“Modern tennis is really difficult”: Lorenzo Musetti on why the one-handed backhand is disappearing

Lorenzo Musetti stated that he would not recommend a one-handed backhand to a child training to be a tennis player. The Italian World No. 9 referred to his signature shot while competing at the Hellenic Championships in Athens, where he has already reached the semi-finals.

Not many high-level players use this shot, and over the years, more players have reinvented themselves with a two-handed backhand. Musetti is different in that sense, being one of only 5 players in the Top 50 with that shot (only 7 in the Top 100), and currently the highest-ranked. He is joined by Denis Shapovalov (No. 23), Stefanos Tsitsipas (No. 34), Grigor Dimitrov (No. 44), and Daniel Altmaier (No. 46).

It is a shot that has increasingly fallen into disuse, despite the fact that decades ago, practically all great players favored it. The Italian recognized that the speed at which the game has mutated makes it increasingly difficult to play with a one-handed backhand, and he would not recommend it to someone starting in tennis.

"Do you want the honest answer? No. No, because modern tennis is really very difficult, especially due to the speed of the game and the potential disadvantages on the return," he commented at a press conference from Athens according to SDNA. "Of course, for the passion of tennis, I would say yes. But if you ask me honestly, for example, if we were talking about my son, I would like him to have a two-handed backhand."

The Italian is experiencing a particular moment on the Tour as he clings to a last hope of qualifying for the ATP Finals for the first time. He had a great first half of the year, especially during the clay swing, where he reached the final in Monte-Carlo and the semi-finals in Madrid, Rome, and Roland Garros. He accumulated an 18-4 record on clay courts between April and June, with three of his losses coming against Carlos Alcaraz, who has been practically invincible all season.

However, injuries and irregular results followed. After staying in the Top 10 for several months, he seemed to have an almost guaranteed spot in the ATP Finals. However, he was surpassed in the Race a week ago by Felix Auger-Aliassime—who reached the Paris Masters final.

Musetti now clings to one last option to qualify for Turin: winning the title in Athens—a significant feat considering he has lost two finals this year (Monte-Carlo against Alcaraz, Chengdu against Tabilo), and his last title was back in 2022. Nonetheless, this week he has already secured wins against Stan Wawrinka and Alexandre Muller, qualifying for his 7th semi-final of the season.

One of the topics the World No. 9 touched upon is the pressure he faces this week, where qualification for Turin is solely in his hands. "I have been under a lot of pressure the last month because the competition was very, very tight," he commented from Greece. "In the last stages, we were very close, and Félix had an incredible run in Paris. I lost in the first round, so that was that."

"But now I have a chance here, so yes, there is a little pressure, but I try not to think about it too much, however difficult it may be. We'll see what happens in the next few days."

Musetti will face American Sebastian Korda (No. 48) in his semi-final match this Friday, who has reached a semi-final for the third time this season. On the other side of the draw, Novak Djokovic (No. 4), the main favorite for the title and who has practically played as a local this week in his new city of residence, remains alive.