I personally repeat this part very often with players who are correcting their old serve techniques because it’s exactly here where they get it wrong. While you may think that this oversimplifies the hitting part, I can assure you that, once you fluidly merge these two swing paths together, you’ll realize that this is exactly how a flat serve is done. Swing path after contact with emphasis on pronation Therefore, imagine swinging towards the ball at a 45 degree angle leading with the edge of the racquet and following the first row of balls. It is the internal rotation of the upper arm and pronation of the forearm that create these two racquet paths before and after contact. The serve might look like that at first glance, which deceives us into interpreting the hitting part of the serve as one straight motion of the arm.īut, as you look closer, especially in slow motion, you realize that the swing towards the ball and movement of the forearm after the contact are not in the same line. That is one of the most common misconceptions and mistakes out there. It’s a slight exaggeration at first, which helps the player learn to pronate and to understand that the hitting part of the serve is not one single swing through the ball with the whole arm. This gives us a clear mental image of how the racquet and arm must move through the hitting part. Therefore, I use the “bounce” element to make sure the racquet is moving and that the arm is loosened up before you swing up – because that’s exactly what will happen when you execute the whole tennis service motion.īalls in two rows give you a proper guidance on your serve swing paths. When we teach serve technique in this analytical way of breaking down the whole complex motion into smaller parts since that’s easier to learn, we unfortunately also break down the natural fluid movements of the body.Īnd the danger in this hitting part of the serve is that we initiate the swing up from a static position which in the long term might become a part of our whole serve technique. If we at any moment of the serve stop the movement, we will lose power. The serve generates a lot of power because of many body parts dynamically moving when they have to. The loose drop before the swing up is achieved by “bouncing” or dangling the racquet behind you. There are smaller parts of the hitting part: On the other hand, I can do the elements before the contact correctly and still not hit the ball correctly because I am not using my hand, forearm and arm correctly through the contact phase. I can, for example, demonstrate incorrect backswing, trophy position, have no coiling in the body, completely straight legs and STILL hit a CLEAN and correct flat or topspin or slice serve – except that it will have less power and I’ll be more uncomfortable. The elements above are not directly responsible for correct hitting of the ball, although they influence it. It is this hitting moment that defines whether the ball is hit correctly (flat, topspin or slice) and cleanly or not. You are simply accumulating energy in order to release it explosively into the contact with the ball. Think of the backswing elements ‒ like coiling, bending your knees, swinging the racquet back, maintaining the trophy position and so on ‒ simply as ways of gathering energy. The hitting part is where the serve happens either correctly or incorrectly. Step 3: The Hitting Part – Loose Drop, Swing Up And Pronation Then I describe how to find a loose grip using a little exercise just before you start your serving ritual. First, I explain how to grip the racquet with fingers spread more apart and why that helps with pronation. In the ServeUnlocked course, I share two more tips on the grip. That’s why it’s crucial that you grip the racquet correctly. The way you hold your racquet determines many things about the final serve technique and its effectiveness. One of the ways to check if you hold a continental grip…
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