Murray has evolved
- Thread starter NatF
- Start date
goldengate14
Professional
Sad to see a once great player reduced to this level.
guanzishou
G.O.A.T.
Should the crowd boo each time players do a dropshot?
i was gonna post the same thing
chrischris
G.O.A.T.
He is really playing well today... Impressive so far vs Alcaraz..
ghostofMecir
Legend
It‘s an unwritten rule that you don’t do this on serve and anyone who has ever played knows this.
toby55555
Hall of Fame
It’s become common in events I play in, doesn’t worry me.
Wander
Hall of Fame
I've done it, in official tournaments too and nobody has been bothered! And if someone was, I wouldn't care to be honest.
FiddlerDog
Hall of Fame
Uhh, no it's not.
If you can't return an underhanded serve, you don't belong on a tennis court.
Sudacafan
Bionic Poster
That's not British.
Third Serve
Talk Tennis Guru
Who cares?
Sudacafan
Bionic Poster
Right. Murray and Kyrgios can now be mentioned in the same sentence. The Brit has destroyed his legacy today.
Shaolin
G.O.A.T.
Wrong and wrong.
stringertom
Bionic Poster
The level to upset the top teen in the game with a solid comeback from losing the first set? Yes, very depressing that a metal head at age 34 can weave his way through a tough match FTW.
Sudacafan
Bionic Poster
I can't be so sure. The few times (long ago) that I did this, I felt like an idiot regardless I won or lost the point.
stringertom
Bionic Poster
During his court mandated session with you can you ask a certain Joe Kovic fan what he thinks of Murray’s chances for gold in pickleball, I think the response may be, “Degenerate.”
stringertom
Bionic Poster
Enjoy this video of a Challenger match when Mackenzie McDonald broke the unwritten rule quite often:
MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
Anyway RHCP is going back on tour with John Frusciante 
Shaolin
G.O.A.T.
Regardless of how you felt hitting them they are a good play strategically, even if just used a few times a set. That said there is skill involved and you have to hit them well or use them only when the returner is extremely deep to return (preferably both).
Nate7-5
Hall of Fame
Mainad
Bionic Poster
How else can you do it but when you're on serve?
Mainad
Bionic Poster
Andy Murray Aces Underarm Serve: 'It's A Smart Play' | ATP Tour | Tennis
Andy Murray discusses the underarm serve he hit against Carlos Alcaraz at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and looks ahead to playing Alexander Zverev.
www.atptour.com
D
Deleted member 770948
Guest
And Kyrigos is about to retire....
Sudacafan
Bionic Poster
Mainad has evolved.Andy Murray Aces Underarm Serve: 'It's A Smart Play' | ATP Tour | Tennis
Andy Murray discusses the underarm serve he hit against Carlos Alcaraz at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and looks ahead to playing Alexander Zverev.
ghostofMecir
Legend
Unwritten rule
Stand too far back and this is what ya get
Shows who has played organized tennis before and who hasn’t. Unless things have changed, it’s one of the first things you learn that you’re not supposed to do this as it’s considered disrespectful. It’s why Hingis got booed when she did it against Graf Among other things.
Underarm Serve In Tennis:- What Do The Top Players Think?
As Nick Kyrgios’ underarm serve against Rafael Nadal at the Acapulco ATP 500 has captured the headlines over the past few days.
www.essentiallysports.com
See above.
Last edited:
Keizer
Hall of Fame
Monfils talked about the underarm serve in his podcast with Murray at the ATP finals last year. His take was that players don’t do it because it’s actually hard to do effectively and you look like an idiot if you miss or give the opponent an easy put away. Not sure I agree that it is just an etiquette thing that leads pros not to attempt it.
I am taken aback. I know Andy's been great and his return's extraordinary but he should not have downed the young star with a better forehand and a pair of young and fast feet. A truly impressive come back at that age and after his health issues. Respect
Terenigma
G.O.A.T.
