It's official: Gaudio has the best one-handed backhand in pro tennis

BreakPoint · May 31, 2007

After watching the first two sets of the Gaudio-Hewitt match this morning, I just have to say that Gaudio definitely has the best 1HBH on the ATP Tour. That thing is an absolute monster! He whips it with so much pace its scary. He can hit amazing crosscourt angles with it as well as crank it with phenomenal precision down the line. His DTL backhand is like a laser guided missle that travels perfectly parallel with the sideline and then lands exactly in the corner almost every frickin' time. It's just amazing. :-o

So I just have to crown Gaudio as having the best 1HBH on tour. :grin:

Second is Haas, and Federer is third IMO. Gasquet might sneak in as fourth IMO.

dima · May 31, 2007

k thanks..

diegaa · May 31, 2007

BreakPoint said:
After watching the first two sets of the Gaudio-Hewitt match this morning, I just have to say that Gaudio definitely has the best 1HBH on the ATP Tour. That thing is an absolute monster! He whips it with so much pace its scary. He can hit amazing crosscourt angles with it as well as crank it with phenomenal precision down the line. His DTL backhand is like a laser guided missle that travels perfectly parallel with the sideline and then lands exactly in the corner almost every frickin' time. It's just amazing. :-o

So I just have to crown Gaudio as having the best 1HBH on tour. :grin:

Second is Haas, and Federer is third IMO. Gasquet might sneak in as fourth IMO.

his 1hbh down the line is absolutely orgiastic.

psamp14 · May 31, 2007

i have not seen a lot of gaudio's game but his backhand is phenomenal....too bad he's not getting a lot of luck winning matches with it

haas' backhand is superb....another one of my favorite players to watch

thefan · May 31, 2007

I'm not quite familiar with gaston gaudio game, any vids of his backhands?

Zets147 · May 31, 2007

when BP speaks, we must listen since he is GOAT (no sarcasm included here. I promise!)

Andy Hewitt · May 31, 2007

The same backhand that lost to Hewitt?

BreakPoint · May 31, 2007

They're showing the end of the Gaudio-Hewitt match right now on TTC.

TalkingTennis91 · May 31, 2007

Andy Hewitt said:
The same backhand that lost to Hewitt?

Dude, Hewitt played a great match and rallied from 2 sets down to win it. No one can win a match exclusively on backhands. Come on

BreakPoint · May 31, 2007

Andy Hewitt said:
The same backhand that lost to Hewitt?

After watching the first two sets, I went to bed thinking there's no way Gaudio could lose this match as he was playing so incredibly well. He just dominated Hewitt on rallies in the 1st and 2nd sets and did whatever he wanted to do. The way Gaudio was playing, I thought he could beat Federer.

How Hewitt came back and won that match still amazes me.

ShcMad · May 31, 2007

I love how Gaudio is able to rip his backhand without any apparent effort. Such a smooth and graceful-looking shot.

sabi · May 31, 2007

I sat and watched Gaudio on the practice courts at Key Biscayne in awe of his backhand. It really is an incredible shot. Plus, I think he and Federer hit their backhands further out in front of themselves than anyone else.

That was practice though. On a fast hardcourt, I'll easily still take Federer's backhand over Gaudio's. Gaston did not look nearly as good in his match (was it against Radek) as he did practicing. And I would probably take Gasquet's and Gonzo's as well. Gonzo cause of the lethal use he displayed at the Australia. Gasquet because seems to have a great mix of power and touch that works on the hard courts as well.

Thoroughly impressed with Gaudio though. He and Gonzo seem to have the tighest grips on the backhand side. Very few people are strong enough to hold that right angle form and rip backhands.

hoosierbr · May 31, 2007

Gaudio has a great one-hander, no question. But my vote goes to Andrei Pavel.

BreakPoint · May 31, 2007

hoosierbr said:
Gaudio has a great one-hander, no question. But my vote goes to Andrei Pavel.

I would rate Pavel either #4 or #5 on my list, about tied with Gasquet.

chiru · May 31, 2007

sabi said:
I sat and watched Gaudio on the practice courts at Key Biscayne in awe of his backhand. It really is an incredible shot. Plus, I think he and Federer hit their backhands further out in front of themselves than anyone else.

That was practice though. On a fast hardcourt, I'll easily still take Federer's backhand over Gaudio's. Gaston did not look nearly as good in his match (was it against Radek) as he did practicing. And I would probably take Gasquet's and Gonzo's as well. Gonzo cause of the lethal use he displayed at the Australia. Gasquet because seems to have a great mix of power and touch that works on the hard courts as well.

