by More than a year after his retirement, Roger Federer remains the poster boy for the one-handed backhand – tennis’ most aesthetically pleasing shot. But it could be the key to its decline.
When the ATP rankings were updated on Monday, there was no single player in the top 10 in the world for the first time since the chart’s inauguration, all the way back in 1973.
The victory shift for the modern style of tennis represents a power baseline as opposed to all-court mastery or net play. Some of the reasons are systemic, for example changing racket technology. Others are more personal, like Federer’s struggles at the (two) hands of Rafael Nadal.
“You go back to that period around 2003 and 2004 and Roger was so dominant,” says British coach Calvin Betton. “But then Rafa came along and started hitting big, high-bouncing balls into Federer’s backhand. When Rafa came to the top of their competition, it created a stigma for the individual handler.”
Admittedly, Federer has made a late-career upgrade on his backhand, winning six of his last seven meetings with Nadal to tip the balance back a bit. (The scorecard ended at 24-16 in favor of Nadal.)
But the damage had already been done. The image of Federer smacking a shoulder backhand, especially on the high-bouncing clay of Roland Garros, has sunk deep into the sporting consciousness.
Nadal’s dominance over Federer spanned more than a decade – from 2005 to 2016 – and reflected a wider stylistic shift within the game. This was the period when natural gut strings were being phased out by polyester. This is tennis’ answer to the Roland synthesizer, which forced traditional pianos out of recording studios during the 1980s.
Polyester strings last longer, add more spin, and give you more power. On the downside, however, they feel less than the natural alternatives.
If there is a player who embodies the mechanical style of polyester tennis, it is Jannik Sinner, the recent Australian Open champion, who won in Rotterdam on Sunday to go 12 for 12 in this year’s game. The owner of a punishing double hander, Sinner is technically sound and relentlessly powerful, but there is so little contact that he could almost be playing in oven gloves. For better or worse, this is the modern way.
The near extinction of the one-handed backhand is a grim scenario. While Sinner’s physical explosion makes for an entertaining watch, no viewer wants uniformity. A day on Center Court at Wimbledon could be the sport’s answer to Attack of the Clones.
Without the rise of a dominant handler to emulate Federer’s feats, this trend is unlikely to change back in the opposite direction. And one reason is the increased emphasis placed on success at a young age.
The management agencies and national federations are attracting promising agents when they are in their early teens or even younger. But it’s hard to swing with one hand when you’re not physically developed – which is why Pete Sampras didn’t make the move until he was 14. As a coach, you are at risk of teaching this increasingly old-fashioned shot. , hopefully it will come in handy when a player has gained strength in the next few years.
It’s a tennis pleasure to see a photogenic handler in full swing. The alluring beauty of Richard Gasquet’s single handler earned him the nickname “Le Petit Mozart” – the ultimate backhand compliment.
In recent years, two of the greatest performances on the ATP Tour have seen one-handed maestros take down Novak Djokovic. Think Stan Wawrinka in the 2015 French Open final, and Dominic Thiem at the ATP Finals in 2020. On both occasions, Djokovic saw backhand winners flying past him from all directions.
Overall, though, Djokovic has won far more of these battles than he has lost. The owner of the most reliable two-hander in history, he is also building an unassailable case to be considered the greatest player overall. That’s one more reason why modern coaches feel that the ship has been single-handedly sailed.
“In the best shape, a single-hander gives you more spin and more power than a two-hander,” Betton said. “But to be able to hit like that you need a big upper body like Wawrinka or Thiem. These guys can attack from the back, and hit winners behind the baseline. They can use their strength to absorb the pace of the modern game, and create their own. In general, however, it is more common to see bullying as an individual.
“I would like to say that there is a new generation of individuals rising at the Challenger level [the next tier down from the ATP Tour] but I’m just seeing it. The only exception is this 6ft 8in French kid called Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who has the same powerful physique I mentioned before. Otherwise, one is swimming against the tide.”
