Wowser! Amazing progress for one week, from zero to actually quite consistent and proper shot. Two things you should know: I noticed that you don't hold your racket low enough, I mean you should hold the handle at the bottom, not leaving those few centimeters like I noticed. And two, which I found super useful, actually your backhand shot, if you execute it right, will always fly to the exact point that your shoulder points to, so if you want to go down the line/ cross court, position yourself in such way to point with your shoulder at the place you are aiming for. Good Luck, You have earned a subscriber!
Hey! Im a Coach but also a player that has struggled finding a decent backhand consistently. This is what I noticed 1. Backhand grip isn’t ideal, I would recommend left hand grabbing the racket eastern like, I ‘ll mention why next. And right hand in bevel 5 or 4x 2. Hitting backhands only with the left arm does wonders, you need to understand that backhand is driven by the left almost entirely, right arm needs to be ghost like. So get used to hitting backhands where the left arm is in charge of the power and precision. 3. Your preparation is good, but once your swing starts going forward you never drop the racket below hip height, this will make you miss a lot more on the net and will make it harder to consistently put in good shots. It feels weird but try dropping more your arms and racket head before contact. Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. So try first troubleshooting technical aspects before putting in the reps, otherwise you’re training stuff you don’t want to keep in the future. Best of luck!!!!
I have to say, your backhand looks pretty good after only one week of intense practice. The challenge will be using it in a match situation where it's tempting to revert to old habits when under pressure. Try to get into a mentality where you care less about the outcome of a match and more about how you hit your backhand. Maybe even run around a forehand to hit a backhand. The other thing I would advise is to practice the slice backhand. It's usually an easier shot to hit especially on low balls. It also takes less physical energy to hit. There's no rule saying you are only allowed to hit topspin backhands.
Hey man, USTA 4.5, Ex D2 player here - Your progress is actually amazing. I would say what I would eliminate first as you are going forward with developing your backhand is that high take back you have over your shoulder currently. Its a lot of extra motion that is not needed for the shot. I have this problem on my forehand, and it may feel great on slow balls but when someone starts hitting some pace into you, you will not have time for that full winding take back. Instead try dropping that backhand straight back low towards the fence about pocket level. One quick take back and then finish high like you are doing. I think this will help your back hand in matches greatly because it will allow you to absorb pace and control it way better.
Amazing improvement and wonderful video!! Here are some general tips: 1) the backhand shot comes through the hips, so lead with your hips and let the racquet follow 2) as you improve, shortening your backswing will help with timing. The backhand can redirect power well so you dont need to load up so much (just loses you time because in reality the power comes from hip) 3) your goal should be to hit 100 backhands in a row comfortably in a rally. Aim for two racquet lengths over the net and find a safe shot. This will give you match confidence so your practice feels worthwhile. When learning a new shot, consistency > everything
Awesome progress in one week! Many other people have said this too, but focus on the footwork next, then the your weight transfer (you look like you still fall back at the end of your swing), and finally applying all of that during some live ball drills and point play. But seriously great work in 7 days without any formal coaching man!
Here's my small advice Trey 1. Watch everything by Intuitive Tennis on 2HBH and more 2. Use a Continental Grip on your right hand 3. Don't ingrain bad habits further. Learn proper technique first. Bad practice does not make perfect. 4. Read or listen to Essential Tennis, Inner Game of Tennis, Winning Ugly
Great evolution broo. I'm a coach from Brazil and here's a tip: Don't worry too much about the technique, you're already doing it super well, try to perform the same technique with different movements. Use the same ball machine however, use some obstacles to work on the footwork in the different game situations you've already experienced. and remember: the medicine ball will be your friend.
the medicine ball acutually helps so much on hitting a good backhand ! his technique it's not that bad, im just not sure if he is using the correct grip (continental) and need better adjust before hitting the backhand, maybe more small steps to get better contact point. good improvment in just a few days tho!
Okay, so, by FAR the biggest tip I can give, as someone who also learned as an adult: loosen your wrists! I slowed down the "after" footage to .25 speed, and sure enough, the amount of tension in your wrists as your swing means that the racquet is not being allowed to "lag" back at the moment you initiate the forward portion of your swing. If you let your wrists be loose, and I mean really quite loose, you'll find that you can achieve lots of topsin and pace with much less effort. It's not about how "hard" you swing, it's about how fast the racquet is moving, and when you release the Death Grip on the handle a bit, you'll find that the racquet head speed naturally increases. This will make a huuuuge difference in the long run, and allow you to actually hit up on the ball, and give it more net clearance. Check out your swing at 6:26, at .25x speed, to see what I mean. The wrists are not letting the racquet lag back. Overall, though, your backhand looks good thus far!! Add this element, and I bet it'll go #nextlevel.
This is actually extremely impressive. It took me over a year to finally have a solid backhand. One suggestion i do have for you is that you step in with your left foot during the follow through that way you have more momentum from your body and it won’t look like you’re swinging a baseball bat. Awesome video.
This was fun to watch❤❤ I would say learning basic footwork patterns for both forehand and backhand could drastically improve both clean contact and coverage around the court.
Good choice with the ball machine. There are only a couple key points to the backhand. 1) meet the ball with the racket PERPENDICULAR to the ground. 2) make contact with the ball at waist level, but the racket should be BELOW your waist at the start of the swing (swing low to high) 3) complete swing, even if you shank the ball.
I always tell people I coach that nothing beats repetition. Next time I tell em I'll send them your video too. My tips would be to practice hitting mini court left handed forehands before you put two hands on the racquet and try to have a wider lower base for more stability through the swing. Awesome progress and entertaining video. Cheers!
You’ve got a million and one tips in the comments here…the only one I’ll add is that you need to make sure you lean forward on those backhands. Doesn’t have to be a huge forward motion, you’ve just got to lean in and not lean backwards. You’ll gain way more consistency:
Couple of tips to sharpen your great progress: -just like a baseball swing, where the lead leg plants last second to swing your weight in, the same thing should happen here (you get loads of easy power using your body weight, especially your hips torquing through). Your weight transfer in the last few shots is isn’t fully transferring forward -just like a bodybuilder triumphantly standing upright showing off both 💪, you want to have a triumphant finish on your backhand swing so that push-up from legs gets you into that triumphant chest-forward finish
One, immediate takeback NOT JUST OF THE ARMS, but initiated by hips and legs, leading to the turn of the upper torso. Two, point the buttcap of the racquet towards the net, as your goal. Three, move through the ball starting with your hips and legs NOT JUST YOUR ARMS. Four, swing path is low to high, making contact on your front hip. The goal is to create a kinetic chain that generates easy power.
