Tennis Backhand Technique: One-Handed and Two-Handed

One hand or two is the only genuinely open question in tennis technique, and nothing here will settle it for you. Both are viable at every level, both are represented at the top of the game, and the honest position is that the choice depends on what a player already has rather than on which is better.

What each actually costs

The two-hander is easier to hit consistently, handles high balls and heavy topspin more comfortably, and produces power with less strength, which is why it is what juniors are usually taught. Its costs are reach and versatility: the second hand limits how far the player can extend, and slicing, low balls and touch at the net all need the hand to come off anyway.

The one-hander reaches further, slices naturally, and transitions to the volley without a grip or grip-count change. It also demands more timing and more shoulder strength, is more exposed against high balls above shoulder height, and takes longer to build. Neither list is a verdict.

The fault both sides share

Whichever backhand a player uses, the most common technical fault is the same: the hands take the racquet back. The body should initiate the backswing and the arms should guide rather than pull, which keeps the stroke compact and preserves the coil that produces power. A backhand driven by the arms is rigid, and rigidity limits both the power available and the rotation needed for a heavy ball.

Why the backhand is usually the weaker wing

Not because it is harder, but because it is practised least. Players who spend their court time rallying forehands arrive at a match with one developed side, and opponents find it in two games. The material here is weighted toward repetition and drills for that reason rather than toward technical refinement. A technically adequate backhand hit often beats a technically excellent one hit rarely.

Grips, and where they differ from the forehand

Backhand grip descriptions focus on the base knuckle of the index finger and on the thumb, which plays a much larger role than it does on the forehand. The Continental is poor for topspin but good for slice and flat shots; moving further round improves topspin at the cost of low-ball handling. For two-handers the non-dominant hand's grip matters at least as much as the dominant one, and it is the one usually left unexamined.

Choosing between one and two hands, if you still can

Most players do not get to choose. The decision was made early and the habit is years deep. For those who do, the honest answer is that two hands suits almost everybody. It stabilises the racquet face against pace, it is easier to time, and it produces a usable ball sooner. The one-hander gives more reach, an easier transition to the slice, and a genuinely better volley position, at the cost of years of work and a permanent vulnerability to a high, heavy ball.

What matters more than the choice is not switching repeatedly. Both strokes take a long time to groove, and a player who changes at the first difficulty ends up with two half-built backhands and no reliable one. The exception is a player whose two-hander has an unfixable timing problem on the stretch, where the extra reach of one hand solves something the second hand caused.

The slice deserves its own note here because it is available to both. A slice backhand is the cheapest shot in tennis to acquire relative to its usefulness. It resets a rally, it handles a ball above the shoulder, and it buys time when you are out of position. Players who cannot yet drive the backhand consistently often get more from a reliable slice than from more work on the drive.