@wind1357 na dude, you are full of shit. no way does john macenroe and federer have the same fucking swing. your blind man. and nadal is not a full western either. your talking out of ur ass.
love fed, but sampras had edberg, chang, agassi, lendl, becker, courier, ivanisevic, then up and comers like safin and hewitt...not to mention rafter...to deal with. seems like tougher competition to me. but, maybe fed would have dusted all of them.
SAMPRAS to me and a lot of people will be the best player, MrNeilsy is correct, sampras at his peak 94-98 with the modern rackets today will destroy most of the players, he was a wsome to watch I really miss him, such talent. I don't like federer much, my opinion, sampras had much tougher opponents in his era than federer did or has, any tennis fan with half a brain will agree with this. I hope Nadal overtakes federer, I believe federer is already finished, compared to Nadal.
Pete's forehand was one of the best produced ground strokes in the history of Men's Tennis. The only reason people would think otherwise is because they don't understand the mechanics of his technique. It is easily one of the heaviest defensive and offensive ground strokes ever! He could end the point in a rally very quickly against anyone with that stroke. Look at the archives. Very few players had much defense against it, including Agassi and Federer, when he was able to drive the shot.
@MrNeilsy DUDE sampras was sick, i never seen people put people away with 2 or 3 shots. Also his serve is the best ever i think which is fully effective in any era of tennis. I think if he were in his prime today, he would still top the list of number 1. He would work out a lot more too which only adds to the level he would produce today.
IMHO, most natural ground strokers of all time are Sampras, Edberg, Pancho Gonzalez, Lendl and Federer. *Edberg has the most natural backhand, but his forehand definitely keeps him off that list. IMHO, most natural volleyer are Rafter, Edberg and McEnroe.
@brucecheewai yeh its shit house, all wrist flick the bitch is lucky hes got modern technology to help him out. Fred stolle 1990 GSC "Ive never seen anyone hit the 1 hander with more confidance than this young man Sampras has this weak" He was known as the man with the beautiful game till he added 200 gs of lead tape to it
@cain2335 Are you kidding? His forhand was beautiful in my opinion. That full eastern grip, elbow on the backswing, high follow through. Man with the exception of his open stance this was classic technique. But people see beauty in different things i guess:)
@spacecowboy95 it's not as fluid as some forehands i've seen, but his forehand is my favorite. the old style swing he had made him generate such a flat, powerful shot. it was so effective
@cain2335 Alot of people think that Pete hit quite flat on is forehand, but that's a myth. Pete Sampras hit the most forehand spin among players with classical style, an average of 1842rpm. Surprisingly, Andre Agassi's forehand actually measured slightly less spin than Sampras, despite his semi-western grip, averaging 1718rpm.
But yeah, when he did flatten it out, it was a wrecking ball.
@salaheddine10 I see where you may be coming about the beauty of Pete's forehand. But you have to understand how loose his arm is - loosest of all time. As such, Pete's forehand has the greatest velocity of any player to play the game. I am teaching my son a stroke similar to Fed's as it is more conventional. But IMHO, Pete's is more lethal.
@GueorguiJoukov Federer'backhand grip is more closed than an eastern. I posted a video to compare Federer's to Lendl's backhand. Looking at the opening image you can see Lendl's grip is an eastern while Federer's seems like a "doorknob" grip...
Sampras used his backhand as a neutral shot i think. If he hit a winner with it then he hit a winner but i think his purpose was not to give his oppenent anything to work with just a nice neutral shot back
actually Sampras backhand seemed to be continental grip to me cuz you can clearly see how he switches it to eastern right before he hits his the forehand :)
Can anybody tell me why Sampras's backhand is so flat compared to Federer's. I know they don't have the exact same takeback, but still can't figure out the big difference in the stroke.Does Roger swing faster and roll over the ball with his wrist more or is it a grip difference or something else entirely?
I would also say that racquets make a big difference too. You cant play that heavy backhands with Sampras´Pros Staff 85 inch head size. Also strings make a big difference. With new technology you can play better, heavier, deeper, faster with more spin. Pete hits his backhands better with new racquet.
