gasquetfan
New User
how do you brush more on your kick serve...i seem to be driving through or going forward too much
kick serve
- Thread starter gasquetfan
- Start date
Most TOP players differenciate between a kick and a topspin serve.
For kicks, usually the ball bounces headheights, sometimes twists, sometimes tops, sometimes slices.
For tops, being the safer choice for second serves (less arc, more direct, practiced before you learned the kicks), lower trajectory, lower net clearance, more consistent because more direct racketface contact, and usually slightly lower bounce than a kick or twist serve.
So swingpath for tops are flatter than for kicks, as net clearance is less for tops.
Typical net clearance for kicks might be around 5'.
So for topspin safer serves, maybe 3.5'.
As with all serves, swing as fast as you can control.
For both serves, try to swing faster than you do for first flat serves. You know why and how.
For kicks, usually the ball bounces headheights, sometimes twists, sometimes tops, sometimes slices.
For tops, being the safer choice for second serves (less arc, more direct, practiced before you learned the kicks), lower trajectory, lower net clearance, more consistent because more direct racketface contact, and usually slightly lower bounce than a kick or twist serve.
So swingpath for tops are flatter than for kicks, as net clearance is less for tops.
Typical net clearance for kicks might be around 5'.
So for topspin safer serves, maybe 3.5'.
As with all serves, swing as fast as you can control.
For both serves, try to swing faster than you do for first flat serves. You know why and how.
charliefedererer
Legend
To brush up more on your kick serve, you need a bigger "windup".
Bend your knees more so that your back is tilted back more, with your chest pointed up.
As you bend your knees, and rotate your trunk back around, push your front hip forward more (and simultaneously drop your rear shoulder).
Make sure you have a full racquet drop.
From this position, and with the ball having been thrown to the right location, it's a push up with your legs as you rotate back forward, throwing your rear shoulder up (and front hip down). You take a full swing at the ball, but it's a glancing blow, brushing up from 7 to 1 o'clock.
Watching the Fuzzy Yellow Balls video may help: http://www.fuzzyyellowballs.com/video-tennis-lessons/serve/kick-serve/
SethIMcClaine
Rookie
use a hammer grip, adjust your toss
callen3615
Professional
Change your grip more and hit more up on the ball.
callen3615
Professional
When I hit a topspin serve I use the conti grip. Lots of spin.
wyutani
Hall of Fame
a pure topspin? :shock:
callen3615
Professional
Hahaha, not quite.
eric draven
Rookie
The best advice I got was to swing up and towards your right (if you're right-handed). Pronation plays a big role with this. So, instead of swinging your racket towards the net your follow through would be more parallel to the baseline, if that makes sense. The goal is to feel like you're hitting up, not down through, the ball. Good luck!
tenniskid567
Rookie
Its easy to swing up on the ball if you "scratch your back" Every time my serve isn't kicking like I want, this is usually my problem. Change the motion a little so that you bring the racket behind you like your literally scratching your back, and from there you can only brush up on the ball. Try it.
Good advice here - also don't turn the shoulders too early.. When you serve your shoulders turn - but if your timing on this is wrong its really hard to hit a kick or topspin serve.
For me what is trickier is getting a kick serve with some serious juice. I can get the spin almost right its the energy in the serve I need to crank up..
What you don't want is a kick serve that kicks right into the perfect hitting zone for a tall player. <g>
For me what is trickier is getting a kick serve with some serious juice. I can get the spin almost right its the energy in the serve I need to crank up..
What you don't want is a kick serve that kicks right into the perfect hitting zone for a tall player. <g>
This is what you need - stay sideways longer. Remember that you need to hit low to high and contact at the back of the ball for top spin. This means you need the racquet to be traveling pretty much on the plane of the back line. Now think of your swing path - once you turn your shoulders, it is hard to hit up at the back of the ball.
