What Shot Has Carlos Alcaraz Popularised? | ATP Tour | Tennis

At the very best stage of the game, tennis is a sport of small margins. In these settings, tactical improvements could be very efficient.

Whether it is Novak Djokovic usually serving to the forehand on second serve or Maxime Cressy repeatedly storming the web to serve and volley on second serve, strategic improvements breathe new life and pleasure into the sport.

One latest and extremely efficient tactical innovation is the usage of the forehand drop shot by the 2022 year-end World No. 1, Carlos Alcaraz.

Drop pictures are nothing new on the tour, significantly on clay. But for gamers on the very high of the sport, Alcaraz has employed the forehand drop shot with an unusually excessive frequency and effectiveness, together with on exhausting courts.

On common, ATP gamers are likely to deploy about 0.85 rally-ending forehand drop pictures and 1.05 rally-ending backhand drop pictures per match, successful about 51.5% of the factors off the forehand drop shot and simply 39.7% of the factors off the backhand drop shot.

But not Carlos Alcaraz. The Spanish teen phenom employs the forehand drop shot a breezy 2.83 instances per match, with a formidable win price of 67.7%, and the backhand drop shot at a excessive 1.34 instances per match, with a decent win price of 52.1%. This sample is much more pronounced on clay, the place Alcaraz hits 3.81 forehand drop pictures per match and 1.84 backhand drop pictures per match.

Unlike most gamers on tour, who barely favor backhand drop pictures, Alcaraz strongly prefers the forehand drop shot (see beneath). During massive moments in a match, Alcaraz doesn’t shrink back from this shot both. One in six of his forehand drop pictures happens on break factors and factors that may result in break factors, with an exceptionally excessive win price of 71.4%.

Remarkably, as soon as Alcaraz began making his manner as much as the Pepperstone ATP Rankings through the 2021 season, gamers took discover and began utilizing the forehand drop shot rather more steadily. Players who already used the forehand drop shot usually (e.g., Ruud, Fritz, Sinner, Tiafoe, and Bublik) turned to it much more. Yet, not like Alcaraz, the elevated use of the forehand drop shot after Alcaraz burst on the scene has not resulted in a excessive win share; the truth is it has declined from 52.4% to 48.2%.

Ultimately, no different participant within the Top 100 executes the forehand drop shot as nicely and as usually as Alcaraz. The forehand drop shot is a tough shot to drag off frequently. So, what explains the success of the Alcaraz drop shot and his use of it?

The animation beneath illustrates among the key components of the effectivity of the Alcaraz drop shot.

First, earlier than resorting to a forehand drop shot, Alcaraz pushes opponents far behind the baseline. Prior to deploying the drop shot, his opponents stand 14.5 meters behind the web on common (in comparison with 12.9 meters on common in rallies versus Alcaraz). To do that, Alcaraz makes use of high-speed rally pictures (134 km/h on common) to push his opponents right into a defensive posture simply earlier than hitting his forehand drop shot (in comparison with a 113-115 km/h common rally pace by Alcaraz, in keeping with different high gamers).

Next, Alcaraz usually locations his forehand drop shot to the opposite excessive distance from that time: often, proper in entrance of the web on the advert aspect. With a well-placed shot, opponents should cowl 10.9 meters on common in 2.1 seconds from the time the shot is hit to achieve the Alcaraz forehand drop shot. Subtracting the common time to recognise the shot, cease, and hit it (1.0 seconds), leaves 1.1 seconds for the run itself, requiring about 9.9 meters per second pace off the gun. Although a world-class sprinter like Usain Bolt may simply accomplish this feat, it’s tough for even quick ATP gamers to hit a high-quality shot in response.

Covering this distance is much more tough as a result of Alcaraz is a grasp at hiding his forehand drop shot. Alcaraz disguises it so nicely that his common opponent strikes again after they see Alcaraz increase his racquet– as if he’s about to hit one other exhausting, deep shot – making a lag time between Alcaraz’s racquet contact and his opponents starting to maneuver that’s not often seen. Moreover, Alcaraz units up forehand drop pictures not solely together with his deuce aspect forehand but additionally mixes in loads of run-around forehand drop pictures, and in any respect completely different factors within the rally, together with his serve + 1 shot. Combining all these options, Alcaraz’s forehand drop shot is the deadliest within the sport.