A really simple tip for improving your aim with the two hander... if you make sure to finish your follow through, where your left elbow ends up pointing will determine where the ball goes for you.
Sick progress. Definitely keep watching quality technique videos and keep recording yourself and learning from your mistakes. Too many players just play the game without reflection and never analyze or work on their weak spots in order to keep improving. Either that, or they pay a coach thousands of dollars but never work on anything on their own time in order to more efficiently improve from the lessons.
Kiddos for you for putting in that work man, this is the first vid I’ve watched of you so far. You look comfortable at the end of the video, which is really good progress from what seemed to be your avoid-the-backhand-at-all-costs approach. It looks significantly better & the hits/form is clearly more consistent (though obviously it could still use some work). Keep watching online recourses/film & putting in the reps (tho maybe not 1000/day from now on lol). You’ve earned my sub, excited to see what progress you make in the future. Content was entertaining and honest and I like that. Tennis was my first sport growing up although I quit after a number of years, but I got back into it a few years ago and now I play all the time.
Probably my backhand journey summarized as a college player: 1) backhand isn't about swinging arms as much as rotating the hips - make sure you are pointing your shoulder at the ball and rotate your hips so your hands will follow through too. 2) sometimes it can be beneficial to wait for the ball to come slightly closer to you to hit it as hitting it early can mean the ball falling into the net short. so using the wall part at 4:15 ish greatly demonstrates that you are completely reliant on your hands and hitting the ball way too early. I know you said you didn't know what to do with the wall but just giving a visual example. If you want to use the wall well you should do the complete backhand motion whilst waiting for the ball to line up at your side and then making contact with it. I don't recommend using the wall to poke the ball as it encourages bad form. 3) finally you show your end product at 6:18 ish - massive improvement but you can still finish your backhand MORE. Because you rely a lot on your hands for the backhand, you're not getting enough hip rotation and so your hands don't follow through over your shoulder when you finish the shot. It sort of gets stuck. You need to completely swing your hands over your shoulder and you do that by getting hip rotation as well as subconsciously reminding yourself to completely follow through.
The style is very Venus Williams. Early backswing, lots of arm. I figure I'll post this because i haven't seen it explained well on yt yet.. If you're interested in moving to more of a kyrgios backhand i have a suggestion. It involves only adjusting the swing prep, not the swing itself. You do this by preparing for each ball with your arms straight out, and then unit turn your shoulders and straight arms about 70 degrees to the side. The arms being straight (or mostly you dont have to be a robot) is pretty important. It does a few things. It keeps your torso very stable when you are running to the ball. It also helps you have a more consistent forward contact point. Because you are putting so much intention into prepping in front, it also makes it harder to take a huge backwing. Your timing ends up improving by default. And, as another added bonus, you can apply the concept to your forehand as well.
Incredible progress. The next progression is to model your swing path more like a golf stroke than the current baseball one. This is to generate spin so that you can hit hard without sailing the ball out. Keep this going, makes me want to join in the same challenge with my one hander.
My tip is simplify your take-back. Your backhand will feel a lot more reliable when you're playing an actual match. Also, it helps to initiate the swing by pulling down with your right hand, and then let gravity and your left hand take over to finish.
It took me more than a week to get to that level even when I was a teenager and with coaching. Nice backhand and good technic just hitting a lot. Well done !
Getting there man! I’ve been playing tennis for a long time and my two hander went from my least favorite shot to my favorite. the biggest tip i have for you is to drop the head of the racket deeper on your backswing. you really want to make sure you are always coming with an upwards motion on the ball!
I’m absolutely by no means a professional player, but I have had major success with my backhand lately because I’ve learned to step THROUGH the ball when I hit. Try to keep moving forward even after you’ve hit the ball. Hope this helps.
Here's a tip: try to move forwards while playing your backhand. Sometimes you move to the ball, and the ball hasnt left your racket properly and you move back to the middle, this decreases your control on the ball. So when you hit the backhand, try to lean on your left leg before, and whilst hitting push on that leg and essentially make a step towards where you want the ball to go. But make sure your upper body also moves forward so that you dont start leaning back while your legs are going forward. Besides that doing awesome bro keep up the good work!
Wow, that's crazy good progress in that time. I'm a beginner myself, but some things that might help: 1. Between shots, make it a habit to "reset" the racket not into the forehand but to always hold the racket with both hands in front of your body, that way the switch will go much easier. 2. In order to implement them into your game, try practicing backhands from different positions, and while moving around the court, maybe with a partner. 3. What I noticed is that before you hit the ball, you do this huge catching up movement. On a backhand, you need much less of that than on a forehand, though if you feel more comfortable like this, maybe keep it.
some tips: most youtube videos don't tell you how to hold your racquet when doing a 2H, that's because a lot of people use different grips and there is no "right way" to hold it. a lot of pro's use varying grips so find one that suits you. the one thing you aren't doing in the video is dropping the racquet. the same way you drop the racquet just before you start swinging with your forehand is the same thing you should do with your backhands. that being said, lastly, when practicing like you are in the video, don't worry about if it goes in or not at first, get that form locked in. learning a bad habit is hard to break. the ball going in is a side effect of getting good form
That’s honestly extremely good practice. Make sure to have the grip change (point tilt bottom hand a little towards your body)z this will help with a strong wrist and vertical racket face. But man! That week was insane.
One thing which will help is if you make sure you are relaxing your right hand and so it’s not stiff because the left hand is the one that does all the work in terms of topspin. Hope this helped.
First, for the slice hold a continental grip (wood chopping grip). I see the you have an idea of what the slice should do but your swing path is going straight down. Your swing path needs to go in the direction you want the ball to go. Again, you do not need to provide more back spin on the ball, it will leave your strings with enough. Also, contact the ball closer to you instead of making contact out in front. Second, yes, the backhand is a left handed forehand. The hardest thing for now will be patience. Don't flatten your ball. Start by adding spin and clearing the ball higher over the net. As you get better, you can start to add a more powerful, flatter shot.
