The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance

by W. Timothy Gallwey

Let’s begin with a very simple yet common instruction given by many teaching professionals: “Keep the wrist firm when hitting the backhand.” I would guess that this instruction originated from someone’s accurate observations of the relative consistency and power of backhands hit when the wrist was firm compared to when it was loose or wobbly. As obvious as this instruction might sound at first, let’s analyze it before casting it into the bronze of dogma. Can the backhand be hit with a wrist that is too loose to give control? Certainly. But can it also be hit with a wrist that is too firm? Yes, of course it can. So as helpful as this instruction might appear, you cannot use it successfully by merely “obeying” it. Instead you use the instruction to guide your discovery of the optimal degree of tightness of your wrist. This of course can be done by paying attention to the feel of your wrist during your stroke and does not necessarily have to be put into language. You will hit some shots with too loose a wrist, others perhaps with too tight a wrist, and automatically you will find what is comfortable and works best for you and settle with that. Obviously the exact degree of tightness you discovered worked for you would be very hard to put into definitive language; it is remembered by its feel. This is a very different process from obeying the instruction.