Thoroughly impressed with Gaudio though. He and Gonzo seem to have the tighest grips on the backhand side. Very few people are strong enough to hold that right angle form and rip backhands.

IMO gonzo has the single most overrated backhand ever. seriously, that shot is barely a rally ball. it makes me laugh when ppl suggest that its comparable (and some say better) than sampras's one hander. In OZ, his slices sat up and lacked the penetration and low to the ground bounce characterized by more natural slicers like federer. I agree that he improved his slice a lot, but by no means was it anywhere near the top few 1h bh's on tour. I mean, gonzalez admits it himself, his backhand is his biggest liability, and the only way to sure that up has been a decent rally ball slice. by no means an effective or great slice, just enough to keep him in the point long enough to set up his forehand (IMO rightfully one of the best in the sport).

sabi · May 31, 2007

I can see your critique of Gonzo's backhand. And I'm going off his success at the Australian where he destroyed everyone he played not named Federer. He has since come back to earth, as has Federer (although he still floats comfortably above it). The Australian court seemed to play faster than any other court surface out there thus far this year on tour, and Gonzo seemed to take full advantage of that. I love, love Gaston's backhand - the reason why I spent so much time just watching him on a practice court, when there were real matches being played. But he does not win enough matches for me to say that his backhand is considerably or easily better than others. That's why I looked to others re BP's initial post.

I like Gaudio's over Gonzo, but I see Gonzo as being more effective with his, even if that's in large part to set himself up for the forehand. And if Blake were dominating this year, I'd pick his backhand over Gonzo's and Gaudio's. I think the courts, at least the US master series courts were slowed this year making the game less friendly to flat ball hitters like Gonzo, Blake, and to a lesser extent Roger. So their successes have been muted somewhat.

Anyway, lookswise Gasquet's is my favorite next to Federer and Henin, but given the looks of his strokes I would like to see him going deeper like Djokovic has done this year.

I can see the critique and I am giving Gonzo the benefit of his improved backhand play at the Australian and some subsequent matches.

Not sure who is saying any of his strokes are comparable or better than sampras'. I don't see that at all.

Will have to check out the Pavel person. Don't recall seeing him.

psamp14 · May 31, 2007

BreakPoint said:
After watching the first two sets, I went to bed thinking there's no way Gaudio could lose this match as he was playing so incredibly well. He just dominated Hewitt on rallies in the 1st and 2nd sets and did whatever he wanted to do. The way Gaudio was playing, I thought he could beat Federer.

How Hewitt came back and won that match still amazes me.

i just saw some highlights and gaudio was playing incredibly well...i've got a question on your opinion BP....do you think the form gaudio was in those first two sets could have taken down nadal?

hewitt coming back to win is remarkable, but its hewitt, the drive, the intensity, the attitude....CAMAWWWWWNN!!!!!!!

BreakPoint · May 31, 2007

psamp14 said:
..i've got a question on your opinion BP....do you think the form gaudio was in those first two sets could have taken down nadal?

Possible but not likely as Nadal's crosscourt forehand has a lot more topspin on it than Hewitt's crosscourt backhand does, so it would have created more problems for Gaudio trying to nail his backhands from a higher bounce, maybe as high as his shoulder because he's a pretty short guy at 5' 9".

David L · May 31, 2007

Gaudio played well, but Hewitt pretty much matched him throughout and beat him in the end. He was unlucky to lose the first set. Gaudio has a very nice backhand, very solid. However, it's not a particularly powerful shot. Pace wise, he and Hewitt hit a similar ball. Federer and Nadal have the capacity to overpower him. Gaudio hits a very comfortable pace for both of them. Also, Gaudio does'nt get the speed and whip off his backhand that Federer manages.

edmondsm · Jun 1, 2007

BreakPoint said:
After watching the first two sets of the Gaudio-Hewitt match this morning, I just have to say that Gaudio definitely has the best 1HBH on the ATP Tour. That thing is an absolute monster! He whips it with so much pace its scary. He can hit amazing crosscourt angles with it as well as crank it with phenomenal precision down the line. His DTL backhand is like a laser guided missle that travels perfectly parallel with the sideline and then lands exactly in the corner almost every frickin' time. It's just amazing. :-o

So I just have to crown Gaudio as having the best 1HBH on tour. :grin:

Second is Haas, and Federer is third IMO. Gasquet might sneak in as fourth IMO.

