The forehand drive is one of the basic tennis shots and the key to having a great drive is to get your footwork right.
If you’re reaching for a ball that is a short distance away, advance the foot that is away from the shot and swing into position to hit.
If a ball is too close to the body, pull back the foot that’s closest to the shot and drop your weight back on it to get into position for the stroke. If it’s not possible to switch in time then put the weight on the foot closest to the ball.
The forehand drive is one swing of the tennis racket but it can be broken down into three parts:
The part of the swing that’s behind the body will determine the speed of the stroke.
The section of the swing that is immediately in front of the body will determine the direction and, together with shifting the weight from one foot to the other, the pace of the shot.
The part of the swing that’s again beyond the body can be compared with a follow-through in golf and will determine what top is given to the ball.
All forehand drives should be topped. The slice shot is a different type of forehand stroke.
Side lines
To drive straight down the sideline, visualise a parallelogram with two sides made up of the sideline and your shoulders, and the two ends made up of the lines of your feet, which should, if extended, form right angles with the sidelines.
Meet the ball at a point that’s about 4ft away from your body immediately in front of the belt-buckle and shift your weight from the back foot to the front foot at the moment that you hit the ball.
The swing of the racket should be flat and straight through, with the head of the racket on a line with the hand or slightly in advance.
The whole arm and the racket should turn slightly over the ball as it leaves the face of the racket and the stroke should continue to the limit of the swing, giving top spin to the ball.
The hitting plane for all ground strokes should be between the knees and shoulders and the best plane of strike is on a line with the waist.
Never step away from the ball when you’re driving cross court — always throw your weight in the shot.
Driving the diagonals
The forehand drive from the left court is the same as for the straight shot down your opponent’s forehand. For making a cross drive to their backhand, visualize a diagonal line from your backhand corner to their corner, and make your stroke with the footwork as if this diagonal line were the sideline. Line up your body along your shot and make your regular drive.
All drives should be made with a stiff, locked wrist. Top spin is imparted by the arm, not the wrist.
The backhand drive
The backhand drive follows the principles of the forehand but you should shift your weight slightly and the right foot, or front foot, should be placed slightly closer to the sideline than to the the L, so as to keep the body clear of the swing.
The ball should be met in front of the right leg, rather than the belt buckle, as the tendency in backhand shots is to slice them out of play. Meeting the shot in front of your right leg will pull the ball cross court and cut out this error.
The head of the racket should be slightly in advance of the hand to help in bringing the ball into the court. Don’t try for too much top spin on your backhand.
Both sides now
You should try to develop both your forehand and backhand strokes.
If you have a weak backhand and choose to run around your backhand — especially when returning service — you will just open up your court to your opponent. If you really do have to run round a serve then you must give the return everything you’ve got in an attempt to make a winning shot as your opponent will otherwise have an easy shot against you.
Don’t rely on one favorite shot. If you have, for example, a good cross-court drive, try to develop an equally good straight shot.
The straight drive should be a fast shot but the cross drive has to be a slower shot as it doesn’t have the room for speed due to the increased angle and height of the net. Try to pass down the line with a straight drive, but open up the court with a cross-court shot.
Mix up the length of your drives and vary your distance according to your opponent’s tactics. You should drive deep against a baseliner, but drop a drive short against a net player, trying to place your shots at their feet as they come in to the net.
The three golden rules of the drive in tennis
Strike the ball with your body sideways to the net.
Keep your swing flat and with long follow-through.