My tip is to try and push off of your back foot (left) more. This will obviously get you more power but it also helps guide you through the stroke imo. Try also stepping out wider with your left foot because it's hard to push off if your legs are crossed. The improvement is crazy! Keep up the good work.
Wow your backhand progress is tremendous! For me its a matter of practicing the backhand because its something that tends to vanish first when I stop playing for a while
Hats off to you. I think you did great teaching yourself the 2-handed backhand. It’s not an easy shot to learn. You did remind me of myself learning the 2-handed backhand. Keep practicing. Eventually, this part of your game will become natural. One tip, lean your shoulder/body weight into the direction of the ball before hitting it.
The progress is amazing! I love how you look at the ball until after the contact! That will give you great consientency! What you could have a look into is your feet position at the hit. They seem quite far apart from each other, almost like a lunge position. This kind of blocks your upper body to be leand forward and "over" the ball. If you have a look, after the hit you have a tendecy of falling back, not much but just a bit where normaly what you want after a hit is to follow trough forward with your body. Look at some slow motion from good two handed backhands, there are lot on youtube, you will see what I mean
Amazing progress in a week! Agree with other comments on footwork - my tennis hq has great videos that explain the weight transfer for fh and bh that can help improve your consistency and increase power. Excited to see how you improve!
Wow! You are really improving. I have a small tip for you. You are hitting the ball when its low. But you have to fit the ball when its high up. I hope that helps!😊
Fantastic development of the technique. Now, all you've got to do is to step out of your comfort zone and start some drills with actual play. As a tennis player for over 25 years, one thing I've noticed is that you only reach a different level in tennis once you put your new skills to match situations. As a young player, I used to hit powerful shots at practice but never could do them once it was game time. This happened to anyone who only practiced those types of shots, at the same place, with the same speed... after some time, you get good at only these situations (that never occur during a match). So, my coach started some drills designed to move us around the court, so we learned to approach the ball more accurately and hit the ball in the most variable positions we could. This way, I've learned to move around the ball and to position myself to hit the ball as comfortably as possible, every time. And trust me, the hardest part is moving your legs the right way, stopping before hitting... If I could suggest a new video, daily 20-minute drills hitting cross court and down the line, would be nice to see. Good luck and keep it up!
Alright, as someone who works very hard on their backhand (and forehand, serve, everything else), some of the stuff I see here is pretty encouraging. It’s especially the left hand that is so so important and I’ve never seen a beginner actually pick up on that. So good work. The ball machine is good and it’s important to tune your stroke but you do need to play more practices with people, just hit down the middle and then hit cross courts for starters. In terms of the technique your hands are way too high up on the grip, your left hand is gonna have to be somewhere between a semi western and an eastern, and your right hand should be just continental. The racquet is also too far above your head, I’d recommend instead of doing that loop, to take it back in one smooth motion, and then execute your stroke. Sort of how diokovic does it, watch his backhand for fundamentals. The follow through and finish isn’t that bad, although I’d recommend to finish below the shoulder.
Such wholesome content haha. All you need to do is watch patrick mouratoglou’s academy videos where he gives coaching tips to players who come to him. Game changer for sure. I think you’d get a lot from his tips on slicing.
1 tip is to try to point the toes of your lead foot on 45 degrees towards the net. If the outside of your lead foot is parallel to the base line you take away the ability to rotate the hips which makes it harder to rotate your torso. This will make it easier to create topspin, hitting the ball infront of you and also help with the weight transfer when hitting the ball. Just take a look at Zverev or Djokovic hitting backhand in slowmotion and you will see where lead foot is pointing.
dude you really improved! I think you said it at the end of the vid, a coach would definitely help. Seek someone who has a lot of wisdom. some coaches have what others don't have but shop around until you find someone you are comfortable with and you'll get the habits you need to get better. In the meantime, I would learn how to split step and use your unit turn and you'll start seeing the ball differently. and you'll get more power! If you can get your backhand this good, just wait and see what some advice can do! keep up the practice my dude!
Backhand should be like a left hand forehand! I saw a Topcourt video where Zverev said this and it changed my stroke. Try hitting the ball against the ball a couple of times with just your left hand on the top part of the racquet. See how it transforms how you think about your stroke! Also, practice throwing a ball against a wall; it will prime your arm for the correct kind of motion.
on the two handed back hand, try using more strength of your left arm to generate more support power for your right. you could be relying on your right hand swing for more power, but it just wont work without your lefthand giving it that extra boost
Next, try implementing weight transfer and stepping through with the backhand. You will be much more balanced and henceforth, more consistent with the backhand and less likely to make unforced errors
Lots of comments on the 2h-bh, so I’ll comment on the slice instead. Use your shoulder and entire arm more. Right now you’re mainly lower arm/wrist, like a table tennis slice. Nice video, btw. As someone who started playing at 37 and recently became a coach it’s always interesting for me to follow progress in players who started as adults.
Great job, man! As a tennis coach, i can say, that you have definitely good education skills. Just one thing about backhand: you should go literally through the ball, forward to target on the other side of court. Avoid backwards steps in the ending part of swing motion. You, your legs and body go forward, while your hands are leading the racket also forward, and then they return relaxed to the shoulder by themselves regardless of the general motion direction. Only after your left leg stepped into the shot after swing, you can do recovery steps to start position. About slices - the same thing, go through the ball, BUT! but it should be done without turn your chest and hips to parallel the net. Whole shot you should do sideways, both hands doing symmetrical motion: left for balance, right - for shot. Ok) both shots going through ball: spin backhand - with using hips, like in boxing or golf, slice - without, only sideways step into the ball) good luck!
Try playing a forehand with your non dominant hand for a few days, then add your dominant hand back. Also follow through with your left foot when you finish the shot
Awesome progress for 1 week. A tip? Let your back foot come around and face up to the court when you follow through. Don't finish with your heel up like golfer. Spin around your front foot and face up to the court. Great content.
Nice progress 💪. All in all the swing looks good, here some details: start a bit lower (more of a loop), try to finish the swing by touching your back with the racket head. Watch your legs, keep them a bit closer (the wide step with your right leg makes it difficult to keep balance and turn around properly). Only work on one thing at a time. Avoid too much power when working on technique (looks good in your video).
