What is the purpose of the jumping backhand?

[python]

You see Fish, Moya, Safin, and Rios doing it all the time with their two-handers. What's the advantage? Just putaway power?

[Verbal_Kint]

You're able to hit the ball a little higher, and yes, there is more power as well.

Marnix

[Plawan]

Helping keep your court position, not having to run back for the ball to drop, and better net clearance, especially down the line.

[@wright]

Rios was the one who developed and really got other guys like Safin using this stroke. Chang also used to do it, but different than Rios. Obviously, with guys like Chang and Rios height comes into play. They can't get as much leverage hitting high balls since they are pretty short guys. If they leap up and hit the ball, they can hit it at a more tolerable height between waist and shoulder. It also makes it a little easier to hit the ball on the rise. Plawan makes a good point about court position.

[Eric Matuszewski]

The purpose is to look really manly and scare your opponent. Just kidding. Honestly though, simple physics dictates that hitting down on a ball is much easier than hitting up on a ball (you dont have to counteract gravities effect on your racket, hand and arm)
This manuever puts you higher than the ball your hitting, thus you can let gravity do some of your work.
Secondly this manuever adds some additional trunk torque which adds to final racket head speed. (see my earlier post on the other board about how to do it)
Finally, if your hitting a ball at an altitude higher than the net you don't have to worry about hitting over the net as much.

[jun]

It helps them to take the ball a little higher. When the other person hits a ball that bounces a little high, you don't have to move back to hit back.

I don't know if you can put more power on to the ball since you are not putting all the weight behind the ball.

[Hyperstate]

Erm, it looks super cool when Safin and Ferrero do it! I think the advantage does not lie in maintaining court position but rather in taking the ball early (and giving less time to your opponent) and hitting an offensive shot. With the additional height clearance, the pros get mean angles with it. Taken early + pace + angle = winner!

[Rickson]

Are there any one handers who do it?

[soyizgood]

Originally Posted by Rickson

Are there any one handers who do it?

Federer, when he has to hit off his back foot against Nadal on clay. We can see how well that jumping backhand works. hehehe

[dakels]

Originally Posted by soyizgood

Federer, when he has to hit off his back foot against Nadal on clay. We can see how well that jumping backhand works. hehehe

I was wracking my brain on this one because I know I have seen it and thought it was really unusual. It takes an extraordinary balance, timing, and power to pull this off well without it being a defensive inside out punch shot which is when I usually see it.

Not really crazy but here you can see a jump 2hbh and a jump 1hbh from fed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWoKA21Bm4k

The thing about a jumping backhand is that being off the ground, you lose a lot of power transfer so it is often a shot to help you rotate into an otherwise tough angle shot and to help hit down on a higher ball. Most of the power from a jumping backhand will be from upper body rotation.

[Sublime]

Originally Posted by Rickson

Are there any one handers who do it?

Guga did it a lot.

[Gemini]

Leverage. It allows you to hit the ball in a more comfortable strike zone.

[Nellie]

The jumping backhand is not about jumping into the shot. Look carefully, and you will see that jumping allows a player to bring up and kick back their backhand side leg during the forward stroke to get a lot of rotational energy (like an ice skater at the end of jump)

[Tennisman912]

The main reason it is done is as Gemini suggests. By jumping, the two hander can be hit in their normal strike zone without having to retreat on the court to hit it in their strike zone. It is all about being consistent. Yes, it can give a little more leverage but the main reason it is done is to keep the shot close to a normal groundstroke as possible without retreating and giving up court position.

You get a lot more power and control hitting that 2 hander around waist level as opposed to shoulder level, if you hadn't jumped.

Good tennis

TM

[user92626]

I think it's very simple. You take advantage of a high ball to clear the net better, earlier time than to back up and allow opponent to catch up. The cost is it's harder shot to make than if you're grounded.

[SystemicAnomaly]

Originally Posted by Gemini

Leverage. It allows you to hit the ball in a more comfortable strike zone.

Yup. In the clip below it appears that Safin is hitting a chest-high ball down around waist level because he employs the jump/mule-kick action. Note that his rear hip and shoulder appear to be higher than the front counterparts.

Hi-TechTennis.com/video_sample.php?player_id=8&video_id=184

Originally Posted by Rickson

Are there any one handers who do it?

I had adopted it for a while with my 1-hander when I had a lot of heel pain on my back foot (right foot since I'm a lefty). I as able to lean into the shot a bit and drive off the front leg rather than the rear leg -- a whole lot less painful for me at the time. I used the Safin 2-hander video (above) as a model.

[mixertefera]

it's called lazy footwork it so you don't have to backup or try and take it early... you kind of are takeing it early when you jump.... and its fun as hell

[Nellie]

Originally Posted by mixertefera

it's called lazy footwork it so you don't have to backup or try and take it early... you kind of are takeing it early when you jump.... and its fun as hell

No - it is a shot that allows you to drive the ball very offensively, much like the high forehand. If you hit the ball lower (either earlier or later) you could not hit down as much on the ball but would, instead, need to hit the ball up and over the net.

[mixertefera]

Originally Posted by Nellie

No - it is a shot that allows you to drive the ball very offensively, much like the high forehand. If you hit the ball lower (either earlier or later) you could not hit down as much on the ball but would, instead, need to hit the ball up and over the net.

true to some degree but it is a way to get out of moving also if that was true the pro's would do it all the time from what i see and my own experience it only effective if you are in side the baseline and if i hit a jump backhand i tend to hit it short because you can't get as much power as with to feet on the ground

hmmm something i said there is not phrased right

Originally Posted by Verbal_Kint

You're able to hit the ball a little higher, and yes, there is more power as well.

Marnix

I respectfully disagree. The moment your feet leave the ground, you lose power, unless your serving. Thats because the service motion is upward then downward, so transfer of weight is into the hitting motion. With a ground stroke, you are sacrificing power when off your feet.

The jumping backhand is for high strike-zone hitting and possibly out of position, so moving forward to take the ball before it comes down. The "jump" is always into the hitting zone and toward the target.