Stan has the sweetest 1HBH?

At this point, who has the best 1HBH at the top level


  • Total voters
    64

skaj

Legend
It's a helluva lot more consistent than Tsitsi or Shapo, and Thiem's BH bashing doesn't make his shot very consistent. Only debatable one is Gasquet. Wawrinka clearly ahead of everyone else

Wawrinka is not the problem in that category, but Federer is notorious for having an erratic backhand. Tsitsipas isn't great but not worse than him. Gasquet is of course more consistent than Roger on the backhand side.
 

Cashman

Hall of Fame
It really depends on what you value. A backhand that is beautiful and expansive to one person is cumbersome and slow to another.

Whilst there are few things more satisfying than watching Wawrinka wind up his backhand and explode through the ball, it's not a shot I would personally teach. That huge backswing sacrifices one of the main advantages of the 1HBH over the two-hander - versatility - and is one of the key reasons Wawrinka is so utterly wretched on grass.

As a result I have always preferred Gasquet's backhand to Wawrinka.
 

Tostao80

Rookie
Technique: Wawrinka, Federer, Shapovalov, Gasquet, Thiem, Tsitsipas
Consistency: Wawrinka, Federer, Gasquet, Thiem, Tsitsipas, Shapovalov
Power: Thiem, Gasquet, Wawrinka, Shapovalov, Federer, Tsitsipas
Spin: Gasquet, Thiem, Federer, Tsitsipas, Shapovalov, Wawrinka
Placement: Wawrinka, Federer, Shapovalov, Tsitsipas, Gasquet, Thiem
Variety: Federer, Tsitsipas, Wawrinka, Shapovalov, Gasquet, Thiem
Return: Federer, Thiem, Wawrinka, Shapovalov, Gasquet, Tsitsipas
Reaction Time: Federer, Shapovalov, Tsitsipas, Wawrinka, Thiem, Gasquet
On the rise: Federer, Wawrinka, Gasquet, Tsitsipas, Shapovalov, Thiem
Appearance/beauty: Wawrinka, Federer, Shapovalov, Gasquet, Thiem, Tsitsipas
Defense: Thiem, Wawrinka, Federer, Gasquet, Shapovalov, Tsitsipas
As a weapon: Wawrinka, Shapovalov, Gasquet, Thiem, Federer, Tsitsipas

Overall: Wawrinka, Federer, Thiem = Gasquet, Shapovalov, Tsitsipas

Good list. Not sure Richies backhand has more power than Stans tbh.
 

Bender

G.O.A.T.
Well the question in the poll is "at this point who has the best 1HBH at the top level", and since both Fed and Wawrinka aren't doing that well right now, Thiem wins.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Good list. Not sure Richies backhand has more power than Stans tbh.
I don't think Stan has ever topped 103mph on a BH. He has a more consistently aggressive swing with better placement, but when Gasquet wants to blast it, he blasts it.
 

Tostao80

Rookie
I don't think Stan has ever topped 103mph on a BH. He has a more consistently aggressive swing with better placement, but when Gasquet wants to blast it, he blasts it.

Richie himself doesnt have many backhands beyond 103mph, if any. Stans backhand is consistently more powerful than Richie, of that there is no doubt.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Richie himself doesnt have many backhands beyond 103mph, if any. Stans backhand is consistently more powerful than Richie, of that there is no doubt.
Yes, but Stan has never hit a backhand in triple digits that I'm aware of. Gasquet has a higher peak for power while Stan hits a harder, deeper rally ball.
 

SonnyT

Legend
Federer by far.
1) versatility. Fed can hit half volleys from no man's land. I'm sure Stan hit some by accident. But Fed didn't do it by accident. he masters the thing.
2) touch. Probably the most amazing ever, he can drop shots from positions you'd think are impossible. McEnroe is the other nominee in this category.

Do you notice that almost every player has more touch on backhand than forehand? And of course more power on forehand! That's why most dropshots come off backhands. Nadal has the best dropshot off forehand. Djokovic never drops shot off forehand.
 

skaj

Legend
Federer by far.
1) versatility. Fed can hit half volleys from no man's land. I'm sure Stan hit some by accident. But Fed didn't do it by accident. he masters the thing.
2) touch. Probably the most amazing ever, he can drop shots from positions you'd think are impossible. McEnroe is the other nominee in this category.

Do you notice that almost every player has more touch on backhand than forehand? And of course more power on forehand! That's why most dropshots come off backhands. Nadal has the best dropshot off forehand. Djokovic never drops shot off forehand.

Absolutely not, Gasquet can hit half volleys from no man's land too, execute fabulous drop shots from a difficult position. Also an amazing touch, right up there with Federer, McEnroe.
 

ibbi

G.O.A.T.
I don't think Stan's is anywhere near as pretty as Fed's or Gasquet's, and when it comes to versatility he's maybe not top drawer, but when he's on form and hammering that thing down the line I don't know that there is much sweeter to watch in tennis.
 

canta_Brian

Hall of Fame
Absolutely not, Gasquet can hit half volleys from no man's land too, execute fabulous drop shots from a difficult position. Also an amazing touch, right up there with Federer, McEnroe.
That must be why he has so many grand slam titles. Just 21 more to overtake Federer.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Between Wawrinka and Federer, I don't see what makes Stan's superior. He is much worse against Nadal than Fed is.
That's not because of his backhand. Wawrinka BH handles Nadal's topspin better than Federer, he just isn't the same class of player.
 