Wow! Great progress in one week! One tip though is to try and put your weight through the ball so that you get easier power instead of it knocking you back. Keep up the good work though!
99 out of 100 two handed backhands are left arm dominant. So here's a massive tip, practice your two handed backhand like a lefty forehand. Practice coordination with leg weight transfer. Final tip, relax the wrist, don't tighten up the arm, and allow the hips to come through.
the main thing is the keep hitting it.. I went from 1 backhander to 2 hander cause wrist issue The dynamics of 2 hander is so much different . . Fustrating progress but i do see it. I try not to hide away from my 2 hander even when things are not working out.. Keep hitting it and it will get better
Great progress! you have a nice snap and follow through with your hands/wrists. As someone else mentioned, your legs are a little far apart. To go through the ball as another commenter wrote, let your left hip come around with the follow through by letting your left foot come around after the shot. I can see you're doing it a little already but you're stopping your foot from really taking that step toward the court after the shot. Probably because you're stance is a little wide. It should feel like 1) step towards ball with right for 2) hit 3) step toward court with left foot. Also, maybe play around with going from a fully closed stance to a more open stance to see what feels more natural.
tremendous progress! I only have a couple years of experience, and I changed from one handed to two like 7 months ago. Now my backhand is more steady than by forehand. Try whole bunch of different take-backs. They can change your back hand, magically, all of sudden.
Great video idea and amazing progress! My advise to you is… Try to really go through the ball and turn your hips into your backhand while hitting the ball. and keep improving your slice can be a very underrated weapon!
This is excellent! It's taken me probably 2 years of focused practice, but now I'm equally happy to hit a forehand or a backhand. The single-hander is super frustrating to perfect...but it's so good
Looks great! I think it could be even better if you don’t let the ball get to behind your front foot, if you keep it out in front of you you can get more of your weight shift into it
I'm really impressed with your evolution and glad to see your efforts paying off. As someone that started playing tennis somehow late it's very pleasing to see you dedication. I believe that hard work will take you there. I'd recommend the essential tennis channel, although english is not my native language I think their process of teaching are very nice for everyone to understand. And of couse recording your traning sessions and reviewing them will help a faster way to improve. There's an app called coachs eye where you can see the videos in super slow motion and other things that can be useful. I've improved my serve using it. Good luck.
I'm personally really impressed of the result! I'm pretty sure you can keep improving more with more tips, if you don't mind here I can give your some. the first thing you should focus in on your grip cuz I can see is not correct for the two handed backhand (mostly with the left hand), the second thing I see is that the your left feet is not going forward after you hit the ball try to not leave it behind when you hit the ball, that will allow you to generate more rotation and therefore more power, the way you finish with your left elbow in great! keep doing it. the preparation can improve but try to focus on those two tips I gave you.
If you find yourself hitting the ball into the net too often, try getting a lower stance for the backhand. This would make it easier to have an upward racket path, thus getting the ball over the net. Also, I notice, especially on the slice you hit the ball too far in front of you. Be patient, and have a longer follow-through (follow through where you want the ball to go). Most importantly, keep experimenting! Try new things every practice and find what works and what doesn't. Good Luck! P.S.: you just earned yourself another subscriber!
as a coach with a magnificent 2 hand and a one hand backhand(Mostly 2hand) u shuld staright ur arms so u will have more space to hit the ball +get under theball for more top spin
Amazing stuff here bro!! I would watch Novak slow mo shots and just focus of the form. Remember the earlier the better its all to do with the set up. If u set up late u hit late, if u set up as early as possible u will have time.
Way too much wrist on the slice, let it come from the elbow and the wrist is just a touch at the end. Use your left hand for the backhand and remember to start with the racket head under the ball and as you make contact around the waist continue over your shoulder. Last thing, with the slinger get your feet moving so your forcing yourself to get adjusted for the ball every time. When a match happens you won’t be ready without your feet moving
change your grip on your right hand so your slightly more on the top bevel it will close the racket a little bit create more spin and you will be and have to hit slightly more threw the ball after making that change and it will help keeping the ball inside the court and hitting harder it will allow you to hit hard with control because of the topspin.
Amazing bro! Im nowhere near a professional, but my trainer always wants me to keep my left elbow high when hitting a backhand. so when you swing back to get into the motion i try to keep my left elbow about shoulder height. helps me with spin and helps me hit it from the bottom to the top
Amazing job! Let me comment on your slice: you're playing it like it's table tennis. Watch some slice videos before you try to incorporate that stroke in your repertoire and than practice that as well. We all saw how one week will make all the difference. Keep it up. Good content!
It looks great man! Keep doing what you’re doing and always remember that being more relaxed in the grip will result in a smoother swing. Looks like you’re on the right track 💪
My tip is take one on one lesson for at least 10 hours of coaching . You will save lot of time by doing it yourself. Also you will learn the correct technique
Very nice can’t say I’m a tennis expert but love the game on big thing I noticed was the little amount of movement need to add some little shuffle steps to get into a better position for each shot hope this helps
Wowser! Amazing progress for one week, from zero to actually quite consistent and proper shot. Two things you should know: I noticed that you don't hold your racket low enough, I mean you should hold the handle at the bottom, not leaving those few centimeters like I noticed. And two, which I found super useful, actually your backhand shot, if you execute it right, will always fly to the exact point that your shoulder points to, so if you want to go down the line/ cross court, position yourself in such way to point with your shoulder at the place you are aiming for. Good Luck, You have earned a subscriber!
bro really said wowser
@@ha0haoha1 💀
I still don't have after 20yrs
Damn I’m super impressed with that backhand progress. Winners Only Road to 1 ATP Point coming soon
👀
@@tennisbrothers We trained for a day like Tennis Brothers???
@@Winners-Only 😁 Go for it
@@Winners-Only sounds like a great isea
@@Winners-Only would be a good idea.
Way to go man!! Really impressed with your grit and commitment. Your backhands looks amazing!! Compared to… less amazing* in the beginning 😂
Hey! Im a Coach but also a player that has struggled finding a decent backhand consistently. This is what I noticed
1. Backhand grip isn’t ideal, I would recommend left hand grabbing the racket eastern like, I ‘ll mention why next. And right hand in bevel 5 or 4x
2. Hitting backhands only with the left arm does wonders, you need to understand that backhand is driven by the left almost entirely, right arm needs to be ghost like. So get used to hitting backhands where the left arm is in charge of the power and precision.
