1HBH or 2HBH?

[TennisFrkJC92]

I have a 2HBH and recently, i've been trying the 1hbh after watching federer and practicing his form. Here's the comparison:

2HBH: With the 2HBH i am more consistent and get almost every shot in. However, the power level is lower than the 1HBH and it takes much more energy to hit with this backhand. And i get less angle.

1HBH: With a 1HBH, i am less consistent but i can hit harder shots with much less effort. And the angles i can create are amazing. Also, i have a harder time against hard hitters. The balls usually go flying when returning a serve or a hard ball.

So, should i stay with my 2 handed backhand or start all over and practice my one handed backhand until i'm great at it?

 

[Mad iX]

You've pretty much described the pros and cons of each.
2hbh is more solid especially on returns and the 1hbh has more variety.
All the 1-handers will give you one answer while the 2-handers will give you another. It's really up to you and what suits your game better.
However, with more practise I would expect your 1-hander to become more consistent, but maybe not as much as your 2-hander is now.

 

[Tennis_Monk]

I have a 2HBH and recently, i've been trying the 1hbh after watching federer and practicing his form. Here's the comparison:

2HBH: With the 2HBH i am more consistent and get almost every shot in. However, the power level is lower than the 1HBH and it takes much more energy to hit with this backhand. And i get less angle.

1HBH: With a 1HBH, i am less consistent but i can hit harder shots with much less effort. And the angles i can create are amazing. Also, i have a harder time against hard hitters. The balls usually go flying when returning a serve or a hard ball.

So, should i stay with my 2 handed backhand or start all over and practice my one handed backhand until i'm great at it?

I went Opposite. I moved from 1hbh to 2hbh. I can create all the angles i want with 2hbh and i can hit with lot more power and consistency than i ever managed with 1hbh.

I dont think there is any difference in POWER/ANGLES etc between 1hbh to 2hbh in LOWER LEVELS of TENNIS (ie 5.5 and below). It is a matter of how comfortable one feels with them.

One small issue i have with 2hbh. I dont have the same reach. (I can ofcourse overcome that if i stopped being lazy and put a lil extra in the GYM)

 

[SFrazeur]

When I started playing tennis I had a one hander. A year in I switched to a two hander. After being in teaching for a while I switched again to a one hander. After being sick for several months and coming back to teaching I switched again to a two hander earlier this year because I I was so weak. Now I have switched back to a one hander. My point? None at all really, just my experience with switching. If you are going to switch, switch completely. If you are a one hander be one exclusively; if you are going to be a two hander be one exclusively. Excluding slice, I'm referring to topspin shots. You'll need to give the one handed shot time to integrate. If you go one handed do not look back for at lest three months.

-SF

 

[AznHylite]

Personally, I started out with a 2HBH but then I started to doubt its real use (I'm not particularly fast). So, I decided to make a change to the way I play. And just so you 2HBH users don't get angry (hopefully not), there's nothing wrong with a 2HBH. Grrrrr, my legs don't move fast enough lol.

Anyways, I switched to a 1HBH after watching Henin and Gasquet's AMAZING backhands. My god, they're amazing! I started to imitate the style gasquet does it and I have begun to find some more success than my 2HBH. Hurray for 1HBH!

 

[raiden031]

Here's my take. I played with a 2hbh for several years, although most of those years I wasn't playing very much, up until the past year. My 2hbh was very consistent, far more than my forehand or even slice backhand. Although I would often have trouble on the run because my footwork wasn't good enough to get me in the right position and my reach was limited.

I always liked how the 1-hander looked more graceful when watching better players, so about 9 months ago I decided to try out the 1-hander. I developed it against the wall and within about 2 weeks it was ready for match play. I lost alot of consistency but I now had the freedom and I was able to hit better on the run. I found its easier to pull the shot off when you're not in the best position, but this could bite you because that means you can get away with poor technique more with the 1-hander than the 2-hander. That probably explains why alot of the 3.X stagnate players have 1-handers, because they never develop proper technique unlike 2-handed players that are forced to hit with proper technique.

In summary, I like the added freedom of the swing and that I can pull off more shots on the run, but you must be more concious of technique with this shot, plus it takes alot more practice to build consistency. I don't regret switching over, so if you are willing to put in the extra effort, go for it.

 

[fuzz nation]

Took up the 2hbh at the end of last summer because I wanted to be able to drive some returns with topspin instead of a more passive block or slice. What became painfully obvious to me is that the "strike zone" for a 2hbh, at least for me, is relatively small.

I've decided (just yesterday in fact) that I honestly need to keep developing my one hander because I can plainly hit it with more consistency when I have time to set it up. If I'm rushed, I've got my rock solid slice and I'll still use the two hander to occasionally smack a return. The other shot where I find that two handed grip to be invaluable is on a high backhand such as a short lob that I don't need to run down or a short mithit that sits up on my backhand wing. I get real power up high on the bh side when I go two handed.

