Any tips switching from a 1h to 2h backhand

[2ndServe]

I hit a 1h it’s actually ok but it has a lot of drawbacks the benefits of 2h are obvious, better return, definitely way better shot when you hit it late, more stability, on the rise/high bh easier to hit. I think one of the biggest benefit I see against good 2h is the disguise. They can go short angle way easier at the last second, topspin lob is harder to read from a 2h. Emergency shots, jammed shots all turn out better with a 2hbh

When I play doubles guys with 2hbh reflex back way more half volleys, hard volleys at them even if their normal volley is 1h, in a pinch they hit 2hbh reflex shovel volleys.

I’m trying the 2hbh but my contact point seems far off. I normally hit with strong eastern/semi western 1hbh grip I’m used to that so that‘s what I use with bh grip then my other hand is eastern forehand grip. I know 2 people who hit great 2hbh and they say they don’t change grips, use their forehand grip on both hands so they don’t have to worry about changing grips.

For the 1h I make contact 1 foot in front of the lead foot but when I try to hit in 1 foot in front on the 2h there’s zero power, no depth/penetration but if I wait if feels too much arm forcing it

 

[Bill Lobsalot]

Why not use both? Many Pros do. I'm a one hander who plays doubles. I'll hit two handed volleys when needed. But my 1hbh is better than my forehand.

 

[ballmachineguy]

Don’t.

 

[Roforot]

Why not use both? Many Pros do. I'm a one hander who plays doubles. I'll hit two handed volleys when needed. But my 1hbh is better than my forehand.

I've seen it the otherway around where ppl want to hit 2 handed BH volleys b/c they're used to that at the baseline and will hit a 1-handed only if stretched out. What kind of situation forces you to hit a 2H volley?

 

[Bill Lobsalot]

I've seen it the otherway around where ppl want to hit 2 handed BH volleys b/c they're used to that at the baseline and will hit a 1-handed only if stretched out. What kind of situation forces you to hit a 2H volley?

When playing net I'll have both hands on the handle and if a ball comes at me quick, I'll block it two handed, otherwise when reaching I just use the one hand.

 

[eah123]

The contact point for the 2HBH when it comes to how far in front depends on the height of the ball. What I notice is that for low balls, knee height or lower, the ideal contact point is behind the front foot. On the other hand, for high balls at shoulder height or higher, the ideal contact point is about 1 foot in front of the front foot. At least that's the way it is for me.

 

[Bambooman]

Just make the switch and commit to it. You'll figure it out.

 

[zoingy]

I've definitely struggled with this myself! Biggest thing is that your bottom hand should be in a weak, unsupportive, bent-wrist continental grip from the racquet drop, through the forward swing, and at contact. This is probably going to feel really weird initially. Top hand should feel like a closed stance sw/eastern leftie forehand. To encourage all this, I like to slightly pre-flex my bottom wrist and pre-extend my top wrist in the take back.

Relative to forehands or 1hbhs, the contact point is gonna definitely be closer. Around the front foot when in a regular closed stance.

 

[WildVolley]

Two tips. The contact point on the 2hbh is less out in front than an Eastern-bh grip backhand drive. So if you try to hit too far in front you'll lack power. The contact point in terms of how far in front of the body is closer to a bh slice using the continental grip.

The second tip is that you need more shoulder rotation into contact than with the 1hbh drive. Because of the second hand, you shouldn't be as square to the target at contact as when hitting a forehand, but you should be more turned toward the target with your shoulders at contact than you would be with the one-handed bh drive.

Good luck.

 

[zill]

I hit a 1h it’s actually ok but it has a lot of drawbacks the benefits of 2h are obvious, better return, definitely way better shot when you hit it late, more stability, on the rise/high bh easier to hit. I think one of the biggest benefit I see against good 2h is the disguise. They can go short angle way easier at the last second, topspin lob is harder to read from a 2h. Emergency shots, jammed shots all turn out better with a 2hbh

When I play doubles guys with 2hbh reflex back way more half volleys, hard volleys at them even if their normal volley is 1h, in a pinch they hit 2hbh reflex shovel volleys.

I’m trying the 2hbh but my contact point seems far off. I normally hit with strong eastern/semi western 1hbh grip I’m used to that so that‘s what I use with bh grip then my other hand is eastern forehand grip. I know 2 people who hit great 2hbh and they say they don’t change grips, use their forehand grip on both hands so they don’t have to worry about changing grips.

