The return of Novak Djokovic's signature shot helped him write a rousing revival victory at Wimbledon.
The 13-time Grand Slam champion's backhand down the line has long been one of his best weapons.
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During his struggles over the past year, Djokovic seemed to lose confidence in that shot.
However, during his run to his fourth Wimbledon crown, Djokovic blistered the backhand down the line with authority and said afterward it was a key stroke to winning his first Grand Slam title since the 2016 Roland Garros.
"I relied a lot especially in the early days of my professional career on that shot," Djokovic said. "Backhand down the line was, and still is, probably one of the most important shots not just in my game but the game in general.
"If you see, let's say, the structure of the point, regardless of the surface, statistically it's mostly backhand cross, someone runs around backhand and hits the forehand, 1-2 punch. Most of the players are more comfortable in the backhand corner, so backhand down the line, if you're comfortable with that shot, if you have confidence in it, that can disrupt the rhythm and positioning on the court of your opponent a lot."
The 31-year-old Serbian was particularly effective driving his backhand down the line in his semifinal victory over Rafael Nadal and his win over Kevin Anderson in the final, two opponents who like to run around the backhand and hammer the forehand.
"That definitely has been, if I can call it, a weapon of mine," Djokovic said. "But it's a tough shot to hit, as well. It's above the highest part of the net. It has to be timed well. You're right, for some time I wasn't really comfortable with that shot, but I felt like lately has been working well."
Photo credit: Rob Newall/CameraSport