Who here has a great 1st serve, terrible 2nd serve

[ttwarrior1]

I swear my 1st serve is 120 plus at times and my 2nd serve is a slice serve about 30 mph. They just seem to tear it up. I just wish i could serve 80 or so with a spin

[looseswing]

I have a really good first serve and a bad second serve, but my second serve is very consistent and so is my first so I usually hit less second serves than most people.

[snoflewis]

I swear my 1st serve is 120 plus at times and my 2nd serve is a slice serve about 30 mph. They just seem to tear it up. I just wish i could serve 80 or so with a spin

is your first serve consistent?

[Rickson]

I swear my 1st serve is 120 plus at times and my 2nd serve is a slice serve about 30 mph. They just seem to tear it up. I just wish i could serve 80 or so with a spin
My first serves are good when I go for the bomb, but too bad I miss more huge bombs than make them. My second serves are generally loopy and lack pace, but I can sometimes get a decent kick out of a second. I'd suggest you take a little bit off your first serve and get over 60% in rather than going for big bombs that miss a lot and getting killed on your second.

[Marat Safinator]

My first serves are consistent, I usually get about 70 - 75% in. and my second serves are good kick serves, sometimes they lack pace but generate good spin from them. usually they are about 80mph, but working on getting them harder.

[couch]

Probably all players rated 3.5 and below and a lot of 4.0 players. Heck, now that I think about it there are a lot of 4.5 players that have terrible second serves.

If you're second serve sucks you need to work on it. It doesn't do any good if you can hit your first serve 120 mph and never get it in and your opponent can smash your second serve. Develop a topspin, or kick serve and work on placement. You can have a somewhat weak second serve but if you are directing it to your opponent's weaker side, usually backhand, you can get a way with it more. On a second serve you still want to swing hard at the ball you just want to hit less of it. Some of this has to do with grip changes, practice, etc.

[EclipseRydr97]

Take a bunch of balls out and practice your second serve day in day out. Remember, you're only as good as you're second serve.

[Joe Average]

I tried something different. I started out with a very fast first serve, but my percentage for getting it in was not too high. So rather than fall in love with my first serve (and risk double-faulting complete games), I worked really hard on a second serve, a kicker, which I can get in 90% of the time. This allowed me to work on my first serve. It's kind of working in reverse. If you know you can always get your second serve in, you can take chances with your first. Also, by having an effective second serve, a kicker, let's say, you can surprise your opponent, on occasion, by playing serve and volley.

[fastdunn]

Try to hit two 2nd serves and improve them.
You'll double-fault more for a while but your weak 2nd
serves get killed by your opponent anyway(I assume).

[musicc]

When I'm practicing first serves... my accurancy goes down the longer I do it. I guess I start to run to out gas.

[tarheels2323]

My first serve is decent, probably a little above 100 mph consistently (though it doesn't go in as consistently). I can get my second serve, depending on the spin, up there too (though not quite as fast). However, I've picked up my twist serve speed considerably lately and it's developed into quite a weapon. My suggestion for those with good first serves and crappy second serves is to practice all the spins avaliable for a serve and then work on pronation, body coil, toss, etc. to develop the pace.

[TENNIS_99]

120 + first serve with < 30% can not be classified as "great" first serve
100's first serve with > 60% - very very decent for amatuers

Players with great athletic abilities can still occasionally bombs in first serves using their power and lucks to compensate flaws in the techniques. My coach examines my first serve by asking me slow down the pace until I can hit almost EVERY first serves in (about 70mph). And then he would correct a few things, I would start missing some and practice more until I get back to the high percentage. He would then ask me to add pace and examine again and repeat the same process. It takes time but it's helpful and I think you can do it yourself.

It is better than practicing hundreds of 120+ mostly netted and long serves and repeat the same mistakes. I've seen quite a lot of amatuers can hit first serve > mid 110. But the mistakes I think is they want to keep that "occasionally" bombed in serves and expect to learn a great kick serves for the second serve without looking to the technique in the first place. And end up losing both in match play.

[Duzza]

Take a bunch of balls out and practice your second serve day in day out. Remember, you're only as good as you're second serve.

so true, same with lobs people take them for granted

[fastdunn]

I simply started to go for bigger 2nd serves because people
started to pound on my weak 2nd serves as I played more
with better player. I really hated the feeling of getting my
2nd serves pounded.

You should practice good spins serves but half of it is mental.
You need to take risk for bigger 2nd serves. Do you personally
hate more of doing doubel fault or your 2nd serves getting raped ?

Which one do you hate more ? Do you think about what people
might think if you double fault a lot ? All the great servers
double-fault more than average serveers. go figure...

[ttwarrior1]

Im about 50 percent of my 1st serves.

[ttwarrior1]

I dont know how to do a kick serve. Ive tried a thousand times so i gave up on that

[MoneyBall]

If you serve 100 second serves a week for practice. After 6 weeks I promise you that you'll jump up an entire NTRP point.

[papa]

Well, I think you should have a good second serve (like maybe in the 85-90% area) prior to developing a "big bomb" first serve. The problem with "big bomb" serves is that they seldom, like big bombs in battle, hit the intended target. Back off the first serve, speed up the second which should have as much swing speed, if not more, than the first - just brush up more on the ball.

[mucat]

If you serve 100 second serves a week for practice. After 6 weeks I promise you that you'll jump up an entire NTRP point.

Unless you are 5.0 of course, which 90% of us are, according to self-rated rating. ;)

[MTChong]

Well, the other day, I was bombing in serves really nice; we were playing at an indoor facility for some team tennis type of deal for high school players. Anyways, I hit serves that down the T that hit the back curtain 6-7 feet up; those were my best serves. Those were my first serves; I'm thinking easily over 100 mph - I haven't never served that fast in my life... Though I didn't double fault much, my second serves aren't too good - maybe only 50-60 miles per hour near the back of the service box with little some spin. Basically, I need to work on second serves, a lot.