For the 1h I make contact 1 foot in front of the lead foot but when I try to hit in 1 foot in front on the 2h there’s zero power, no depth/penetration but if I wait if feels too much arm forcing it

After just over 2 years hitting the 2hb I am finally got it in it's entirety....

and I have to say it's the simplest groundstroke even simpler than the slice. There is more turn and components in the stroke than a slice (which is more of a feel shot) but when put altogether the 2hb feels like such a simple stroke so compact yet powerful and precise. Truly a genuis shot...

tt.tennis-warehouse.com

 

[Dragy]

I would definitely not switch to 2HBH to hit 2h volleys although I do sometimes in doubles, with off-hand in the throat…

But I have actually switched since March this year for groundstrokes.

The biggest things are contact point (farther back, closer in) and using left hand.

How to? Practice a lot with mindfulness of the contact point. Most “no power” situations come from either tightening/slowing the swing to make the stringbed still face forward with way off contact zone… or missing the sweetspot. When you hit with the middle of the strings, and don’t brush excessively, it will have some punch anyway.

Best way to practice left hand engagement and uncoil will be left-handed forehands, holding somewhere around the middle of the handle or higher.

 

[z00]

See a thread by me about the same topic. In summary I suggest switching to 2hbh, it has improved my game overall. It took a bit of adjusting and learning to get better.
Unit turn, weight transfer from back leg to front, grip, contact point in front, use left arm to control, and early prep are main areas to focus on. Best to video yourself and iterate.

 

[socallefty]

I’m sorry to be the contrarian, but if you are not in your first 2-3 years of learning tennis and thinking of switching from 1HBH to 2HBH or vice versa, it means your ceiling as a tennis player is really low and it doesn’t matter how many hands you hit your BH with - it will always suck!

 

[Bambooman]

Biggest thing is that your bottom hand should be in a weak, unsupportive, bent-wrist continental grip from the racquet drop, through the forward swing, and at contact.

This seems like odd advice.

 

[GodlessEndeavor]

The best cue I've heard for 2HBH contact point with closed stance: imagine you're shooting an arrow with a bow, look over your right shoulder to aim at the ball while it's coming to you (if you're right handed).

Or just get a good coach.

 

[zill]

The best cue I've heard for 2HBH contact point: imagine you're shooting an arrow with a bow, look over your right shoulder to aim at the ball while it's coming to you (if you're right handed).

Or just get a good coach.

Basically a good turn turn is needed for the 2hb even more so then the fh.

 

[GodlessEndeavor]

Basically a good turn turn is needed for the 2hb even more so then the fh.

Yes! I've edited my post to clarify this is for a closed stance 2HBH.

 

[Hit 'em clean]

First off your grip on your right hand might be an issue. You should be changing your grip for a 2 hander. I would advise using and eastern backhand or continental backhand grip with your right hand. Your left hand is fine as an eastern forehand grip. Too strong of a grip will really have you closing the racquet face when you want to be square or perpendicular to the court, sometimes even slightly open so you can learn how block, shovel, hit late, handle high balls, etc. If you're grip is too strong and racquet faced is closed... that's going to be a challenge.

Your contact point, as others have mentioned is not as far out in front as with a one hander... probably about a foot further back than what you're used to. Contact point should be around the instep of your front foot. Practice hitting some lefty forehands as well to get used to using your left hand to do most of the work or at least 50%. Left arm needs to extend out through the shot, big thing you need to watch our for is people learning 2HBH tend to pull their shoulders open without extending out through contact which results in the arms to connected to the chest and you pull across the ball from left to right (as a righty) which results in very week shots. Get the tip of the racquet moving out towards and through the ball (which often requires some left hand action to help) and you'll get the feel of a solid 2HBH.

 

[TennisCJC]

Don't use a strong EBH on bottom hand for 2HBH. Use a strong conti which is a conti shifted very slightly toward EBH grip. Use an E or E/SW on the top hand. The contact point is about 6 inches in front of the lead foot and maybe a little more if going cross court. You use a lot more shoulder rotation on 2HBH. If you want to see a very simple but terrific 2HBH, watch old man Agassi in the exhibition against Muster - see video. In the video below, note: the take back is simply a turn of the shoulders while changing the grips. The forward swing is a small loop to contact with extension through the contact until the arms wrap up and around. If you want a little more spin, the loop would go down more in the backswing and the path forward would be more upward. Agassi gets both elbows out away from the body at contact and as a 1HBH convert, this may be a good model for you. Agassi gets good body weight into the shot by rotating the torso and by stepping into almost every shot. This is a beautiful 2HBH.

