How is kick serve likened to a throwing motion?

[New Daddy]

People liken the service motion to a throwing motion.
Personally, that works very well for flat serves.
With flat serves, aiming to throw the racket at the direction of your target works well.

But how is a kick serve likened to a throwing motion?
Where should you aim to throw the racket at?
I can't seem to associate the throwing motion with kick serves.

 

[BullDogTennis]

i aim to throw the racquet as high as i possibly can into the air. and that should get you one in the middle of the box, then from there minor adjustments to hit the corners.

 

[gzhpcu]

You should aim up and across (inside - out).

Look at Wil's Kick Serve video.

http://www.fuzzyyellowballs.com/video-tennis-lessons/serve/kick-serve/

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Even for "flat" serves, the throwing motion differs from a ball throw.

A "ball" throwing motion and a tennis "kick serve" throwing motion are significantly different. Try throwing old racquets instead of balls. When throwing a ball you are probably not going to simulate a proper "racquet drop" at all. You might approximate it somewhat by tilting the shoulders more, letting the arm bend a bit more, driving the back shoulder & chest upward and then throwing the ball upward at 75 to 90 degrees (instead of 45-60 degrees or less).

This is easier to accomplish when throwing racquets than with throwing balls. You can also simulate the the upward brushing motion when racquet throwing. This aspect is also a bit more difficult to simulate with a ball throw.

 

[naylor]

i aim to throw the racquet as high as i possibly can into the air. and that should get you one in the middle of the box, then from there minor adjustments to hit the corners.

I modify that slightly, by thinking of throwing the racket high and also over the back or side fence - it's the over the fence element that makes the racket brush (what feels like) half-way around the ball that gives it the over or kick spin.

 

[GuyClinch]

I think of throwing something straight up at the ball and hitting it more around the left side.

 

[charliefedererer]

Try pitching a curve ball to a friend in the second deck.

 

[Shroud]

People liken the service motion to a throwing motion.
Personally, that works very well for flat serves.
With flat serves, aiming to throw the racket at the direction of your target works well.

But how is a kick serve likened to a throwing motion?
Where should you aim to throw the racket at?
I can't seem to associate the throwing motion with kick serves.

Yea. Years later…

Its similar to the throw where the quarterback rolls left and throws down the line of scrimmage. Just without the rolling left.

 

[Dragy]

Yea. Years later…

Its similar to the throw where the quarterback rolls left and throws down the line of scrimmage. Just without the rolling left.

Kick serve swing is very similar to throwing almost directly upward while facing sideways/diagonally. The key is to understand that you don't throw it (racquet handle) into the ball, you throw it near the ball and allow/guide racquet head to "scrape" the ball while it is taking over the hand, very early during the "pronation" phase.

 

[Shroud]

Kick serve swing is very similar to throwing almost directly upward while facing sideways/diagonally. The key is to understand that you don't throw it (racquet handle) into the ball, you throw it near the ball and allow/guide racquet head to "scrape" the ball while it is taking over the hand, very early during the "pronation" phase.

its weird. Never ever thought about throwing the racquet handle. People do that?

I was basically meaning that the left shoulder for a rightie pointed perpendicular with the net mostly vs a flat serve where its closer to parallel.

 

[Dragy]

its weird. Never ever thought about throwing the racquet handle. People do that?

The point is, you don’t “throw” it like a hatchet, definitely not for kick serve. You throw it… like a football. And racquet head follows and then whips onto the ball.

 

[Shroud]

The point is, you don’t “throw” it like a hatchet, definitely not for kick serve. You throw it… like a football. And racquet head follows and then whips onto the ball.

Right. A football thrown down the scrimmage line and not down field where the hand ends up at your left hip. Its more like the throw where the hand ends up on the right hip. Its the one where the elbow doesn’t cross the body. Hard to hit the kick when the elbow goes in front of the body.

 

[Dragy]

Its the one where the elbow doesn’t cross the body. Hard to hit the kick when the elbow goes in front of the body.

I personally, while understanding how "finishing on the same side" might give initial access to kick, don't like it as general tip. One shall absolutely finish across the body with kick serve if enough control over the body - launching upwards and staying sideways.

 

[Shroud]

I personally, while understanding how "finishing on the same side" might give initial access to kick, don't like it as general tip. One shall absolutely finish across the body with kick serve if enough control over the body - launching upwards and staying sideways.

High level players do it.

 

[johnmccabe]

staying sideways

Heard about it in the first kick serve video I ever watched. Took 2 years to actually learn how different parts of the body should feel when staying sideways.

 

[Dragy]

High level players do it.

Imho, it's an illusion. The racquet arm just continues towards the swing direction - like in every other serve. For kick - up and towards the right net post. Then it finishes across the torso. It's just where torso looks during this or that serve.

I mean, I've talked to some people who tried to swing "on the same side" without doing correct things, and the got some resemblance of kick serve, but quit due to shoulder pain. Since then I strongly advocate against swinging somewhere else than good same uniform "throwing" suggests. Just need to orient the body and leg drive differently for different serves, and time the contact (stringbed opening) for desired spin.