Have a look at Nadal’s Backhand here:
Video by : Essential Tennis
I tend to be a player with a heavy top-spin—especially with my forehand. All though out my 20 plus years of playing tennis I have slowly moved towards this style as I’ve figured out that I am a player that enjoys a ‘dumb’ game of tennis where there is more emphasis on my body to win by over-powering the opponent. Thus, I resonate with Nadal’s style of play in comparison to Federer.
This style allows me to be a bit safe to get clearance above the net. Due to mostly looking to play powerful shots from the baseline, it might be hard to control the ball while exerting that much power on it. Due to the brushing up motion of the top spin, it gives that extra guarantee that the ball will still clear and land in the sweet-spot position of around ‘no-man’s land’.
This style is also good for offence in the right situations where due to the balls high topspin, it is very difficult for the opponent to hit it back with force. It allows if you hit the ball cross-court, for it to swerve further into side of the intended shot. If there is less space between the court and the fence this shot could be a great asset to have in your arsenal of shots.
The main drawback of his style is that its viability depends on level of fitness. Uncannily, generating more top-spin seem to require more energy than just hitting flat return. If arm, shoulder, leg and back muscles are not developed to a certain level, most players might find it hard to pull it off.
All in all, I will be working hard in the following few months to create a return which is a mix between Nadal and Djokovic and further try to work on my fitness as well.
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