 

[zoingy]

This seems like odd advice.

I'm sure there's a better way to explain it, but the principle is that the top hand is much better positioned to bring the racquet face around. So the bottom hand should be much more passive and get out of the way, so that the 2hbh isn't even more constrained than it already is.

Or in other words, the 1hbh has a fairly static hand/wrist, but allows for lots of range of motion at the shoulder joint. Meanwhile, the 2hbh is much more constrained at the shoulder joints, but it allows for a more dynamic "lag and snap" of sorts, as much as I hate that term.

Concretely, you'll see most good pro backhands have a noticeably weak bottom wrist. Sinner for example:

You'll never see a good 1hbh with that sort of wrist positioning anywhere in their swing, but for the 2hbh imo its very important, and also very unintuitive coming from a 1hbh.

 

[zill]

I'm sure there's a better way to explain it, but the principle is that the top hand is much better positioned to bring the racquet face around. So the bottom hand should be much more passive and get out of the way, so that the 2hbh isn't even more constrained than it already is.

Or in other words, the 1hbh has a fairly static hand/wrist, but allows for lots of range of motion at the shoulder joint. Meanwhile, the 2hbh is much more constrained at the shoulder joints, but it allows for a more dynamic "lag and snap" of sorts, as much as I hate that term.

Concretely, you'll see most good pro backhands have a noticeably weak bottom wrist. Sinner for example:

You'll never see a good 1hbh with that sort of wrist positioning anywhere in their swing, but for the 2hbh imo its very important, and also very unintuitive coming from a 1hbh.

Yes the top hand to get that snap going. Bottom hand aides in the lag ( and snap).

 

[Rosstour]

I hit a 1h it’s actually ok but it has a lot of drawbacks the benefits of 2h are obvious, better return, definitely way better shot when you hit it late, more stability, on the rise/high bh easier to hit. I think one of the biggest benefit I see against good 2h is the disguise. They can go short angle way easier at the last second, topspin lob is harder to read from a 2h. Emergency shots, jammed shots all turn out better with a 2hbh

When I play doubles guys with 2hbh reflex back way more half volleys, hard volleys at them even if their normal volley is 1h, in a pinch they hit 2hbh reflex shovel volleys.

I’m trying the 2hbh but my contact point seems far off. I normally hit with strong eastern/semi western 1hbh grip I’m used to that so that‘s what I use with bh grip then my other hand is eastern forehand grip. I know 2 people who hit great 2hbh and they say they don’t change grips, use their forehand grip on both hands so they don’t have to worry about changing grips.

For the 1h I make contact 1 foot in front of the lead foot but when I try to hit in 1 foot in front on the 2h there’s zero power, no depth/penetration but if I wait if feels too much arm forcing it

Funny this is like the reverse of how I play

For me it's the 1H that's the "emergency" shot and the 2H is what I use when I have time

Switch to the 2H for returns and keep using the 1H for everything else...my $.02

 

[Dragy]

Switch to the 2H for returns and keep using the 1H for everything else...my $.02

In my experience, it’s not that simple. Of course, if we are talking about blocking back hard serves with 2h, it’s quite easy to develop. But when you face a variety server, you need a good drive return as well, if you prepare to return with 2h. Otherwise whenever you get a more spinny delivery to the BH, and only ready to block/bunt it back, you will produce very weak returns. So to return well with 2HBH you need to at least get the stroke to decent level of development imho.

Also, for couple of years before switching I got quite good in returning with drive OHBH, using abbreviated options against some faster serves. Only some higher bouncing shots bothered me more. So what I’m trying to say — for decent one-hander return isn’t an issue where, at least not one to be solved by using 2H without actually developing good stroke beforehand.

If OHBH is bad and has a lot of issues, holds one back — switching to 2HBH and investing time into making it sound is an option.

 

[Rosstour]

In my experience, it’s not that simple. Of course, if we are talking about blocking back hard serves with 2h, it’s quite easy to develop. But when you face a variety server, you need a good drive return as well, if you prepare to return with 2h. Otherwise whenever you get a more spinny delivery to the BH, and only ready to block/bunt it back, you will produced very weak returns. So to return well with 2HBH you need to at least get the stroke to decent level of development imho.