This. Although i personally don't really like seeing it myself but after watching many many Medvedev matches and how far he (and sometimes others) stands back, it absolutely should be used more. The next gen or current gen or whatever you wanna call them have garbage reaction time so why not use it more? Keep your opponents on their toes and it's not just the physical or mental reaction time, it's the knowledge that it is more accepted now and you need to be aware of it.
They all should watch video replays of and call Fabrice Santoro to teach them how a service can be returned from a much closer distance to the net
D
Deleted member 771911
Guest
I wish he'd got his teeth fixed when he was at the top and winning stuff.
stringertom
Bionic Poster
So you say. I don’t recall a groundswell of criticism of Michael Chang for using the stroke to help win a point at RG vs ATG Ivan Lendl.
Unwritten rules are poppycock.
weelie
Professional
Kyrgios and Bublik are just jokesters, in contrast to Murray who has the deepest possible will to win, and just knows that now he has to use all the tools in his toolbox to win, to get to the level were he feels he belongs. Nothing wrong with an underarm serve per se (says me who was as a fan of Chang back in the day... ).
).
FiddlerDog
Hall of Fame
Did Nadal complain like a little child about Nick's underarm serve?
No, he respected it as fair play since he stands so far back
“If you look where he was standing at the beginning of the match to return the first serve in comparison… he changed that at the end of the first set. He started returning from further back, so it was even harder to get free points on the serve,” Murray said. “I thought if he's going to stand that far back and I'm getting no love from the court and the conditions, why not try it and see if I can bring him forward a little bit again?"
FiddlerDog
Hall of Fame
There’s nothing wrong with underarm serves. The issue here is that Murray did not allow Alacaraz to get ready to receieve. As soon as Alcaraz looked up, Murray hit the underarm serve. Foul play. I’ve not seen Kyrgios try such a sneaky, unsportsmanlike tactic on the underarm serve. Murray should know better.
looks like Rafa gave up on that point too soon...it looks like he could have caught it
stringertom
Bionic Poster
Poppycock! Have you not heard the receiver is to play at the pace of the server? That means keep your head up as you arrive at your receiving position. Murray did nothing wrong other than the tennis equivalent of this mic drop political moment:
Rebel-I.N.S
Hall of Fame
Lol.
Anytime Murray does anything remotely different from The Big 3 dignified sterility matrix - he gets criticised (usually by the same people who insist Murray was never in their league) and it’s used as a signifier that he lacks their gravitas.
Murray isn’t a marketing exec.
Why do people like sportspeople who never venture into the unexpected? This is one of the Big 3’s worst traits btw - their eternal, unending commitment to familiarity.
It’s stuffy and forced.
vex
Legend
Returners should be able to stand as far back as they like without repercussions!
vex
Legend
Lol. No.
smalahove
Hall of Fame
The problem with underarm serve comes down to who assesses if the returner is ready or not.
In many cases, the ump makes outrageously bad calls on this, when the returner is clearly not ready.
In league play, this comes down to the returner, as it is his/her call, and that's where the troubles might start, bc it's a discussion that's hard to come past if both parties stick to their guns. The big disadvantage in all cases, is that using the underarm serve more than once will likely just make your opponent want the win even more. I know I do; it's a surefire way of getting me into my absolute most competitive and focused stated of mind.
In many cases, the ump makes outrageously bad calls on this, when the returner is clearly not ready.
In league play, this comes down to the returner, as it is his/her call, and that's where the troubles might start, bc it's a discussion that's hard to come past if both parties stick to their guns. The big disadvantage in all cases, is that using the underarm serve more than once will likely just make your opponent want the win even more. I know I do; it's a surefire way of getting me into my absolute most competitive and focused stated of mind.
vex
Legend
Straight up, huge missed opportunity that Fed and Djokovic never developed a drop serve to abuse Rafa’s return crutch
Halba
Hall of Fame
Alcaraz should’ve been ready earlier. If you rewatch it was alcaraz fault and he didn’t complain
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