Tennis grips explained: continental, eastern, semi-western and western

Four grips cover almost every shot in tennis. The continental grip, where you hold the racket like a hammer, is the one for the serve, the volley, the overhead and the slice. The eastern and semi-western grips are for the forehand, and the western grip is the extreme version of them. Backhands use an eastern backhand grip with one hand, or a continental and an eastern grip together with two. If you're starting out, learn the continental for serving and volleying and an eastern or semi-western grip for your forehand, and you've got what you need for years.

That isn't just our preference. In a 2024 survey of 226 accredited tennis coaches by Busuttil and colleagues, 94% said they teach the continental grip for the serve, and about two-thirds teach the semi-western grip for the forehand, with the eastern forehand close behind.

Below we explain how grips are named, what each one does, which grip to use for which shot, which grips the pros use, what the research says about grips and wrist injuries, and how to change a grip without wrecking your game.

How tennis grips are named: the eight bevels

A tennis handle isn't round. It has eight flat sides called bevels, and every grip is named by where your hand sits on them. Hold the racket in front of you with the edge of the frame pointing up and look at the butt cap. For a right-hander, bevel 1 is the flat on top, and the numbers go clockwise from there: bevel 2 is the top-right slope, 3 is the right side, 4 the lower-right slope and 5 the bottom. Left-handers mirror everything and count anticlockwise.

Two parts of your hand do the work: the base knuckle of your index finger and the heel pad, the fleshy pad at the bottom of your palm. Put the index knuckle on bevel 2 and you have a continental grip. Move it to 3 for an eastern forehand, to 4 for a semi-western and to 5 for a western. Some coaches go by the heel pad rather than the knuckle, so you'll see slightly different descriptions online, but the order of the grips is always the same.

The key idea is simple. As your hand turns from bevel 2 towards bevel 5, the racket face closes (tilts forward), you meet the ball further in front of your body, and it becomes easier to brush up the back of the ball for topspin. Every grip choice is a trade along that line.

The continental grip

To find it, hold the racket as if you were about to hammer a nail with the edge of the frame. The USTA's coaching tip puts it the other way round: if you're holding the racket like a frying pan, rotate the handle in your hand until you're looking at the thin edge of the frame instead of the strings. Your index knuckle ends up on bevel 2 and a V forms between your thumb and index finger on top of the handle.

This is the most important grip in tennis because so many shots use it. The USTA lists the volley, serve, slice backhand and overhead, and you'll also use it for drop shots and for blocking back a fast serve when there's no time to change. The open racket face makes underspin easy and lets your forearm turn over naturally through contact on the serve. At the net it has one more advantage: the same grip works for forehand and backhand volleys, so you don't have to change grips when the ball comes at you fast.

What it doesn't do well is the modern topspin forehand. With the face open you have to work hard to keep the ball in, and high balls are awkward. Before the 1980s plenty of great players hit forehands with something close to a continental grip; today almost nobody does, and only 2-4% of the coaches in the 2024 survey teach it for the forehand. Self-taught players often hit everything with it, which is one of the most common habits our coaches fix.

The eastern forehand grip

Move your hand one bevel round, so the index knuckle sits on bevel 3, and you have the eastern forehand grip. The easy way to find it is to lay your palm flat against the strings and slide it down to the handle, or simply shake hands with the racket. Your palm ends up flush with the side of the handle, facing the same way as the strings.

The eastern grip gives a flatter, more direct ball. Biomechanics research comparing eastern and western forehands (Elliott, Takahashi and Noffal, 1997, summarised in the 2024 survey) found the eastern grip puts more of the racket speed into a forward, horizontal path, while stronger grips put more into an upward path for spin. You meet the ball roughly level with your front hip, which feels natural, and low balls are comfortable because the racket face is already square to them. It's also a short step from eastern to continental when you go to the net.

The weakness shows on high, heavy balls. Above shoulder height it's hard to keep an eastern forehand in, and against a player who hits big topspin on clay you'll often be hitting from an uncomfortable height. About half the coaches in the survey teach it for the forehand, often to beginners first.

The semi-western forehand grip

Turn your hand one more bevel underneath, index knuckle on bevel 4, and you're in a semi-western grip. The racket face now sits slightly closed and your contact point moves further in front of you.

This is the forehand grip most coaches teach today: 68% of the less experienced coaches and 65% of the more experienced ones in the 2024 survey. It's also what most club players already use. In a study of 370 club players in Italy, 60.5% used a semi-western forehand and 24.9% an eastern one. The reason is versatility. You can brush up the back of the ball for heavy topspin when you need margin, flatten it out when you get a short ball, and handle balls at waist and shoulder height comfortably. The low, wrapping "windshield wiper" finish of the modern forehand comes naturally from this grip.

The price is low balls. To hit a ball that skids through at knee height you have to bend your knees properly and get under it, which takes more legwork than with an eastern grip. Switching to a continental for a volley is also a slightly bigger move.

The western and Hawaiian grips

With the index knuckle on bevel 5, almost underneath the handle, you have a full western grip. The racket face is very closed, the contact point is well in front, and the natural swing brushes steeply up the ball. That gives the heaviest topspin of the standard grips and makes high balls easy: the ball dips over the net and kicks up off the court, which is why the grip suits clay.

