Critique My Serve (video)

C

crystal_clear

Professional
spacediver said:
My understanding of serve mechanics is that the explosive extension of the knees (which is what is involved in jumping vertically) gets channeled into uncoiling the torso in the case of the serve. So you can really explode with your legs, but use all that power to uncoil your body forwards into the court.

Maybe this exercise can help:

Stand a few feet away from a wall. Pretend the wall is north. Face North East.

Now imagine that you want to headbutt the wall (obviously in all these progressions, don't actually headbutt the wall: stand far enough away that this doesn't happen).

Start off by just rotating your neck towards the wall. Keep legs straight (knees fully extended).

Now use your torso to coil into the wall. Again keep your legs straight.

Now bend your knees, and explode with your legs but in such a way that it helps power your torso uncoil into the wall. Your feet shouldn't leave the ground.

This is what should happen with the serve.

Note: if you were to keep your neck really loose during the second and third progression, you would be able to feel it "whip" at the end of the motion. I don't advise this here, as you could really damage your neck. But keeping a loose arm allows the arm and racquet to feel like the end of a whip. ( see my recent thread here: http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=374834 )
Click to expand...

I feel it really helps when hitting arm is loose, not sure about the neck. My left side of neck a little bit tight and I can feel it when checking blind spot at driving. I suspect the tight serve is from the serve.
 
Last edited:
C

crystal_clear

Professional
toly said:
About slice component see please http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=370729&page=11 post # 221.
Taylor dent uses fist continental grip. It means he keeps all his finger knuckles next to the bevel 2 and parallel to the axis of the racquet handle (long axis of the tennis racquet). This ensures that pronation beta angle will be never less than 30 degrees and hence we cannot kill pronation component of the racquet velocity.
There is also very popular pistol continental grip, see please http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=361610 post #124. This grip can produce bigger torque, but couldn kill pronation velocity completely.
Click to expand...

I tried the fist conti grip and it seems to lock the pronation component but reduce the maximum reaching height.
 
S

spacediver

Hall of Fame
crystal_clear said:
I feel it really helps when hitting arm is loose, not sure about the neck. My left side of neck a little bit tight and I can feel it when checking blind spot at driving. I suspect the tight serve is from the serve.
Click to expand...

oh, the neck thing was just about this particular drill. In this drill, the neck is sort of like the racquet!
 
D

Deleted member 120290

Guest
Whoever posted the link to ServeDoc spring loaded serve technique on this thread (if it was this thread), THANKS! It gave me extra 10 MPH on my serve and it is less taxing on my body. Also thanks to Serve Doc.
 
Djokovicfan4life

Djokovicfan4life

Legend
I don't know much, but I have learned that the emphasis on leg drive development is overrated for lower level servers. This isn't a knock on you, Crystal, but I would bet that if you work on your throwing motion and isolate the upper body motion in your serve, you could generate much more racquet speed then you are right now with a full motion.

Just my opinion, but the legs are worthless if you can't control the toss and swing loosely up to the ball.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c06ToXPyJYA
 
L

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Yes, just like contact height in totally NOT IMPORTANT if you can't hit the ball fast enough to go much over 75 mph! At those speeds, the ball will ARC into the court, even hit dead flat. And when you add topslice component, like you do, the ball arcs even more for a super high net clearance that still drops IN.
 
C

crystal_clear

Professional
Djokovicfan4life said:
I don't know much, but I have learned that the emphasis on leg drive development is overrated for lower level servers. This isn't a knock on you, Crystal, but I would bet that if you work on your throwing motion and isolate the upper body motion in your serve, you could generate much more racquet speed then you are right now with a full motion.

Just my opinion, but the legs are worthless if you can't control the toss and swing loosely up to the ball.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c06ToXPyJYA
Click to expand...

Thanks. The link leads me to watch Doctor Serve's Hammer That Serve video again
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjXJGsRtm08&feature=related

It makes a lot more sense this time even though I thought I understood it before. That's the throwing motion with the racket. Hopefully I can't do it with the racket.
 
C

crystal_clear

Professional
LeeD said:
Yes, just like contact height in totally NOT IMPORTANT if you can't hit the ball fast enough to go much over 75 mph! At those speeds, the ball will ARC into the court, even hit dead flat. And when you add topslice component, like you do, the ball arcs even more for a super high net clearance that still drops IN.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Doctor Serve mentioned to lower contact point (for beginners) to get a more solid contact like hammering a nail. I watched the "hitch" video again
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um5q7Lx107k&feature=related
and I seem to have the similar problem like the girl in the video by "quitting shoulder.." and lack of back scratch motion. Am I right?
 
L

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Forget Serena, you want to serve like AmadaCoetzer, at 5' tall, could pummel first serves right at the lowest 100's, and actually get some in.
Serena is basically a true 5'10" and 165 lbs now that she's lost weight. Don't model a serve after her, unless you are built like that.
She'd crush me in a strength match, and most posters here on this forum.
 
N

Nellie

Hall of Fame
I really like all aspects of Justine Henin's game, including her serve, but asking a woman to copy it is like asking a guy to play like Federer.
 
C

crystal_clear

Professional
I found I tend to toss too close to body with platform stance thus serves go long. Djokovicfan4life is right, work on throwing motion first as I can focus one thing at a time.

I pay attention to have the hammer grip like Dent and I gain more pace with arm pronation (not wrist pronation) when timing is right. No more wrist snap when my racket arm doesn't reach up to the highest point.
 
A

anchorage

Rookie
You certainly have potential to boost your serve quite considerably.

One thing I note in your action is a tendency to fall away slightly to the left. This is caused by opening the left hip up too early. If you hold your left hip in position longer, your body mometum will follow the swing path. This will lead to greater consistency and will also enable you to crank up the power considerably whilst maintaining control.
 
C

crystal_clear

Professional
anchorage said:
You certainly have potential to boost your serve quite considerably.

One thing I note in your action is a tendency to fall away slightly to the left. This is caused by opening the left hip up too early. If you hold your left hip in position longer, your body mometum will follow the swing path. This will lead to greater consistency and will also enable you to crank up the power considerably whilst maintaining control.
Click to expand...

Good eye~

Hold left hip in position longer...don't open shoulder too early...
 
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