THE SERVICE - THE OPENING SHOT IN TENNIS.

The serve is the opening shot in tennis. It is putting the ball in play. The old thought was that the service was never  more than merely the beginning of a rally. With the rise of American tennis and the rise of Dwight Davis and Holcombe Ward, the serve took on a new significance. These two men originated what is now known as the American Twist delivery. The founder of tennis' Davis Cup, Dwight Davis was born in St. Louis. He was one of his era's best players and won several titles while at Harvard.

While the serve or service began as a mere formality, the serve became a point winner. Slowly it gained in importance, until Maurice E. M'Loughlin, also known as the "California Comet," burst across the tennis sky with the first of those cannon-ball deliveries that revolutionized the game, and caused the old-school players to send out calls for a severe footfault rule or some way of stopping the threatened destruction of all ground strokes. M'Loughlin made service a huge factor in the game. It was't until R. N. Williams stood in on the delivery and took the ball on the rise that the serve was returned to it's position of importance, not omnipotence.

The serve should be delivered with speed. Yet speed is not the be-all and end-all. The serve must be accurate, reliable, and varied. It must be used with discretion and served with brains.

A tall player has an advantage over a short one, in the service department. Simple geometry shows that a hard flat serve hit by a person six foot tall has about 8 inches of the service box surface in which the ball can fall. This is assuming the person is contacting the ball at about three feet above the head. A person like Evo Karlovic who starts out at six feet ten inches has not just ten more inches, but also considering longer arms is probably striking the ball at around 10 1/2 feet rather than the approximate 9 feet given in our example of a 6 foot person. Without getting too technical, let's look at the illustration to the left of serving from 9 feet compared to 10 1/2 feet. It is easy to see a taller person has more of the service box to hit into.

Given a person about 6 feet and allowing for about 3 feet to be added by the reach, if that results in  only a margin of 8 inches of the service court in which the ball can possibly fall, it is easy to see how important it is to use some form of twist or spin to bring the ball down into the court. Not only must it go into the court, but it must be sufficiently fast that the receiver does not have an opportunity for an easy kill shot. It must also be placed so as to allow the server an advantage for his next return, assuming the receiver puts the ball in play.

Just as the first rule of receiving is to, put the ball in play, so the first rule of the serve is to cause the receiver to fail to return the serve or to at least return it weakly. Aces are always good, but the main purpose of your serve is to upset the ground strokes of your opponent.

The serve should be hit from as high a point as the server can COMFORTABLY reach. To stretch unnecessarily is both wearing on the server and can be counter-productive. Timing is critical so if you are trying a new technique be aware that you may have to adjust your timing a little to account for changes in form. Varied pace and varied speed is the keynote to a good service.

The slice serve is one of the easiest serves to learn.  Position yourself more to the right of the mid court line to have a better angle. You can even stand half-way between the mid court line and the sideline. In doubles, many players stand out in the doubles alley.

The use of a continental grip can help impart a slice naturally. Toss the ball in front and little to the right. Experiment to find the right place. The ball should be hit from a point above the right shoulder and as high as possible.


Imagine a clock face on the ball and try to hit the ball from left to right (or from 9 to 3). Continue your movement forward with the edge of the racket going forward. Try to get about fifty percent forward motion with about fifty percent right to left motion as the racket contacts the ball. The spin imparted on the ball will cause it to curve in the air, moving from your right to your left, assuming you are right handed. If you are left handed, the stroke will be from right to left and the spin will be the opposite, which can really fluster right handers.
 
Just like any new stroke or technique, it will take practice to perfect.
 
I will review other types of serves and ground strokes in future postings.
 
Get out there and play!
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For more tennis tips, I highly recommend WebTennis.net.
Brent Abel has a great tennis tip video blog!
Follow the link below to get your complimentary weekly video tips.
http://www.netofficetoolbox.com/app/?af=1082619
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The Basics: How Do We Get Started?

The Fundamentals of Tennis

Let's begin by talking about equipment, particularly your shoes and racket. The best tennis equipment is not too good for the beginner who wants to really succeed. It can be a savings in the long run, as good quality equipment usually far outlasts lesser quality items. For example, when I purchased my first modern tennis racket, I spent about fifteen dollars at a discount store. It lasted about a week before the frame broke during a stroke.

I would also recommend that you dress in tennis clothes when engaging in tennis. Tennis clothes are designed to allow freedom of movement and proper ventilation by wicking perspiration away from the body. Selection of tennis clothes is primarily a matter of personal style and brand preference, however selection of a racket is a much more critical matter. I do not advocate a certain racket for any player. All the standard brands are excellent. What matters is the weight, balance and size of the handle that are most important. Of course, good quality strings and stringing are essential to obtain the best results. A racket that is perfectly matched to your physical features can produce poor results if the string tension is way off.

