Why don't more future players try and make themselves left-handed?

[ultimate_defense]

It obviously worked for Nadal, so do you think it will be a noticeable future trend that more right-handers will try and train themselves to go southpaw from an early age?

And, a related question - why does a righty have an inherent disadvantage against a lefty? Everyone talks about a left-handed forehand going to a right-handed backhand, but when the righty serves (and can thus dictate the rally to some extent), surely he'll try to hit his righty forehand to the lefty backhand, thus making the match-up equal?

Or is the 'advantage' mainly in the unfamiliarity and awkwardness of playing left-handers ie. neither left or right handed play is inherantly better?

 

[LeeD]

Me lefty.
Lefties play righties all the time.
Righties seldom play lefties.
Lefties often have very spinny serves, compared to righties.
Lots of my friends always beat me when we play each other. Surprisely, almost every tournament, I go farther than my rightie buds, who are better players than me.

 

[Sentinel]

The matchup is not equal. The lefty backhand is used to righty forehands (cc).

 

[autumn_leaf]

Or is the 'advantage' mainly in the unfamiliarity and awkwardness of playing left-handers ie. neither left or right handed play is inherantly better?

i think it's pretty much this. i've played lefties that played fairly flat and it was pretty much like playing a righty. the difference in spin is a huge advantage because you're not used to it. think when you first played tennis, you had no clue how to calculate the bounce of the ball and probably whiffed a good amount, that's how it's like playing a lefty for the first time and many times after that if you don't play against them regularly, you're body never adjusts fully.

the second thing, though i'm not sure how valid it is, is that lefties get the serve out wide on the ad side.

 

[BigForehand]

The GOAT tennis player is right handed and has 1 handed backhand. The 2nd GOAT is right handed and also has 1 handed backhand.

So even with these apparent "disadvantages" they got 30 slams combined.

 

[winebarrel]

The GOAT tennis player is right handed and has 1 handed backhand. The 2nd GOAT is right handed and also has 1 handed backhand.

So even with these apparent "disadvantages" they got 30 slams combined.

Rod Laver was a lefty. He would have given the total slams a nudge had he not been banned for some many years.

 

[Sentinel]

Good idea. Along with a Babolat racquet, left-handedness guarantees a bunch of clay slams no matter how deficient one is in talent.

 

[MichaelNadal]

Good idea. Along with a Babolat racquet, left-handedness guarantees a bunch of clay slams no matter how deficient one is in talent.

Lol you said it for me.

 

[Recon]

Good idea. Along with a Babolat racquet, left-handedness guarantees a bunch of clay slams no matter how deficient one is in talent.

What a dig, surely you do not get to number 1 in the world with 9-10 grandslams (too lazy to check) and demolish federer the first time they played (miami) at 17? when federer was in his prime. He may not have it as apparent as federer who obviously is the most talented player to ever live no discussion, but he has it in other places, hand eye coordination, reactions, competitive killer instinct, and court savyness. but i think your joking so w/e. lol.

And yes this trend SHOULD be pushed, if i had to start over I would def go lefty, Unless the child has a distinct strength difference from his right to left, then they should switch over. That wide serve on the AD side will win alot of free points, and the game is more suited to spin nowadays. For some reason lefties create more spin then righties, I don't understand why but this is definitely the case, A righties kick serve does not eat me alive while a leftys kick/slice should be considered illegal. Also it spins the opposite way of what you practice with regularly so it'll definitely mess you up.

 

[ultimate_defense]

Good idea. Along with a Babolat racquet, left-handedness guarantees a bunch of clay slams no matter how deficient one is in talent.

I didn't say I personally was going to try to go lefty, but it would make sense for those crazy pushy-parent-types who want their kid to be the next GOAT and send them off to tennis academy at 4 years of age to force them to do everything left handed as soon as they exit the womb, wouldn't it?

Then, if it so happened that one of these kids had the talent of Federer combined with the faux-lefty awkwardness of Nadal, they would have the potential to do better than both?

 

[namelessone]

the second thing, though i'm not sure how valid it is, is that lefties get the serve out wide on the ad side.

For me this is pretty valid.

I've played only two lefties in my life, both were a bit better than me but not by that much but nothing, absolutely nothing, irked me more than the serve out wide. Even when I managed to get it, I still lost the point more often than not.

Also, as many have mentioned here, lefties know how to play you because 90% of the time they will play a righty but a righty rarely plays a lefty. Even after playing a couple of times it can be quite confusing as you expect one thing and get another.

 

[Sid_Vicious]

Whats that supposed to mean, clearly Nadal is one of the most talented players ever.You can't get 9 slams without alot of talent

I think Senti is being sarcastic. There are some clowns here who truly believe that statement though.

 

[stringertom]

Momma don't raise your kids up to be left-handed!

