Double-handed Japanese learn not to make a fist of it

You thought Japanese ingenuity was restricted to sleek automobiles and gadgetry? It8217;s seeped on to the tennis court as well, with a pac...

4 min readBangaloreFeb 14, 2006 12:00 AM IST

You thought Japanese ingenuity was restricted to sleek automobiles and gadgetry? It’s seeped on to the tennis court as well, with a pack of Japanese women opting to play two-handed on both flanks, adding that extra bit of power and pace that their small frames otherwise limit.

There are about 30 women gripping the racket with two fists and punching on both sides on the Tour, and the tribe is only increasing. A decade after Monica Seles showed how it could be done with visible success and an audible grunt, this double-hand-double has found its following, none more faithful than the Japanese.

A third of those 30 have followed Rika Hiraki and Akiko Morigami knocking on the top-50s regularly from Japan and the nation now has a clutch of five players in the top-100. Aiko Nakamura and Shiho Hisamatsu, currently playing here at the Bangalore Open, adhere to the typically constant two-hand grip, and have found more company in Taipei’s Su Wei Hseih, another upcoming player who wants to make up for the lack of muscle.

‘‘Most of us start two-handed because the racket is too heavy and we don’t have the power to match the big girls,’’ says Shiho Hisamatsu 26, who alters her top-bottom grip several times in a single rally. ‘‘I managed to hit very hard and generate power to return the heavy balls, so I continued after a Canadian coach advised me to work further on it.’’

Those like Nakamura 22, currently No 68 in the world, don’t switch the grip playing on either flank but position themselves suitably to counter the opponent from the baseline. Running away with a 6-love first-set win, fifth-seed Nakamura lost her momentum to go down in three sets to Mariya Koryttseva, and coach Eiji Takeuchi reckons that the ploy can at times restricts movement.

‘‘It gets tough when opponents target the body, and players who change grips have to decide fast. Also the reach is short, but it is worth the effort since the Japanese move fast on court. It can tire you out some days, but it works most of the times’’, he says.

Take Sato, who coached Akiko Morigami when she broke into the top-50s, reiterates that the Japanese prefer two-handed on both sides because they found it tough to match the big-hitting ones in power. ‘‘Asians have traditionally been small-built, we have no choice, but to improvise’’, he says.

India’s Melinda Czink-x continues

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BANGALORE: Melinda Czink ousted yet another Indian from a WTA event — this time, the unfancied Rushmi Chakravarthy. Her earlier prized catch, Sania Mirza, watched the demolition poker-faced; she’d sufffered the same fate at the WTA in Kolkata last September.

Czink was ruthless in packing off Chakravarthy 6-1, 6-2 in under an hour. The Indian wild-card entrant, currently 370 on the WTA list found the going tough against left-handed Czink ranked 119, who sent down her first-serves at speeds that Chakravarthy had no clues to.

‘‘I just couldn’t get my game going,’’ Chakravarthy said later, summing up her haplessness at being pitted first-up against a rival ranked 200 places above her. Woefully short on match-practice, Chakravarthy came into the tournament and looked every bit rusty as her own serves failed her against an opponent who enjoyed her second-straight top-100 finish on the Tour.

Shivani Naik

Shivani Naik is a senior sports journalist and Assistant Editor at The Indian Express. She is widely considered one of the leading voices in Indian Olympic sports journalism, particularly known for her deep expertise in badminton, wrestling, and basketball. Professional Profile Role: Assistant Editor and Columnist at The Indian Express. Specialization: While she covers a variety of sports, she is the primary authority on badminton for the publication. She also writes extensively about tennis, track and field, wrestling, and gymnastics. Writing Style: Her work is characterized by "technical storytelling"—breaking down the biomechanics, tactics, and psychological grit of athletes. She often provides "long reads" that explore the personal journeys of athletes beyond the podium. Key Topics & Recent Coverage (Late 2025) Shivani Naik’s recent articles (as of December 2025) focus on the evolving landscape of Indian sports as athletes prepare for the 2026 Asian Games and beyond: Indian Badminton's "Hulks": She has recently written about a new generation of Indian shuttlers characterized by power and physicality, such as Ayush Shetty and Sathish Karunakaran, marking a shift from the traditionally finesse-based Indian style. PV Sindhu’s Resurgence: A significant portion of her late-2025 work tracks PV Sindhu’s tactical shifts under new coaching, focusing on her "sparkle" and technical tweaks to break out of career slumps. The "Group of Death": In December 2025, she provided detailed tactical previews for Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty’s campaign in the BWF World Tour Finals. Tactical Deep Dives: She frequently explores technical trends, such as the rise of "backhand deception" in modern badminton and the importance of court drift management in international arenas. Legacy and History: She often revisits the careers of legends like Saina Nehwal and Syed Modi, providing historical context to current Indian successes. Notable Recent Articles BWF World Tour Finals: Satwik-Chirag have it all to do to get through proverbial Group of Death. (Dec 2025) The age of Hulks in Indian badminton is here. (Dec 2025) Treadmill, Yoganidra and building endurance: The themes that defined the resurgence of Gayatri and Treesa. (Dec 2025) Ayush Shetty beats Kodai Naraoka: Will 20-year-old be the headline act in 2026? (Nov 2025) Modern Cinderella tale – featuring An Se-young and a shoe that fits snugly. (Nov 2025) Other Sports Interests Beyond the court, Shivani is a passionate follower of South African cricket, sometimes writing emotional columns about her irrational support for the Proteas, which started because of love for Graeme Smith's dour and doughty Test playing style despite being a left-hander, and sustained over curiosity over their heartbreaking habit of losing ICC knockouts. You can follow her detailed analysis and columns on her official Indian Express profile page. ... Read More

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