero

Tennis for All?

Simon Roberts:
A County Tennis Odyssey

Anabel Croft

Andy Roddick

Elena Dementieva

Gabriela Sabatini

Tim Henman

Jimmy Connors

Venus and Serena Williams

Serena Forehand

Mary Joe Fernandez

How to hit a tennis backhand: Part 1

How to hit a tennis backhand: Part 2

How to hit a tennis backhand: Part 3

How to hit a backhand: Part 4

How to hit a backhand: Part 5