the Becker serve

[barnes1172]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFPPz0Iy5A0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QL1sglyouU (3:00 mark)

Some things I noticed:
1) The long, smooth, circular take-back of the racquet. In Becker's book, I recall him comparing this motion to the winding of a clock, or a pendulum (I forget the exact term)
2) The pause at the trophy position
3) In the second video above, there is some similarity between the take-back of the racquet that Becker does, and the smooth and circular take back that the first server in the video (Gerald Patterson) does. Can this be attributed to using a heavier racquet?

I tried imitating Becker's service motion recently, and I did notice an increase in power on the serves I was hitting.

Becker has the best service motion, IMO. I am wondering why more instructors do not teach this motion, which seems to have some clear benefits in terms of increased power. Has it gone out of style?

[Mike Bulgakov]

Becker used an unusual grip on his serve; it edged towards an Eastern forehand grip.

[Limpinhitter]

^^^ Becker's service grip was very close to what is considered a Continental grip by modern definitions. As you can see from your pic, the beel of his palm is on, or very close to, the 2nd bevel, and no where near the 3rd bevel.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by barnes1172

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFPPz0Iy5A0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QL1sglyouU (3:00 mark)

Some things I noticed:
1) The long, smooth, circular take-back of the racquet. In Becker's book, I recall him comparing this motion to the winding of a clock, or a pendulum (I forget the exact term)
2) The pause at the trophy position
3) In the second video above, there is some similarity between the take-back of the racquet that Becker does, and the smooth and circular take back that the first server in the video (Gerald Patterson) does. Can this be attributed to using a heavier racquet?

I tried imitating Becker's service motion recently, and I did notice an increase in power on the serves I was hitting.

Becker has the best service motion, IMO. I am wondering why more instructors do not teach this motion, which seems to have some clear benefits in terms of increased power. Has it gone out of style?

Given the widely varying serving styles that have always pervaded tennis, there is no such thing as a service motion going out of style absent a rule change ie: no longer having to keep one foot on the ground at contact.

Having said that, I think Becker's service motion, in particular the hitch at the peak of his toss, looks a lot like Alex Olmedo's serve which can be seen in this video at about :29 and :36 seconds: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XTR8z5kjWc

[TomT]

Regarding Becker's serve, what seems apparent is the great timing. He seems to me to toss the ball pretty high ... hitting it on the way down. Which, in my mind, requires better timing than the first guy in the second video (from the olden days, but who still looked like he had a great serving motion) who was hitting the ball at the top of it's trajectory.

Wrt Sampras, what I see (aside from great timing ... and turn as with all the good servers ) is a really pronounced hip movement ... even moreso than Becker's.

What might I be missing, or seeing incorrectly?

[Tshooter]

The pre-serve clearing throat/cough was the key to his serve. When I first heard it close up I thought he had a cold.

[gsharma]

Becker's pronation is amazing. I tried to ape his style when I was younger.

[bluetrain4]

The physicality of his serve is pretty amazing. He needed those tree-trunk legs to do that over and over. Not for the weak of knee.