Also, for couple of years before switching I got quite good in returning with drive OHBH, using abbreviated options against some faster serves. Only some higher bouncing shots bothered me more. So what I’m trying to say — for decent one-hander return isn’t an issue where, at least not one to be solved by using 2H without actually developing good stroke beforehand.

If OHBH is bad and has a lot of issues, holds one back — switching to 2HBH and investing time into making it sound is an option.

I agree to a point but I wouldn't want to return an excellent kick serve like @MyFearHand has, with a 1H block

 

[Dragy]

I agree to a point but I wouldn't want to return an excellent kick serve like @MyFearHand has, with a 1H block

Well, excellent serves are excellent for a reason! I’d try options like taking it early and in front with across level swing, aiming just firm and deep. Or fall really back and hit a falling ball, like Wawrinka did with many 2nd serves. In any case, really good second serve is not easily attachable — I rely on my kicker a lot to know this and not trying to be stupid, when I face one myself.

 

[Rosstour]

Well, excellent serves are excellent for a reason! I’d try options like taking it early and in front with across level swing, aiming just firm and deep. Or fall really back and hit a falling ball, like Wawrinka did with many 2nd serves. In any case, really good second serve is not easily attachable — I rely on my kicker a lot to know this and not trying to be stupid, when I face one myself.

Wawrinka can only do that bc pro courts have room. A good server like Jai/MFH will put that ball in the side fence/netting on a rec court before it gets to you, if you hang back.

I couldn't stick with the 1H return. Too inconsistent. I have gone back to FH-dominant hand position on return but now I return every serve with a 2H drive. I just played a huge server who was 12 yrs younger and played D2, and managed to break him three times in the final set and force a TB, so I think whatever I did worked

 

[ey039524]

There was good post on another 2hbh thread about the 3 different styles:
Right hand dominant (Agassi, ...);
Balanced (Murray, ...); and
Left hand dominant (forgot which pros were mentioned as the example).

Contact point varies depending on which style (earlier to later in the same order above). Follow through is different, too, in regards to how the racquet face ends up (more open or closed).

Like others here I switched a couple years ago (from TE), and it's helpful for coming over the ball on returns, left hand flick on defensive shots, and topspin lobs. I will also reflex a quick volley back, if I don't have time to take the left hand off the throat.

It's been a difficult transition for me, bc the only thing that helped me w the timing and spacing difference was to hit w the third style mentioned above. For some reason, I couldn't hit w the first, which would seem like the easiest transition. It wasn't until I understood to lead w the left hand (by swinging w a 1 pound weight at the top of my hoop; swinging lefty forehands; and hanging my right pinky or sometimes ring finger off the butt cap) that I felt somewhat comfortable hitting the 2 hander.

 

[2ndServe]

There was good post on another 2hbh thread about the 3 different styles:
Right hand dominant (Agassi, ...);
Balanced (Murray, ...); and
Left hand dominant (forgot which pros were mentioned as the example).

Contact point varies depending on which style (earlier to later in the same order above). Follow through is different, too, in regards to how the racquet face ends up (more open or closed).

Like others here I switched a couple years ago (from TE), and it's helpful for coming over the ball on returns, left hand flick on defensive shots, and topspin lobs. I will also reflex a quick volley back, if I don't have time to take the left hand off the throat.

It's been a difficult transition for me, bc the only thing that helped me w the timing and spacing difference was to hit w the third style mentioned above. For some reason, I couldn't hit w the first, which would seem like the easiest transition. It wasn't until I understood to lead w the left hand (by swinging w a 1 pound weight at the top of my hoop; swinging lefty forehands; and hanging my right pinky or sometimes ring finger off the butt cap) that I felt somewhat comfortable hitting the 2 hander.

I’m having this issue, I get it over but it’s too punchy blocky, zero penetration and I lose every point right after I hit a 2h. If I had to guess I’m closest to the 1st style now not even by choice, because my 1h grip Is eastern/semi western backhand so it’s lead arm dominant? I might try your way and use a ball machine and hit opposite hand forehands with head heavy racket to get better spacing/release

 

[Dragy]

Right hand dominant (Agassi, ...);
Balanced (Murray, ...); and
Left hand dominant (forgot which pros were mentioned as the example).

This teaching might be more harmful than helpful. I mean, that’s possible that players hit with different accentuation. Or maybe even use different balance between hands for different shots: you are unlikely to hit good open stance 2HBH with right hand dominant (for a righty). And with closed stance — maybe having strong pull from dominant hand is very reasonable.

