Hey there, fellow tennis enthusiasts It’s your girl Mia Johnson-Carter here, living the dream in Miami. Today, I’m super excited to dive into a fascinating story about the evolution of tennis. From the decline of one-handed backhands to the rise of fast courts, there’s a lot to talk about.
#### The Decline of One-Handed Backhands
Over the past two decades, tennis has seen a significant shift in playing styles. The return to the serve has become increasingly important in men’s tennis, and the approach to the net is almost extinct. This change has had important repercussions on the technical side of the game. The one-handed backhand, once a staple of many top players like Roger Federer, is now almost extinct. Very few top players still use this approach, and it’s common opinion that the two-handed backhand is much more effective for modern tennis.
Italian Jannik Sinner and Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, two main exponents of the Next Gen and the only Slam winners in 2024, both perform a two-handed backhand. Legends like Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal also use this style. Roger Federer was an exception in this respect, but his one-handed backhand often created problems when facing Nadal on red clay. Other notable players with one-handed backhands include Stan Wawrinka and Richard Gasquet, who were able to shoot very strong with these shots.
#### A Clear Trend
Almost all young tennis players now play with a two-handed backhand, and this trend will become more established in the future of men’s tennis. The last prominent exponents of the one-handed backhand are Stefanos Tsitsipas, Grigor Dimitrov, and Lorenzo Musetti, but they are exceptions in a reality that is now well delineated. For the first time in ATP Finals history, there will be no players with a one-handed backhand.
#### The Need for Variety
In recent years, fans and professionals have often complained that players have all become very similar and that surfaces have been too standardized. The contrast of styles is crucial to make a sport attractive and interesting. This is why ATP will have to work hard to make its product even more palatable in every corner of the world.
Roger Federer recently expressed his point of view on this topic in an interview with ‘GQ’: “What we get more and more nowadays is that I wish that sometimes we had a little bit more variety, and also back and forth coming to the net a little bit more, not just side to side. We’ll see where the game will go.” He emphasizes the importance of mixing up the game to keep it interesting.
#### New Solutions
This year, ATP has tried to make the surfaces more diversified by introducing very fast courts in both Cincinnati and Paris-Bercy Masters 1000. Many players have complained about the excessive speed of these surfaces, especially Carlos Alcaraz, who was prematurely eliminated in both Ohio and the French capital.
Top analyst Benoit Maylin explained in ‘Sans Filet’ that it’s crucial for tennis to become more varied: “Give me fast courts Indoor tennis should always be played on a fast surface. Stop with this homogenization of the courts, you have to show that you have the ability to adapt. It’s always the same speed with players sending you cartridges for 18 hours.” He believes that surface changes can showcase a player’s ability to adapt and modify their game to succeed in winning.
#### Conclusion
Tennis is evolving rapidly, and it’s exciting to see how these changes will shape the sport in the future. Whether it’s the decline of one-handed backhands or the introduction of fast courts, there’s always something new happening in the world of tennis. If you want, you can check out the news where I found it [here](https://www.tennisworldusa.org/tennis/news/ATP_Tennis/149539/atp-finals-the-onehanded-backhand-is-definitely-extinct/).
Yours truly,
Mia
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