Topic: Serve

[OSU Buckeye]

Does anyone can do a kick serve or any cool serve 

Kickers are fun and reliable, but my fav is to hit a wicked slice out wide on the second serve after missing the same shot on the first serve.  After hitting a bunch of kick 2nd serves early in the match this is a deadly strategy.  I hope OSB & T4U aren't reading this in case I make it out to Cinncy in August!

I don't miss anything!       It don't matter if you tell me stuff or not...........after seeing your serve 10 times, I will be on it like flies on stink!   

When Pigs Fly Holmes!

I guess we will be seeing some pigs fly this Summer in Ohio then!   

Yes, I'll be coming in on SouthWest!  

      I am sitting at the airport now dang near LOL!   

[jyh9]

i recently got my kickserve to get that extra kick, it feels awesome

[pawan89]

i recently got my kickserve to get that extra kick, it feels awesome

what was the secret behind it, or was it just "practice makes perfect"?

[DropShotUser]

hey what the best thing to do to build muscle for tennis

[pawan89]

hey what the best thing to do to build muscle for tennis

building muscle ... like Nadal type muscle or just to get stronger overall? Either way, I am sure weight training is one of the best way to build muscle.
if you want to just strengthen like your wrist and forearm, i think messing around with a slightly depressurized tennis ball or a rubber  band is a very good thing, just a constant workout.

do note however muscles does not mean fitness, and here i am guessing its mostly opinion but i would much rather be fit and fast than have bulky muscles. strong yes, but muscles not really.

another option would be get yourself a 10lb pen, so when you write papers and such you can get stronger

[DropShotUser]

well i want muscle that i can maintain my speed....i have little muscle but i need alittle more but idk how to build muscle to maintain my speed and my power

[pawan89]

well i want muscle that i can maintain my speed....i have little muscle but i need alittle more but idk how to build muscle to maintain my speed and my power

speed = fitness. run. do sprints. run a lot. that's mainly speed. you need to tone yourself, not bulk yourself. muscles will give strength - but again, too much muscle results in lack of flexibility. easily leads to pulled muscles and such if you have too much muscle because its so much more stress on them to relax and contract constantly .. you want strong, flexible muscles, and maybe if you are thin like a toothpick you want some more muscle mass to make you sturdy, but if you are "normal" you need to get stronger and more importantly fitter. just don't overdo the muscle bulking up training. things like pushups and and daily running are enough to strengthen your arms and legs as much as you need, if you still feel you need more muscle then weight training and a proper diet helps.

from what i know, speed is not dependent on muscle at all (leg muscles yeah, but that's a given - again, strong muscles is what I mean - ask one of those body builders to run here and there, they'll probably cramp up like crazy).
power comes from proper technique, proper timing (see justine henin - 5 foot 4) and yes if you do need enough mass and torso strength to drive through and sometimes muscle through balls. again, to start off (i have no idea how much physical stuff you get done..) 15 minutes run a day for stamina (and if you are serious 5 minute sprints to get faster), and basic exercises, like stretching, pushups, curls etc etc for like 15 minutes is a very modest but incredible start to get fitter and stronger. for gaining pure muscle i think you pretty much have to eat protein and work out.

[DropShotUser]

alright thank 

[ps2dcgba]

It takes a while.  I thought it took me a few years to get the kick to make some good movement.  I pretty much had to teach it to myself as well.

both edberg and sampras could hit great kick serves. it may not be a bad idea to take a quick look at some of their matches on hard courts.

that said, you are right. it does take some work.

I am teaching myself the kick serve as well, however I have encountered a huge hiccup, my serve does not clear the net, as often I would like, however when it does it does kick around 5'5 feet high on average, btw I am 5'9, I really cannot fathom how Edberg and Sampras can clear the net with so much clearance and still get the ball in with soooo much pace, especially Sampras.

I have read elsewhere that its possible to clear the net 4 to 6 feet and still the ball will land in the service box, ......HELP!!! I wouldn't mind learning that!!
 