I've sort of chosen both just for the sake of keeping more balls in play. The two hander has only a specific purpose for me and I can only use the one hander in rally mode when I've got myself set up, but ultimately I need consistency, so I use either shot when I need it.

 

[framer]

What is your level?

I have a 2HBH and recently, i've been trying the 1hbh after watching federer and practicing his form. Here's the comparison:

2HBH: With the 2HBH i am more consistent and get almost every shot in. However, the power level is lower than the 1HBH and it takes much more energy to hit with this backhand. And i get less angle.

1HBH: With a 1HBH, i am less consistent but i can hit harder shots with much less effort. And the angles i can create are amazing. Also, i have a harder time against hard hitters. The balls usually go flying when returning a serve or a hard ball.

So, should i stay with my 2 handed backhand or start all over and practice my one handed backhand until i'm great at it?

This might be controversial, but I think you should play with 2h bh if you are a 3.5 or lower. From my observations, 80% of USTA players at 3.5 or lower really have no reliable 1h bh. Of those with a 1h bh, very few have good technique and I can't imagine, without alot of lessons, that their 1h bh will ever improve enough to hit a rally ball over the net and in the court 10 times. The few 2hbh 3.5 players I have seen can at least hit a consistent rally ball.

 

[raiden031]

This might be controversial, but I think you should play with 2h bh if you are a 3.5 or lower. From my observations, 80% of USTA players at 3.5 or lower really have no reliable 1h bh. Of those with a 1h bh, very few have good technique and I can't imagine, without alot of lessons, that their 1h bh will ever improve enough to hit a rally ball over the net and in the court 10 times. The few 2hbh 3.5 players I have seen can at least hit a consistent rally ball.

I agree that most players of 3.5 and below have 1hbh that aren't very good, however I do think its very possible to develop a decent one, because I have done just that at the 3.0 level. Most players at that level that are adults are too stubborn and set in their own ways to make the effort to work on proper technique with this shot. The same goes with serve...most 3.5- players have lowsy serves as well. If someone is motivated, then both of these shots can be developed without lessons, as I have done both.

But I also agree that the 2hbh should be emphasized first, because it is easier to teach to someone a proper 2hbh than a 1hbh.

 

[es-0]

I'm around a 2.5 or 3.0 and I started playing tennis about a year ago (started in August I believe).

I started with a one-hander because it felt natural (this was without any coaching). When I started taking lessons my coach wanted me to use a two-hander, I could hit well with it, but it just felt unnatural.

I've stuck with my one-hander and I actually trust it more then my forehand, I've been that way in all sports I've played (Table Tennis, Hockey, Tennis).

 

[Rafa freak]

I would stay with your 2hbh

 

[TennisFrkJC92]

This might be a dumb idea but after playing with 1hbh and 2hbh, i've decided to use both simultaneously at the right moments. For example, when i'm returning serves or returning a hard flat shot, i'd use a 2HBH, and when i'm returning a weak or regular shot or hitting slices ,a 1HBH.

How do u think this strategy is? This is probably not going to be my permanent setup. I'm going to develop both of these and in the end, go with the backhand that's suits me better.

 

[raiden031]

This might be a dumb idea but after playing with 1hbh and 2hbh, i've decided to use both simultaneously at the right moments. For example, when i'm returning serves or returning a hard flat shot, i'd use a 2HBH, and when i'm returning a weak or regular shot or hitting slices ,a 1HBH.

How do u think this strategy is? This is probably not going to be my permanent setup. I'm going to develop both of these and in the end, go with the backhand that's suits me better.

I guess the problem with this is you have to spend twice as much time practicing your backhand since you have 2 backhands to maintain. Its just easier to focus on one and work to perfect it.

 

[TennsDog]

My opinion is that most people will have natural tendencies (and probably abilities) toward either a one- or two-handed backhand. I started playing tennis with a one-hander and switched to a two-hander because of my high school coach, but I always wanted my one-hander back. A year after high school, I rediscovered my one-hander and it was great. The one-handed backhand just feels more natural to me. Some people don't have the coordination for two-handers, and others don't have the technique for a one-hander. Most coaches will disagree with me on this, but if you can hit both effectively, I think that is the best since they do both have instances that are best for each. I do, however, also feel that if you use both, the one-hander should be the main stroke. If you use the one-hander by default and swith to the two-hander for less desirable situations (half-volleys, returns, high balls, etc...just a few I have found them useful for), then your opponent won't gain any advantage by seeing you use two hands. If you use the two-hander by default and use the one-hander for certain shots (lobs, change in spin, etc.), your opponent can tell very early that you're going for a non-normal shot and will be able to anticipate your shot and possibly attack it.

Okay, enough rambling. You asked for advice, here it is: which do you feel more comfortable with? Use that as your main shot. If that is the one-hander, you may want to learn to use the two-hander effectively as well. If that is the two-hander, I think it's in your best interest to make it more effective and efficient energy-wise.