It's pretty awesome. To bad we didn't get to enjoy more of it, as he is a total head-case. After he won the FO, and then proceeded to have a good clay season the next year, I thought I would get to watch him for a while. Well, didn't happen, what can you do. You're right though, I would say he's got a top 10 1HBH, all time.

Guga_x · Jun 1, 2007

His backhand is about as good as his head is not!!!

The guy was laughing screaming to his entourage during the first set something like:

"This guy doesn't play nothing. I have to do everything. He just pushes it back."

helloworld · Jun 1, 2007

Gaudio was amazing in the first two sets, but we all know there is something wrong in his head, so I'm not surprise that Hewitt managed to beat him even though gaudio was playing way better than Hewitt.

Deleted member 3771 · Jun 1, 2007

Heres how Nadal handles Gaudios best

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgIRvlyWjjY

at the end the commentator says "both are known for their perseverance and never say die attitude"

BreakPoint said:
Possible but not likely as Nadal's crosscourt forehand has a lot more topspin on it than Hewitt's crosscourt backhand does, so it would have created more problems for Gaudio trying to nail his backhands from a higher bounce, maybe as high as his shoulder because he's a pretty short guy at 5' 9".

Deleted member 3771 · Jun 1, 2007

by the end he was screaming something like this to his entourage "this guy doesnt run, he makes me do all the dam running"

Guga_x said:
His backhand is about as good as his head is not!!!

The guy was laughing screaming to his entourage during the first set something like:

"This guy doesn't play nothing. I have to do everything. He just pushes it back."

Batoussai · Jun 1, 2007

I second this thread... Gaudio has the best... Every critical tenniseye can see it!

sureshs · Jun 1, 2007

He should loan his backhand to Federer for the rest of the FO.

Andres · Jun 1, 2007

BreakPoint said:
So I just have to crown Gaudio as having the best 1HBH on tour. :grin:

Did you ever doubt it?

What Gaudio does with his backhand has no parallel in the tour. It's amazing. Most people argue about Gasquet, but every time they both play, Gaudio totally outplays and outclasses Gasquet off the backhand wing.

Of course, Gasquet is better on almost everything else, specially the head.

Gaudio is the only one I saw being equal to Nadal's forehand. Nadal completely STOPPED hitting to his backhand.

Ripper · Jun 1, 2007

BreakPoint said:
How Hewitt came back and won that match still amazes me.

Hewitt didn't win those last three sets, Gaudio lost them, because his brain went in to short circuit.

sabi said:
Thoroughly impressed with Gaudio though. He and Gonzo seem to have the tighest grips on the backhand side. Very few people are strong enough to hold that right angle form and rip backhands.

What do you mean?

ShcMad · Jun 1, 2007

The thing about Gaudio's backhand is that he's able to rip shoulder-height backhands all day long with minimal effort. Even though he's a pretty short guy by ATP standards, his opponents never dare to hit high topspin shots to his backhand cuz they know he'll crush it time after time.

thanu · Jun 1, 2007

One of my favoirte matches to watch is Gaudio vs Agassi in Miami. The first set was an hour and a half.... great rallies. Gaudio was right there with Agassi, but Agassi ended up winning the match. Patrick Mcenroe, Cliff, Agassi all had great things to say about his backhand... during the match they kept talking about it.. Cliff mentioned "he's no slouch on the forhand side either." I do enjoy watching his backhand.. beautiful shot.. and I'm a two-handed backhand player, and I usually like two-hand backhands, but Gaudio is an exception. I hope he gets his mind right, and decides to keep playing.

Thanu

jmverdugo · Jun 1, 2007

Both his strokes are really good, hi hits with both wings super smoothly, it is really a beautifull thing to watch, untill the selfdestruction starts...

@wright · Jun 1, 2007

I remember that Gaudio/Agassi match, now that you mention it. I would put Gaudio a little ahead of Gasquet in consistency, but I think Richie holds the edge in explosiveness. Both guys handle high backhands with ease, but I've never seen someone crush it like Gasquet does. Neither guy has much fighting spirit though.

jelle v · Jun 1, 2007

I think Pavel has the best one-handed bh in the game..

ktownva · Jun 1, 2007

Wake up.

