1. For many club players, the toss is the biggest challenge on a kick serve. It must be to your left (if you are righthanded, like Djokovic) and slightly farther back than it is on a flat serve, so you can brush up on the ball to create topspin. Djokovic ...

There’s no doubting the popularity of this grip, but there is some debate about the ideal way to position both hands. One of the most accepted ways is to hold the racquet in your dominant hand with a Continental grip. Then take your nondominant hand ...

The backhand’s answer to the Western forehand (a reason some refer to this as a semi-Western backhand), the base knuckle of your index finger moves one bevel counterclockwise from the Eastern backhand (clockwise for lefties). It’s an advanced grip that ...

From a Continental grip, shift your knuckle one bevel counterclockwise (clockwise for lefties) so that it’s on the very top of the grip. If you drilled a nail through that knuckle, it would go right through the center of the grip (just don’t try that ...

Moving your knuckle one more bevel clockwise (counterclockwise for lefties) from the Eastern forehand grip puts you in a semi-Western grip. This has become a prevalent grip for power baseliners on the pro tours, and many teaching pros encourage their ...

Place your hand flat against the strings and slide it down to the grip; put the racquet flat on a table, close your eyes, and pick it up; or shake hands with the racquet. These are just a few of the tricks you can use to find an Eastern forehand grip. ...

shift your knuckle one more bevel clockwise (counterclockwise for lefties), and you’ve got a full Western grip. Looking down at the racquet, your knuckle should be on the very bottom of the grip. This puts your palm almost completely under the racquet. ...