3. Your preparation is good, but once your swing starts going forward you never drop the racket below hip height, this will make you miss a lot more on the net and will make it harder to consistently put in good shots. It feels weird but try dropping more your arms and racket head before contact.
Practice doesn’t make perfect.
Perfect practice makes perfect. So try first troubleshooting technical aspects before putting in the reps, otherwise you’re training stuff you don’t want to keep in the future.
Best of luck!!!!
I have to say, your backhand looks pretty good after only one week of intense practice. The challenge will be using it in a match situation where it's tempting to revert to old habits when under pressure. Try to get into a mentality where you care less about the outcome of a match and more about how you hit your backhand. Maybe even run around a forehand to hit a backhand.
The other thing I would advise is to practice the slice backhand. It's usually an easier shot to hit especially on low balls. It also takes less physical energy to hit. There's no rule saying you are only allowed to hit topspin backhands.
Hey man, USTA 4.5, Ex D2 player here - Your progress is actually amazing. I would say what I would eliminate first as you are going forward with developing your backhand is that high take back you have over your shoulder currently. Its a lot of extra motion that is not needed for the shot. I have this problem on my forehand, and it may feel great on slow balls but when someone starts hitting some pace into you, you will not have time for that full winding take back. Instead try dropping that backhand straight back low towards the fence about pocket level. One quick take back and then finish high like you are doing. I think this will help your back hand in matches greatly because it will allow you to absorb pace and control it way better.
Amazing improvement and wonderful video!! Here are some general tips:
1) the backhand shot comes through the hips, so lead with your hips and let the racquet follow
2) as you improve, shortening your backswing will help with timing. The backhand can redirect power well so you dont need to load up so much (just loses you time because in reality the power comes from hip)
3) your goal should be to hit 100 backhands in a row comfortably in a rally. Aim for two racquet lengths over the net and find a safe shot. This will give you match confidence so your practice feels worthwhile.
When learning a new shot, consistency > everything
Awesome progress in one week! Many other people have said this too, but focus on the footwork next, then the your weight transfer (you look like you still fall back at the end of your swing), and finally applying all of that during some live ball drills and point play. But seriously great work in 7 days without any formal coaching man!
Here's my small advice Trey
1. Watch everything by Intuitive Tennis on 2HBH and more
2. Use a Continental Grip on your right hand
3. Don't ingrain bad habits further. Learn proper technique first. Bad practice does not make perfect.
4. Read or listen to Essential Tennis, Inner Game of Tennis, Winning Ugly
Great evolution broo. I'm a coach from Brazil and here's a tip: Don't worry too much about the technique, you're already doing it super well, try to perform the same technique with different movements.
Use the same ball machine
however, use some obstacles to work on the footwork in the different game situations you've already experienced.
and remember: the medicine ball will be your friend.
the medicine ball acutually helps so much on hitting a good backhand !
his technique it's not that bad, im just not sure if he is using the correct grip (continental) and need better adjust before hitting the backhand, maybe more small steps to get better contact point.
good improvment in just a few days tho!
Okay, so, by FAR the biggest tip I can give, as someone who also learned as an adult: loosen your wrists!
I slowed down the "after" footage to .25 speed, and sure enough, the amount of tension in your wrists as your swing means that the racquet is not being allowed to "lag" back at the moment you initiate the forward portion of your swing. If you let your wrists be loose, and I mean really quite loose, you'll find that you can achieve lots of topsin and pace with much less effort. It's not about how "hard" you swing, it's about how fast the racquet is moving, and when you release the Death Grip on the handle a bit, you'll find that the racquet head speed naturally increases. This will make a huuuuge difference in the long run, and allow you to actually hit up on the ball, and give it more net clearance.
Check out your swing at 6:26, at .25x speed, to see what I mean. The wrists are not letting the racquet lag back. Overall, though, your backhand looks good thus far!! Add this element, and I bet it'll go #nextlevel.
This is actually extremely impressive. It took me over a year to finally have a solid backhand. One suggestion i do have for you is that you step in with your left foot during the follow through that way you have more momentum from your body and it won’t look like you’re swinging a baseball bat. Awesome video.
This was fun to watch❤❤
I would say learning basic footwork patterns for both forehand and backhand could drastically improve both clean contact and coverage around the court.
You're the most wholesome tennis player. Please keep playing
this was so awesome! you did a great job...if you are willing to come to Atlanta I would be happy to help you with your game...love what you are doing
Good choice with the ball machine. There are only a couple key points to the backhand. 1) meet the ball with the racket PERPENDICULAR to the ground. 2) make contact with the ball at waist level, but the racket should be BELOW your waist at the start of the swing (swing low to high) 3) complete swing, even if you shank the ball.
I always tell people I coach that nothing beats repetition. Next time I tell em I'll send them your video too. My tips would be to practice hitting mini court left handed forehands before you put two hands on the racquet and try to have a wider lower base for more stability through the swing. Awesome progress and entertaining video. Cheers!
You’ve got a million and one tips in the comments here…the only one I’ll add is that you need to make sure you lean forward on those backhands. Doesn’t have to be a huge forward motion, you’ve just got to lean in and not lean backwards. You’ll gain way more consistency:
Couple of tips to sharpen your great progress:
-just like a baseball swing, where the lead leg plants last second to swing your weight in, the same thing should happen here (you get loads of easy power using your body weight, especially your hips torquing through). Your weight transfer in the last few shots is isn’t fully transferring forward
-just like a bodybuilder triumphantly standing upright showing off both 💪, you want to have a triumphant finish on your backhand swing so that push-up from legs gets you into that triumphant chest-forward finish
One, immediate takeback NOT JUST OF THE ARMS, but initiated by hips and legs, leading to the turn of the upper torso. Two, point the buttcap of the racquet towards the net, as your goal. Three, move through the ball starting with your hips and legs NOT JUST YOUR ARMS. Four, swing path is low to high, making contact on your front hip. The goal is to create a kinetic chain that generates easy power.
This
A really simple tip for improving your aim with the two hander... if you make sure to finish your follow through, where your left elbow ends up pointing will determine where the ball goes for you.
