“You’ll Never Win Wimbledon With a Sliced Backhand”: Rod Laver Reveals Mastering His Skills With a Wooden Racket

The Australian tennis legend, Rod Laver, was hailed as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. He was known for his fierce backhand and his ability to dominate his opponents. The way Laver played tennis was unique among tennis players of his era.

The 11-time Grand Slam winner recently revealed how he mastered his game with a wooden racket after his coach complained to him about his game.

Rod Laver talked about how he mastered his backhand with a wooden racket

During a recent interview, the former Australian tennis player stated that he used a ‘Dunlop Maxply.’ He went on to say that using the racket required excellent timing to put the shot away.

Laver stated, “With the racket I used, a Dunlop Maxply, you needed to have perfect timing to put the shot away. That’s why my game did well in the amateur world. Not many people could use a wooden racket with such ability.”

He further added, “As I persevered, all of a sudden I was mastering topspin. My coach, Charlie Hollis, told me: ‘You’ll never win Wimbledon with a slice backhand. You must learn to put topspin on the ball.’ Those were the learning curves.”

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Laver added, “No other lefties had learned to hit a topspin backhand. It put me at another level, that little bit higher.” 

Nick Kyrgios gets support from the Australian tennis legend

The 11-time grand slam title winner, Laver recently praised the Wimbledon finalist, Nick Kyrgios. The Australian tennis player, Kyrgios, had a great season as he reached the final of the major event for the first time in singles and also won the Citi Open title. Kyrgios’ brilliant performances during the season impressed Rod Laver.

Laver stated that his fellow countryman is among the top tennis players as he has the talent to reach unprecedented heights. He stated, “Kyrgios has all the ability in the world, every shot that you could wish to make.” Laver further added, “He’s probably one of the biggest servers in the game. He’s accurate, he can play under pressure. I was thrilled that he reached the final.”

Despite all the criticism from fans and the media, Kyrgios has reached the top 20 in the ATP rankings.

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