Tennis Playing FAQ:
Updated 09/26/07

1.) What are the diffferent ways to grip the racket for forehand?

For a right handed player, and with the racket vertical (strings facing left and right) and butt cap facing you:

Grip Type: position of index finger knuckle (all on right side of grip)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continental:			Top-right edge (not the top edge)
Eastern:	 		Right flat
Semi-Western: 			Bottom-right edge
Western:			Bottom-right flat
Extreme Western:		Bottom edge
Super Extreme Western:	Bottom flat

The flats are also known as the "bevels".  Note that each grip rotates the hand half a bevel from the previous one.

2.) What's the difference between the different grips?

The different grips generate different combinations of topspin and forward pace.  For the same motion, the more toward continental the grip, the less the topspin and the more the forward pace; the more toward super extreme western, the more the topspin and the less the forward pace.  For the average person, the following is true:

Grip Type			Amount of Topspin / Forward Pace using a pure wrist swing (no arm movement)
-----------------------------------		-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continental:			Zero spin / Max forward pace
Eastern:	 		Slight topspin / Lots of forward pace
Semi-Western: 			Some topspin / A little less forward pace
Western:			Medium topspin / Medium forward pace
Extreme Western:		Lots of top spin / Even less forward pace
Super Extreme Western:	Maximum top spin / Very little forward pace

Thus, for the average person to hit a neutral ball (medium spin and medium pace) with wrist action alone, a western grip is preferred.  Any other grip would require compensating with the arm and/or body in order to achieve the same neutral ball flight.

Note that this does not mean that a western grip is the preferred grip.  A player who wishes to hit with more pace at the expense of slightly reduced topspin might be better suited using a semi-western grip, for example.  Same goes for a player with wishes to hit with more spin at the expense of reduced pace, he or she might be better off using an extreme western grip.  The choice of grip relates to whether a player wishes to play an attacking style or a defensive style .  Generally, more spin increases the chances of making the ball in the court, which is good for defense, while more pace increases the chances of inducing an error from the opponent at the expense of making an error yourself.

Different people have different physiques.  Some may hit a neutral ball easier with something other than a western grip, although it wouldn't be to far away from western if they are human.  Some players might have a natural arm or body motion that hits a neutral ball easiest with something other than a western grip.

Another factor is the power delievered to the ball.  Maximum power is delivered when the wrist snaps maximally during the swing, given a certain arm/body motion.  In practice, as one hits with less and less spin, the precision required to make a maximum power ball (full wrist snap) in the court increases dramatically.  Therefore, one tends to use less and less of one's maximum potential power as the grip type goes more toward continental, resulting in more of an "arm swing".  As one heads more western in the grip, the more one can deliver the maximum power to the ball (able to snap the wrist fully) and still make the ball in the court.  This is of course due to the increased topsin.  However, the problem with this extreme is that most of the power goes into generating spin, and it becomes difficult to generate forward pace without some kind of special arm/body motion.  Generally, the players with the most penetrating forehands on the tour use semi-western to western type grips, which tend to deliver generous pace with a fair amount of topspin for control.  The players with extreme western or extremely flat grips tend to have weaker forehands, due to too much power going into spin for the former, and the necessity to back off the power in order to make the shot consistently for the latter.

3.) I hear that modern players tend to use a lot of wrist in their swings, which can lead to wrist injury, is this true?

No, this is misinformation.  You usually hear this from older, more continental styled players who do not understand the mechanics of the more western grips, or from players who swing at the ball incorrectly.  Modern players use a lot of wrist action in their swings, no doubt, but they do not power the ball using the wrist.  Rather, the power is generated by increasing the acceleration time by way of a longer swing.  The wrist snap simply extends the time and space available to accelerate the ball.  By the time you make contact, all the work has already been done by you and it's mostly the momentum of the racket that pushes the ball away.  The wrist snap guides the racket's motion through impact and allows it travel in a proper trajectory.  You are not actively powering through the ball using your wrist.  The power comes from a longer takeaway and an extended accleration zone created by cocking the wrist.  A correct modern swing actually requires very little grip pressure, since most of the work is done by the racket at impact.  Note that all this is only true assuming a proper grip to begin with.  For most people, this natural motion is best achieved using a western grip.  Other grips tend to require compensating motion from arm or body, and can lead to more injury since the wrist is not allowed to snap naturally.

More than likely, it's the more traditional swings that tend to injure the wrist, because the grips are flatter so you cannot use the natural wrist motion of the wrist to assist in the shot.  Rather, you have to hold the wrist firm through impact while most of the work is done by the arms.  Usually the racket head speed is slower and you have to apply more torque through impact rather then letting the racket do the work.  The grip pressure is necessarily higher.  More injury tends to occur, especially during mishits due to the increased grip pressure and firmer wrist.

The difference between modern players and players of the past is that they go for more when stretched.  Nobody says that you cannot throw up a lob using a continental grip when you are on the run.  But modern players are more daring, so they try to hit a pentrating shot with topspin even when on the run.  Of course, you won't have as much time to accelerate the racket in this case, so you would have to use the wrist to apply a lot of the power.  It's a matter of personal choice rather than anything to do with modern swing versus traditional swing since a traditional player can just as likely try to hit a topspin running forehand with a continental grip, but the result will tend to be poor with an increased risk of injury since a continental grip is not ideal for this kind of shot.

4.) What's the most basic strategy in tennis, if there is any at all?

The most basic strategy in tennis is to force the opponent to hit a down-the-line shot over the high part of the net without having to do so yourself.