Tsitsipas beaten to end 149-year streak that included Federer, Sampras and McEnroe

Since the inaugural edition of Wimbledon in 1877, at least one player with a single-handed backhand has reached a Grand Slam semi-final every year.

John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl were among those representing the one-handed backhand club in the 1980s, followed by Pete Sampras, Stefan Edberg and Gustavo Kuerten in the 1990s, before Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka took on the mantle this century.

Tsitsipas made a Grand Slam semi-final five years in a row from 2019-2023, and all hopes were on him to keep the streak in New York after no players with one-handed backhands made the last four of the Australian Open, French Open or Wimbledon.

But Tsitsipas was beaten 6-2 6-3 6-4 by Shelton, who also took out Denis ​Shapovalov, another one-handed backhand player, in the previous round.

”If you compare to the 1950s or 1960s, you see a massive decline on the one-handed backhand,” said Tsitsipas after the defeat.

”I took a look, and in the 1950s, I think 97% or 98% of players were playing one-handed backhand. It's literally like 2% now, or 3%. So it has reverted the other way around of what it used to be.

”Tennis will always be tennis. Regardless of whether there are single-handers out there or double, it doesn't really matter. If the tour is dominated by double-handed backhands, it doesn't really matter. It's just that I feel it's such a traditional classic shot, that it's such a shame to lose a shot like that.

”Is there something you can do about it? I guess yes. Is it the end of the world if no one plays a one-handed backhand? No. Tennis still goes on the way it is.”

Tsitsipas had written on social media before facing Shelton that he had a ”150-year streak to save”.

But afterwards he was left to lament how tennis has stylistically become more one-dimensional than in the past.

”I feel like tennis used to be played with so many different variations of style, and that variation of style has narrowed to one particular style these days where everyone is kind of playing the same. Courts have become slower. Everyone is revolving around kind of the same game.

”You don't see many personalities on the court in regards of we used to have the serve-and-volley players back in the day. We used to have those that used to play a specific different way, counter-punchers, defenders.

Stefanos Tsitsipas hits a one-handed backhand

”Now it's narrowed to one style of game. I think that's what makes tennis so interesting and what used to make it so interesting is because you had those that played a specific way and others that played another way.

”It's kind of the same with the one-handed backhand. Very similar.”

Tsitsipas was playing in the last 16 of a Grand Slam for the first time in over two years, following a decline in form that saw him drop to No. 88 in the world rankings earlier this summer.

The former world No. 3 is set for a boost back into the top 50 following his run in New York and said he feels like his game is coming back.

”I do have a champion mentality, and of course I demand more from myself," he added. "Today obviously is a sad day. I would have liked to maybe bring this to a four or five-setter instead of the way it ended, which is kind of sweet/bitter, because I have had some good wins these past few days, but I feel like it could have ended in a better, more thrilling way.

”But regardless of whatever the result or whatever happened out there, I'm still kind of proud and happy of how I managed to find solutions against top-tier players the last couple of days and how I managed to survive pressure moments and thrive in those particular sequences in parts of the game.

”So it was nice to see myself kind of be back, feel like I was back to a place that I somehow remember from the past.”

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