Xiong Guo Bao was about twice the height of Taufik (well, I exaggerate, just a bit maybe ) and he was probably great when it came to plaing backhands by the book. Taufik on the otherhand, re-defined the backhand book with some totally outside-the-box methods and plays. Some of his plays were like sleight-of-hand, or as Forrest Gump said, "... a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get!"
Obviously the best backhander ever lived has narrowed down to 2 players namely Taufik Hidayat and Xiong Guo Bao. My personal opinion would be both of them are equal technique wise but what separates these 2 mens are when it comes to TH, it is a skill he possessed naturally. On XGB, from my own account where he shared his experiences during his trip to KL on TC2010, he was forced to play his backhand shots to perfection because of players like Yang Yang and Zhao Jian Hua who pushed him every inch of the court in no time. According to him, without the ability to play all the necessary shots to a certain standard required in China badminton he wouldn't stand a chance playing with the 2 legends in their training sessions!
definitely, absolutely, the one and only, Taufik Hidayat the best backhander ever live period. it's really obvious isn't it?
Yes, Fleming Delfs was called Mr backhand in Denmark. But the real oldies claim that Wong Peng Soon was the greatest, and even his nephew , a great player himself, mentioned that Peng Soon's backhand was better than his forehand. This seems incredible.
oldies and fleming delfs? ya very old news indeed and that would be during my father's time, gosh he's gone but i can still recall... his backhand is not only good, it was very10x (high during that time of course). morten frost and misbun sidek also has a very good backhand but and taufik and xiong guo bao of course as mentioned by bc members already. but the most effective one i have seen was the tall danish player, lauridsen? sorry forgot how to spell his backhand slice or half smash rather, always helped him to stay in the rally when he was in trouble! probably due to the size of his arm as he is a rather big guy. i like the sound of it, its loud!
i think all pros have good backhands, however, in this day and age, imo, Taufik Hidayat has by far the best backhand
I heard people call Xiong GB the backhand king. I also saw many books written by XGB on backhand technologies. I watched some vedios on Taufik's backhand. Very impressive. by the way, i heard XGB even invented a new kind of racket called Guobao racket especially for backhand.
..Taufik should create something similar, a molded-model of his backhand grip..i can sense that would be a hot-seller, since he seems to be the majority's fave..
Of all those mentioned, Taufik is the one with the most effortlessly powerful backhand. When he goes for a backhand shot, you can sense the crowd holding their breath anticipating in amazement what wonderful shot they'll see.
no, you can play forehand and backhand with this racket having tried them i think they are suitable for singles only
sigit budiarto till this day is still by far my fave MD player...shame he didnt win WC in 03 and 05...his backhand is phenomenal and his jump smashes were filled with awesomeness! lets make it interesting, i think its obvious that taufik is a clear winner...but what about the ladies' backhands?who among the ladies badders has the best backhand?
You can vote him here: http://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/showthread.php?89173-MD-best-smasher-EVER!!!!!!!&highlight= I dont watch womens game that much, so i only know Susi Susanti
My addiction story - I just want to see his backhand 20 years + ago....no player that can make me to painstakingly apply for leave or took an MC to buy a ticket and go and watch him play just to see his backhand other than the maestro Xiang GB. He has all the proper example about backhand from the point of technique and outcome. It just made me addicted to see and being able to see it executed in real life worth more than a thousand ticket ( the other player that make me like a drug addict to see was Zhao jumping cross court smashes ). 20 years forward....when XGB is not playing anymore, that sense of addiction seems to fade, new player come and go and ......well, that sense of urgency to buy any ticket to see them watch will only comes if any of our Malaysia players are playing (that also because to give support) or it is a final event of any tournaments or it just because i have time...............UNTIL the world introduced Taufik. Initially, like any new player, i think this chap from Indonesia is just an ordinary player....and boy.....i was wrong. You won't become an Olympic and World Champion if you don't have something special about you.......an that ordinary assumption became an extraordinary remark when i noticed his backhand !!..... Since his 260 kph executed backhand in the 2006 MVP games in Philipines, that addiction seems to come back again and now, every time he plays, i don't care who is he's playing against, he wins or not.....the most important thing that i want to see is his backhand.....i just want to see his backhand........every time he plays on TV, i will record so that i can watch his backhand again and again and again.....Hopefully my addiction will be fruitful, possibly, when the day comes that Taufik himself, would break his 260 kph record. Personally, no need to have a vote here........... "Best" won't be good enough to describe Taufik backhand because it is in it's own league by itself, extra-ordinary and unmatched.........he's a "Living legend" in the world of backhand.....he is famous because not of his past titles... he is famous because of his impossible made possible backhand. The backhand is consider the weakest strokes when played but no world class player currently that can make his backhand as lethal as like a forehand other than Taufik himself.
Bro, here, take these 2 pills for your backhand fetish... Yeah.. the only 2 players I follow very closely are ZJH and TH. Like you, I just want to watch them play regardless of final outcome. They're just pure magic on court.
That is why Taufik also is nicknamed "The Magician".......seeing him using his racket executing a backhand will end up with a lot of magical things and, witnessing one that end up like a forehand blast will make you stunned similarly like an on stage magician using his magic wand. ...................and thanks weeyeh for the pills