So many reasons not to Uncle Tony your prodigy:
1. Because an obviously abundantly talented individual achieves world-class success isn't a sign it works for anyone. First, there has to be some degree of ambidexterity to "get the ball rolling". If a kid has no opposite-side skills/strengths it's not gonna happen. For example, I would bet Rafa is left-eye dominant to be able to hit the two-hander so well close-stanced.
2. If it became a huge trend, the "unique" advantage is watered down. See more lefties, get used to lefties more easily. They will still have the strategic ad court advantage if they slice wide and open the court on more of the "big" points, but the righty will learn faster how to deal with it.
3. The extra time needed to train or re-train the unnatural instinct could be channeled into other complementary pursuits: work the mind/body around their natural strengths: water flows through the path of least resistance
4. Beware the OCD consequence: apparently a natural righty playing lefty as a world-class player develops quirky obsessions about placement of water bottles,rudely makes his opponent and referee wait an inordinate amount of time for a coin-toss while sucking his energy-boost and playing his imaginary drumset, and picks at his jockstrap between nearly every point. But if you don't mind your kid getting odd like that, by all means raise him up to be left-handed.

 

[Pidgeon]

Uncle Tony said it himself...
if being lefthanded is the key to being a top player or the best player why aren't there more lefties in the top rankings ...
+ the fact that everyone gives :
lefties play to my backhand, twist/kick to my backhand,... can also be turned around..
when a rightie goes crosscourt he also bashes the leftie's backhand.

so is leftie an advantage ? -> yes against amateur players (players who aren't used to playing a leftie)
top level -> sometimes but surely not always !

why is nadal #1 ? -> Talent , speed , endurance, mental strength (!), ...
Being a lefty helps him against players with a bad backhand (f.e. roger).
the disadvantage -> the really ****ty service (and with ****ty i mean he hasn't really got the booming service , just sets up the rally )

 

[OLYMPICLEGEND]

It obviously worked for Nadal, so do you think it will be a noticeable future trend that more right-handers will try and train themselves to go southpaw from an early age?

And, a related question - why does a righty have an inherent disadvantage against a lefty? Everyone talks about a left-handed forehand going to a right-handed backhand, but when the righty serves (and can thus dictate the rally to some extent), surely he'll try to hit his righty forehand to the lefty backhand, thus making the match-up equal?

Or is the 'advantage' mainly in the unfamiliarity and awkwardness of playing left-handers ie. neither left or right handed play is inherantly better?

It won't matter, they'll still likely suck. Most left-handers AND right-handers suck. You need Nadal-type talent (physically and mentally) to be as great as Nadal. It's one in a billion

 

[dominikk1985]

The GOAT tennis player is right handed and has 1 handed backhand. The 2nd GOAT is right handed and also has 1 handed backhand.

So even with these apparent "disadvantages" they got 30 slams combined.

that's true. It doesn't matter if you are righty or lefty, just how good you play tennis.

also not everyone has the genetic potential to switch hand. some are nearly ambidextrous and some people can't do anything with their weak hand. this is certainly training to some extend but it's still limited for many.

there is a reason why lefties are not converted to righty writing anymore, since it can cause problems for many people.

BTW a girlfriend of mine also plays righty but writes with the left hand just like moya. so this is also possible.

playing a lefty(I am one) is slightly more tricky but it's usually not the deciding factor.

and the 3rd GOAT (laver) is a lefty.

 

[JohnnyCracker]

do lefties also hate to play another lefty, although, the awarkness/unfamiliarity is experienced by both sides since lefties rarely play another lefty?

 

[tennis_pro]

Uncle Tony said it himself...
if being lefthanded is the key to being a top player or the best player why aren't there more lefties in the top rankings ...
+ the fact that everyone gives :
lefties play to my backhand, twist/kick to my backhand,... can also be turned around..
when a rightie goes crosscourt he also bashes the leftie's backhand.

so is leftie an advantage ? -> yes against amateur players (players who aren't used to playing a leftie)
top level -> sometimes but surely not always !

why is nadal #1 ? -> Talent , speed , endurance, mental strength (!), ...
Being a lefty helps him against players with a bad backhand (f.e. roger).
the disadvantage -> the really ****ty service (and with ****ty i mean he hasn't really got the booming service , just sets up the rally )

If playing left-handed doesn't give you any advantage, why did uncle T. force Nadal to keep playing as a leftie?

Toni is a smart a**, almost nobody is brave enough to change the hand they play with. Tell me first, wow many players expect themselves to go high up the ATP ranking? On the amateur circuit that doesn't even matter, nothing does except for enjoying the game.

 

[tennis_pro]

This thread made me wonder. Would Nadal have the same success if he continued playing with his right hand as a kid?

 

[Dilettante]

It obviously worked for Nadal, so do you think it will be a noticeable future trend that more right-handers will try and train themselves to go southpaw from an early age?