What I’m trying to say, learning 2HBH it’s very important to learn to use your off-hand, rather than let it hand there passively.

 

[ey039524]

I’m having this issue, I get it over but it’s too punchy blocky, zero penetration and I lose every point right after I hit a 2h. If I had to guess I’m closest to the 1st style now not even by choice, because my 1h grip Is eastern/semi western backhand so it’s lead arm dominant? I might try your way and use a ball machine and hit opposite hand forehands with head heavy racket to get better spacing/release

I'm not advocating the left hand dominant for you (or right hand, since you're a lefty). It was the only way that I could get it to work for me, which is weird bc I was coming from a ohbh.

I'm still struggling w getting adequate pace when I'm left to generate it on my own (off a sitter, for example). Something that helps me, is to keep the hands relaxed (which might give me more of a racquet drop and, subsequently, a bigger loop) and lead w the off hand.

There's a video of one of the YouTube coaches explaining how very young kids can just swing freely w their 2hbh, something adults can't. He was talking about this while he was swinging a weighted contraption. As a junior, I had a 2hbh, which was my strength. I took a 15 year break, and then switched to a ohbh as an adult. Now, I'm back to a 2hbh, but it was completely lost on me after 30 or so years.

This teaching might be more harmful than helpful. I mean, that’s possible that players hit with different accentuation. Or maybe even use different balance between hands for different shots: you are unlikely to hit good open stance 2HBH with right hand dominant (for a righty). And with closed stance — maybe having strong pull from dominant hand is very reasonable.

What I’m trying to say, learning 2HBH it’s very important to learn to use your off-hand, rather than let it hand there passively.

I agree about the open stance, another limitation to a ohbh that would translate to a 2hbh that was front hand dominant.

 

[nyta2]

I hit a 1h it’s actually ok but it has a lot of drawbacks the benefits of 2h are obvious, better return definitely way better shot when you hit it late, more stability, on the rise/high bh easier to hit. I think one of the biggest benefit I see against good 2h is the disguise. They can go short angle way easier at the last second, topspin lob is harder to read from a 2h. Emergency shots, jammed shots all turn out better with a 2hbh

When I play doubles guys with 2hbh reflex back way more half volleys, hard volleys at them even if their normal volley is 1h, in a pinch they hit 2hbh reflex shovel volleys.

I’m trying the 2hbh but my contact point seems far off.

My 1hbh (sw grip) is a good 8in in front of my 2hbh contact (left hand is extreme eastern)

I normally hit with strong eastern/semi western 1hbh grip I’m used to that so that‘s what I use with bh grip then my other hand is eastern forehand grip. I know 2 people who hit great 2hbh and they say they don’t change grips, use their forehand grip on both hands so they don’t have to worry about changing grips.

Check out this link for variations on 2hbh @JohnYandell

Roger Federer and the Evolution of the Modern Forehand

Roger Federer's forehand is one of the most dominant shots in pro tennis, but just looks different than other to players. Using high speed video, John Yandell explains how Federer synthesizes classical and extreme elements into a forehand weapon with unmatched power, variety, and disguise.

www.tennisplayer.net

For the 1h I make contact 1 foot in front of the lead foot but when I try to hit in 1 foot in front on the 2h there’s zero power, no depth/penetration but if I wait if feels too much arm forcing it

…
Whatever 2hbh you choose, some drills I’ve used to get a feel for my spacing:
- hitting lefty fh’s, then later add right index finger on butt cap
- hitting 1hbh with conti grip … later add left hand to throat (like a hockey shot), the. Gradually move it down until it’s touching you right hand)

Imo the easiest transition will be to keep your right hand the same, and likely left hand at sw (I think courier used to hit this way), but personally I don’t like that 2hbh for myself because the contact is too far in front, tougher for low balls, requires a grip change to slice/drop/etc,…

My .02

 

[Friedman Whip]

When I made the switch to 2HbH I found that to hit good topspin I had to make sure I always got more knee bend than I had when I hit topspin 1HbH.

 

[vokazu]

Practice, practice, practice. Also, relax your grip on both hands and try to move both arms as one unit. Early take back, brush the ball with topspin for consistent depth and net clearance. Never slow down your racquet head speed. More racquet head speed, more topspin.