Sick progress. Definitely keep watching quality technique videos and keep recording yourself and learning from your mistakes. Too many players just play the game without reflection and never analyze or work on their weak spots in order to keep improving. Either that, or they pay a coach thousands of dollars but never work on anything on their own time in order to more efficiently improve from the lessons.
This feels like comedy! Congrats on the progress.
Kiddos for you for putting in that work man, this is the first vid I’ve watched of you so far. You look comfortable at the end of the video, which is really good progress from what seemed to be your avoid-the-backhand-at-all-costs approach. It looks significantly better & the hits/form is clearly more consistent (though obviously it could still use some work). Keep watching online recourses/film & putting in the reps (tho maybe not 1000/day from now on lol). You’ve earned my sub, excited to see what progress you make in the future. Content was entertaining and honest and I like that. Tennis was my first sport growing up although I quit after a number of years, but I got back into it a few years ago and now I play all the time.
Probably my backhand journey summarized as a college player:
1) backhand isn't about swinging arms as much as rotating the hips - make sure you are pointing your shoulder at the ball and rotate your hips so your hands will follow through too.
2) sometimes it can be beneficial to wait for the ball to come slightly closer to you to hit it as hitting it early can mean the ball falling into the net short. so using the wall part at 4:15 ish greatly demonstrates that you are completely reliant on your hands and hitting the ball way too early. I know you said you didn't know what to do with the wall but just giving a visual example. If you want to use the wall well you should do the complete backhand motion whilst waiting for the ball to line up at your side and then making contact with it. I don't recommend using the wall to poke the ball as it encourages bad form.
3) finally you show your end product at 6:18 ish - massive improvement but you can still finish your backhand MORE. Because you rely a lot on your hands for the backhand, you're not getting enough hip rotation and so your hands don't follow through over your shoulder when you finish the shot. It sort of gets stuck. You need to completely swing your hands over your shoulder and you do that by getting hip rotation as well as subconsciously reminding yourself to completely follow through.
The style is very Venus Williams. Early backswing, lots of arm.
I figure I'll post this because i haven't seen it explained well on yt yet.. If you're interested in moving to more of a kyrgios backhand i have a suggestion. It involves only adjusting the swing prep, not the swing itself. You do this by preparing for each ball with your arms straight out, and then unit turn your shoulders and straight arms about 70 degrees to the side. The arms being straight (or mostly you dont have to be a robot) is pretty important. It does a few things. It keeps your torso very stable when you are running to the ball. It also helps you have a more consistent forward contact point. Because you are putting so much intention into prepping in front, it also makes it harder to take a huge backwing. Your timing ends up improving by default.
And, as another added bonus, you can apply the concept to your forehand as well.
Incredible progress. The next progression is to model your swing path more like a golf stroke than the current baseball one. This is to generate spin so that you can hit hard without sailing the ball out. Keep this going, makes me want to join in the same challenge with my one hander.
My tip is simplify your take-back. Your backhand will feel a lot more reliable when you're playing an actual match. Also, it helps to initiate the swing by pulling down with your right hand, and then let gravity and your left hand take over to finish.
It took me more than a week to get to that level even when I was a teenager and with coaching. Nice backhand and good technic just hitting a lot. Well done !
nice to see genuine content, im learning as well bro and I think your progress is banging
Getting there man! I’ve been playing tennis for a long time and my two hander went from my least favorite shot to my favorite. the biggest tip i have for you is to drop the head of the racket deeper on your backswing. you really want to make sure you are always coming with an upwards motion on the ball!
I’m absolutely by no means a professional player, but I have had major success with my backhand lately because I’ve learned to step THROUGH the ball when I hit. Try to keep moving forward even after you’ve hit the ball. Hope this helps.
Here's a tip: try to move forwards while playing your backhand. Sometimes you move to the ball, and the ball hasnt left your racket properly and you move back to the middle, this decreases your control on the ball. So when you hit the backhand, try to lean on your left leg before, and whilst hitting push on that leg and essentially make a step towards where you want the ball to go. But make sure your upper body also moves forward so that you dont start leaning back while your legs are going forward. Besides that doing awesome bro keep up the good work!
Wow, that's crazy good progress in that time.
I'm a beginner myself, but some things that might help:
1. Between shots, make it a habit to "reset" the racket not into the forehand but to always hold the racket with both hands in front of your body, that way the switch will go much easier.
2. In order to implement them into your game, try practicing backhands from different positions, and while moving around the court, maybe with a partner.
3. What I noticed is that before you hit the ball, you do this huge catching up movement. On a backhand, you need much less of that than on a forehand, though if you feel more comfortable like this, maybe keep it.
some tips: most youtube videos don't tell you how to hold your racquet when doing a 2H, that's because a lot of people use different grips and there is no "right way" to hold it. a lot of pro's use varying grips so find one that suits you. the one thing you aren't doing in the video is dropping the racquet. the same way you drop the racquet just before you start swinging with your forehand is the same thing you should do with your backhands. that being said, lastly, when practicing like you are in the video, don't worry about if it goes in or not at first, get that form locked in. learning a bad habit is hard to break. the ball going in is a side effect of getting good form
One tip that I would give is to focus on rotating the hips and torso. Relax the hands and let the rotation to more work!! Keep it up
That’s honestly extremely good practice. Make sure to have the grip change (point tilt bottom hand a little towards your body)z this will help with a strong wrist and vertical racket face. But man! That week was insane.
One thing which will help is if you make sure you are relaxing your right hand and so it’s not stiff because the left hand is the one that does all the work in terms of topspin. Hope this helped.
First, for the slice hold a continental grip (wood chopping grip). I see the you have an idea of what the slice should do but your swing path is going straight down. Your swing path needs to go in the direction you want the ball to go. Again, you do not need to provide more back spin on the ball, it will leave your strings with enough. Also, contact the ball closer to you instead of making contact out in front.
Second, yes, the backhand is a left handed forehand. The hardest thing for now will be patience. Don't flatten your ball. Start by adding spin and clearing the ball higher over the net. As you get better, you can start to add a more powerful, flatter shot.
My tip is to try and push off of your back foot (left) more. This will obviously get you more power but it also helps guide you through the stroke imo. Try also stepping out wider with your left foot because it's hard to push off if your legs are crossed. The improvement is crazy! Keep up the good work.
