My 1-hander vs my 2-hander (VIDEOS)

[LeeD]

Always a problem when we see good hitters just going thru the motions hitting the ball with little thought about placments.
You good hitters NEED to hit DTL or CC, not somewhere up the middle. Somewere up the middle is reserved for your FIRST ball only, to settle butterflies and get the rally going.

 

[DonDiego]

I did play last night. For the first time, I tried using the 2-hand backhand for a full two sets, no cheating.

My best shot was, guess it, the backhand... I still got creamed cause the rest of my game is falling apart, but that's another story. Three things I really, really appreciated with the 2-hander: First, the short preparation I needed to make the stroke. So simple, almost nothing to think about. Second, after the hit I was already positioned for the next one. No additional steps to take for recovery. Third, I didn't feel ''exhausted'' after a backhand rally (5-6 shots).

All these must have something to do with my faulty one-hander technique, but the two-hander seems so much ''simpler'' in every way, I believe I have no choice but to pursue in that direction. It's just more fun playing that way.

So now, it's serious: I WILL PLAY THE REST OF THE SUMMER WITH TWO HANDS. I'll start a new thread a month from now (linking to this one) with more vids of how I'm doing, and if possible a vid of a match.

This being said, I came across this clip from Jeff Salzenstein: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcxbGUIewH8 that does make a lot of sense, since I tend to put too much topspin sometimes and the result is a ball going long because of the high trajectory.

 

[LeeD]

Ball going long because you are hitting too much topspin? That doesn't make sense. Too much topspin, even with 4' of net clearance, makes the ball go SHORT.
Are you sure you are hitting with topspin?
But, 2hbh works well in competition, while 1hbh can often look relaxed and flowing in hitting sessions.
And still, use the 1hbh SLICE occasionally, to test the opponent's skills at picking up spins and lower bounces.

 

[DonDiego]

Ball going long because you are hitting too much topspin? That doesn't make sense. Too much topspin, even with 4' of net clearance, makes the ball go SHORT.
Are you sure you are hitting with topspin?
But, 2hbh works well in competition, while 1hbh can often look relaxed and flowing in hitting sessions.
And still, use the 1hbh SLICE occasionally, to test the opponent's skills at picking up spins and lower bounces.

I mean my motion is sometimes a bit too much low to high (thinking about finishing elbows high and racket over the shoulder), without going through the ball enough.

 

[LeeD]

Raise your backswing to flatten out your 2hbh?
Nadal hits a very flat 2hbh compared to his forehand.

 

[DonDiego]

I've decided to use this guy as a role model. I like the way he hits across.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJSoKdF5qqk

 

[aimr75]

I've decided to use this guy as a role model. I like the way he hits across.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJSoKdF5qqk

I've used Murray's bh to model mine too. If you model it completely, it should smooth out the takeback too

 

[chatt_town]

I stand corrected..you are right...OP...get your ***** together and hit the one hander.lol I agree with Ranch. You are hitting the one hander well. I'd perfect it even more than you have.

My vote is still pick one. Whichever is more comfortable is important. Come crunch time you need to have your game straight. Actively choosing what backhand to hit on a big point could leave you stranded. Yes when you're scrambling usually you'll just do things without thinking, but when you have an attackable midcourt with days to think about it, you need to be on your game and clearminded. Not saying that you won't be, but comitting to one shot will help your confidence and ultimately power

 

[DonDiego]

Good unit turn = more fluid stroke

Still improving the 2-hander.

Previously I mentioned this: ''I honestly would love to master the two-hander, but I find it very difficult to stay relaxed and control the dept of my shots. More specifically, I find it harder to let the racket ''roll over the ball'' to impart natural spin without forcing it. I have a much easier time doing this with my one-hander''

I think I found how to get the same fluidity and relaxed hitting with two hands. For me, it's all bout a good unit turn (takeback) before hitting. Almost as pronounced as with a one-hander actually. What gives me the relaxed motion and high racquet head speed with the one-hander is the unit turn, which allows for the hips and shoulder to ''lock, then ''unlock'' and bring power to the shot without even forcing.

I'll just be cautious not to exaggerate it so that it becomes a liability by making me late on shots. I'll try to keep it compact, yet use more of the ''free'' power that hips and shoulder allow. I find that this also works great on slow/touch shots, for example if you're hitting with your girlfriend or anybody that can't hit back hard shots. The power coming from the rest of the body -- and the resulting the momentum of your racquet -- allows you to better control those soft shots by keeping your hands relaxed and following through naturally.

Not sure if that makes sense, but this is how I feel it.

 

[aimr75]

post an update vid of the 2hbh once you get the new motions down

 

[DonDiego]

Update

I stopped thinking about my backhand for a while, and just thought I would stay with the one-hander and two hands for returns. But what I've realized these past weeks is that I'm uncounsciously using the two-hander more and more. Seems like every ball landing deep at my feet or when stretched wide, I hit with two hands. Without even thinking about it or making any decision. After the hit I'm thinking: whoa... what did I just do? The only balls I still hit with one hand are those mid-court, easy to attack balls. Cause I don't feel it natural yet to ''rip'' a two-handers to finish a point.

I like this process so far. No pressure to change, and my backhand is not a liability, even if I sometimes switch during the same rally. My consistency is pretty much equal with both.

But again, the two-hander seem soooo much simpler to execute. It's like you have one thing to think about instead of five...

 

[LeeD]

Evolution, rather than reinventing, is usually better for a smoother transition.

 

[DonDiego]

VIDEO UPDATE -- Both BH in the same sequence

I was doing the 3 cross court / 1 down the line drill:

https://vimeo.com/103102457

 

[DonDiego]

Still have this jerking motion on the 2-hander, but I don't really mind, I don't even realize I'm doing it so it would take a lot of hitting to get rid of that.

 

[DonDiego]

Couple of observations (as I'm using this thread also as an ''open'' journal):

What I find is working for the 2-hander are those technical points:

1-Prepare early with slightly extended arms (closed arms don't seem to work for me)

2-As you're about to hit, make sure to have a good ''racquet drop'', with soft hands

3-Hit the ball in the higher part of the stringbed (not sure if I really do it, but thinking about doing it works)

4-Watch the ball at contact

Also, it's not hard to see that, at least for me, the 1-hander is much more phisically demanding (I'm also grunting louder). And that I have to get down much lower with my legs (as demonstrated by the hit at :32)