The careers of these two great pros are separated by decades, but their slice backhands are timeless.

In the last 30 years, the way the game is played has evolved dramatically. But one shot, the slice backhand, has made it through virtually unchanged. Ken Rosewall, a fixture in pro tennis until the mid ’70s, had one of the best slice backhands of all time. Tim Henman’s slice is in many ways identical. But if you look closely, you’ll see some subtle differences that separate Henman’s stroke, outstanding as it is, from Rosewall’s all-time weapon.

1 GRIP » Though Rosewall used a Continental grip for his slice backhand, as has virtually every high-level player, he placed his hand low on the handle. You’ll notice that the butt-cap of the racquet is not visible. Holding the racquet like this kept Rosewall’s wrist loose, enabling him to generate greater racquet-head speed and, therefore, more pace. Henman has a more conventional grip.

2 BACKSWING » Rosewall’s slice was the most penetrating I ever played against. It was always deep and the ball felt heavy when it struck my racquet. One key to this aspect of Rosewall’s backhand was that his take-back was not as high in relation to the ball as those of other players, including Henman. As a result, Rosewall’s slice backhand was flatter than most. Henman, who has a higher backswing than Rosewall does, produces more spin and less pace. Rosewall’s lower backswing also kept his racquet more in line with the ball, providing him with outstanding control.

3 RACQUET FACE » In addition to having a higher backswing, Henman also keeps his racquet face more open than Rosewall does, and there’s no doubt he’s going to put some heavy spin on the ball. Rosewall’s racquet face is not nearly as open. He’s still swinging from high to low but with an almost fl at, or perpendicular, face. That, combined with his lower backswing, gives him less spin but more pace.

4 SHOULDERS » A full shoulder turn is a critical component of a good one-handed backhand, slice or otherwise. Both Rosewall and Henman are exemplary in this regard. If we were to go back and view their preparation earlier in the stroke you would see both of them looking over their right shoulders before they begin their forward swings.

5 RIGHT ARM » Both bend their right arms slightly when they take them back, but then straighten them before impact. A common mistake I see with one-handed backhands is a bent arm at contact, which leads to inconsistency because the degree of bend can vary from shot to shot. Even worse, some believe hitting this way is a prime cause of tennis elbow.

6 LEFT ARM » Notice how both players use their nondominant arms for balance. Players with solid one-handed backhands always use their non-hitting arms as a counterbalance. On slices, their arms go up and back in a motion that mirrors their dominant arms.

7 STANCE » Even though both these guys are within milliseconds of contact, they’re still sideways to the ball. Players with one-handed backhands should have this image imprinted in their minds. They shouldn’t begin opening up with their shoulders and their stances until after they hit the ball or else they’ll tend to hit across the ball rather than through it, sacrificing power and depth.

Article by Cliff Drysdale, Photos by Russ Adams, Clive Rose/Getty Images – Tennis.com