Enhancing your two handed backhand stroke is integral to improving your tennis game overall, and this guide will assist in understanding its key components and techniques for developing this crucial groundstroke.
Many players struggle with their backhand due to failing to incorporate body rotation properly into the stroke, leading them to start their swing from arms and shoulders rather than hips/core area.
Grip
Gripping the ball correctly is essential to hitting an effective two-handed backhand stroke, yet many beginners struggle with this step and end up hitting an unstable, unreliable shot that requires considerable effort and won’t generate much spin or speed.
Players often make this error due to trying to generate power by muscling their arms instead of rotating their whole bodies into their shots, believing this to be the only way for their backhand to work; but in truth unless enough force from within your body goes into it then nothing will work out with it.
Errors in your backhand stroke can be corrected and drastically improve its quality, giving you confidence that every ball coming at you can be returned and helping improve overall play as time progresses. A solid two-handed backhand can give players confidence they can return any shot, as well as improve overall game.
An effective two-handed backhand begins with a secure grip on the racquet. For optimal results, use a continental grip (like holding a hammer) on the dominant hand and an eastern backhand grip (similar to shaking hands) on the non-dominant hand – this combination creates more power with this stroke! Ensure all fingers are together on the racquet for maximum power on this stroke.
As with your backhand stroke, using a closed stance for your backhand provides additional stability and control. New players often make the mistake of getting their feet too open when hitting this stroke which results in them losing balance while decreasing power output from their legs and hips.
Finish your swing with a Lansdorp finish to maximize extension and drive the ball with more power. This technique can easily be learned, helping you hit more balls on your backhand with greater ease.
Stance
When you’re feeling pressured or out of position, or simply don’t have enough time to dedicate to hitting one-handed backhand shots, two-handed backhand can be an ideal shot to use when switching up your attack strategy. But it can be a little tricky to master as there are multiple factors involved; having proper grip, footwork, and stance will ensure its success and that will determine its ultimate success or failure.
At the heart of any two-handed backhand is its stance. Too often players open their stance too wide which compromises its power. An ideal two-handed backhand stance would have both feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart with your dominant foot in front, keeping an aggressive court position and maintaining balance at once.
Once you have the appropriate stance, it is essential to generate effortless power when hitting a shot. One way of accomplishing this is through having an even and rhythmic backswing; otherwise you risk losing significant power in an unsteady or disjointed swing that loses energy quickly.
An integral component of hitting an effective two-handed backhand shot is making sure your arms extend after contact, adding extra topspin and adding topspin to each shot.
Finally, it is essential that you can control the ball with your hands. New players often start out with tight gripping hands which prevent them from hitting where they intend. Breaking this habit may take some time but will certainly pay dividends in the end.
The two-handed backhand has quickly become the dominant stroke for professional tennis players of both genders. Bjorn Borg, Chris Evert, and Jimmy Connors were notable early adopters, using it to dominate the game. But it wasn’t until the late 1990s when more players adopted this powerful shot – including Jim Courier, Goran Ivanisevic, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Todd Martin on men’s side; Jennifer Capriati Monica Seles Amelie Mauresmo on women’s side.
Stroke
An effective two-handed backhand requires proper wrist and arm rotation in order to produce power, as well as smooth and consistent swing. One key factor for successful two-handed backhand play is positioning of the strike zone (commonly known as the “sweet spot”) on the racquet; it should lie along its frontal plane without too much forward motion depending on player stance.
Players using a closed stance for their backhand may require their strike zone to be closer to their body in order to achieve proper positioning and timing of stroke delivery, which must coincide with when the ball reaches its highest point in flight.
Over the 1990s, numerous top men’s and women champions began using two-handed backhand strokes in their games, such as Jim Courier, Goran Ivanisevic, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Todd Martin on the men’s side, while Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles Mary Pierce Conchita Martinez Lindsay Davenport Martina Hingis among others on the female side.
One of the advantages of modern two-handed backhand is its ability to better handle high balls than its one hander counterparts, due primarily to torso rotation during swing. Thus, skilled two-handed players can produce significantly more topspin with their backswing than using only a one hander backhand.
One effective way to increase topspin on your two-handed backhand is through practicing forehand hitting. Make sure your non dominant hand holds onto the racquet slightly longer; this will enable your arms to rotate more freely around it and generate additional topspin.
An effective way to strengthen your two-handed backhand is to focus on improving its swing tempo. A jerky backswing can throw off your rhythm and prevent you from achieving the necessary racquet head acceleration for this shot.
As part of any successful tennis game, having an effective two-handed backhand is indispensable. By mastering its basics and honing your technique further, you will be able to hit more high-quality shots on court – and achieve greater success overall! So take the time to practice your backhand and see just how much your game improves with practice!
Follow Through
Follow through is an integral component of every tennis stroke and is particularly essential when using two-handed backhand. As this shot requires more momentum to execute effectively, following through properly will ensure maximum topspin is applied across the court for more consistent shots and greater topspin production.
To hit an effective two-handed backhand follow through, it is vital that the player maintain their equilibrium as they strike the ball. For newcomers to this sport, this can be challenging as their bodies shift through the swing process and their balance can become disoriented as soon as they begin moving their bodies through it. A lunge position can help players to remain stable throughout their shot by moving closer towards it while keeping their body balanced throughout it all.
The 70’s saw the introduction of two-handed backhand players like Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors who utilized this style, leading them both to long reigns as world number one champions. From this time forward, female tennis players quickly adopted this stroke into their repertoires as an effective backhand technique.
Players should aim to contact with the ball as far forwards on their side of the court as possible when making contact, to increase topspin application and produce more consistent and powerful shots. Aiming for a Lansdorp finish – which helps prevent hands from going over shoulders – is also recommended as this may reduce mistakes made by novice players.
A two-handed backhand is an invaluable stroke in tennis. It can be used to handle high balls while creating topspin and winning rallies against opponent defenses, so mastering and working on this stroke regularly will only benefit their game and help win more matches.