Federer, Sampras, Kuerten… nobody: After 149 years, the end of a tennis era
Stefanos Tsitsipas in action during the US Open. (AP) NEW DELHI: “I have a 150-year streak to save,” Stefanos Tsitsipas wrote in an X post on Saturday. The Greek tennis player has a penchant for hyperbole, veering from the philosophical to the absurd. But here he was in place for a change. When he faced Ben Shelton in the fourth round of the US Open, he was truly playing to keep one of tennis’ greatest traditions alive. A tradition that began in 1877 at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club culminated in an evening in New York at Arthur Ashe Stadium in 2026.For the first time since Grand Slam tennis began in 1877 at Wimbledon, no one-handed backhand man has reached a major semi-final in a season.At first, a one-handed backhand was the default choice. With wooden racquets, both amateurs and professionals would use a one-handed backhand to outwit their opponents.As the game evolved, two-handed backhands found their groove. The number of one-handed backhand players decreased, but the stroke still maintained its presence. John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Stefan Edberg, Pete Sampras, Gustavo Kuerten, Richard Gasquet, Roger Federer, Stan Wawrinka and Dominic Thiem are some of the names that have embraced the stroke over the past four decades or more.In 1905, when all four Slams were played, there were 16 one-handed backhanders in the Grand Slam semifinals. Jump forward a hundred years to 2005 and that number is down to five. Federer and Mariano Puerta made this list four times. Last year, that number dwindled to just one, with Lorenzo Musetti reaching the last four at the French Open.The 24-year-old Italian is the highest-ranked one-handed backhand player in the ATP rankings. But he couldn’t take that 149-year-old legacy any further as he exited in the second round of the US Open. Not even Canadian Denis Shapovalov, ranked 48th in the world, could do it, as he bowed out to Ben Shelton in the third round. Not even 2016 US Open champion Stan Wawrinka, who was granted a late wild card, withdrew after losing in the first round.Musetti was able to continue that streak in Melbourne earlier this year. He led by two sets in the quarterfinals against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open. Leading 6-4, 6-3, he injured his upper right leg and was unable to continue despite a visit to a physical therapist.
“As the Dinosaurs Die Out”
There are 19 one-handed backhands in the ATP top 300. In 2013, that number stood at 62 across the ATP and Challenger levels.“Every decade we’re getting smaller. We’re like dinosaurs going extinct,” Tsitsipas, a two-time major finalist, said after his second-round victory over Lloyd Harris.Musetti acknowledges that the changing face of the sport was a major reason. “I think it’s partly a result of the fact that, realistically, the two-handed backhand offers an advantage in modern tennis,” said Musetti, who reached major semi-finals in 2024 and 2025.
I think if your coach is a one-handed tennis player, you will most likely be a one-handed tennis player
Roger Federer
Federer, who has won 20 major titles in his trophy-laden career, says a tennis player’s beginnings make a difference.“I think if your coach is a one-handed tennis player, you are most likely going to be a one-handed tennis player,” the Swiss said before the US Open. “I think coaches these days are mostly two-handed players, and it’s just easier to teach a kid to have two hands on the backhand side. One of my kids is going from two-handed to one-handed, and I can just see how hard it is for him to hit and control.”Then there’s Diane Parry. The Frenchwoman uses a two-handed backhand on her return before reverting to one-handed, which ‘suits her soul’.“I thought it might help me because if you think about it, it’s getting easier to return a fast serve with two hands,” she said during the US Open. “It doesn’t feel natural to me, though, so it takes work and it takes a while to get everything right. But it remains a possibility in my game.”
Italian Lorenzo Musetti in action during the US Open. (AP)
Denis Shapovalov defends the one-handed, due to the ability to create better angles compared to the two-handed backhand. Musetti, meanwhile, acknowledges that the two-handed backhand is “more advantageous today,” though he intends to teach it as a father or coach.“Yes, from an aesthetic point of view, I would teach it. I would like my son, or maybe a player I coach in the future, to have a one-handed backhand. I would like to see that.”“But in terms of efficiency, I think the two-handed backhand is more advantageous, especially in the modern game, with the speed at which tennis is played today,” said the 24-year-old Italian.