The Baseline Top 10: Hot shots from Rome

Drop shots, flicks of the wrist, no-look passing shots—they’re all duly rewarded in clay-court tennis. This week in Rome, the players on the ATP and WTA tours showed off all their shot-making prowess just to win a point.

Here’s 10 of the best winners that left opponents flat-footed and brought fans to their feet.

1

Djokovic’s net gains

At this point in their careers, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal realize they have to always keep the other guessing. Djokovic got the edge in this back-and-forth exchange.

2

Sharapova finds the angle

You can’t blame Dominika Cibulkova for thinking this point might be over as she did an excellent job opening up the court. Sharapova opened it up a little bit more with her reply.

3

Carreno Busta shows it’s all in the wrist…

In his match against Aljaz Bedene, Pablo Carreno Busta had to find the most acute angle on the passing shot—one that could only be pulled off with a flick of the wrist.

4

…as does Dzumhur

Sometimes good things happen just by getting a racquet on the ball, as Damir Dzumhur demonstrated against Fernando Verdasco.

5

Vinci delights the crowd

In what would be the final match of her esteemed career, Roberta Vinci showed she still had some tricks left against Aleksandra Krunic.

6

“The Dog” has plenty of tricks

Alexandr Dolgopolov’s long been one of the most unpredictable players on the ATP Tour when he’s in a rally, and in this point, Djokovic saw just some of what he has to offer.

7

Fognini’s spectacular lob

Fabio Fognini pulled off the upset over Dominic Thiem behind shots like these, much to the delight of the home crowd.

8

Kerber’s familiar tactics

Pinning your opponent behind the baseline then breaking out the drop shot is an old favorite among the pros on clay. Angelique Kerber showed Zarina Diyas how it’s done.

9

Kontaveit’s blazing backhand

Facing each other for the second time in as many weeks, Anett Kontaveit once again beat Venus Williams behind backhand passes like this.

10

Lopez has hands for days

Against the speedy Kei Nishikori, drop shots have to be perfect. Feliciano Lopez pulled off one that was just that.

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