Mini Tennis: Slice Backhand to Defend and Buy Time

Students learn the slice backhand, swinging high to low with a slightly open face, which produces a low, slow ball and buys time to recover position. It is used in pressure situations, when the ball comes wide to the backhand.

How to play

1. Demonstration: continental grip, racket high on the backswing, stroke forward and down, and a long follow-through toward the target (3 min).
2. Partner tosses to the backhand: 10 slices that must land beyond the service line (5 min).
3. Slice-against-slice backhand rally on the diagonal (5 min).
4. Pressure situation: the feeder sends a wide ball to the backhand; the student slices and gets back to the center cone before the next ball; count on-time recoveries (5 min).
5. Discussion: when the slice is the better choice and when the topspin backhand is (2 min).

Rules

• The feeder stands off to one side of the net, out of the ball's path.
• When recovering to the center cone, face the net and never run backward.
• Loose balls are collected at the end of each set.

Variations

Adaptations

• Wheelchair user: the feeder sends the ball to the backhand side with a high bounce, and two bounces are allowed.
• Wrist injury: shorter swing and a lighter racket.
• Partial visual impairment: high-contrast ball and tosses from closer range.

Learning goals

• Perform the slice backhand with a low, deep trajectory.
• Use the slice as a defensive tool to recover position.
• Tell when to defend with slice and when to attack with topspin.

Equipment for a class of 25

• tennis rackets: 28
• low-compression balls: 60
• mini tennis nets: 6
• cones: 12

Teacher tip

Low-compression balls bounce lower, so the slice stays very low and works well. Watch that students do not finish the stroke with the racket pointing at the ground.

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