[monstertruck]

It takes a while.  I thought it took me a few years to get the kick to make some good movement.  I pretty much had to teach it to myself as well.

both edberg and sampras could hit great kick serves. it may not be a bad idea to take a quick look at some of their matches on hard courts.

that said, you are right. it does take some work.

I am teaching myself the kick serve as well, however I have encountered a huge hiccup, my serve does not clear the net, as often I would like, however when it does it does kick around 5'5 feet high on average, btw I am 5'9, I really cannot fathom how Edberg and Sampras can clear the net with so much clearance and still get the ball in with soooo much pace, especially Sampras.

I have read elsewhere that its possible to clear the net 4 to 6 feet and still the ball will land in the service box, ......HELP!!! I wouldn't mind learning that!!
 

Seems odd that your attempts at the kicker are ending up in the net.  Whenever I miss that serve it is always long or wide, never in the net. 

Theoretically, the kicker should clear the net by at least 4 feet or more.  My best guess without seeing you hit the serve is that you are not swinging fast enough.  Though the kicker is commonly used as a second serve, the swing speed needs to be as fast or even faster than a hard, flat, first serve.  The reasoning behind this is that most of the energy from the serve is converted into spin rather than pace.

The one visualization that I use to help me with the kicker is to think of the flight path of the ball as a parabola.  The server is the start point and the target (typically the backhand corner of the service box) is the end point.   

Visualizing a nice high arc of the ball going over the net combined with a faster swing on your serve may help you.

[Tennis4you]

Agree with Monster here, you need more clearance.  Hitting the kicker deep is better than hitting is into the net.  Deep just means you need a little more spin and that can be worked on.

Make sure you are hitting up on the ball and generate some serious spin.  What grip are you using?

[jeffrx]

Agree with Monster here, you need more clearance.  Hitting the kicker deep is better than hitting is into the net.  Deep just means you need a little more spin and that can be worked on.

Make sure you are hitting up on the ball and generate some serious spin.  What grip are you using?

True, especially since the whole point of a kick serve is to keep your opponent as far back as you can, or make him gamble and take a high bouncing ball earlier than he should.   

[OSU Buckeye]

It takes a while.  I thought it took me a few years to get the kick to make some good movement.  I pretty much had to teach it to myself as well.

both edberg and sampras could hit great kick serves. it may not be a bad idea to take a quick look at some of their matches on hard courts.

that said, you are right. it does take some work.

I am teaching myself the kick serve as well, however I have encountered a huge hiccup, my serve does not clear the net, as often I would like, however when it does it does kick around 5'5 feet high on average, btw I am 5'9, I really cannot fathom how Edberg and Sampras can clear the net with so much clearance and still get the ball in with soooo much pace, especially Sampras.

I have read elsewhere that its possible to clear the net 4 to 6 feet and still the ball will land in the service box, ......HELP!!! I wouldn't mind learning that!!
 

Seems odd that your attempts at the kicker are ending up in the net.  Whenever I miss that serve it is always long or wide, never in the net. 

Theoretically, the kicker should clear the net by at least 4 feet or more.  My best guess without seeing you hit the serve is that you are not swinging fast enough.  Though the kicker is commonly used as a second serve, the swing speed needs to be as fast or even faster than a hard, flat, first serve.  The reasoning behind this is that most of the energy from the serve is converted into spin rather than pace.

The one visualization that I use to help me with the kicker is to think of the flight path of the ball as a parabola.  The server is the start point and the target (typically the backhand corner of the service box) is the end point.   

Visualizing a nice high arc of the ball going over the net combined with a faster swing on your serve may help you.

Parabola???     What are you an Engineer?   

[Tennis4you]

i would Also add that you need to keep your eyes on the ball.  Droping your head will cause a fair share of net balls.  Also make sure the toss is at a good height.

[dmastous]

i would Also add that you need to keep your eyes on the ball.  Droping your head will cause a fair share of net balls.  Also make sure the toss is at a good height.

