Going Up!
by: Mark Winship @ In Touch Tennis

The way in which we put the ball up to serve is by far the most important part of the service action. Most players and coaches refer to it as the 'toss' or 'throw-up'. Don't be one of them! These are very bad descriptions of what is actually required. Better words would be 'placement' or even 'push-up'.

Improving your service placement can be a frustrating process. As a coach, I am unable to address other aspects of the service technique until I am convinced that the ball placement is reliable. Without a reliable placement it is difficult to determine whether variations in the action are due to technical flaws or simply because the player is chasing their wild ball toss around the court. Common symptoms include a toss that is flicked with the fingers and pulled over the head or a toss that is released too early and spilled out too far into the court.

Try to view your placement like a lift in an office building. The ball needs to be taken smoothly (with a straight arm) from the ground floor (by the knee of your leading leg) to the top floor (in-line with your eyes). You should not release the ball before the escalator reaches the top floor. This should give you a full, reliable placement and grant you the freedom to address other areas of your service action.