It's not that easy. The kid who learns that way has to be ambidextrous to some degree. Because to the inherent talent needed to develop a game good enough to become pro, he will need to add the talent of developing that pro game with the non-dominant hand. Not everyone can do that. Nadal, Moya and such are a bit ambidextrous otherwise there's no case.

I'm purely right handed, not ambidextrous at all, and it wouldn't been a good idea trying to learn with my left hand. It wouldn't worked better than right hand by any mean.

Same with left-handed that are not ambidextrous.

Would Nadal have the same success if he continued playing with his right hand as a kid?

I'd say a very similar success, but slightly different matchups. Top players had the tools to develop when kinds, and if develped other way, those tools would have adapted. An ambidextrous player could have developed either way.

 

[Dilettante]

Double post.

 

[JohnnyCracker]

This thread made me wonder. Would Nadal have the same success if he continued playing with his right hand as a kid?

Would Nadal have the same success against Federer had he played right handed?

 

[namelessone]

Would Nadal have the same success against Federer had he played right handed?

Why not?

Nadal's biggest advantage is not that he is a lefty but that he can create massive spin while being physically very fit and having a fighting attitude, staying in there as they say. If he can get that massive spin up on Fed's BH anything can happen.

A guy less well endowed but with a somewhat similar spinny game is Andreev, who gave Fed fits in two slams and this was while Andreev wasn't exactly killing it on the regular tour. Not to mention that the russian doesn't have nearly as much fighting spirit as Nadal. And he still managed to trouble Fed.

A righty with Nadal's spin and attitude could have posed major problems for Fed.

 

[tennis_pro]

Would Nadal have the same success against Federer had he played right handed?

That's the only interesting thing about the case. Nadal playing right handed would mean:

1) A lot of cross court forehand (since Nadal loves to run around his backhand) rallies which would give Federer an advantage

2) Even if Nadal tried to hit every shot to Federer's backhand, whilst running around his backhand he would leave an open court for a Federer easy forehand put away.

3) Loopy balls wouldn't bother Federer in the same degree

 

[tennis_pro]

Why not?
If he can get that massive spin up on Fed's BH anything can happen.

He'd have to generate massive spin with his backhand then, Nadal.

 

[Ash_Smith]

It's not that easy. The kid who learns that way has to be ambidextrous to some degree.

The kid who learns that way has been "trained" to be ambidextrous from day 1, it's not a case of showing that they might be ambidextrous at some point, Toni didn't suddenly look at Rafa one day and go, you know, he could play lefty too. It was practiced from a very early age, during the formative years, to help develop the "circuitary" on each side of the body. Obviously Toni is a Master Coach and Rafa a very focused, determined, process focused individual, but similar results can be replicated in terms of "handedness" by any parent/coach if the right conditions are met early on (not necessarily World No.1 tennis player though!).

Cheers

Ash

 

[cucio]

T.M.: So, you took charge of little Rafa and perhaps, you made the most important decision of his life: to let him play with his left hand whereas he’s a natural right-hander.
Toni: No! That’s a legend… But it’s really not the truth. At the start, he played with two hands but using one hand to direct. I had the impression that he was stronger on his left side than on his right side. So, I figured that he was left-handed; it’s as simple as that. Besides, even if he ate with his right hand, he also played football with his left foot. However, at no point did I tell him: “He needs to play with his left hand because that way, he will be much stronger.” However, since I’m not completely stupid, I simply advised him to use his strongest hand. That’s it. Besides, I don’t think that it’s that much more advantageous to be left-handed. Just look at the world’s best players: there are not many of them there. No, the only thing I did advise Rafa was that at the age of 10, he needed to stop playing his forehand with two hands because no top player had a two-handed forehand and I couldn’t imagine my nephew being the first. So, this is all there is to this story. Would Rafa be as strong now if he used his right hand? That’s something we don’t know and we will never know.

10 ambidextrous

 

[Sentinel]

Whats that supposed to mean, clearly Nadal is one of the most talented players ever.You can't get 9 slams without alot of talent

Oh christ. you missed the wink at the end of the post. You don't get even a single slam, (okay make that two), without talent.

 

[QueenSeles]

Nadal would not have the same success against Federer if he played righty. He cannot generate anywhere near the amount of topspin with his BH as he can with his FH. Without the lefty aspect which only Nadal can use to its utmost advantage, Federer would have over 20 slams by now.

 

[cucio]

And a better serve, but who cares about logic when goatness is at stake?

If you are going for wild hypotheses, you could also say that the pressure to battle Nadal made Fed a better player against lefties, and without it he would have lost some of those 16 slams to Melzer or Verdasco. Woulda, shoulda, oughta...

 

[jaggy]

if my wife was pregnant id be channeling sonic waves into the foetus to make it left handed.

 

[mp2002]

For me this is pretty valid.

I've played only two lefties in my life...

How is this possible? I've faced four lefties so far this year in my USTA league. Two of them were on a doubles team together.