Once you have acquired your racket, make sure you use good tennis balls, as a regular bounce will go a long way as you strive to improve your game.

If you really want to succeed at the game and advance rapidly, I strongly recommend that you see all the good tennis you can. Study the play of the leading players and try to copy their strokes. Beginning with sound fundamentals is as important in tennis as any other sport. If you can start out by taking lessons from a tennis pro, that will help you advance more quickly, but there are other ways you can get started if your budget is more limited. Read all the tennis instruction books you can find. There are also tennis pros that produce excellent instructional tips and videos that are pretty reasonable.

While there is no replacement for match play, a great deal can be learned off the court, in the study of theory, and in watching the best players in action. Play whenever possible, and try to incorporate the theories you have read about or the strokes you have watched.

Don't be discouraged if at first the progress seems slow. For example, when I first started teaching the game to my wife, she picked up on topspin with the forehand stroke pretty quickly, but the backhand was a whole different matter. No matter how many times I encouraged her, the backhand produced a slice shot. A slice shot is basically one which has backspin and is produced when the racket strikes the ball in a downward motion causing the ball to spin backwards. Now don't get me wrong, the backspin or slice has it's uses in tennis, especially as a change of pace, but it is not as effective on a regular basis as a shot with topspin that accelerates through the court. Anyway, my wife struggled for a long time trying to come over the ball with the backhand, and thanks to her perseverance, she now has an awesome backhand with great placement.

Tennis is a game that pays dividends all your life. A tennis racket is like a letter of introduction in any town. The brotherhood of the game is universal. Tennis provides relaxation, excitement, exercise, and pure enjoyment to the person who gets involved. Age is not a drawback. Tennis is a game for life.

The following order of development produces the quickest and most lasting results:

1. Concentration on the game.

2. Keep your eye on the ball. Probably the most fundamental element of the game is to keep your eye on the ball until at least the point of contact. Leading professionals like Roger Federer can be seen still looking at the point of contact even a second or so after the ball has left the racket. Some people will say watch the ball into your racket. The important point is that if you start mishitting balls, this is probably where the problem is. It's that important.

3. Foot-work and weight-control. Tennis is a game of inches and using little adjusting steps to get yourself in just the right spot to execute a shot is another critical part of the game. Now when I mention weight-control, I am not talking about weight loss. I am talking about balance. You want to move on the court so as to keep your body in balance at all times. Again, this is part of the reason for little steps as exposed to big lunging steps.

When asked about the most important tips he could give other tennis players, Andre Agassi said "Keep your eye on the ball and move your feet."

4. Strokes. There are four primary strokes in tennis; the Serve, the Forehand, the Backhand and the Volley.

5. Court position. Being in the right place at the right time can make a huge difference between a win or a loss.

6. Court generalship or match play. Applying the previous principals and techniques.

7. Tennis psychology. I am not necessarily talking about psyching your opponent out, although that can be a part of the game. What I am talking about is your own level of confidence and belief. A belief that you can win and a refusal to lose will result in a winning form.

8. Concentration. While playing tennis is intended to be fun and relaxing, it is important to concentrate on the fundamentals while trying to master them. It can seem overwhelming at first, but the more you play and practice the quicker you will improve.

Tennis is played primarily with the mind. The most perfect racket technique in the world will not assure a victory if you let your mind wander while playing. There are many causes of a wandering mind during a tennis match. The main one is a lack of interest in the game. No one should play tennis with an idea of real success unless he or she cares sufficiently about the game. You have to be willing to put in the work and practice to learn the game correctly. Don't even start unless you are willing to work at it. Conditions such as wind, or noises in the surroundings often cause even experience match-players to let their concentration slip. Complete concentration on the matter at hand is the only cure for a wandering mind, and the sooner the lesson is learned the more rapid the improvement of the player.

The surest way to keep your concentration up is to play for every set, every game in the set, every point in the game and, finally, every shot in the point. A set is merely a conglomerate of made and missed shots. I like to focus on each point as if that is the only important point in the match. Once that point is over, win or lose, forget it. The next point is the most important point in the match.

Check back for my comments on the Serve!

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For more tennis tips, I highly recommend WebTennis.net.

Brent Abel has a great tennis tip video blog!

Follow the link below to get you complimentary weekly video tips.

http://www.netofficetoolbox.com/app/?af=1082619

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