The Pro Return: The One Handed Backhand Drive

[johnyandell]

Would love to hear your thoughts on my latest - "The Pro Return: The One Handed Backhand Drive"

[jlee94111]

fed backhand return

great stuff.... would love to see Fed backhand return compared to Henin's

[don_budge]

The Federer Drive Backhand Return...

Would love to hear your thoughts on my latest - "The Pro Return: The One Handed Backhand Drive"

An incredibly detailed and thorough analysis on the backhand return. Most impressive in its scope. Under the microscope. My question is a specific one too...and tactical in nature.

Against Nadal it seems to me that Federer's drive backhand returns tend to land in the middle of the court and short or even worse yet, in the net or shanked out of bounds. This only serves to make Nadal salivate anticipating tagging these weak efforts into the next world and at the same time serves to give Nadal all of the confidence in the world on his service game.

I often wonder if Federer may not be better off chipping to the Nadal backhand or even better yet floating the ball deeper in the Nadal backhand court in the hopes that he can neutralize the point with a combination of shots that will eventually lead to a break of the Nadal serve. It seems to me that he has very little chance statistically speaking when he drives the backhand return but he may just be able to get himself into the point with such tactics. He may even encourage an error or two out of his nemesis in his overzealousness. This may be a mute point now that Nadal is M.I.A. and Roger is in the twilight of his career.

This may have something to do with the enormous grip change that must take place with the smallest of time constraints coupled with the unnerving lefty spin which creates that moment of indecision. Better to lay in wait for a stinging forehand and play the backhand a bit more defensively and therefore higher statistically percentage wise.

[GeoffWilliams]

I've found that when I go into split step on the return, back hand side (one hander), when I cock my racquet backwards, so that the racquet hand is fully cocked, even more than a 90 degree bend, that the back hand return becomes almost automatically powerful and consistent.

[johnyandell]

On the Henin comparision, check out the regular stroke archives!

DB, thanks. Your questions are good--not sure I know the answers though. Fed's back luck that the toughest spinning grinder in history is a lefty...

[jthb1021]

This article is in my top 5 best articles on this site. This transformed my backhand return a few years ago and I always reference it if my backhand drive return needs some attention.

[johnyandell]

Excellent news! What are the other 4?

[arturohernandez]

The Federer Drive Backhand Return...



An incredibly detailed and thorough analysis on the backhand return. Most impressive in its scope. Under the microscope. My question is a specific one too...and tactical in nature.

Against Nadal it seems to me that Federer's drive backhand returns tend to land in the middle of the court and short or even worse yet, in the net or shanked out of bounds. This only serves to make Nadal salivate anticipating tagging these weak efforts into the next world and at the same time serves to give Nadal all of the confidence in the world on his service game.

I often wonder if Federer may not be better off chipping to the Nadal backhand or even better yet floating the ball deeper in the Nadal backhand court in the hopes that he can neutralize the point with a combination of shots that will eventually lead to a break of the Nadal serve. It seems to me that he has very little chance statistically speaking when he drives the backhand return but he may just be able to get himself into the point with such tactics. He may even encourage an error or two out of his nemesis in his overzealousness. This may be a mute point now that Nadal is M.I.A. and Roger is in the twilight of his career.

This may have something to do with the enormous grip change that must take place with the smallest of time constraints coupled with the unnerving lefty spin which creates that moment of indecision. Better to lay in wait for a stinging forehand and play the backhand a bit more defensively and therefore higher statistically percentage wise.

Doesn't Nadal just run around and hit a forehand inside out if Federer returns to the backhand? Slice doesn't seem to bother Nadal at all. I think this is all because Fed took too long to switch to 95+. Had he done this back in 2008 it would have been a none issue. Once he switched he basically took his backhand out of the equation. The only place that Nadal can hurt the most recent Fed backhand is on clay. Outside of that Federer has dominated with his backhand even making Nadal serve to his forehand at some points.

Fed almost went the way of Sampras and finally he woke up and embraced change. Maybe he will follow Agassi to 104.

[stroke]

To me, there has never been a player the slice bh is catnip for more than Nadal, no matter where the slice bh he is receiving lands. It just gives him time to hit his fh, which when given time to me, is no doubt stand alone.

[don_budge]

Doesn't Nadal just run around and hit a forehand inside out if Federer returns to the backhand? Slice doesn't seem to bother Nadal at all. I think this is all because Fed took too long to switch to 95+. Had he done this back in 2008 it would have been a none issue. Once he switched he basically took his backhand out of the equation. The only place that Nadal can hurt the most recent Fed backhand is on clay. Outside of that Federer has dominated with his backhand even making Nadal serve to his forehand at some points.

Fed almost went the way of Sampras and finally he woke up and embraced change. Maybe he will follow Agassi to 104.

If you notice the date on my post it is October 22, 2012. This is before the equipment change by Roger Federer. I stand by what I wrote one thousand percent. He simply gave away points, games and entire matches by simply allowing Nadal to ride roughshod over him by bullying him on his serve. Federer's tactics or lack of tactics of consistently trying to drive his service return to Nadal was an epic failure. Rule number one is get the ball in play and rule number two is never give your opponent a shot that he likes to play and rule number three is get the ball in play.

My post makes perfectly good sense if taken in context of all of the prevailing circumstances. Even today...rule numbers 1, 2 and 3 still exist. Catnip? Better to shank one into the stands? Duff it into the net? A mid court sitter? Come on Man!

I think I was the only forum participant who was begging Federer to change equipment years before he actually did. I don't think you were here then. stroke was.