Thats exacxtly what i would recommend
Wow your backhand progress is tremendous! For me its a matter of practicing the backhand because its something that tends to vanish first when I stop playing for a while
Hats off to you. I think you did great teaching yourself the 2-handed backhand. It’s not an easy shot to learn. You did remind me of myself learning the 2-handed backhand. Keep practicing. Eventually, this part of your game will become natural. One tip, lean your shoulder/body weight into the direction of the ball before hitting it.
inspiring to see what hard work brings you!! well done
The progress is amazing! I love how you look at the ball until after the contact! That will give you great consientency! What you could have a look into is your feet position at the hit. They seem quite far apart from each other, almost like a lunge position. This kind of blocks your upper body to be leand forward and "over" the ball. If you have a look, after the hit you have a tendecy of falling back, not much but just a bit where normaly what you want after a hit is to follow trough forward with your body. Look at some slow motion from good two handed backhands, there are lot on youtube, you will see what I mean
Amazing progress in a week! Agree with other comments on footwork - my tennis hq has great videos that explain the weight transfer for fh and bh that can help improve your consistency and increase power. Excited to see how you improve!
I do the air swing backhand too everyday. Like literally, everyday and before watching this. It actually helps.
I don't think many people would improve that much from 7,000 backhands. That's talent
Wow! You are really improving. I have a small tip for you. You are hitting the ball when its low. But you have to fit the ball when its high up. I hope that helps!😊
this is an underrated yt channel.
Fantastic development of the technique. Now, all you've got to do is to step out of your comfort zone and start some drills with actual play. As a tennis player for over 25 years, one thing I've noticed is that you only reach a different level in tennis once you put your new skills to match situations. As a young player, I used to hit powerful shots at practice but never could do them once it was game time. This happened to anyone who only practiced those types of shots, at the same place, with the same speed... after some time, you get good at only these situations (that never occur during a match). So, my coach started some drills designed to move us around the court, so we learned to approach the ball more accurately and hit the ball in the most variable positions we could. This way, I've learned to move around the ball and to position myself to hit the ball as comfortably as possible, every time. And trust me, the hardest part is moving your legs the right way, stopping before hitting... If I could suggest a new video, daily 20-minute drills hitting cross court and down the line, would be nice to see. Good luck and keep it up!
Alright, as someone who works very hard on their backhand (and forehand, serve, everything else), some of the stuff I see here is pretty encouraging.
It’s especially the left hand that is so so important and I’ve never seen a beginner actually pick up on that. So good work. The ball machine is good and it’s important to tune your stroke but you do need to play more practices with people, just hit down the middle and then hit cross courts for starters.
In terms of the technique your hands are way too high up on the grip, your left hand is gonna have to be somewhere between a semi western and an eastern, and your right hand should be just continental. The racquet is also too far above your head, I’d recommend instead of doing that loop, to take it back in one smooth motion, and then execute your stroke. Sort of how diokovic does it, watch his backhand for fundamentals. The follow through and finish isn’t that bad, although I’d recommend to finish below the shoulder.
Such wholesome content haha. All you need to do is watch patrick mouratoglou’s academy videos where he gives coaching tips to players who come to him. Game changer for sure. I think you’d get a lot from his tips on slicing.
1 tip is to try to point the toes of your lead foot on 45 degrees towards the net. If the outside of your lead foot is parallel to the base line you take away the ability to rotate the hips which makes it harder to rotate your torso. This will make it easier to create topspin, hitting the ball infront of you and also help with the weight transfer when hitting the ball. Just take a look at Zverev or Djokovic hitting backhand in slowmotion and you will see where lead foot is pointing.
dude you really improved! I think you said it at the end of the vid, a coach would definitely help. Seek someone who has a lot of wisdom. some coaches have what others don't have but shop around until you find someone you are comfortable with and you'll get the habits you need to get better. In the meantime, I would learn how to split step and use your unit turn and you'll start seeing the ball differently. and you'll get more power! If you can get your backhand this good, just wait and see what some advice can do! keep up the practice my dude!
For your backhand slice I wound recommend helping your girth hand with your left hand and bringing the racket up to your ear
Backhand should be like a left hand forehand! I saw a Topcourt video where Zverev said this and it changed my stroke. Try hitting the ball against the ball a couple of times with just your left hand on the top part of the racquet. See how it transforms how you think about your stroke!
Also, practice throwing a ball against a wall; it will prime your arm for the correct kind of motion.
on the two handed back hand, try using more strength of your left arm to generate more support power for your right.
you could be relying on your right hand swing for more power, but it just wont work without your lefthand giving it that extra boost
Next, try implementing weight transfer and stepping through with the backhand. You will be much more balanced and henceforth, more consistent with the backhand and less likely to make unforced errors
Lots of comments on the 2h-bh, so I’ll comment on the slice instead. Use your shoulder and entire arm more. Right now you’re mainly lower arm/wrist, like a table tennis slice.
Nice video, btw. As someone who started playing at 37 and recently became a coach it’s always interesting for me to follow progress in players who started as adults.
This is an awesome video man. Great work I hope you keep it up.
Great Job! On the slice you want it to be less wristy and to not let the tip/top of the head to point down and it should be more of a chopping action.
Great job, man! As a tennis coach, i can say, that you have definitely good education skills. Just one thing about backhand: you should go literally through the ball, forward to target on the other side of court. Avoid backwards steps in the ending part of swing motion. You, your legs and body go forward, while your hands are leading the racket also forward, and then they return relaxed to the shoulder by themselves regardless of the general motion direction. Only after your left leg stepped into the shot after swing, you can do recovery steps to start position.
About slices - the same thing, go through the ball, BUT! but it should be done without turn your chest and hips to parallel the net. Whole shot you should do sideways, both hands doing symmetrical motion: left for balance, right - for shot. Ok) both shots going through ball: spin backhand - with using hips, like in boxing or golf, slice - without, only sideways step into the ball) good luck!
Try playing a forehand with your non dominant hand for a few days, then add your dominant hand back. Also follow through with your left foot when you finish the shot
Awesome progress for 1 week. A tip? Let your back foot come around and face up to the court when you follow through. Don't finish with your heel up like golfer. Spin around your front foot and face up to the court. Great content.
