Serve comparison

Strong serve from a strong guy, but more action if the takeback at trophy was deeper behind the right shoulder, so a longer swing at the ball.
However, if I recall, Courier had that same short stunted motion, and served just fine at his level.
As for feet, seems fine for staying back and playing the return from the baseline.
 
Anyone who's watched your vid can tell you can serve.
But you'd serve harder and more consistently if you moved into the court rather than way off to the right.
Now that you fixed your wandering prep, try to toss more over your head so you don't need to chase your toss over on the righthand alley. You are trying to hit a ball forwards while your momentum is flying out to your right.
 
Great serve! Just a comment - noticed that you have switched your foot positioning from pointing towards the net in the first vid to being parallel to the baseline in the second vid.
 
It was to add more core rotation. I feel like it has worked.

Leed- I agree with the balls toss and thats one of the most underrated/forgotten parts of having a good serve.

Do you guys feel like its gotten bigger?
 
There is almost a David Ferrer type of "walk" into the ball, which can generate significant momentum. We have discussed it many times, and I guess this kind of foot movement is regarded as legal.
 
sureshs said:
There is almost a David Ferrer type of "walk" into the ball, which can generate significant momentum. We have discussed it many times, and I guess this kind of foot movement is regarded as legal.
Click to expand...

I've tried to change it before and it's really tough. My coach just said if I wasn't chasing my toss I can keep it. I need to work on my toss a lot.
 
DownTheLine said:
I've tried to change it before and it's really tough. My coach just said if I wasn't chasing my toss I can keep it. I need to work on my toss a lot.
Click to expand...

As long as no one complains to the umpire, you should be OK. There is some strange language in the rules.
 
One thing's for sure, someone's been in the weight room, and you just look much older. You look like you're ready for college tennis whereas 18 months ago, you looked like a junior player. Amazing how people age. :)
 
Look, I have the same foot movement, I always have. And my serve is a strength, so..

I never teach it to my students, though! I think teh adjustment to add more core rotation has been really successful.
 
Approximately how fast is that serve?

I also do the exact same thing with my racket, with the trophy pose up against my chest. I've never seen somebody else do it, so I never knew if it was wrong! Nice to see you serving so well with it, gives me hope!
 
Bergboy123 said:
Approximately how fast is that serve?

I also do the exact same thing with my racket, with the trophy pose up against my chest. I've never seen somebody else do it, so I never knew if it was wrong! Nice to see you serving so well with it, gives me hope!
Click to expand...

People have said that it can go anywhere from 110-119 but that was about a year ago so who knows. If anyone has better judgement on that I'd love to hear it!

The foot thing just seems natural to me. I'll have to do more search and see if it's benificial for me to even stop it. I'm going to really start working on my toss, core rotation, and jumping into the court/ball
 
sureshs said:
As long as no one complains to the umpire, you should be OK. There is some strange language in the rules.
Click to expand...

What would they complain about? His foot motion is completely legal. He can dance a jig before the serve if he wants to as long as he doesn't touch the baseline with his foot.
 
rkelley said:
...He can dance a jig before the serve if he wants to as long as he doesn't touch the baseline with his foot.
Click to expand...
Mmmm. Nope.

From the rulebook:
Immediately before starting the service motion, the server shall stand at rest with both feet behind the baseline....
Click to expand...

It's little known (or enforced) but it's against the rules to hit a 'walking' serve. You have to start the process from a stationary position.

Plus:
Foot fault
During the service motion, the server shall not:
a. change position by walking or running, although slight movements of the feet are permitted...
Click to expand...

I think this precludes the dancing of jigs.

The explanation of this rule from the USTA 'friend at court' book for some extra comment on it.

One key to understanding this rule is to realize that the server’s feet must be at rest immediately before beginning to serve ~~~
To define walking or running with precision is difficult. This rule is intended to prevent the server from taking advantage of the receiver by serving while “on the move” and requiring the receiver to guess the position from which the serve will be launched, and the rule should be enforced with that intent in mind.
• A server who takes more than one step with either foot after the “feet at rest” position described above is at risk for being called for a foot fault. The serve becomes a foot fault when, in the judgment of an experienced official, the server has materially changed position before or during any racket or arm motion.
• A server whose footwork changes significantly from one serve to the next is at risk for being called for a foot fault.
• Serves that look like the running volleyball serve violate the rule. Serves in which the server runs or walks from a point well behind the baseline to the baseline are also illegal....
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
You guys are making the foot movement a lot bigger deal than what it is. Many people do it and I don't take more than one step. Ferrer has been dong it for years and has never been complained/called on.
 
Don't worry about them. And I would say bigger, but not faster. YOu have much more spin on the ball now, which has taken some MPH off. However, that tradeoff is hugely beneficial. More accuracy, more angles, more consistency. As far as numbers, having just been clocked this evening at an average of 109, I'd put you in the mid teens. We both don't hit a flat serve, but yours is cooking more (and I'm assuming you never tore your rotator cuff :) ).
 
