Nov 26, 2024

How to hit a backhand flick volley

Tip 1

Backhand flick volleys can be an extremely effective way for us to put pressure on your opponents by going on offense at the kitchen line. The technique can be difficult to master, but practicing this shot will give you a huge competitive edge!

Flick volleys require a flick of our wrist in an outward motion, which quickly accelerates your paddle to create power from a compact swing.

In order to hit a backhand flick, start with your paddle angled diagonally towards the ground and your wrist fully broken. As you hit, make contact by brushing up against the ball and moving your wrist back up into a more natural position. The key is to keep your arm completely straight as you hit, and create the acceleration from your wrist.

If you’re having trouble getting the swing down, pretend that you’re throwing your paddle like a frisbee without letting go. The wrist motion that you use to throw a frisbee is almost the same as the wrist motion required to hit a backhand flick!

Tip 2

The main benefit of the flick volley is that you’re able to attack from below the net. Punch volleys and roll volleys are effective attacks from above the height of the net, but usually result in errors when attempted from below the net. A flick volley allows you to accelerate quickly with topspin, so you can lift the ball from low to high and get it to drop as it gets to your opponents.

Topspin makes the ball go down, allowing you to effectively attack from low to high.

A flick volley also allows you to attack high dinks by reaching over the kitchen line. Since you’re able to attack from below the net, you can put more pressure on your opponents to dink better and keep their shots low, because the threat of an attack will be there if they hit even slightly too high.