1. Gasquet
2. Federer
3. Ljubicic
4. Haas
5. Robredo

Batoussai · Jun 1, 2007

ktownva said:
Wake up.

1. Gasquet
2. Federer
3. Ljubicic
4. Haas
5. Robredo

He said whilst dreaming...

Dude, no way Gaudio isn't in that list... Sure those guys have good one-handers and are really nice to look at. But none of these backhands is as effective as Gaudio's... Kick Haas out of there and put Gaudio in your top three...

ktownva · Jun 1, 2007

Batoussai said:
He said whilst dreaming...

Dude, no way Gaudio isn't in that list... Sure those guys have good one-handers and are really nice to look at. But none of these backhands is as effective as Gaudio's... Kick Haas out of there and put Gaudio in your top three...

Sorry, hard for me to vote for a guy Fed double bageled with a bad foot.

@wright · Jun 1, 2007

I always wonder why people worship haas' strokes. Sure, his backhand is solid, but to me, it is not nearly as versatile as Federers. Same thing with Ljubo and Robredo, nothing special, but solid.

ktownva · Jun 1, 2007

ktownva said:
Wake up.

1. Gasquet
2. Federer
3. Ljubicic
4. Haas
5. Robredo

6. Blake
7. Gonzalez
8. Gaudio/Me (tie)

:grin:

jelle v · Jun 1, 2007

ktownva said:
Wake up.

1. Gasquet
2. Federer
3. Ljubicic
4. Haas
5. Robredo

Take the blue pill...

Have you ever seen Pavel playing tennis? That guy's backhand is at least as good as Ljubicic's, Haas' and Robredo's backhand.

Sup2Dresq · Jun 1, 2007

Gaudio backhand is smooth as butter.

It's a shame a lot of those tennis sites with videos don't show him a lot (1 or 2). It should be studied more.

BreakPoint · Jun 1, 2007

ktownva said:
Sorry, hard for me to vote for a guy Fed double bageled with a bad foot.

Come on now. That was obviously a tank job by Gaudio as he was probably sick of eating Chinese food and wanted to go home after a long season, so he figured since he had no realistic chance of winning the Master's Cup anyway, why not just collect his big fat check now and go home.

BreakPoint · Jun 1, 2007

jelle v said:
Have you ever seen Pavel playing tennis? That guy's backhand is at least as good as Ljubicic's, Haas' and Robredo's backhand.

I agree, but I think Gaudio's backhand is just a notch above all these other guys.

javier sergio · Jun 1, 2007

Andy Hewitt said:
The same backhand that lost to Hewitt?

same backhand that kicked his ass couple of times before;

http://www.atptennis.com/3/en/players/headtohead/default.asp?playernum1=G374&playernum2=H432

ktownva · Jun 1, 2007

BreakPoint said:
Come on now. That was obviously a tank job by Gaudio as he was probably sick of eating Chinese food and wanted to go home after a long season, so he figured since he had no realistic chance of winning the Master's Cup anyway, why not just collect his big fat check now and go home.

Good theory, but anyone who saw the match knows it was a simple beat down. I don't remember Gaudio conceding anything.

Orly_Yarly · Jun 1, 2007

its official? says who?

lawlz

diegaa · Jun 1, 2007

says the GOAT.

kingdaddy41788 · Jun 1, 2007

it's too bad that the rest of his game (mental and physical) sucks.

diegaa · Jun 1, 2007

his physical condition is really good, i dont know why people keeps saying its bad. PEOPLE, please, pay more attention to his game and stop posting nonsense.

Polaris · Jun 1, 2007

@wright said:
I remember that Gaudio/Agassi match, now that you mention it. I would put Gaudio a little ahead of Gasquet in consistency, but I think Richie holds the edge in explosiveness. Both guys handle high backhands with ease, but I've never seen someone crush it like Gasquet does. Neither guy has much fighting spirit though.

Agree with this and the comment about Haas. I think both Gaudio and Gasquet have a better backhand drive than Federer's. Haas probably exceeds Federer in the DTL backhand drive. But, I doubt any of them comes close to Federer in terms of versatility, i.e., the number of different speeds, spins, depths and angles.

BreakPoint · Jun 1, 2007

ktownva said:
Good theory, but anyone who saw the match knows it was a simple beat down. I don't remember Gaudio conceding anything.

I don't know. I saw the match and it didn't seem like Gaudio was trying at all. More like he was taking a nap out on the court.

It's official: Gaudio has the best one-handed backhand in pro tennis

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