While known mainly for his backhand, Safin is a clinic in proper upper body mechanics on the serve. Very few players do it better. Not a single piece of energy is wasted.
 
pvaudio said:
While known mainly for his backhand, Safin is a clinic in proper upper body mechanics on the serve. Very few players do it better. Not a single piece of energy is wasted.
Click to expand...

He's the poster boy of efficient strokes, in my opinion. Everything is very compact, powerful with no wasted movement.

And agreed, serve, at least mechanically, is very underrated. Gah, I miss him playing...
 
Tried tossing the ball more out front today and it felt really weird. Felt a little awkward in the rotation and the feet, but hey it's progress.

Played against a guy that played at the University of Wisconsin a couple years back today! He has taken some time off, but he could sure still hit the ball! Went well. won 3-2 in our games to a 11 and won the one tiebreak we played!
 
pvaudio said:
Your strokes video always seems to put me in a trance. It's just pure rhythm.
Click to expand...

Just saw this comment!

Thanks a lot! I'm gonna try and get a video up of me hitting before I go off to college so it'll be with the new prestige pros and any more tips because I'll take them!
 
Since I'm just a server at heart, the one thing that guys at the D1 level (which I know you are since you're in my conference :D ) will be able to pick up on is toss placement. When you go for a kicker, you exaggerate your toss left and back. That is the traditional way to make it easier to hit a kick, just like tossing a bit farther right for a slice. I would see if there's some way over the next year or so to make a single toss location so that you can hit heavy top spin firsts, flat firsts, kicker firsts, slice firsts, etc all off the same toss. Personally, due to my shoulder, if I want to hit something other than my main serve, i.e. a flat serve, I'll change my trophy pose slightly instead, but before injury, I'd been told I was hard to read. If you would humor me just one more time and post a video with targets, say 6 in a row out wide and six up the middle, then I think we'd get a much better idea of where your serve is. Right now it looks as though you're just going for tips on the pace when some people have enormous tells when they're serving to a particular direction.
 
DownTheLine said:
The first video was taken in about Jan. of 2011 and the second video was taken yesterday(June 26)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHZbXq6R7XA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW3SE7fS9vU&feature=plcp

What do you guys think I have improved on? What do you think I can improve on based off of my second video?

Top of the list would be the foot movement.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Honestly, I liked your serve in the first video better. IMO, you were getting better shoulder turn and tilt in the first video, although you still need more than that to max your serve potential. In the second, you line up more sideways to the target, causing your shoulders to be turned from the target from the beginning without actually having to turn them and create a coil during your service motion. But doing that, there is virtually no turn back to the target in your upswing. You remained turned away from the target and are left with an arm serve with very little assistance from upper body rotation.

IMO, you are better off going back to your original set up, and focus on turning back and forth during your service motion rather than starting from a turned position and not turning back to the target at all.

I don't have a problem with your 2-step in your windup. There have been many excellent servers who did the same thing: Rod Laver, Arthur Ashe, Tommy Hass, Marat Safin.
 
Limpinhitter said:
Honestly, I liked your serve in the first video better. IMO, you were getting better shoulder turn and tilt in the first video, although you still need more than that to max your serve potential. In the second, you line up more sideways to the target, causing your shoulders to be turned from the target from the beginning without actually having to turn them and create a coil during your service motion. But doing that, there is virtually no turn back to the target in your upswing. You remained turned away from the target and are left with an arm serve with very little assistance from upper body rotation.

IMO, you are better off going back to your original set up, and focus on turning back and forth during your service motion rather than starting from a turned position and not turning back to the target at all.

I don't have a problem with your 2-step in your windup. There have been many excellent servers who did the same thing: Rod Laver, Arthur Ashe, Tommy Hass, Marat Safin.
Click to expand...

My second serve has gotten tons better with my new motion. While I agree with you somewhat I think in the long run my new one is the best. I wanted to show with the two videos the difference in my arm motion/set-up since that was the biggest critique from that video along with my coach.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

DownTheLine
NTRP Rating *Video Included*
2 3
Replies
115
Views
16K
DownTheLine
DownTheLine
DownTheLine
My game.
2
Replies
62
Views
6K
ski racer
S
Federerkblade
Practicing Two handed backhand (Uk) plus a quick serve video. Pls Critique
Replies
8
Views
1K
Federerkblade
Federerkblade
H
Please criticize my play, strokes, footwork....
2
Replies
86
Views
11K
Chillaxer
C
B
Why do tennis instructors say to stray from a Forehand takeback like Nalbandians?
Replies
46
Views
7K
BullDogTennis
BullDogTennis
Back
Top