 

[2ndServe]

I'm sure there's a better way to explain it, but the principle is that the top hand is much better positioned to bring the racquet face around. So the bottom hand should be much more passive and get out of the way, so that the 2hbh isn't even more constrained than it already is.

Or in other words, the 1hbh has a fairly static hand/wrist, but allows for lots of range of motion at the shoulder joint. Meanwhile, the 2hbh is much more constrained at the shoulder joints, but it allows for a more dynamic "lag and snap" of sorts, as much as I hate that term.

Concretely, you'll see most good pro backhands have a noticeably weak bottom wrist. Sinner for example:

You'll never see a good 1hbh with that sort of wrist positioning anywhere in their swing, but for the 2hbh imo its very important, and also very unintuitive coming from a 1hbh.

So being a hybrid 1h and 2h is inherently a bad idea because the grip of a 1h bottom grip eastern/semi western makes the 2h lack range of motion? Probably why it’s a bad idea and you never see good players use a 1h and 2h drive.

 

[zoingy]

So being a hybrid 1h and 2h is inherently a bad idea because the grip of a 1h bottom grip eastern/semi western makes the 2h lack range of motion? Probably why it’s a bad idea and you never see good players use a 1h and 2h drive.

Yeah, the idea is

• 1hbh has a long swing path, at the expense of a fairly locked wrist
• 2hbh has a more dynamic 2-wrist system, at the expense of a shorter swing path

A strong, supportive, 1h style hammer grip (even if it's conti) on a 2hbh essentially gets you the worst of both worlds, with a really strict contact window.

Agassi is the only notable modern-ish exception I'm aware of, where he really did seem like he had more of an "assisted 1hbh" instead of a "leftie forehand". But imo it looks like he still has to compensate for a stricter contact window with a super snappy motion and extra body rotation. Take this slow exhibition rally for example:

 

[TennisCJC]

When I made the switch to 2HbH I found that to hit good topspin I had to make sure I always got more knee bend than I had when I hit topspin 1HbH.

Yes, getting low with knee bend help a lot with topspin and power. Sinner is pretty amazing at getting down and then lifting up during the stroke. This helps get the racket head lower for topspin and using the legs adds power too.

 

[zill]

Yeah, the idea is

• 1hbh has a long swing path, at the expense of a fairly locked wrist
• 2hbh has a more dynamic 2-wrist system, at the expense of a shorter swing path

A strong, supportive, 1h style hammer grip (even if it's conti) on a 2hbh essentially gets you the worst of both worlds, with a really strict contact window.

Agassi is the only notable modern-ish exception I'm aware of, where he really did seem like he had more of an "assisted 1hbh" instead of a "leftie forehand". But imo it looks like he still has to compensate for a stricter contact window with a super snappy motion and extra body rotation. Take this slow exhibition rally for example:

Agassi's bh is exactly the same as most modern players today hitting bh. The reason he thinks he use more the right hand (ie right side of his body) is because it's such a compact shot the left hand does not move away from his body much so psychologically it feels like it's not doing much compared to a longer takeback such as Zverev's or even Murray's. But it is actually doing a lot - as much as his right hand if you watch at how quickly he turns the racquet over (aka snap) after impact. That turning is mostly done by the left hand although assisted by the right hand as well.

 

[Better_Call_Raul]

Use a strong conti which is a conti shifted very slightly toward EBH grip.

What is wrong with using a (2,2) (heel pad, index knuckle)
Continental grip for the bottom hand?

 

[Rosstour]

When I made the switch to 2HbH I found that to hit good topspin I had to make sure I always got more knee bend than I had when I hit topspin 1HbH.

2HBH is way more footwork sensitive IMO

 

[zoingy]

Agassi's bh is exactly the same as most modern players today hitting bh. The reason he thinks he use more the right hand (ie right side of his body) is because it's such a compact shot the left hand does not move away from his body much so psychologically it feels like it's not doing much compared to a longer takeback such as Zverev's or even Murray's. But it is actually doing a lot - as much as his right hand if you watch at how quickly he turns the racquet over (aka snap) after impact. That turning is mostly done by the left hand although assisted by the right hand as well.

I think it's not just a coincidence that his backhand is so compact - IMO his relatively more locked right hand grip & wrist setup means that his swing MUST be compact.

