Return of Service by Pros

says Just got my first racquet!
I've been watching a lot of videos and one thing I've been noticing is that they have been returning services mostly with backhand loops even on the forehand side. Why is this? An example of this can be seen from the first few exchanges between Zhang Jike and Ma Long in the Slovenian Open of 2012
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
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I think part of the reason is that the over the table banana loop with the backhand is a very safe, controlled and powerful loop against a variety of spins on short balls over the table. It can be used to attack on many serves that you would not have been able to take a high percentage attack if you were trying to use the forehand which requires more motion.
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
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Also, when a reverse pendulum serve is used by a right handed player, the backhand can control that sidespin very easily, much more control over that than the forehand although a good player knows what to do with that spin with the forehand as well.
 
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Yep it's more to do with dealing with the spin easier. Against serves where the spin carries from the middle out to the forehand it is more difficult to forehand flick the angle down the line, there is a higher margin of error and it is more likely the return will not be as effective to that area. By moving across and covering the spin and using a backhand, it opens up all angles of the table again, so the return of service is less predictable on the whole.
 
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