One-Handed Backhand
A backhand groundstroke struck with a single hand on the grip, driving through the ball with a full extension of the hitting arm.
Overview
The one-handed backhand is a classic tennis groundstroke played from the non-dominant side with one hand on the racquet. It offers long reach and a smooth transition to slice and volleys, and relies on an early shoulder turn to load the shot.
Timing and a stable wrist are important because the single hand must control the racquet through contact and extension.
How to do it
- 1Turn your shoulders and take the racquet back with both hands.
- 2Step across toward the ball with your front foot.
- 3Release the non-hitting hand and swing the racquet forward.
- 4Make contact out in front and drive through the line of the ball.
- 5Extend the hitting arm and let the racquet finish high.
Key points
- Turn the shoulders early so your back is partly toward the net.
- The non-hitting hand stays on the throat of the racquet during the take-back.
- Contact is well out in front of the front foot.
Where it’s used
Sports that use one-handed backhand:
Related techniques
Topspin Forehand
A forehand groundstroke hit with a low-to-high swing that puts forward spin on the ball so it dips and kicks up on landing.
Tennis Serve
The overhead stroke that starts every point, hit from behind the baseline into the diagonally opposite service box.
Volley
A shot played near the net by blocking the ball out of the air before it bounces, using a short, firm punch rather than a full swing.
How it connects
The meaning-bearing relationships that place One-Handed Backhand in the wider knowledge graph — each one with the reason it exists.
Frequently learned together
Taught side by side in the same stage of a learning path.
Explore across the knowledge base
Follow the threads that connect One-Handed Backhand to the rest of SocialSportHub.
Movement patterns
- StrikeA ballistic, whole-body hitting action that channels ground-generated force through a proximal-to-distal kinetic chain to deliver momentum to a target via the hand, an implement or a body part at the moment of contact.
- RotationRotating the trunk to generate and transfer power through the body's kinetic chain, plus anti-rotation — resisting unwanted twist to keep the trunk stable.
- ThrowPropelling an object by releasing it from the hand, driven by a proximal-to-distal kinetic-chain sequence that summates speed from the legs through the trunk and arm to the release point.
- KickA ballistic single-support leg swing that whips force from the plant foot through the hip and knee to strike or propel a ball or target with the foot, distinct from the weight-bearing steps of locomotion.
- JumpThe plyometric pattern of projecting the body off the ground through explosive triple extension and controlling the landing — the core expression of lower-body power.
Skills
- RallyingThe skill of exchanging shots back and forth to build and win a point.
- ThrowingThe skill of propelling the ball accurately and with control using the arm.
- CatchingThe skill of cleanly securing a ball travelling through the air or off the ground.
- ServingThe skill of putting the ball or shuttle into play to start a point or rally.
- HeadingThe skill of directing the ball with the head to pass, clear or attempt to score.
Tactics
- Baseline playA patient tennis style built around rallying from the back of the court and constructing points with groundstrokes.
- Full-court pressAn aggressive basketball defence that pressures the ball across the whole court to force turnovers.
- Doubles formationHow a pair positions itself on court — one up, one back, or both at the net — to control space in doubles.
- Court coverage and rotationVolleyball positioning where players rotate through positions and cover the court as one coordinated unit.
- Possession playA patient football style that keeps the ball through short passing to control the game and tire opponents.
Equipment
- Tennis racquetA strung frame with a handle used to hit the ball in tennis.
- Tennis ballA hollow rubber ball covered in felt used in tennis and related racquet sports.
- Table tennis batA small wooden blade covered with rubber used to hit the ball in table tennis.
- Pickleball paddleA solid, flat paddle used to hit the perforated plastic ball in pickleball.
- Cricket batA flat-fronted wooden bat used by batters to hit the ball in cricket.
Facilities
Playing surfaces
- ClayA soft, granular racquet-sport surface of crushed brick, stone or shale that slows the ball, gives a high bounce and lets players slide into shots.
- GrassNatural turf grown on soil — the traditional surface for many field sports and, in tennis, a fast court with a low, skiddy bounce.
- Hard courtA rigid acrylic, concrete or asphalt court that gives a true, consistent, medium-paced bounce — the standard multi-use outdoor surface.
Go deeper with One-Handed Backhand
Everywhere else on the platform that covers One-Handed Backhand — assembled from what actually references it, so nothing here is a dead end.
Learn it
Structured courses and paths on the platform that cover this directly.
Take it away
Open data and the whole-platform view of this subject.
How this page is maintained
- Content type
- Technique
- Provenance
- Tier A — evergreen educational
- Verified external sources
- 0
- Content updated
- 2026-07-09
Evergreen, first-party explanation — it makes no claim that needs an external source. How we handle sources and reviews.