Novak Djokovic has one of the greatest two-handed backhands the sport has ever seen.
But is Djokovic’s two-handed backhand the greatest of all time?
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Serena Williams’ former coach, Rick Macci, certainly thinks so.
Rick Macci explains why Novak Djokovic has the greatest two-handed backhand of all time
Macci named Djokovic as the player with the greatest two-handed backhand on X.
“Novak [Djokovic] has the best two-hander of all time,” he said.
“Many unreal double-barrel shotguns, but when you look deep under the hood at the rest, this is why the Joker is by far the best.
“Biomechanically uses the pull/push stroke, which is silky smooth and not a poke…
“Range of motion of the rubber band man to improvise is the best in the land.
“And most of all, he has delivered that Serbian sniper backhand in Slams on a dime, and that is why the Joker has the best two-handed backhand of all time.”
Djokovic’s backhand is truly legendary, and his return stats back that up.
Return Ratings (Career)
| Rank | Name | Return Rating | 1st Serve return points won % | 2nd Serve return points won % | Return games won % | Break points converted % |
| 1 | Guillermo Coria | 171.5 | 36.1% | 54.4% | 35.3% | 45.7% |
| 2 | Guillermo Perez-Roldan | 168.1 | 35.8% | 53.2% | 32.5% | 46.6% |
| 3 | Rafael Nadal | 167.8 | 34.2% | 55.3% | 33.4% | 44.9% |
| 4 | Alberto Berasategui | 166.6 | 33.6% | 56.3% | 32.4% | 44.3% |
| 5 | Franco Davin | 166.3 | 34.8% | 53.2% | 32.8% | 45.5% |
| 6 | Bart Wuyts | 165.0 | 34.4% | 54.3% | 32.8% | 43.5% |
| 7 | Novak Djokovic | 164.2 | 33.6% | 55.1% | 31.5% | 44.0% |
| 8 | Jordi Arrese | 163.4 | 33.8% | 54.2% | 31.6% | 43.8% |
| 9 | Thomas Muster | 163.4 | 32.0% | 55.2% | 31.6% | 44.6% |
| 10 | Michael Chang | 163.1 | 32.3% | 55.2% | 31.6% | 44.0% |
Luckily for fans of the Serb, they won’t have to wait long before they see him back in action.
Novak Djokovic prepares for tennis return in Rome
Djokovic last played a professional match at Indian Wells, where he lost to Jack Draper in the fourth round.
He subsequently withdrew from the Miami Open, Monte Carlo Masters, and the Madrid Open.
After missing the first two clay-court Masters 1000 events, some wondered if Djokovic would skip Rome as well.
Choosing to play the event, Djokovic will enter the Italian Open as the third seed.
2026 Italian Open (Top eight seeds)
- [1] Jannik Sinner
- [2] Alexander Zverev
- [3] Novak Djokovic
- [4] Felix Auger-Aliassime
- [5] Ben Shelton
- [6] Alex de Minaur
- [7] Daniil Medvedev
- [8] Lorenzo Musetti
He’ll be looking to make a deep run in the Italian capital, and could be the man to stop Jannik Sinner from winning a sixth consecutive Masters 1000 title.
Placed on the opposite side of the draw from Sinner, Djokovic could meet the Italian in the final, but has work to do before then.
Novak Djokovic’s Italian Open draw
| Round | Highest-ranked potential opponent | Potential seeded opponents |
| 1R (BYE) | – | – |
| 2R | Marton Fucsovics (57) | – |
| 3R | Ugo Humbert (33) | [31] Ugo Humbert |
| 4R | Karen Khachanov (15) | [13] Karen Khachanov, [22] Arthur Rinderknech |
| QF | Lorenzo Musetti (10) | [8] Lorenzo Musetti, [11] Jiri Lehecka, [23] Casper Ruud, [25] Francisco Cerundolo |
| SF | Alexander Zverev (2) | [2] Alexander Zverev, [6] Alex de Minaur, [9] Alexander Bublik, [16] Tommy Paul, [18] Luciano Darderi, [19] Learner Tien, [29] Tallon Griekspoor, [32] Rafael Jodar |
| F | Jannik Sinner (1) | [1] Jannik Sinner, [4] Felix Auger-Aliassime, [5] Ben Shelton, [7] Daniil Medvedev, [10] Flavio Cobolli, [12] Andrey Rublev, [14] Valentin Vacherot, [15] Arthur Fils, [17] Cameron Norrie, [20] Frances Tiafoe, [21] Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, [24] Tomas Martin Etcheverry, [26] Jakub Mensik, [27] Joao Fonseca, [28] Corentin Moutet, [30] Brandon Nakashima |
Assuming he quickly adjusts to clay, Djokovic shouldn’t have much trouble reaching the quarter-finals.
It’s there that he might meet one of the home favourites, Lorenzo Musetti.
Musetti led Djokovic by two sets to love at the Australian Open in January before retiring due to injury.
The Italian would surely love to get revenge on home turf in front of his adoring Italian fans.
If he avoids the upset, Djokovic could play Germany’s Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals.
The world number three suffered a devastating defeat to Sinner in last week’s Madrid Open final, and will be keen to bounce back as soon as possible.
Finally, if Djokovic can reach his second championship match of the season, the chances are that he will play Sinner.
Djokovic beat Sinner at this year’s Australian Open, but the Italian has only lost one match since, picking up four Masters 1000 titles.
If they do face off in Rome, Sinner will walk on court as a heavy favourite.
Neither player will want to get ahead of themselves, though, and will first focus on their second-round matches.
Djokovic will play either Marton Fucsovics or a qualifier, while Sinner takes on either Sebastian Ofner or Alex Michelsen.
