Open or Closed Stance on my Forehand?

7 year old Bobby just spent 2 hours watching a rerun of one of the now many, great Nadal-Federer finals. He watched them both rip open stance forehands (Moya photo above) from various points on the court and was inspired to try to hit just like that at his 4 pm practice drill. Except the coach kept telling Bobby, step in to the ball, don't over rotate, close your stance, you're too far from the ball. Needless to say, this left Bobby confused. What to tell Bobby? That two options are better than one, choose accordingly.

Most little kids don't have the balance and the footwork to get to the ball, setup in open stance and then generate their own pace from there. Without a doubt they should be taught open stance, but by no means as the only option. Tennis has advanced today and there are a lot of old techniques that have been exhiled but hitting a closed stance shot is not one them. Yes, these days almost everyone hits an open stance forehand because the game has gotten faster, the balls land deeper with more pace and it is inefficient and nearly impossible to turn sideways and step into every shot, players today use their torso and their hips to rotate that shot back into the court without a full turn and a step in. However, when there is time to set up and to step in to a ball that is inside the court and infront of you, by hitting a closed stance shot, you'll hit a powerful, more accurate shot, keep the momentum moving into the court, which will make your play that much more aggressive and give your body a chance to get to net faster to win the point. Not to mention there is no fear of being pushed back by the ball since you're the one stepping into it.

How to do it?

- See the direction of the ball
- Anticipate its depth and speed
- Turn your body sideways
- Racquet back with butt of the racquet pointing at the ball as well as your other hand
- Get ready to transfer your weight from the back to the front foot
- Step forward into the shot, you want to be behind the ball, not sideways going straight into it
- Drive the ball
- Fully extend your arm towards the target before coming around and following through
- Try not to move your head throughout the stroke
- Your follow through should end up over your shoulder although some prefer to make a semi circle finishing at the elbow
- Finally, determine whether your shot was good enough to close into the net and finish off the point