Sampras was great in spite of his technical limitations. They are trivial ones though. On his forehand he doesn't lift his racquet head before taking it back and he lifts his left arm up high during the swing instead of pulling it around lower like most players. On the backhand, he would be able to rip it more if he swung his left arm backwards while swinging his right arm forwards. This would allow him to swing harder while keeping his balance. Federer's backhand exemplifies this.
"On the backhand, he would be able to rip it more if he swung his left arm backwards while swinging his right arm forwards."
Pete hit more flat on his backhand than Roger. That helps to explain the arm positions you were talking about. Roger maintained a more still body which enables more spin and better control up-the-line. But Pete frequently used his BH to hit topspin crosscourt to set-up forehands. Allowing his trunk to move more forward in that case is more acceptable.
Phenomenal technique ! Forehand, backhand, volleys, overheads, serve and movement. There's nothing left i dont think ! His technique and style was absolutely textbook. Not only that but he played with a racquet that is probably the closest you can get to a wooden one.. small headsize, heavy, tiny sweetspot.... and yet he had the best strokes ive ever seen on a pro... including Federer!
You are correct on Macs grip. Never switched positions at all during rallys. He never had the time since he was serving and vollying on everything. Lendl was constantly switching his grips.
best forever
MrHadluve 1 week ago
Comment removed
dvh065 8 months ago
sampras and agassi use the eastern grip , where else fed and nadal use the semi western. which is best? i dont know.
lordofkronos 8 months ago
@lordofkronos Nadal goes way past semi-western. half of his forehands are reverse now. seems as though all of tennis is going that way
tmberry 8 months ago
@lordofkronos federer use the eastern grip and nadal uses western
wind1357 7 months ago
@wind1357 na dude, you are full of shit. no way does john macenroe and federer have the same fucking swing. your blind man. and nadal is not a full western either. your talking out of ur ass.
lordofkronos 7 months ago
This was the Semifinal at San Jose in 1998
Sampras won this match 6-3 2-6 6-2
Van Lottum was ranked 124 at the time
FightwithDream 11 months ago
He really uses all of his body for the forehand
bjarktron 1 year ago
I wonder if Federer will still be around winning slams in his 30's. Hopefully.
NarabaO 1 year ago
@NarabaO He's got one more day to win one in his twenties :-)
arabiannights100 7 months ago
Pete's backhand wasn't a liability for him as much as was Federer's for Federer.
s900203 1 year ago
I wish I had his lethal forehand. Wouldnt need any other shots:-)
cammpinno 1 year ago
love fed, but sampras had edberg, chang, agassi, lendl, becker, courier, ivanisevic, then up and comers like safin and hewitt...not to mention rafter...to deal with. seems like tougher competition to me. but, maybe fed would have dusted all of them.
jhgosnell 1 year ago
SAMPRAS to me and a lot of people will be the best player, MrNeilsy is correct, sampras at his peak 94-98 with the modern rackets today will destroy most of the players, he was a wsome to watch I really miss him, such talent. I don't like federer much, my opinion, sampras had much tougher opponents in his era than federer did or has, any tennis fan with half a brain will agree with this. I hope Nadal overtakes federer, I believe federer is already finished, compared to Nadal.
gojipoj 1 year ago
@gojipoj fck u federer is sampras legacy thats where he got his style from. u should support fed instead of motherfucking nadal.
fastmilion 1 year ago
DEADLIEST FOREHAND EVER.
He kills you with 1-2 shots.
cammpinno 1 year ago
Pete's forehand was one of the best produced ground strokes in the history of Men's Tennis. The only reason people would think otherwise is because they don't understand the mechanics of his technique. It is easily one of the heaviest defensive and offensive ground strokes ever! He could end the point in a rally very quickly against anyone with that stroke. Look at the archives. Very few players had much defense against it, including Agassi and Federer, when he was able to drive the shot.
MrNeilsy 1 year ago
@MrNeilsy DUDE sampras was sick, i never seen people put people away with 2 or 3 shots. Also his serve is the best ever i think which is fully effective in any era of tennis. I think if he were in his prime today, he would still top the list of number 1. He would work out a lot more too which only adds to the level he would produce today.
