Unit Turn In Tennis - Fundamental Rules For Forehand & Backhand

You've surely heard of the term unit turn when teaching tennis players how to prepare and initiate their forehand or backhand stroke.

At first glance is may seem that executing the unit turn is a very simple thing to do and yet I see two major mistakes in my daily work with tennis players.

The first mistake is that you think that the "unit" that you need to turn is the whole of you from toes to the head.

If that's how you imagine the unit you'll surely start with the incorrect weight transfer.

And the second common mistake is that when your body turns to the side it also "pulls" your head to the side which also tends to tilt.

When your head and therefore your eyes are not both pointing at the ball you will lose the ability to judge depth well and that will result in poor timing and typically hitting the ball late.

So this week's video article shows you how to do the basic unit turn correctly and what the head position of the pros looks like compared to a recreational tennis players.

The good news is that these two mistakes are quite easy to correct, you just need to be aware of the problem.

[jmrf]

Of all the thousands of tennis instructional videos on the internet, Tomas and Feeltennis are light years ahead of every one of them. I always learn useful and insightful knowledge from him. And, his presentations has none of the condescension or smarminess you see in other tennis videos. Excellence only!

[UDEMF]

Dear Tomas, I played tennis from 2002 to 2011, during those times I reach my best ranked at 3.0(a ranking system in my country, pros are from 4.25 and higher). then I stopped playing for personal reasons. Ive just started to play again since last Xmas, just by watching your instructions and working on stamina, my rank now is 3.75 (a big step that i couldnt make for almost 10 years). so THANK YOU ! i think you are not only good but also very intelligent to point out all the important aspects of this game, and you have a good heart too. I wish all the dedicated tennis player would watch this channel!

[burrbentine]

Ok. This has fixed my game. No coach ever told me this. I practiced and then played with this in mind. Amazing. Not only did I hit better but my shot recovery was much faster. I felt like I was walking around the court rather than using tons of excess body mvmt. Thank you sir!

[Chryslerx]

Probably the best video on the internet regarding this topic. Thank you coach!

[scoogsy]

I was coached for about 5 years when I was a teenager. I was never told about the unit turn. Perhaps it’s common place now days, as that was 20 years ago, but seeing this video has changed my approach to my forehand.

This streamlines my shot to something more controlled and compact. It reduces the amount of movement I put into my backswing, which felt seperate to the rest of my body. It creates a more narrow “track” for my arm to move through when executing the shot. It makes my forehand more like an uncoiling spring, than the long elongated sweeping motion I used to have. I didn’t realise how exaggerated my back swing was until I really appreciated what the unit turn meant.

I understand this might be a very basic lesson, however it’s very helpful to create consistency for those of us struggling with our forehand. Thanks!

[Sujit_Hemant]

I am a 4.0 USTA and have been struggling to find a good forehand rhythm/timing and effortlessness for past few years.. never had an issue with backhand. Watching this i instantly feel it will fix the the coiling and footwork... Its like EUREKA.... hope it works on the court too... unbelievable grasp by Thomas sir of what all can go wrong..

[lgnd-lmug]

Well, my first teacher was literally making me do the wrong side stance as in the first example. It felt completely unnatural and my forehand got even worse. Another common mistake is to turn too late, you have to make the turn as the ball clears the net. Great channel, Tomas

[morriemukoda]

OMG...you clarified my problem so clearly with unit turn!! Thank you thank you!!

[pupstart]

Thomaz this is brilliant and a reminder of what one can easily forget. The head staying forward wirh both eyes on ball can be overlooked even at a fairly high level. Will keep this one and revisit thank you sir stay well.

[alhaqqIndy]

Brilliant!! I always move back on both forehand and backhand. This helped a lot. Can't wait to try out this weekend. Also, I am sure I am turning my head as well. But I can correct that easily now that you pointed out since I am able to do it easily during my golf swing.. Great Stuff. Thank You Sir!

[sportssteverino]

Excellent advice Tomas. I was wondering why I couldn't get any forward momentum and power on my ground strokes. Can't wait to try the unit turn on the court

[LazerHs]

You are a godsend sir. The #1 tennis coach on this Earth. Your skills in giving well understandable explanations is second to none. You’ve set the bar so high that I’m not sure another coach will ever match you.

[carollelivelt]

Seriously, you are the best instructor! So grateful for your channel. I’m a 4.0 club player who has tried everything to fix my FH. I miss-hit, no power, poor aim etc. I’m certain these tips will vastly improve that shot. Can’t wait to get on the ball machine!

[kevinlatil]

Excellent tips, today I was on a hitting practice forcing myself to do the unit turn and found myself missing a lot of balls without understanding why. I was not correctly assessing the speed/high of the incoming ball and playing moving backwards. This excellent video illustrated me why this was happening, amazing. Tomaz, you are a very clear and intelligent coach, you correct details that I have not seen with other coaches.

[SashDhru]

By far the most 'valuable' coach on the net. Each video is exactly to the point, clear and illustrative. The head/eyes pointer was brilliant..Thank you very much

[cbjose]

I thought I had good unit turn until I watched this video! I make both those mistakes. Will try to focus on what you mentioned here and correct those errors. Thanks for the great video!

[blazer]

Sir I cannot believe this is not talked about at all in my numerous coaching sessions. This mistake has been my habit and I had a shock watching this video. Thanks so much

[corsicanu]

Another excellent video with valuable tips. I especially like (and this applies to all your videos) that you motivate all your instructions. E.g. "Why do we want to keep both eyes on the ball? Because stereo vision is best for estimating depth and speed". Logical, clear tip, pointing out a problem that is easy to correct and that makes a big difference. Thank you for your videos!

[haasws]

Very clear and simple instructions which concentrate on the fundamentals of tennis. Priceless! Thank you!

[musicaangomera]

In less than 8 minutes you solved a doubt about the forehand uniturn I couldn't find anywhere else. Your videos are great Tomas, thanks for such technical simplicity.