Topspin Forehand

Intermediategroundstrokes

Drop the racket head well below the incoming ball, knees bent.

Drop the racket head low, brush up the back of the ball with heavy wrist lag, and finish high above your head.

Key points

•Racket drops well below the ball
•Brush up the back of the ball
•Heavy wrist lag creates spin
•Finish above the head, not at the shoulder

Practice with Coach Elena

Camera setup tips

· Place the camera side-on to you, 2 to 3 metres away.
· Keep your whole body in frame, head to feet.
· Phone on a tripod or a laptop webcam both work.
· Perform the movement, pause, repeat. Your coach speaks every 15 seconds.

Theory & Technique

The topspin forehand adds safety and depth to your groundstroke by making the ball dip sharply after clearing the net. The key difference from a flat forehand is the swing path: the racket head drops well below the ball during the forward swing, creating a steep low-to-high trajectory. At contact, you 'brush' up the back of the ball with a fast upward wrist snap, imparting forward rotation. The finish should be much higher than a flat forehand — above your head rather than at your shoulder. This extreme swing path generates the RPM that makes the ball kick up on the bounce, pushing your opponent behind the baseline.

Fun Fact

Modern polyester strings revolutionised the topspin forehand. Players in the 1980s averaged about 1,500 RPM on their forehands; today's top players regularly exceed 3,000 RPM thanks to stiffer, grippier strings.

Watch the real thing

Learn from real coaches first. Your live scoring compares you to the reference figure above; these videos are for learning, and stay with their creators on YouTube.