Improve Your Tennis Serve Technique
The tennis service motion is the most complex and the least practiced of all tennis strokes.
It turns out that a lot of tennis players only "just hit the ball in the box", yet most times that's just not enough to be a successful server.
Serving is also one of the most important elements to a successful singles or doubles tennis game.
Face it, we play for fun and to win.
We really should want more from our serves.
Let's look at how to serve in tennis and what it can do for our game.
The Server has all the control in a point.
The only time that you, as a tennis player, are in complete control of a point is when you are serving.
You, as the server dictate the pace and tempo of a point.
Because you are holding the ball in one hand and the racket in the other, you can set your feet as you see fit and don't have to run after a ball that is already in motion from the opponent.
You have the luxury of setting a "plan" before you serve.
You can potentially hit the serve exactly to the opponents' weakness without restriction.
They are forced to make a decision, based on what kind of ball you deliver to the opponent.
So, what's the problem? There can be lots of them! The most common complaints about an individual's serve are lack of power and toss consistency.
Good grips are the foundation of all tennis strokes and critical for a powerful service motion.
The ability to "toss" a ball with accuracy is based on how the ball is held in the tossing hand and tempo of the tossing arm.
Your Tennis Serve Grip We've all heard the term "continental grip" for serving, volleying, overheads and under spin shots but few actually know where that grip placement is.
The grip consists of 8 bevels.
To find the continental grip look at the thin beam of your racket extending down to the grip.
Using the "V" of your hand (the connection of the thumb and forefinger) place the "V" on the top left bevel (for right hander) or the top right bevel (for left hander).
The hand should also be placed lower on the grip than other strokes in order to allow the racket heat to feel "heavier".
This grip placement will allow the links of the arm (shoulder, elbow and wrist) to produce spiral diagonal rotation, essential for good serve and "throwing" motion.
Watch Out! Most tennis players use a "flatter" or forehand grip to serve in combination with a poor foot placement to commence the service motion.
Both grip and stance are critical to achieving proper "rotation" of the body in order to maximize power, consistency and control of the serve.
Your Tennis Serve Toss First, you'll want to think about where your toss should be located at the point of contact.
If you are a right handed player and you are hitting a flat/slice serve your toss should be 1-2 feet forward of you and slightly to the right of your right shoulder.
Ideally the toss should travel straight up and down where it will have a "stopping" point.
This is where your timing and momentum are designed to contact the ball with the most force and efficiency possible.
A common error is that the "toss" arcs from right to left (for right hander) or left to right (for left hander) making the contact point in a powerless (and potentially injury causing) location.
Tossing hand and arm placement are critical to a consistent toss.
The fingers of your tossing hand should be flat and your wrist laid slightly back.
The ball should be held gently on the front end of your fingers with the thumb over the top for stability.
With a straight tossing arm lift the ball in the direction of the right net post (for right hander) or left net post (for left hander), initiating the toss from the shoulder (not using elbow or wrist to fling the ball up).
Tennis Serve at Impact With any luck the ball will travel straight up, sit still for that one instant before it begins to fall and your timing will allow you to take advantage of the perfect situation! This is the optimum place to hit your tennis serve.
Take the challenge to improve your serve and take control of your game.
With a proper "continental" grip and great ball toss placement you will have the best chance at achieving your optimum serve.
Changing your grip and recognizing that your toss might need improvement can be a very hard lesson.
It takes a lot of hard work to make these changes but your payback will be enormous.
It turns out that a lot of tennis players only "just hit the ball in the box", yet most times that's just not enough to be a successful server.
Serving is also one of the most important elements to a successful singles or doubles tennis game.
Face it, we play for fun and to win.
We really should want more from our serves.
Let's look at how to serve in tennis and what it can do for our game.
The Server has all the control in a point.
The only time that you, as a tennis player, are in complete control of a point is when you are serving.
You, as the server dictate the pace and tempo of a point.
Because you are holding the ball in one hand and the racket in the other, you can set your feet as you see fit and don't have to run after a ball that is already in motion from the opponent.
You have the luxury of setting a "plan" before you serve.
You can potentially hit the serve exactly to the opponents' weakness without restriction.
They are forced to make a decision, based on what kind of ball you deliver to the opponent.
So, what's the problem? There can be lots of them! The most common complaints about an individual's serve are lack of power and toss consistency.
Good grips are the foundation of all tennis strokes and critical for a powerful service motion.
The ability to "toss" a ball with accuracy is based on how the ball is held in the tossing hand and tempo of the tossing arm.
Your Tennis Serve Grip We've all heard the term "continental grip" for serving, volleying, overheads and under spin shots but few actually know where that grip placement is.
The grip consists of 8 bevels.
To find the continental grip look at the thin beam of your racket extending down to the grip.
Using the "V" of your hand (the connection of the thumb and forefinger) place the "V" on the top left bevel (for right hander) or the top right bevel (for left hander).
The hand should also be placed lower on the grip than other strokes in order to allow the racket heat to feel "heavier".
This grip placement will allow the links of the arm (shoulder, elbow and wrist) to produce spiral diagonal rotation, essential for good serve and "throwing" motion.
Watch Out! Most tennis players use a "flatter" or forehand grip to serve in combination with a poor foot placement to commence the service motion.
Both grip and stance are critical to achieving proper "rotation" of the body in order to maximize power, consistency and control of the serve.
Your Tennis Serve Toss First, you'll want to think about where your toss should be located at the point of contact.
If you are a right handed player and you are hitting a flat/slice serve your toss should be 1-2 feet forward of you and slightly to the right of your right shoulder.
Ideally the toss should travel straight up and down where it will have a "stopping" point.
This is where your timing and momentum are designed to contact the ball with the most force and efficiency possible.
A common error is that the "toss" arcs from right to left (for right hander) or left to right (for left hander) making the contact point in a powerless (and potentially injury causing) location.
Tossing hand and arm placement are critical to a consistent toss.
The fingers of your tossing hand should be flat and your wrist laid slightly back.
The ball should be held gently on the front end of your fingers with the thumb over the top for stability.
With a straight tossing arm lift the ball in the direction of the right net post (for right hander) or left net post (for left hander), initiating the toss from the shoulder (not using elbow or wrist to fling the ball up).
Tennis Serve at Impact With any luck the ball will travel straight up, sit still for that one instant before it begins to fall and your timing will allow you to take advantage of the perfect situation! This is the optimum place to hit your tennis serve.
Take the challenge to improve your serve and take control of your game.
With a proper "continental" grip and great ball toss placement you will have the best chance at achieving your optimum serve.
Changing your grip and recognizing that your toss might need improvement can be a very hard lesson.
It takes a lot of hard work to make these changes but your payback will be enormous.
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