Jan-Michael Gambill 2 hand forehand and backhand

[thanu]

I've been intigued by Santoro's game. P.Mac, Mary Carillo, etc all talk about how pretty/artsy his game is using two hands on both sides. I downloaded clips of Jan-Michael Gambill and I found out he uses two hands on both sides as well... but he seems to drive his forehand more while Santoro seems to always slice his. I also noticed that in some pictures Gambill has switched his hand positioning (he's right handed but sometimes his left hand is on the bottom of the grip). I've never seen Gambill play, but I was wondering you guys could comment on how he swicthes his grips, his strengths/weaknesses, etc. Thanks.

-Thanu

 

[Fee]

JanMike's two handed forehand is always the same. It's really just two fingers of his left hand near the bottom of the grip. His two handed backhand is pretty much always the same, and it's a true two hander (it's actually my favorite shot of his). But, those size 13 1/2 feet of his don't move very well and that's a problem for someone who needs two hands on both sides.

But I am incredibly biased, so someone else will probably give you a much better answer. Where did you find the clips? I'd love to put the links on my site.

 

[GrassCourtFan]

Santoro and Gambill = so little in common, game-wise, despite the similarities in that they use a two-handed forehand...

Gambill plays power off everything - power serve, power groundstrokes, can sometimes finish points off at net because of powerful setups.

Santoro - all touch, couldn't overpower a fly but could definitely outrun a gazelle... he's everywhere on the court, and hits the wierdest spins at the wierdest times. He makes you hit shots you really don't want to hit, over and over... but is never going to blast winners. He's got nice touch at the net, and is a great doubles player as well.

 

[thanu]

I got the clips off of: http://www.sportscience.org/downloads/projects/Tennis_Champions_Project/

Are you sure he only uses 2 fingers from his left hand on his forehand? From those clips it looks like his whole hand. I'm getting a DVD of Gambill beating Malisse, so I'll have to see for myself. Do you have any of his matches on tape of dvd?

Thanu

 

[Fee]

"Actually, these two fingers aren't touching the racquet when I hold it. Don't ask me how I hit that shot. I grew up doing it. I'd never teach it to anybody." (when asked a question about his two-handed forehand) 1998 Newsweek Champions Cup, Indian Wells, California. March 12, 1998

Technically, if you include his thumb, its three fingers. How old is that Malisse match? Unfortunately, just about all of my JMG match tapes are at a friend's house in FL and I don't know if they survived the most recent hurricane. If you or one of your friends have the Tennis Channel, they will replay his match against Agassi from earlier this year (February, San Jose, QF) on Friday night at 11:59 pm Eastern time. Even though he lost, its worth watching for the things he did well. He played some serve and volley points that probably gave Andre flashbacks. Argh, he was so close. Send me an email through my website, I'll see what I can dig up.

 

[tetsuo10]

He chokes up on the racket to allow part of the left hand to grip the racket. I read somewhere that he uses a racket modified to 28.5 inches.

http://www.princetennis.com/product_documents/img/player_images/gambil_500x500_1.jpg

 

[splink779]

I saw the video of his forehand that is very strange. Looks like it works great for him though.

 

[ClemsonTennis9]

My coach hits a two handed forehand...he uses almost a continental but it would be closer to eastern...basically he hits it just like a lefty two handed backhand only he lets go of his right hand towards the end of his swing. He doesn't have a lot of power, but he was a great doubles player. Just like Santoro. He said he would never teach this kind of shot to one of his students.

 

[tennisnj]

I play 2 handed on both sides, but I would never teach that to the teams I coach or the students I give lessons to @ the club. It's just the way my body needed to do it when I was younger & I've never changed.

 

[ext2hander]

Gambill's two-hand backhand is conventional two-hander, with regard to the grip.

Gambill's two-hand forehand, is not really a two-hander, as his left-hand is butted up against the right-hand, i.e. side-by-side. The left-hand fingers are not gripping the butt as Fee posted above per Gambill saying: "Actually, these two fingers aren't touching the racquet when I hold it. Don't ask me how I hit that shot. I grew up doing it. I'd never teach it to anybody." (when asked a question about his two-handed forehand) 1998 Newsweek Champions Cup, Indian Wells, California. March 12, 1998

 

[travlerajm]

I played a match against him in a tournament. His bh was stronger than his fh.

 

[Oval_Solid]

one of his legs is longer than the other

 

[MichaelNadal]

But can he afford a Nickel for his grandma?