In Part I, we demonstrated the third defensive forehand on court using a closed stance. In this discussion, we take a closer look at the stroke in still photos and rollovers, only this time with an open stance.

The third defensive forehand is useful in a wide variety of situations as mentioned, but one of the most important is when the ball lands deep and you are not prepared for a full open-stance forehand stroke. Of particular importance is when you have no time for a rotation stage, much less a takeback or contraction stage.

Below left is the starting position for the open-stance third defensive forehand. This a contraction position since it is assumed that there is no time for a takeback stage. The shoulder has been drawn back as if standing at attention.

On the right above is a three-stage animation of the open-stance third defensive forehand. Below left is the second stage of this stroke, which corresponds to the acceleration stage, and on the right is a rollover showing the transition between these two stages. It is assumed that you have been caught in a face-on position that does not permit a rotation stage to occur. The shoulder has been brought forward from the attention position to a nearly normal position. This indicates that the power of this stroke comes from the shoulder.

Below left is the strike stage of this stroke, and on the right is a rollover showing the transition from the acceleration to the strike stage. The shoulder has been extended forward, further promoting the acceleration of the racquet from the shoulder.

The strike is just a forearm extension. As with the touch volley, overextending the forearm can lead to injury, so this must be done with care.

The open-stance third defensive forehand is a good stroke to use in short-court rallies and to develop the use of the shoulder generally.

In Part III, we will examine the open-stance third defensive forehand with an eastern grip.