Written with the help of artificial-intelligence tools and checked by automated controls.
This content was machine-translated from the French version.
In October 2018, a nine-year-old kid burst onto the tennis scene with a phrase that brings a smile: "I play with both hands, so I have two forehands." Matisse Martin had no backhand then. He simply switched his racket from one hand to the other depending on the side, defying all conventions of modern tennis. Eight years later, the 17-year-old Frenchman has put that quirk away. Left-handed, he now hits a classic forehand and a two-handed backhand — and the results are starting to show.
The abandonment of a technical rarity
Playing with two forehands is not just an eccentricity: it's a biomechanical puzzle.
Playing with two forehands is not just an eccentricity: it's a biomechanical puzzle. Changing grip mid-rally, repositioning the feet, adjusting the racket head require a coordination that even the greatest have never tamed for long. A few players have flirted with the idea — American Brian Battistone and his ambidextrous serve, South Korean Han Na-lae and her two forehands — but none have made it a viable weapon at the highest level.
Matisse Martin, for his part, made the cut in his teens. Guided by the coaches at the FFT's National Training Centre, where he was admitted, he chose his left hand as dominant and learned the two-handed backhand. A complete rebuild that involved months of losses, doubts, and rebuilding automatisms. The process was discreetly documented by the Federation, which follows this atypical profile with particular attention.
The transition was not just a technical challenge. Learning a two-handed backhand at 13 or 14, when most young players already have years of practice under their belts, means accepting losses against opponents you used to beat. Martin went through tough tournaments, dry defeats, moments when the old reflex of switching hands resurfaced mid-match. But he never gave up on the process, and his coaches now praise his maturity.
Results that validate the gamble
The 2026 season marks a concrete acceleration. Young Martin has strung together ITF tournaments and gave himself a revealing test in early July at the M25 in Bastia-Lucciana, where he crossed paths with Laurent Lokoli. The Corsican, a former world No. 167, won in two sets, but the mere presence of the kid in that draw says something about his rise. A few months earlier, he probably wouldn't have made it through qualifying.
His official profile on the Roland-Garros website shows steady progress in the junior rankings, and his social media shows a focused, discreet player who doesn't seem to regret abandoning his signature double forehand. Training videos reveal a left-hander with a complete game, able to vary zones and accelerate on both forehand and backhand.
This progress is no accident. The National Training Centre, where Martin rubs shoulders with the best young French players, offers an environment tailored to polish raw talent. Daily physical work, mental preparation, video analysis: everything is calibrated to turn potential into results. The Martin case also interests beyond the federation's inner circle, as it illustrates a rare trend in modern tennis: the accepted rebuild.
The FFT bets on uniqueness
In a French tennis scene that scrutinizes every emergence after the Musketeers era, Matisse Martin's journey intrigues. Few young players accept to tear everything down before even turning 18. This ability to identify one's limits and start from scratch, precisely, could be his greatest asset.
The road to the ATP circuit remains long. He needs to accumulate matches, cross physical thresholds, learn to handle the pressure of professional tournaments. But at 17, the boy has already accomplished what many of his peers will never attempt: sacrificing what made him unique to become better. A choice of the head, not the arm.
The FFT knows what it's doing. In a system that regularly produces top-100 players but struggles to bring out a new flagship since the departure of Tsonga, Monfils, and company, every unique profile is watched with hope. Matisse Martin is still just a name on a list of prospects. But he has already proven he can make tough decisions. In tennis as elsewhere, that is often the first step to the top.