You mean like this?

[monstertruck]

It takes a while.  I thought it took me a few years to get the kick to make some good movement.  I pretty much had to teach it to myself as well.

both edberg and sampras could hit great kick serves. it may not be a bad idea to take a quick look at some of their matches on hard courts.

that said, you are right. it does take some work.

I am teaching myself the kick serve as well, however I have encountered a huge hiccup, my serve does not clear the net, as often I would like, however when it does it does kick around 5'5 feet high on average, btw I am 5'9, I really cannot fathom how Edberg and Sampras can clear the net with so much clearance and still get the ball in with soooo much pace, especially Sampras.

I have read elsewhere that its possible to clear the net 4 to 6 feet and still the ball will land in the service box, ......HELP!!! I wouldn't mind learning that!!
 

Seems odd that your attempts at the kicker are ending up in the net.  Whenever I miss that serve it is always long or wide, never in the net. 

Theoretically, the kicker should clear the net by at least 4 feet or more.  My best guess without seeing you hit the serve is that you are not swinging fast enough.  Though the kicker is commonly used as a second serve, the swing speed needs to be as fast or even faster than a hard, flat, first serve.  The reasoning behind this is that most of the energy from the serve is converted into spin rather than pace.

The one visualization that I use to help me with the kicker is to think of the flight path of the ball as a parabola.  The server is the start point and the target (typically the backhand corner of the service box) is the end point.   

Visualizing a nice high arc of the ball going over the net combined with a faster swing on your serve may help you.

Parabola???     What are you an Engineer?   

No silly, I'm a clown!           
                                                   
                                                          
             

[OSU Buckeye]

Oh snap!  Dmast popping off the Todd Widham pic to show his point.................well done! 

[dmastous]

Oh snap!  Dmast popping off the Todd Widham pic to show his point.................well done! 

Wish I could do it that well. 

[pawan89]

I would like to add that you could perhaps try tossing the ball a little further back than you usually do. This exaggerates the brushing up effect. Actually this creates the brushing up on the ball because if you are tossing it in "front" of you, you are going to have to force yourself to go over the ball.

Also, I don't know what grip you are using but continental grip is what's "supposed" to be used (aka hammer grip I think). However, it doesn't hurt to twist the racqeut a little more so you have more of a eastern backhand grip (if such a thing exists - that type you hit a one handed backhand with minimal topspin with). This will also naturally brush up more.

Last but not least, a knee bend forward slash back bend backward will help you 1) watch the ball so you keep your head up through the hit 2) give you some lift so you can go UP onto the ball 3) give you some more racquet head speed.



here's a good link: http://tennis.com/yourgame/instructionarticles/serve/serve.aspx?id=529

[monstertruck]

I would like to add that you could perhaps try tossing the ball a little further back than you usually do. This exaggerates the brushing up effect. Actually this creates the brushing up on the ball because if you are tossing it in "front" of you, you are going to have to force yourself to go over the ball.

Also, I don't know what grip you are using but continental grip is what's "supposed" to be used (aka hammer grip I think). However, it doesn't hurt to twist the racqeut a little more so you have more of a eastern backhand grip (if such a thing exists - that type you hit a one handed backhand with minimal topspin with). This will also naturally brush up more.

Last but not least, a knee bend forward slash back bend backward will help you 1) watch the ball so you keep your head up through the hit 2) give you some lift so you can go UP onto the ball 3) give you some more racquet head speed.



here's a good link: http://tennis.com/yourgame/instructionarticles/serve/serve.aspx?id=529

Nice job pointing out some of the basic technical requirments Pawan!
Moving the toss further back is a must.
I hadn't really thought much about the knee bend/back arch, but that is a requirment for hitting the ball once you've tossed it behind you.
That's one of the reasons I love this forum.  It offers so many viewpoints of tennis.  I'm constantly learning new ways to look at all aspects of the game.