Grip & overgrip

Grip size is an inconspicuous quantity with a large effect — on your wrist and on your health. The rule of thumb comes from badminton: when you grip the racket normally, there should be about the width of a little finger of space between your fingertips and the heel of your hand. Put differently, the thumb touches the grip without overlapping the other fingers.

The dangerous mistake goes downward. If the grip is too thin, the fingertips dig into the heel of the hand, and you have to clamp the racket tightly all the time so it doesn't twist on the stroke. This constant tension travels into the forearm and is considered one of the main triggers of tennis elbow. For your game this has an immediate consequence: the loose grip is the prerequisite for the whip from the wrist. A grip that's too thin makes this looseness impossible — then the material works against your technique.

Up to three layers sit on the grip. The base band is fitted at the factory, about 1.8 millimeters thick, dampens vibrations and lasts a long time. The overgrip, thin at 0.4 to 0.7 millimeters, is wound over it and is a wear part. A towel grip is thicker and soaks up sweat like a towel — the right choice for heavily sweating hands, often together with a little grip powder.

The overgrip is at the same time your tool for finely adjusting the grip size: each layer increases the diameter. If you know you'll use an overgrip anyway, choose the racket a size thinner from the start. Conversely, you can wind an overgrip directly onto the bare grip to grip especially thin. As an upper limit: base band plus one overgrip; anything beyond that gets too thick.

Overgrips are wear parts. After a few weeks they lose their tackiness — then you replace them, instead of renewing the more expensive base band right away. The base band lasts about half a year depending on condition. And because the grip is the spot where sweat and hand come together longest, keep it clean and replace it when it's worn.

Grip your racket the way you hold it in play, and slide a finger between your fingertips and the heel of your hand: does a little finger fit comfortably, or is it tighter? In your next rally, notice whether you have to clamp the grip so it doesn't twist away — a sign it's too thin for you. And check your overgrip: is it still tacky, or is it time for a fresh one?