tennis_hack
Banned
Interesting turn of tables here - we all know that Nadal loves to bomb high loopers at his opponent's backhand, whether they be 1hbh or 2hbh players. But can he handle his own medicine?
I actually don't think he can very well. Nadal's backhand is prone to coughing up a short ball if you hit high to it - if you hit a high ball to his backhand, he struggles to hit it deep with pace and spin. This is why you will see Nadal hit looping, 'safe' backhands DTL so very often whenever someone hits to his backhand - even when the 'percentage play' would be back crosscourt. Nadal is just dying to get out of the Nadal backhand to righty forehand rally. It's also why you see him slice backhands DTL, and run around his backhand so much as well - again, anything to get out of hitting his own backhand.
No-one really has a forehand as heavy as Nadal's, or is willing/dogged enough to hit it as consistently to Nadal's backhand as Nadal is to other people.
Verdasco and Bellucci, who both have extremely heavy forehands, are both left-handed, so their forehand rally shot does not go into Nadal's backhand.
When Djokovic finally had the tenacity and fitness to abuse Nadal's backhand in 2011, we saw Nadal's backhand cough up shorter and shorter balls under Djokovic's heay spin, until Djokovic could just step in and slap a winner or forcing shot. And Djokovic does not even have close to as heavy a forehand as Nadal.
We just witnessed Dolgopolov repeat a similar tactic this week.
Basically, if Nadal played a right-handed version of himself, how would his backhand hold up?
I actually don't think he can very well. Nadal's backhand is prone to coughing up a short ball if you hit high to it - if you hit a high ball to his backhand, he struggles to hit it deep with pace and spin. This is why you will see Nadal hit looping, 'safe' backhands DTL so very often whenever someone hits to his backhand - even when the 'percentage play' would be back crosscourt. Nadal is just dying to get out of the Nadal backhand to righty forehand rally. It's also why you see him slice backhands DTL, and run around his backhand so much as well - again, anything to get out of hitting his own backhand.
No-one really has a forehand as heavy as Nadal's, or is willing/dogged enough to hit it as consistently to Nadal's backhand as Nadal is to other people.
Verdasco and Bellucci, who both have extremely heavy forehands, are both left-handed, so their forehand rally shot does not go into Nadal's backhand.
When Djokovic finally had the tenacity and fitness to abuse Nadal's backhand in 2011, we saw Nadal's backhand cough up shorter and shorter balls under Djokovic's heay spin, until Djokovic could just step in and slap a winner or forcing shot. And Djokovic does not even have close to as heavy a forehand as Nadal.
We just witnessed Dolgopolov repeat a similar tactic this week.
Basically, if Nadal played a right-handed version of himself, how would his backhand hold up?
