Serving
Improving the serve is a process. Understanding, incorporating and perfecting the components for power, spin & consistency takes practice. Rarely is a weak server "one tip away" from a great serve. This series covers the "understanding" portion and walks you through the critical elements of the tennis serve with modifications for PT.
Watch in order for best understanding.
Prerequisite - Tennis Serve
Excellent breakdown of serve mechanics ...
Excellent breakdown of serve mechanics ...
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Supplemental: The Continental Grip
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1 - Low Ball Toss.
A low ball toss (no higher than the peak of your reach) & to the right side is ideal for the PT serve. The "back together/up together" approach is an excellent fix if you are having trouble with toss consistency. |
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2 - Loose Elbow / Wrist / Forearm.
Debunking the wrist snap at impact myth. The wrist snap occurs well before impact. It is actually a "spaghetti" elbow, loose wrist & forearm pronation though impact that creates the power system. |
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3 - Free Hand/Arm Position.
The non-racket arm comes across the body and stops the body's rotation so the serving shoulder can whip. Weak servers often let their free hand drift to the side and behind their bodies. |
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4 - Choose the Slice Serve (Sidespin)
Of the serves used for tennis - flat, topspin & slice - the slice serve is the best for PT. Slice serves have sidespin and move across your opponent's hitting path, so slice serves are difficult to return cleanly off the deck. They move sideways off the back screen and do not rebound as far as flat serves, Slice serves also tend to die on the side screen (ad court for righties, deuce for lefties). Here are two versions of the slice serve:
Of the serves used for tennis - flat, topspin & slice - the slice serve is the best for PT. Slice serves have sidespin and move across your opponent's hitting path, so slice serves are difficult to return cleanly off the deck. They move sideways off the back screen and do not rebound as far as flat serves, Slice serves also tend to die on the side screen (ad court for righties, deuce for lefties). Here are two versions of the slice serve:
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5 - Footwork
Rock back. Slide back foot forward. Push up off front foot. |
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6 - Head Up
Keep head up until impact. |
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Development Progression
The following is the recommended order for adding elements to your serve for PT: 1 - Get It In When you first start playing, just try to get your serve in every time. Nobody wants to get hit in the back of the head while you experiment with spin or freeze their butt off while you hit rockets into the net tape. Also, you will not be able to win serve faulting two or three times per game at any level. If at first your serve is not strong enough to serve and volley behind, simply stay back until it is. 2 - Placement Work on directing your serve to certain spots within the box. Developing spin, especially for tennis converts, can come before improving placement. 3 - Add Spin This must come before adding pace. Not only will this help you get the ball in, it will prevent the giant rebounds caused by hard flat serves. Your net partner will thank you. 4 - Add Pace Once you can get the ball in every time with spin, then you can add pace. 5 - Add Varieties Only once you have a reliable "go-to" serve with adequate pace and spin, can you add variations. Mix up pace, spins and contact points - the roller serve, topspin + slice, etc. |
Role & Limitations of PT Serve
It is important to grasp the role and limitations of serving in PT (vs. tennis). In tennis, you get two serves and the first is used exclusively as an offensive weapon. It is a risk-free way to win points outright and great servers can dominate any returner. The opposite is true in PT - great returners can dominate any server. There are very few aces or service winners in high level PT. Typically, the serve, the serve-volley combination, or a serve & stay back strategy is used to try to negate the "returner's advantage." Controlling the net through the first three shots of each point is generally the goal. Not losing points outright on faults or returns is key to holding serve. Additional Videos, Demonstrations & Articles:
Stroke Basics - Beginner Serve Serve & Volley Serve (Basics) - PPTA Serve & Volley (Tips) |