How much does pronation help a flat serve?

Whenever i hit a flat serve, i must pronate EARLY inorder to strike the ball flat and clean. However, people tell me to pronate just before i strike the ball, but when i attempt that, i always put spin on the ball instead of hitting it hard and flat.

So should i just pronate early or does pronating just before i hit the ball help alot?
 

gzhpcu

Professional
Whenever i hit a flat serve, i must pronate EARLY inorder to strike the ball flat and clean. However, people tell me to pronate just before i strike the ball, but when i attempt that, i always put spin on the ball instead of hitting it hard and flat.

So should i just pronate early or does pronating just before i hit the ball help alot?
Maybe the problem lies with your toss, not in the right spot for a flat serve.
 

larry10s

Hall of Fame
Whenever i hit a flat serve, i must pronate EARLY inorder to strike the ball flat and clean. However, people tell me to pronate just before i strike the ball, but when i attempt that, i always put spin on the ball instead of hitting it hard and flat.

So should i just pronate early or does pronating just before i hit the ball help alot?
all flat serves have some spin
 

Mahboob Khan

Hall of Fame
Show me a ball which does not rotate? If the ball is rotating it has a spin.

If you are using continental grip for the serve, without pronation you will be striking the ball with the frame. Pronation helps line up the strings-bed to hit the ball. It's better to pronate as you strike the ball. I am not in favour of early pronation. I am in favour of timely pronation!
 

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Timely pronation is best. Not too early to lose power, not to late to lose the flat first serve.
Whatever gives you that "POP" is the right timing.
 

JediMindTrick

Hall of Fame
Whenever i hit a flat serve, i must pronate EARLY inorder to strike the ball flat and clean. However, people tell me to pronate just before i strike the ball, but when i attempt that, i always put spin on the ball instead of hitting it hard and flat.

So should i just pronate early or does pronating just before i hit the ball help alot?

This is exactly what happens to my serve. If I start the pronation a bit earlier I get a flat serve in one corner. If I start the pronation a bit later, using exactly the same toss and swing, I get a slice serve going in the other corner. I don't know if this is the right way to do it though, maybe the experts can educate us.
 

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Most servers see no need to hit their fastest serves to all 3 spots on the opponents service court.
You can blast it right at them, and to one side.
The other side, it's smarter to slice it a bit to get them waaay wide off their court, to make them really move to get to the ball.
So yes, to your question, you don't need a flat first serve to all 3 service targets. It would be nice to have all 3, but most servers only need 2.
 

JediMindTrick

Hall of Fame
Ok, let's narrow down the discussion. Let's say you're a right handed player serving in the deuce court. What do you do differently between the flat serve down the middle and the slice out wide. Do you have a different toss, a different swing path or a different pronation timing or a combination of them? Is it even technically correct to try to change the pronation timing?
 
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LeeD

Bionic Poster
OK, first flat up the T with pronation.
Exactly the same setup (you), pronate less, toss less out towards the net, and slice it waay wide of the intersect of singles sideline and service line. Impossible for the opponent to read, as they can't read a toss further into the court or less far into the court.
 

snvplayer

Hall of Fame
Before we delve into the discussion whether you are pronating too early or too late, you must have to realize that these are relative terms.

You might be doing everything just fine, but you think that you need to pronate a little late to have a better flat serve. So if you are hitting flat serves effectively, don't worry too much about it.

For slice serves, I try not to change the toss. I still toss out in front, and concentrate more on bypassing the ball on the right side - basically cutting off its ear. I don't really think I really pronate well after the contact.

For flat serves, I definately pronate before the contact.

Personally I find it much more effective to look at the ball and where I want to make the contact.
 

Jaewonnie

Professional
Whenever i hit a flat serve, i must pronate EARLY inorder to strike the ball flat and clean. However, people tell me to pronate just before i strike the ball, but when i attempt that, i always put spin on the ball instead of hitting it hard and flat.

So should i just pronate early or does pronating just before i hit the ball help alot?

I had the same problem. Now I use something called the "cobra wind-up" which is basically looping into ball contact from racket-behind-your-head position. My serve works fine this way.
 
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