5 Astonishing Tennis Shots in the past decade

Tennis is one of the most unique games which has a possibility of a handful of unbelievable shots being played in every match. There can be brilliant serves, some extraordinary passing shots, few smashing overheads and exquisite returns.

Some shots are etched on the minds of viewers forever, and maybe even the unfortunate opponent. That's excluding the commentators and experts out there!

Yes, the exhibition matches are filled with outrageous and totally carefree shots but when the same happens in competitive matches where tensions are running high it is something special.

There would've been many such shots all along in the rich history of the game and that's why it is so difficult to find the best. So, we're going to go with the most recent moments of magic for our list today. Here are the 5 astonishing shots played in the past decade:

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#5. Milos Raonic, Hopman Cup 2014

Milos Raonic not only has the joint 3rd fastest serve to his name, but he also has one of the rarest shots ever played in tennis history. He proved exactly that In the 2014 Hopman Cup. Partnering fellow Canadian Eugenie Bouchard in the mixed doubles rubber, he returned a serve from Andreas Seppi with the backhand.

The ball looped above the head of Bobusic at the net and she managed to get the cue end of the racquet onto it. Surprisingly the ball pitched on Raonic's side of the court with vicious backspin and went back over the net.

But, he wouldn't just give up and decided to reach for the ball with all his might and somehow he just tapped it onto the other side of the net. The most astonishing fact was that he avoided touching the net, twisting, jumping and steering himself towards the left using every muscle possible. Bobusic's reaction tells you the whole story!

#4. Novak Djokovic, US Open 2014

Novak Djokovic has always been known as a master in covering the court. He gets his legs into kind of a half-split and slides across the turf to reach balls. This coupled with his great stamina makes sure that the shot doesn't lose its sting or accuracy. That is exactly what helped him hit a ripper of a shot against Diego Schwartzman in the 2014 US Open.

2014 seems to be a year that tennis gods decided to frolic with his players. First, it was Raonic's brilliance and then Djokovic.

Nick Kyrgios's middle of the legs shot which is not included in our list, also came in that year. Coming to the title shot, Schwartzman put Novak under pressure and finally pulled off a crosscourt with an amazing angle on the ball.

The Serbian rushed after it and let a forehand rip from outside the court. He found the gap between the umpire's chair and the net perfectly, thus proving the point on his reach and stamina.

#3. Andy Murray, 2010 Australian Open

Andy Murray was the first one to find a gap between the umpire's chair and the net, 4 years before Djokovic did. This one is definitely the better shot of the 2 in terms of difficulty. Murray was serving for the match against a young Marin Cilic at the 2010 Australian Open when he was forced to pull off a blinder.

Returning an angled serve from him, Cilic hit a stinging forehand crosscourt and throwing his opponent out of balance. But, the Brit steadied himself instantly and ran after the ball which was dropping quickly.

From nearly 5 feet outside the court, he dug the ball out just in time and stabbed it back into the court, piercing the minute gap between the umpire's chair and the net. The crowd first went wild for Cilic's return but it was chaos after Andy made the shot. Murray's reaction riled the crowd up even more.

#2. Rafael Nadal, US Open 2013

Rafael Nadal has always been known as a player who can impart loads of spin on the ball, especially with his forehand. He'll never give up on a ball before it pitches twice, running helter-skelter to try and reach it.

That is what enabled us to see one of the most magical shots. The Spanish superstar was dragged to the left of the court by a big serve and Ryan Harrison backed it up by ripping a crosscourt.

Nadal looped the ball and was already on the bike towards the right of the court. The American smashed the ball wide with an inside-out angle but Rafa just about reached it and pulled off an absolute cobra!

Getting right to the back of court he took the forehand overhead from way outside and flicked his wrists inside. The ball had loads of spin on it, defying laws of physics as it swung in prodigiously to beat Harrison at the net and pitched back into court.

#1. Roger Federer, US Open 2018

Roger Federer, well he has often cheered up the crowd with outrageous shot-making, the odd tweener shot and some amazing shots around the net. He's shown many times that he is not all about the grace, he has some audacity too.

But, the shot he hit in this year's US Open probably has to take the cake. Federer just bunted a serve back against Nick Kyrgios and forced him to approach the net. The Australian played a crosscourt drop shot where the ball would've pitched the second time off the court. But, the Swiss Maestro rushed toward dipping ball and took it just a whisker off the ground.

He calmly placed it by snapping his wrists on the racquet to steer it back in. Still, that was not the most epic thing that happened! Nick Kyrgios couldn't control the shock at what transpired and opened his mouth wide before hiding it with his t-shirt.