The 32 Best Backhands in Men's Tennis of All Time

One-handers and two-handers side by side, so you can settle which style deserves the crown.

1. 1
   Novak Djokovic

   The two-hander that redefined defence, taken on the rise and used to change direction from anywhere.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Roger Federer

   Turned a once-attackable one-hander into a weapon, with the slice, the flick and the high topspin backhand behind twenty major titles.
   815pts
3. 3
   Gastón Gaudio

   Argentine whose elegant one-handed backhand carried him to the 2004 French Open title.
   782pts
4. 4
   Stefanos Tsitsipas

   Greek who kept the one-handed backhand at the top of the game, reaching finals at the French Open and Australian Open.
   635pts
5. 5
   Nikolay Davydenko

   Russian whose flat, early two-hander won him the 2009 ATP Finals over Federer, Nadal and del Potro.
   586pts
6. 6
   Kei Nishikori

   Japanese former world No. 4 whose early-taken two-hander down the line carried him to the 2014 US Open final.
   586pts
7. 7
   Denis Shapovalov

   Canadian lefty who jumps into a one-handed backhand hit at forehand pace.
   532pts
8. 8
   Dominic Thiem

   Austrian whose violent one-hander produced the heaviest topspin on the shot in the modern game.
   532pts
9. 9
   Grigor Dimitrov

   Bulgarian with one of the most fluid one-handed backhands of the past 15 years.
   532pts
10. 10
    Jimmy Connors

    Made the flat, two-handed backhand a winning shot in the 1970s on the way to eight major singles titles.
    532pts
11. 11
    Richard Gasquet

    Frenchman whose looping, high-takeback one-hander was a fan favourite for two decades.
    469pts
12. 12
    Stefan Edberg

    Swede whose fluid one-handed backhand, hit with perfect balance on the way to the net, is still used as a coaching model.
    469pts
13. 13
    Daniil Medvedev

    Russian whose flat, compact two-hander from deep behind the baseline won him the 2021 US Open.
    469pts
14. 14
    David Nalbandian

    Argentine whose two-handed backhand was widely rated the cleanest ball-striking shot of the 2000s.
    469pts
15. 15
    Gustavo Kuerten

    Brazilian whose whipping one-handed backhand down the line won him three French Opens and the world No. 1 ranking in 2000.
    469pts
16. 16
    Rod Laver

    Australian lefty who hit a rolled topspin backhand when most players only sliced, and won the calendar Grand Slam twice.
    469pts
17. 17
    Don Budge

    American whose backhand was considered the finest of the pre-war era, the shot behind the first calendar Grand Slam in 1938.
    469pts
18. 18
    Jannik Sinner

    Italian whose flat two-hander is taken early and redirects pace down the line better than anyone in the current game.
    397pts
19. 19
    Alexander Zverev

    German whose two-handed backhand is widely rated the most reliable shot in his game and one of the best on tour.
    397pts
20. 20
    Marat Safin

    Russian former No. 1 whose two-hander could flatten out winners from defensive positions.
    313pts
21. 21
    Björn Borg

    Swede whose looping two-handed topspin backhand, released with one hand at the finish, won eleven majors.
    313pts
22. 22
    Carlos Alcaraz

    Spaniard who mixes a heavy two-handed drive with the best backhand drop shot on tour.
    313pts
23. 23
    Lorenzo Musetti

    Italian carrying the one-handed backhand into the next generation, especially on clay.
    313pts
24. 24
    Tommy Haas

    German whose textbook one-hander, equally good on the drive and the slice, was a tour reference for two decades.
    313pts
25. 25
    Stan Wawrinka

    The most admired one-hander of the modern era, and the shot that won him three majors.
    213pts
26. 26
    Andre Agassi

    Took the ball early off both wings and used the two-hander to end points from the baseline.
    213pts
27. 27
    Ken Rosewall

    Australian great whose sliced backhand is still the textbook reference for the shot.
    213pts
28. 28
    Ivan Lendl

    Eight-time major champion whose topspin one-hander gave the power baseline game of the 1980s its blueprint.
    213pts
29. 29
    Arthur Ashe

    American whose flat, quick one-handed backhand was the shot that beat Jimmy Connors in the 1975 Wimbledon final.
    213pts
30. 30
    Nicolás Almagro

    Spaniard who hit one of the hardest one-handed backhands of his era, especially effective on clay.
    213pts
31. 31
    Marcelo Ríos

    Chilean left-hander whose two-handed backhand, taken on the rise, took him to world No. 1 in 1998.
    213pts
32. 32
    Andy Murray

    Britain's three-time major champion, whose two-hander was the passing-shot backbone of his defence.
    0pts

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