Usually tennis players have to worry about hitting different shots, hit at them in different ways. We have to worry about exactly how the ball was hit at us, it's trajectory, spin, speed, etc. The serve is the only time we should not worry about such. Audrey Hernandez is a national champion, so let's take her serve as the great example that it is and break it down to it's parts.

We have placed some video of her serve in regular then slow motion on the top left of this page to see it in motion. At the top we have six frames (pictures) of her serve for better understanding. In the first pic (which is not in the video) Audrey is deciding on where to place her serve in the opponent's service box.

In picture #2, we see Audrey's ball toss. It's hard to tell from this angle, but her arm is extending straight out from her left pocket and is just beginning to release the ball from her finger tips. Notice that she does not let go of the ball until her hand is above her head. Most club players tend to let go of the ball too soon and lose control of the placement of the ball. Audrey is PLACING the ball slightly to her right at one oclock. Her racket arm is also moving back at the same time that her tossing arm moves up.

In picture #3, Audrey's arm is fully extended. This is the mark of a proper ball toss on the serve and insures that her ball has plenty of height. You want to place the ball as if you are placing it on the top shelf in the kitchen (the one you can barely reach). Audrey is also beginning her knee bend and moving her hips just beyond the baseline for added power.

Picture #4 shows Audrey in the flexed or coiled position. This is where most tend to differe in their serving styles. Most will bring their back foot up to meet their front foot; however, Audrey prefers to use both legs to drive up to the ball ('a la' - Roger Federer). Notice that her toss hand is fully extended. This ensures that she gets proper height on the ball and that she maintains her eyes focused on the ball as well. You want to keep your head still. This means you look at the ball not the target and trust your mind's eye that you can hit the ball where you are aiming.

Audrey is making contact with the ball with her racquet arm fully extended. This means she is hitting the ball at the very top height. Letting the ball drop down too low robs you of power, but not Audrey! Notice that she is not looking at where she is going to hit it to. In other words she is still looking at the ball THROUGH the contact and not at her opponent. If you look away or down or at your target, your head will probably move and this will affect your racquet arm - causing you to mishit the ball.

In the last picture (picture #7), we see her wrist snap. This final integral part of the serve causes the ball to come down inside the service box and adds power to your serve in the kinetic chain. She is also finally looking at her opponent as the force of her serve brings her into the net.

The serve should have as few glitches as possible. You want it to be one smooth motion from beginning to end for power and accuracy. From the shifting of your weight, to your ball toss, to your knee bend, to your leg drive, to your contact, through your wrist snap and follow through. Take the lesson step by step and you will be serving aces in no time!

 

Need hands-on lessons?  Don VanRamshorst is a U.S.P.T.A.
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