Body weight transfer with kick serve on deuce side

[EddieBrock]

On my GS, volleys and first serve I've been really trying to use my legs and get my whole body into the shot as opposed to arming it. On the ad side with the kick serve I can load my legs and push up into the direction I'm trying to hit the ball.

What about with the kick serve on the deuce side though, especially in doubles?

Usually you try to stay more sideways and as a righty brush up from left to right, but if you were to try and push your body into where you're aiming wouldn't that open your shoulders and body up towards the court too early?

Something else I noticed is when I get really nervous in matches I will sometimes swing left to right on the ball, but as I'm swinging I feel my body opening and the ball will go in the net. So I wonder if this is from trying to face my target too soon.

 

[Dragy]

If you want it high and spinny, drive your body up into the ball, while swiping from below the ball - up and across.

If you want more penetrating kick, you will drive your body in and up as opposed to mostly up. And make more fat contact.

 

[EddieBrock]

If you want it high and spinny, drive your body up into the ball, while swiping from below the ball - up and across.

If you want more penetrating kick, you will drive your body in and up as opposed to mostly up. And make more fat contact.

When you say "in and up" which way should you be going into the court?

 

[Dragy]

When you say "in and up" which way should you be going into the court?

More or less same direction you swing. Maybe a bit of side-jump, but not crazy. When you hit a topslice serve from the deuce side, you land inward like straight towards the net. If you land towards the opponent, you likely open up and hit a slice.

 

[fuzz nation]

On my GS, volleys and first serve I've been really trying to use my legs and get my whole body into the shot as opposed to arming it. On the ad side with the kick serve I can load my legs and push up into the direction I'm trying to hit the ball.

What about with the kick serve on the deuce side though, especially in doubles?

Usually you try to stay more sideways and as a righty brush up from left to right, but if you were to try and push your body into where you're aiming wouldn't that open your shoulders and body up towards the court too early?

Something else I noticed is when I get really nervous in matches I will sometimes swing left to right on the ball, but as I'm swinging I feel my body opening and the ball will go in the net. So I wonder if this is from trying to face my target too soon.

Your orientation should be significantly different when you switch between serving to the deuce vs. the ad court. You're going to feel "less sideways" relative to the entire court when hitting to the deuce box (if you're a righty) because your target is more over to the left. Slide over to the ad side on the baseline to serve to the ad box and you need to be set up much more sideways to hit in that direction.

If you're still working on dialing in your orientation toward your target for this kick serve, you can try hitting a few serves in each direction (deuce and ad courts) while standing just inside the baseline. Instead of setting up relative to a line in front of your feet, this may help you with setting up more relative to your target.

 

[nyta2]

...if you were to try and push your body into where you're aiming wouldn't that open your shoulders and body up towards the court too early?

leaning into the court/contact is different from rotating into the court/contact...

 

[EddieBrock]

leaning into the court/contact is different from rotating into the court/contact...

That's true. So if you're serving a kick serve from out towards the alley in doubles you'd keep your body sideways but get your body weight going forward and towards the left?

Maybe my problem is also setting up with my body turned too much towards the court so it's hard to get my weight towards the target