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The Role of the Shoulder: Andy Murray

This clip of Andy Murray's foreahnd is one of my all time favorites. I filmed it from high above looking down, and a bit behind him. It's the perfect angle to see what Murray is doing after he "finds the ball".

With everything lined up on contact Murray, like Hewitt in the previous page, drives the ball with his powerful shoulder muscle. The hand and racket hold back while the shoulder is pushing the arm forward, lifting upward, and then turning over in a full 180 degree rotation of the shoulder joint.

In the first two frames of the animation, watch Murray's shoulder muscle push forward, as if he is pushing and lifting something that is heavy, like a heavy barrel of water, in order to push it over. Notice how the racket head and hand hold back so they can aid in the push. And then after the two frames of pushing you can see the shoulder start to rotate, along with the forearm.

The below image shows the modern forehand finish. There is an imaginary "box" formed by Murray's forearm and body. You only finish like this if you have pushed through and lifted from your shoulder and finally rotated the entire arm over from the shoulder. Notice how Murray's chin is right over his shoulder in this finish position. It's another indication of how he has really driven that shoulder through the ball.

The big mistake we make in tennis instruction is to tell people where the racket should finish. The racket will typically finish like this, in front of the body and pointing at the left fence. But that the finish should be a consequence of driving the shoulder through, upward, and over. It's the upper arm and shoulder that we care about, and we want to always be in this "box" finish. It guarantees you are using proper modern technique to drive the ball with plenty of topspin.

As an exercise, put your left hand on your right shoulder. Now push, lift and rotate your arm using your right shoulder. Your left hand should really feel how powerful the shoulder muscle is. You can also feel how the shoulder is capable of moving forward, upward, and can also rotate.

Next: Lesson 2 - Coiling and Uncoiling With the Arms

SHOULDER POWER: Push, Lift, and Turn with the shoulder.
SHOULDER POWER: Push, Lift, and Turn with the shoulder.