It's true that to some extent, it doesn't matter that Agassi "believes" he's right hand dominant - his left hand legitimately appears to be contributing more to RHS to me as well. But at the same time, someone who believes he's right hand dominant almost certainly will not enter the broken-wrist position that you see Sinner and Djokovic enter, and that absolutely has ramifications on shot mechanics.

 

[TennisCJC]

What is wrong with using a (2,2) (heel pad, index knuckle)
Continental grip for the bottom hand?

Nothing really wrong with it but I think you get a bit more topspin with strong conti. Watch slo-mo of Nadal and Djokovic and they close the grip a little more when they first shift their grips. They go just a smidge past 2,2. It's my preference.

 

[2ndServe]

Any lefties play a 2hbh tips? I think going down the line with the 2hbh to a righty bh then getting them to hit that cross to a forehand. So learning to hit a lefty 2hbh down the line might be high on the priority, should spend more time learning that instead of 2hbh cross

 

[2ndServe]

I think it's not just a coincidence that his backhand is so compact - IMO his relatively more locked right hand grip & wrist setup means that his swing MUST be compact.

It's true that to some extent, it doesn't matter that Agassi "believes" he's right hand dominant - his left hand legitimately appears to be contributing more to RHS to me as well. But at the same time, someone who believes he's right hand dominant almost certainly will not enter the broken-wrist position that you see Sinner and Djokovic enter, and that absolutely has ramifications on shot mechanics.

He definitely looks like he‘s almost using a 1hbh grip on the dominant hand. Probably the best 1 minute clip on how to hit it. The foot thing might be why I can’t generate anything on it . I wonder if the great 1h’ers also do that but 1h usually stay sideways much longer?

 

[Dragy]

He definitely looks like he‘s almost using a 1hbh grip on the dominant hand. Probably the best 1 minute clip on how to hit it. The foot thing might be why I can’t generate anything on it . I wonder if the great 1h’ers also do that but 1h usually stay sideways much longer?

This doesn’t look EBH, just closed fist conti:

 

[2ndServe]

Thanks for the close up. IMO a closed continental definitely changes the grip orientation to more a strong continental/ or even an actual bh grip? When you go V shape grip with continental the knuckles go across different bilevels on the grip when the knuckles go straight across one bilevel the grip/racket face changes considerably

 

[Dragy]

Thanks for the close up. IMO a closed continental definitely changes the grip orientation to more a strong continental/ or even an actual bh grip? When you go V shape grip with continental the knuckles go across different bilevels on the grip when the knuckles go straight across one bilevel the grip/racket face changes considerably

]

In my experience, EBH grip is both closed and index knuckle right on top of bevel 1. Otherwise it’s compromised.

Of course my slice grip will be more 2-2 than 2-1 Agassi possibly has here. But it’s far from Edberg or Wawrinka EBH.

Anyway, left hand is most important for racquet face angle, imho.

 

[2ndServe]

just saw this. I think the person does a great job of simplifying the 2hbh there‘s a number of them in the playlist

 

[zill]

just saw this. I think the person does a great job of simplifying the 2hbh there‘s a number of them in the playlist

Very good. Very compact and textbook bh.

 

[optic yellow]

I hit a 1h it’s actually ok but it has a lot of drawbacks the benefits of 2h are obvious, better return, definitely way better shot when you hit it late, more stability, on the rise/high bh easier to hit. I think one of the biggest benefit I see against good 2h is the disguise. They can go short angle way easier at the last second, topspin lob is harder to read from a 2h. Emergency shots, jammed shots all turn out better with a 2hbh

When I play doubles guys with 2hbh reflex back way more half volleys, hard volleys at them even if their normal volley is 1h, in a pinch they hit 2hbh reflex shovel volleys.

I’m trying the 2hbh but my contact point seems far off. I normally hit with strong eastern/semi western 1hbh grip I’m used to that so that‘s what I use with bh grip then my other hand is eastern forehand grip. I know 2 people who hit great 2hbh and they say they don’t change grips, use their forehand grip on both hands so they don’t have to worry about changing grips.

For the 1h I make contact 1 foot in front of the lead foot but when I try to hit in 1 foot in front on the 2h there’s zero power, no depth/penetration but if I wait if feels too much arm forcing it

None of these advantages are really true except the low leverage emergency situations.

 

[10sbeast888]

None of these advantages are really true except the low leverage emergency situations.

the greatest dubs players are mostly 1h's... the Bryans, the Woodies (or was Mark 2h? whatever), Mac, MartinaN.

1h people are just more natural net players seems.