2012bilderberg 1 year ago
IMHO, most natural ground strokers of all time are Sampras, Edberg, Pancho Gonzalez, Lendl and Federer. *Edberg has the most natural backhand, but his forehand definitely keeps him off that list. IMHO, most natural volleyer are Rafter, Edberg and McEnroe.
mrbobevans 1 year ago
@mrbobevans I agree, although Nadal has one of the best forehands ever, it really looks very unnatural.
hattrickster33 1 year ago
Sampras forehand: smooth & fluid. Nothing ugly about it.
bqndc 1 year ago
preparation ... 0:12 - 0:14
AndresRoddick1 1 year ago
@brucecheewai yeh its shit house, all wrist flick the bitch is lucky hes got modern technology to help him out. Fred stolle 1990 GSC "Ive never seen anyone hit the 1 hander with more confidance than this young man Sampras has this weak" He was known as the man with the beautiful game till he added 200 gs of lead tape to it
quiet1234 2 years ago
To be honest, his forehand is ugly.
salaheddine10 2 years ago
@salaheddine10 yea his forehand was not the best thing to look at. but it really worked for him
cain2335 2 years ago 7
@cain2335
I agree. =)
salaheddine10 2 years ago
@cain2335 Are you kidding? His forhand was beautiful in my opinion. That full eastern grip, elbow on the backswing, high follow through. Man with the exception of his open stance this was classic technique. But people see beauty in different things i guess:)
spacecowboy95 1 year ago
@spacecowboy95 it's not as fluid as some forehands i've seen, but his forehand is my favorite. the old style swing he had made him generate such a flat, powerful shot. it was so effective
cain2335 1 year ago
@cain2335 Alot of people think that Pete hit quite flat on is forehand, but that's a myth. Pete Sampras hit the most forehand spin among players with classical style, an average of 1842rpm. Surprisingly, Andre Agassi's forehand actually measured slightly less spin than Sampras, despite his semi-western grip, averaging 1718rpm.
But yeah, when he did flatten it out, it was a wrecking ball.
spacecowboy95 1 year ago
Honestly it seems to me quite beautiful. Today's forehand style is not so elegant...
matteodinenno 2 years ago 3
@salaheddine10 I see where you may be coming about the beauty of Pete's forehand. But you have to understand how loose his arm is - loosest of all time. As such, Pete's forehand has the greatest velocity of any player to play the game. I am teaching my son a stroke similar to Fed's as it is more conventional. But IMHO, Pete's is more lethal.
mrbobevans 1 year ago
the most beutiful backhand ive seen in tennis
aggbala 2 years ago
@GueorguiJoukov Federer'backhand grip is more closed than an eastern. I posted a video to compare Federer's to Lendl's backhand. Looking at the opening image you can see Lendl's grip is an eastern while Federer's seems like a "doorknob" grip...
matteodinenno 2 years ago
federer's back and fore hand looks better, though sampras's serve&volley is just fantastic
PROTLxONgame 2 years ago
Hardly any racquet speed on his backhand
365to173repubsPWNED 2 years ago
Sampras used his backhand as a neutral shot i think. If he hit a winner with it then he hit a winner but i think his purpose was not to give his oppenent anything to work with just a nice neutral shot back
moffettman02 2 years ago
The greatest forehand of all time.
LDis1 2 years ago 5
actually Sampras backhand seemed to be continental grip to me cuz you can clearly see how he switches it to eastern right before he hits his the forehand :)
blueskyyanime2 2 years ago
actually, before the mid-90s, tennis commentators would always talk about his "beautiful" bh... and that he had a not-so-great fh.
but, of course, by the end of his career, he was known for having 1 of the biggest fh's in history & a not-so-gr8 bh.
mephatboi 2 years ago 2
Funny people commenting on his groundstrokes, hes Serve and Volley can finish the game. hence the 14 GS title.
supertrex2 2 years ago
well, yes thats true
but hey, it's worth to comment on lol :)
Paramorerocks19 2 years ago
lets play singles!
supertrex2 2 years ago
well, im 13 and living in florida
so how bout you?
Paramorerocks19 2 years ago
which part in FL I live in FL too.
supertrex2 2 years ago
miramar, or south florida
Paramorerocks19 2 years ago
um I think Sampras is intentionally flatting his backhand.... coz he can hit "Topspinny" shots when he wanted to^_^
tolendoi123 2 years ago
Yes, but they were never as heavy as Fed's backhands.
