Does any other pro hit a 2hbh like Nadal?

tennis_hack

tennis_hack

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

You can see above that the strings face the (front-on) camera during the follow through - as in the windshield wiper modern forehand finish.

Every other (male) pro I have seen does backhands the Djokovic way - where the followthrough is like the followthrough of an old-school forehand. On the WTA there are a few that do it like Nadal.

Is Nadal's backhand unique, or are there other (active) ATP pro's out there who regularly hit with the same windshield wiper finish?
 
What do you guys think about the spin on Nadal's 2hbh - is it the most topspin-laden 2hbh on tour?

How does it's spin compare to the likes of Gulbis and Nishikori?

Does anyone hit more spin off the 2hbh?
 
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Djokovic's and Murray's 2HBHs are much much better. Not sure why would such insignificant shot like Nadal's BH deserve a special thread.
 
Last edited:
Chico said:
Djokovic's and Murray's 2HBHs are much much better. Not sure why would such insignificant shot like Nadal's BH deserve a special thread.
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I actually disagree that they are much better backhands. I actually think Nadal's backhand is terrific. He produces an enormous amount of spin, which is the hallmark of his game, and being right-handed allows him to execute some shots that Djokovic and Murray seemingly can't.
 
Chico said:
Djokovic's and Murray's 2HBHs are much much better. Not sure why would such insignificant shot like Nadal's BH deserve a special thread.
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Nadal was creaming winners from everywhere with his backhand in the 2013 French Open SF when he destroyed Nole in the last set (a total of 22 winners in one set of tennis, amazing!).

Nole was so intimidated he couldn't even smash any more and did stupid things like run into the net.
 
I've always liked Nadal's backhand. It's a very fluid motion and arms basically end up wrapped around his shoulder at the end of the follow-through. One of his best plays is when he's stretched off the court and hits a cross-court backhand passing shot.I don't even understand how you can get that much power while sliding into a shot.

But Nadal's backhand does not equal Safin's. The GOAT has such a relaxed feel on his backhand.

Check out this passing shot:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mbAU81fWac
 
Djokovic and Murray have better BH's without doubt, but Nadal's backhand is still one of the better ones among top players. There are many matches where he pulls off a lot of impressive backhand shots, its just overshadowed by his FH
 
I agree with the OP. Nadal's backhand looks very different from most and blah blah blah he's really a righty...we know.
He's improved it though, not that it was bad but now he can rip it down the line which has totally changed his points against Djokovic. It's a little flatter at times now too.
 
Morj said:
Djokovic and Murray have better BH's without doubt, but Nadal's backhand is still one of the better ones among top players. There are many matches where he pulls off a lot of impressive backhand shots, its just overshadowed by his FH
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Well they are better in some ways, but functionally, Nadal's backhand may be better. I've said that I would rather have Nadal's groundstrokes than anyone else's, and the FH and BH come as a package. Nadal's forehand is utterly ridiculous, so he doesn't have to dictate play as much with his backhand, and he shouldn't when his FH is so good. His backhand has a lot of margin, normally, and it spins viciously, and it's ideal for being a defensive retrieving player. I've seen Nadal hit backhands that just "jump" out his opponents reach. like his forehand at times.
 
Nadal can hit open stance backhands way better than djokovic and murray.

When on the full stretch, nadal can create much more power and has better feel than both those guys.

At full blast, nadal can pack more heat than those guys from the bh.

Most of the time nadal tends to play high with spin from this side...and djokovic/murray can boss nadal around with their more aggressive mindset from the bh side.
 
heninfan99 said:
I agree with the OP. Nadal's backhand looks very different from most and blah blah blah he's really a righty...we know.
He's improved it though, not that it was bad but now he can rip it down the line which has totally changed his points against Djokovic. It's a little flatter at times now too.
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i tracked the entire match against djokovic... nadal won every point whenever he ripped a hard backhand down the line. he needs to do that more. djokovic plays every shot to nadal's backhand now, because he is secure in the knowledge that it would come back cross court each time. nadal playing his backhand DTL will fundamentally change the match-up.
 
tennis_hack said:
So-one else hits the windshield-wiper 2hbh like Nadal? Surely he can't be unique on the ATP?
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I think the follow through you are talking about is more to do with the extreme grip he uses on the backhand, which gives him a lot of spin but takes a huge effort to penetrate with it. Other players don't have the strength and endurance to do damage with such a backhand. If Nadal's muscles are even slightly fatigued, his backhands turn into non-stop chance balls.

So it is very unlikely that we'll see another top player with such a backhand.
 
tennis_hack said:
So-one else hits the windshield-wiper 2hbh like Nadal? Surely he can't be unique on the ATP?
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Look at some lower ranked claycourters. Can't name any off the top of my head but I'm sure there are quite a few who hit Nadal style 2HBH. Daniel Gimeno Traver, maybe? I can't remember but I think he hits a pretty heavy BH.
 
Does any pro's 2hbh come close to hitting as much topspin as Nadal's 2hbh?

Although Djokovic's backhand is better than Nadal's, I don't think he comes close to hitting as much topspin on it. The swing path is completely different, with Djokovic's racket-face pushing through the ball (though still going low-to-high) and ending with a conventional finish, and Nadal's racket-face brushing across the ball and going through a windshield-wiper swing-path.

Whilst 99% of pro 2hbh's copy Djokovic's basic mechanics - Nadal's are actually quite different. Does anyone with a 2hbh even use a similar swing path as Nadal on their 2hbh? Video evidence?

Or does any pro generally hit near as much (or more) topspin with their 2hbh as Nadal does with his?
 
Nalbandian had a wicked ww looking BH.

I don't understand why Nadal's BH isn't a better stroke though. He is a natural righty and should be crushing those BH.
 
Here's Nadal's backhand from the front-on view in slow-motion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=CMY16-xqOu8#t=48

Do you guys reckon he's actually got a windshield-wiper finish 2hbh?

If so, that's completely unique on the ATP tour, isn't it? A guy mentioned Ferrero but he's all but retired, and I don't think he hit his backhand like Nadal anyway. Another mentioned Gimeno-Traver, but he hits a standard conventional 2hbh in the Djokovic mold (but not as good, obviously).

Is Nadal truly alone in the style of his backhand?
 
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