Low balls are the problem. You have to drop very low and lift sharply, flat shots are hard, slices and drop shots feel awkward, and the change to a continental at the net is the biggest of any forehand grip. Few coaches start players on it: only 6-8% in the 2024 survey teach a western forehand. Iga Swiatek is the best-known exception at the top of the game; tennis.com's analysis of her forehand describes it as a western grip and names Karen Khachanov and Jack Sock as ATP players who hit with one too.

Go past bevel 5 and you reach the Hawaiian, or extreme western, grip. Sources don't even agree on exactly where it sits (Wikipedia puts it on bevel 6), and in practice it's a curiosity: huge spin, very hard to hit anything low or flat, and a lot of strain on the wrist. We don't teach it.

Backhand grips: one hand or two

For a one-handed backhand, turn your hand the other way from the continental until the index knuckle sits on top of the handle, on bevel 1. That's the eastern backhand grip. It puts the palm on top of the racket, so your hand can support the racket face as it meets the ball in front of you. Players who want more topspin go a little further, to bevel 8, a semi-western backhand. The one-handed slice backhand stays on the continental.

Most players today hit a two-handed backhand, and here the bottom hand matters most. The most common combination coaches teach is a continental grip on the bottom (dominant) hand with an eastern forehand grip on the top hand: 59% of less experienced and 48% of more experienced coaches in the survey. The next most common keeps the continental bottom hand and puts the top hand in a semi-western grip. The top hand does much of the work, so it behaves like a left-handed forehand for a right-hander.

Which grip for which shot

Here's the short version, based on what most coaches teach.

Which grip should a beginner use?

Start with two grips, not one. Learn the continental for the serve and volley from the first weeks, even though it feels strange to hit a serve with it at first. Beginners who serve with a forehand grip can get the ball in, but they hit a ceiling quickly because they can't add spin or pace, and unlearning it later is harder than learning it now.

For the forehand, an eastern or a mild semi-western grip is the safest choice. The eastern is the most natural and the easiest to time, and it builds clean contact. The semi-western gives more margin through topspin and is where most players end up. If a coach is watching you, they'll choose between the two based on how you swing and the height of the balls you face. What you want to avoid is a western grip learned by accident, or a continental forehand, because both limit you later. If you'd like a coach to set your grips up properly from the start, our beginner tennis programs cover exactly this in the first sessions.

Which grips do the pros use?

Most top players today are described as hitting with a semi-western forehand or something close to it, with individual differences. Roger Federer is the famous exception on the eastern side: his grip sat between eastern and semi-western, which helped him take the ball early and hit through the court. Rafael Nadal's forehand grip was usually described as semi-western, drifting towards western for extra spin on clay. Iga Swiatek hits with a full western grip, as described above.

Be careful with specific claims you read online. Novak Djokovic, for example, is described as semi-western by some sources and as something stronger by others, and players adjust their grip slightly from shot to shot anyway. What every professional shares is the continental grip on the serve and the volley. For a look at how different grips play out at the top level, see our list of the top 13 tennis players with the best forehand.

Does your grip affect injury risk?

Your grip changes which side of the wrist takes the load. A study of 370 club players by Tagliafico and colleagues (American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2009) found that 50 of them, 13%, had a wrist injury. Injuries on the little-finger side of the wrist, most often to the extensor carpi ulnaris tendon (30 of the 50 cases), were linked to western and semi-western grips. Injuries on the thumb side were linked to the eastern grip. Injured players missed an average of 69 days of competition.

The study links grip to where the wrist gets hurt, not to how often. The authors point to heavy topspin combined with limited technical and physical training as the main cause of wrist injuries in club players. So a semi-western grip isn't dangerous in itself, but if you move to a stronger grip to chase more spin, build up gradually and have a coach check how you're using your wrist.

Should you change your grip?

Changing a grip as an adult is possible, but it's uncomfortable. Your current grip is built into every swing you've made, so a new one feels wrong for weeks and your results get worse before they get better. The coaches in the 2024 survey said the same thing: when players drift back to their old grip, it's mostly out of habit (56-62%) or because the new grip feels uncomfortable (50-58%).

It's worth doing when your grip is clearly holding you back: a continental forehand that can't produce topspin, a forehand grip on the serve, or a western grip that falls apart on every low ball. In our experience a one-bevel change, such as eastern to semi-western, takes a few weeks to feel normal, while a two-bevel change can take a few months. Use the new grip in drills first, then in practice points, and only then in matches. Don't switch back and forth during a match; under pressure you'll end up with two half-learned grips instead of one good one.

Two small habits help whatever grip you use. Hold the racket loosely between shots and firm up only as you hit, because a tight grip slows the racket head and tires your forearm. And spread your index finger slightly up the handle, like a trigger finger, for more control. If the racket still twists in your hand, the problem may be the handle rather than the grip, and our tennis grip size guide explains how to check that.

Get your grips checked by a coach

Grips are hard to judge on your own, because the wrong one can feel perfectly natural. A coach can spot it in a few balls and give you drills to make the change stick. If you're planning a training week in Spain, our private tennis lessons and beginner programs start with exactly this kind of check.

Disclosure: this guide was reviewed by Sergio Dronov, a co-founder of Pelotista and the founder and head coach of Valencia Tennis Academy. Pelotista sells training programs at Valencia Tennis Academy.