Aretium

Hall of Fame
That's not because of his backhand. Wawrinka BH handles Nadal's topspin better than Federer, he just isn't the same class of player.
People really don't understand tennis here. It's the game plan that Stan has which fails. You can't beat Nadal 2 metres from the baseline. Doesn't matter how good you're background is, you won't be screaming winners over 3 hours from this position. Feds backhand is so underrated here. If anything it's his forehand that's been letting him down recently.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
People really don't understand tennis here. It's the game plan that Stan has which fails. You can't beat Nadal 2 metres from the baseline. Doesn't matter how good you're background is, you won't be screaming winners over 3 hours from this position. Feds backhand is so underrated here. If anything it's his forehand that's been letting him down recently.
Wawrinka has to stay behind the baseline because he needs more preparation on his BH than Fed. Costs him court position but he can hit bigger on it.
 

ChaelAZ

G.O.A.T.
Not the "best" until he wins more with it, but Shapo is mesmerizing to watch.


I agree. My issue with him is, he puts himself in awkward postions often and has to use his athleticism too much to compenate, but it makes for some amazing shots. And when he does use better footwork/anticipation/setup he is just so darn fluid and smooth.
 

ChaelAZ

G.O.A.T.
I think I could make a pretty good living pointing out that many "who has/is the best..." has no objective answer whenever there are no criteria accepted by all for evaluating the question. In the present case, one could count the number of winners made with the BH, the average or peak speed of the BH, the consistency of the BH, the number of forcing shots resulting from the BH, etc., etc. And to make matters worse, even if we agreed on a seemingly objective criterion like "number of winners" made with this stroke, one could argue that the quality of the opponents is not constant between any of these comparisons.

My counter question is: why are we not satisfied with a list of pros with BHs which are effective in winning points while keeping the number of unforced errors with that stroke low? And even here, we may argue about whether a given player should be part of the list, so no end to the discussion anyway. Good for the forum business.

Sorry the throw cold water on anyone who has "THE" answer. :-(


Thanks for making it rain Debiie Downer.

giphy.gif


Just kidding. ;)

Of course it is subjective, but this would be a pretty boring discussion forum if everything was said to have objective answers. And we see how statistical threads go as well. Somewhere between opinions and statistics is a truth, but it is more interesting to see what people think and why. No right or wrong answer, just discussion.

Heck, anytime someone posts a 'favorite' thread I die a little inside because I don't really do favorites. Like, what is your favorite food. I'm, like...all of them I like. :)

Cheers.
 

Djokodalerer31

Hall of Fame
Stefan Edberg! Case closed!...No one ever come close ever since...not even Wawrinka! Its for the sweetest! Like eye-candy backhand! As for current top level - Wawrinka off course...I don't really like how Thiem finishes his Backhand swing motion...looks ugly, like he is trying to wave off flies or something...if he was playing baseball and held bat in the hand instead of racquet - that would look more appropriate, but since we're talking about tennis here...I like that classic 1hb swing, where player stops motion swing slightly above shoulder level! With Thiem it always looks like he is about to hit himself in the back! LOL
 
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FatHead250

Professional
Gasquet backhand is art and his dominant hand. Others are forehand dominant. The answer is Gasquet. Other differencies are from their physical differencies.
 

SonnyT

Legend
That's not because of his backhand. Wawrinka BH handles Nadal's topspin better than Federer, he just isn't the same class of player.

Wawrinka handles Nadal's topspin better than Federer, because the Stanimal is so strong, he could overpower the ball wherever it is, something Fed can't. Federer tops everyone in artistry and genius, I didn't say anything about consistency.

I prefer Fed' strokes, fore or backhand, with the small racket, but consistency is something else. The small one is really the racket of genius for RF.

And whoever says Gasquet's backhand is beautiful. It's an ugly and ineffective stroke because of exaggerated backswing and follow-through. Who does he think he is, un mousquetaire?
 
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King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Wawrinka handles Nadal's topspin better than Federer, because the Stanimal is so strong, he could overpower the ball wherever it is, something Fed can't. Federer tops everyone in artistry and genius, I didn't say anything about consistency.

I prefer Fed' strokes, fore or backhand, with the small racket, but consistency is something else. The small one is really the racket of genius for RF.
Wawrinka's backhand may not have Fed's variety but it is a more solid, aggressive, powerful shot. It's not a weakness that can be exploited, like Federer BH is.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Othet than Nadal, who has exploited Fed's BH?
One of Djokovic's biggest strengths in the rivalry is winning BH to BH exchanges. And most players on clay try (keyword try) to isolate and exploit the Fed backhand. Wawrinka's backhand is like a 2nd FH, Fed's isn't.
 

mike danny

Bionic Poster
One of Djokovic's biggest strengths in the rivalry is winning BH to BH exchanges. And most players on clay try (keyword try) to isolate and exploit the Fed backhand. Wawrinka's backhand is like a 2nd FH, Fed's isn't.
Well, Fed's age has betrayed him against Novak more than his BH.

Stan's record against Nadal is horrendius so we can't prove he has a better BH since Nadal is the litmus test in this case.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Well, Fed's age has betrayed him against Novak more than his BH.

Stan's record against Nadal is horrendius so we can't prove he has a better BH since Nadal is the litmus test in this case.
I'm not saying Djokovic wins by exposing his BH and nothing else, but the BH definitely plays a role in the matchup.
In fact, I'd say Federer has the matchup advantage but Djokovic has just been more clutch and got the mental edge over time (2015 for BO5, 2018 for BO3).
 
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