Samprasisthebest 2 years ago
Can anybody tell me why Sampras's backhand is so flat compared to Federer's. I know they don't have the exact same takeback, but still can't figure out the big difference in the stroke.Does Roger swing faster and roll over the ball with his wrist more or is it a grip difference or something else entirely?
Samprasisthebest 2 years ago
yes probably. federer probably uses a more intense grip to create more topspin. but using a more intense grip is hard. it requires much practice.
applebaj 2 years ago
I would also say that racquets make a big difference too. You cant play that heavy backhands with Sampras´Pros Staff 85 inch head size. Also strings make a big difference. With new technology you can play better, heavier, deeper, faster with more spin. Pete hits his backhands better with new racquet.
cammpinno 2 years ago
Federer hit a good backhand with Pro staff 85, Watch the wimbledon 2001 they both use Pro staff 85.
supertrex2 2 years ago
Federer still does, never heard of paint jobs?
SoooBlue 2 years ago
notice the tip of their raquet heads, when they turn i think federer's head is more up
than sampras
Paramorerocks19 2 years ago
Yeah, after having noticed my own racquet face, which is more like Roger's, I think you are right.
Samprasisthebest 2 years ago
well federers backhand is more topspun so he's backhand is loopier
mitroveca 2 years ago
Sampras was great in spite of his technical limitations. They are trivial ones though. On his forehand he doesn't lift his racquet head before taking it back and he lifts his left arm up high during the swing instead of pulling it around lower like most players. On the backhand, he would be able to rip it more if he swung his left arm backwards while swinging his right arm forwards. This would allow him to swing harder while keeping his balance. Federer's backhand exemplifies this.
Snaurt 3 years ago
Since he takes the racquet head higher, he can generate more head speed on the forehand side. That seems to be a feature of his forehand
The backhand was used more often pre-Annacone era before 1995.
Crazyhumanpeople 3 years ago
"On the backhand, he would be able to rip it more if he swung his left arm backwards while swinging his right arm forwards."
Pete hit more flat on his backhand than Roger. That helps to explain the arm positions you were talking about. Roger maintained a more still body which enables more spin and better control up-the-line. But Pete frequently used his BH to hit topspin crosscourt to set-up forehands. Allowing his trunk to move more forward in that case is more acceptable.
miltyu97 3 years ago
i dont like the looks of either his forehand or backhand. but thats just me
ikilledobama 3 years ago
Look at the size of him. He's a damn moose.
daraemkar 3 years ago 2
hahaha. right :-)
Alexandahls 2 years ago
Classic ... beautiful in so many ways
jochooi 3 years ago
Phenomenal technique ! Forehand, backhand, volleys, overheads, serve and movement. There's nothing left i dont think ! His technique and style was absolutely textbook. Not only that but he played with a racquet that is probably the closest you can get to a wooden one.. small headsize, heavy, tiny sweetspot.... and yet he had the best strokes ive ever seen on a pro... including Federer!
doovle 3 years ago 4
best player ever
1990glass 3 years ago 25
what you can also learn from this is the split step which he takes in between the shots....often neglected.....split step is like a hop
annaarora 3 years ago
What do you mean often neglected? Every pro, without exception uses the split-step.
monthejoe 3 years ago 3
the timeing is key best player of all time
1990glass 3 years ago
You are correct on Macs grip. Never switched positions at all during rallys. He never had the time since he was serving and vollying on everything. Lendl was constantly switching his grips.
ShutupHollywood 3 years ago
so you mean..an eastern grip? -.-
nytex 3 years ago 6
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Does he has "continental grip"?
andreaoffshore 3 years ago
too good by the king of swing! :]
JDMFLiPBOi 3 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
dude that forehand looks horrible,his backhand is even worse,like federer's in 1998
SunSigil 3 years ago
hey "sunny" if you dont like Pete what the hell are you doing here? go to the williams sisters. give us alone here!
afroditapandemos 3 years ago 2
Tennis by-the-books
drugstoremarc 4 years ago 5
actually his backhand is not by the book.
supertrex2 3 years ago
I think Pete rewrote the book.
miltyu97 3 years ago