The Evolution of Tennis: No More One-Handed Backhands in the Top Ten ATP Rankings

Stefanos Tsitsipas with his one-handed backhand

Keystone

The ATP world rankings from February 19, 2024 are historic: for the first time since their introduction, no player with a one-handed backhand is in the top ten.

On August 23, 1973, the Association of Professional Tennis Players (ATP), which had been founded a year earlier, published a world ranking list for the first time. Only one of the ten players in the top ten had a two-handed backhand: Jimmy Connors.

More than 50 years later there is now a premiere. With the fall of Stefanos Tsitsipas from the top ten, for the first time none of the top ten tennis players in the world play a one-handed backhand. With Tsitsipas (ATP 11) and Grigor Dimitrov (ATP 13), there are only two representatives of this rare breed left in the top 25.

Jannik Sinner also achieved something historic – once again. After his tournament victory in Rotterdam, the Australian Open champion is now number 3 in the world, only behind Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. No Italian has ever ranked so well before. Adriano Panatta, the last Grand Slam winner from the Bel Paese until January, reached number 4 after his triumph at the French Open in 1976.

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2024-02-19 08:28:00
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