Nice progress 💪. All in all the swing looks good, here some details: start a bit lower (more of a loop), try to finish the swing by touching your back with the racket head.
Watch your legs, keep them a bit closer (the wide step with your right leg makes it difficult to keep balance and turn around properly).
Only work on one thing at a time.
Avoid too much power when working on technique (looks good in your video).
Wow! Great progress in one week! One tip though is to try and put your weight through the ball so that you get easier power instead of it knocking you back. Keep up the good work though!
99 out of 100 two handed backhands are left arm dominant. So here's a massive tip, practice your two handed backhand like a lefty forehand. Practice coordination with leg weight transfer. Final tip, relax the wrist, don't tighten up the arm, and allow the hips to come through.
the main thing is the keep hitting it.. I went from 1 backhander to 2 hander cause wrist issue The dynamics of 2 hander is so much different . . Fustrating progress but i do see it. I try not to hide away from my 2 hander even when things are not working out.. Keep hitting it and it will get better
Nice video !
Yes, takes a long time backhand. Double hand is a good choice :)
Great progress! you have a nice snap and follow through with your hands/wrists. As someone else mentioned, your legs are a little far apart. To go through the ball as another commenter wrote, let your left hip come around with the follow through by letting your left foot come around after the shot. I can see you're doing it a little already but you're stopping your foot from really taking that step toward the court after the shot. Probably because you're stance is a little wide. It should feel like 1) step towards ball with right for 2) hit 3) step toward court with left foot. Also, maybe play around with going from a fully closed stance to a more open stance to see what feels more natural.
tremendous progress!
I only have a couple years of experience, and I changed from one handed to two like 7 months ago.
Now my backhand is more steady than by forehand.
Try whole bunch of different take-backs.
They can change your back hand, magically, all of sudden.
Insane progress. You earned a sub for your hustle
Great video idea and amazing progress!
My advise to you is…
Try to really go through the ball and turn your hips into your backhand while hitting the ball.
and keep improving your slice can be a very underrated weapon!
This is excellent! It's taken me probably 2 years of focused practice, but now I'm equally happy to hit a forehand or a backhand. The single-hander is super frustrating to perfect...but it's so good
You're doing well bro! I love this progress video, hope you make more!!!
Looks great! I think it could be even better if you don’t let the ball get to behind your front foot, if you keep it out in front of you you can get more of your weight shift into it
I'm really impressed with your evolution and glad to see your efforts paying off. As someone that started playing tennis somehow late it's very pleasing to see you dedication. I believe that hard work will take you there. I'd recommend the essential tennis channel, although english is not my native language I think their process of teaching are very nice for everyone to understand. And of couse recording your traning sessions and reviewing them will help a faster way to improve. There's an app called coachs eye where you can see the videos in super slow motion and other things that can be useful. I've improved my serve using it. Good luck.
I'm personally really impressed of the result! I'm pretty sure you can keep improving more with more tips, if you don't mind here I can give your some. the first thing you should focus in on your grip cuz I can see is not correct for the two handed backhand (mostly with the left hand), the second thing I see is that the your left feet is not going forward after you hit the ball try to not leave it behind when you hit the ball, that will allow you to generate more rotation and therefore more power, the way you finish with your left elbow in great! keep doing it. the preparation can improve but try to focus on those two tips I gave you.
If you find yourself hitting the ball into the net too often, try getting a lower stance for the backhand. This would make it easier to have an upward racket path, thus getting the ball over the net. Also, I notice, especially on the slice you hit the ball too far in front of you. Be patient, and have a longer follow-through (follow through where you want the ball to go). Most importantly, keep experimenting! Try new things every practice and find what works and what doesn't. Good Luck!
P.S.: you just earned yourself another subscriber!
as a coach with a magnificent 2 hand and a one hand backhand(Mostly 2hand) u shuld staright ur arms so u will have more space to hit the ball +get under theball for more top spin
You know man, if tennis is not exactly what you were born for... doing videos for sure is!
Amazing stuff here bro!! I would watch Novak slow mo shots and just focus of the form. Remember the earlier the better its all to do with the set up. If u set up late u hit late, if u set up as early as possible u will have time.
Way too much wrist on the slice, let it come from the elbow and the wrist is just a touch at the end.
Use your left hand for the backhand and remember to start with the racket head under the ball and as you make contact around the waist continue over your shoulder.
Last thing, with the slinger get your feet moving so your forcing yourself to get adjusted for the ball every time. When a match happens you won’t be ready without your feet moving
once you figure out a simple foot work approach you'll be soliddddd ( try to watch for where the ball will bounce and let it hit your strike zone!)
would love to see, 1 month and 1 year progress
change your grip on your right hand so your slightly more on the top bevel it will close the racket a little bit create more spin and you will be and have to hit slightly more threw the ball after making that change and it will help keeping the ball inside the court and hitting harder it will allow you to hit hard with control because of the topspin.
Amazing bro! Im nowhere near a professional, but my trainer always wants me to keep my left elbow high when hitting a backhand. so when you swing back to get into the motion i try to keep my left elbow about shoulder height. helps me with spin and helps me hit it from the bottom to the top
Amazing job! Let me comment on your slice: you're playing it like it's table tennis. Watch some slice videos before you try to incorporate that stroke in your repertoire and than practice that as well. We all saw how one week will make all the difference. Keep it up. Good content!
Great channel buddy! ❤️
It looks great man! Keep doing what you’re doing and always remember that being more relaxed in the grip will result in a smoother swing. Looks like you’re on the right track 💪
Amazing progress man! Good job!
Two hander looked good on final day. But that slice bro! You gotta hit 1000 a day so it will look smooth and natural.
My tip is take one on one lesson for at least 10 hours of coaching . You will save lot of time by doing it yourself. Also you will learn the correct technique
Wow great job. That’s one heck of a improvement in a week!
Bro you're awesome!! Amazing progress!!
Fantastic! Just incredible progress in 1 week
on the slice hold it continental grip angle the racquet face and just kinda drop the racquet head
Very nice can’t say I’m a tennis expert but love the game on big thing I noticed was the little amount of movement need to add some little shuffle steps to get into a better position for each shot hope this helps
Love this… keep up the grind my man
AMAZING ethic and improvement!!!!