Tips for when your serve "breaks down"

[Headshotterer]

Say one day you are playing a match, and all your serves start going long. What is the best way to quickly resolve this and actually get some in.

[LeeD]

Long.
Allow your wrist to come thru sooner, so the ball goes lower. A LONG serve is hit too high over the net.
Hit your second serve instead of the first.

[OHBH]

Use slice serves and kick serves as your first serve. Mix it up between these two and you'll be surprised at the number of weak returns you'll get without having to go for the bomb. Tossing a little more out in front helps if all your misses are long.

[ArliHawk]

Originally Posted by OHBH

Use slice serves and kick serves as your first serve. Mix it up between these two and you'll be surprised at the number of weak returns you'll get without having to go for the bomb. Tossing a little more out in front helps if all your misses are long.

Kick surves are my saving grace when my serve goes away.

[J011yroger]

Usually I just lose.

J

[sureshs]

More spin and pronation

[DeShaun]

Stop thinking.
Empty your mind by exiting it.
Move your point of awareness down into your upper body.
Deliberately relax your torso/arms/wrist.

Now, just throw it up and hit it at 50-60% of maximum power.

You'll get it by your second or third try.

This is how I stop the bleeding when unable to locate that balance point inside my body where my "feeling on/connection to" serve comes from. It helps me to re-target my contact zone correctly.

MY 3 KEYS:
EMPTYING THE MIND
SWINGING AT ONLY 60% OF FULL POWER
HAVING DELIBERATELY RELAXED MY TORSO/ARM/WRIST

[arche3]

Originally Posted by J011yroger

Usually I just lose.

J

What I do too lol.

[maggmaster]

Me three, though I am trying to build that ultimate reliable, unattackable three quarter kick serve that agassi used to hit.

[5263]

I agree about trying to add some spin.
Most players tend to pull it down a bit when I ask them for more spin on serve.
Not so good if they pull down too much and start netting them

[dominikk1985]

Originally Posted by LeeD

Long.
Allow your wrist to come thru sooner, so the ball goes lower. A LONG serve is hit too high over the net.
Hit your second serve instead of the first.

yes. more wrist/pronation and less arm(shoulder.

[LuckyR]

Originally Posted by Headshotterer

Say one day you are playing a match, and all your serves start going long. What is the best way to quickly resolve this and actually get some in.

It is easier, technically, to hit with high swingspeeds consistently, than low swingspeeds. So I would make the decision to hit kick serves and hit them with the highest racquethead speed I could muster. Of course at least 50% of that would be towards spin, not pace, especially on second serves.

[Power Player]

Best thing for me is just to slow it down. Works sometimes.

[LeeD]

When playing a match, I seldom hit 100% fast first flat serves. More likely around 80%, going for placement and IN, rather than blowing doors. If that doesn't work, slowing it down further usually just sets up a sitter for the returner, so it's better to go with heavy spin and high bounces....or low skidded pure slice serves with a low contact point.

[rufus_smith]

one possibility:
About an hour into a match, some players have a tendency to stop lifting up off the ground (a little jump or hop) when contacting the ball on the serve, thus contacting the ball surface in a little lower spot and pushing it long. Solution: keep lifting up even when tired.

[arche3]

Originally Posted by rufus_smith

one possibility:
About an hour into a match, some players have a tendency to stop lifting up off the ground (a little jump or hop) when contacting the ball on the serve, thus contacting the ball surface in a little lower spot and pushing it long. Solution: keep lifting up even when tired.

hard to do when your old though...

[oldschoolrules]

When they start going long I try loosen up my grip as I have almost always started to apply too much pressure which, in turn, tenses up the forearm, shoulder, etc. When they start heading into the net I try to make sure I am keeping my head up (just a cue - really keeping the chest/torso angled up at toss) as it is very difficult to get it in the box when you're hunched over by the time you make contact. Unfortunately, however, sometimes I simply see it as a sign that I am getting old and resign myself to the fact that I just can't play the game like I used to (or think I used to !)

[tlm]

One of my first lessons with the club pro years ago I learned that if the serve is going into the net then toss the ball more right above you, and if they are going long then toss out in front more. This tip really helps.

Plus this guy just kept reminding me to loosen up the grip, as I was serving he would keep repeating keep that grip lose keep that grip lose. Both of these tips and slow down at the beginning and excel most RHS right at contact really help.

[bhupaes]

I dunno... whenever my serve goes awry, I toss a little higher and wind up more slowly, and things improve immediately. I know, this goes contrary to the advice that the toss should be on the lower side in general.

[pvaudio]

Originally Posted by rufus_smith

one possibility:
About an hour into a match, some players have a tendency to stop lifting up off the ground (a little jump or hop) when contacting the ball on the serve, thus contacting the ball surface in a little lower spot and pushing it long. Solution: keep lifting up even when tired.

Bingo. This also translates into what I was going to suggest: focus on bending your knees, because as someone said, you're not getting up enough to bring the ball down.