The Dominic Thiem Forehand

Formerly ranked number 2 in the world and 2020 U.S. Open Grand Slam Champion, Dominic Thiem has achieved many great feats throughout his career. He is known as one of the most explosive players on tour and is able to generate massive of amounts of topspin and pace. Now how does he do this? This can be answered by looking at human bio-mechanics. Dominic Thiem is able to generate so much force by mainly using the strength in his legs, the strength in his core, and timing. These three factors are key in order to create high ball quality with high ball control. First Thiem coils upper body and at the same time loads his legs. Next, he generates heavy topspin in order to control the ball height, pace, and depth. He slightly turns his wrist outward so that the racquet face is facing away from the ball, then he using the power in his core and legs, he makes clean contact with ball, catching it directly in front of him for optimal timing. Below is a video to his forehand in slow motion.

Video explanation on youtube

The Stan Wawrinka Backhand

Known as having one of the most powerful one-handed backhands on tour, Stan Wawrinka is a 3 time grand slam champion claiming victories on all surfaces except grass. Though a one-handed backhand was popular around 10-20 years ago, it is now a rare occurrence. This is due the shift of technology in the racquets and the increased speed of the game. The reason why Stan Wawrinka was able to dominate players like Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal was due to the impeccable ball timing and simplicity in his stroke. First he coils his upper body as he is positioning himself to hit the ball and then steps into the court with his dominant foot and makes clean contact with the ball directly in front of him. The key to his quick recoil is by slightly bending his dominant arm so that he can coil and prepare earlier for the next ball. Below is a video to his backhand in slow motion.

Stan Wawrinka Backhand slow-mo