Playing tennis you have no choice but to master the serve, it the one shot that you definitely must play. Above all other shots you must practice, practice and practice again with your tennis coach how to serve properly.
Every point starts with a serve, and unless you want to double fault every service you will have to come up with a way not just of getting the ball in play, but to also gain the initiative and put your opponent under pressure.
If you live in the Lavender Bay, Milsons Point, Kirrbilli or McMahons Point areas of Sydney then the best tennis club to book a court to practice your serve would be Tennis World North Sydney.
How To Serve In Tennis
Firstly get into the correct position, and it’s time to perform the actual serve. The goal is to hit the diagonally from where you stand into the opposite side’s service box. If you fail your first serve, it is called a fault, but if you fail in two attempts it is a double fault and you lose the point.
Nearly all players use the same service stance, which is a back foot that lies parallel with the baseline and a front foot at an angle at around 45 degrees. Different service techniques move the ball into different areas of the opponent’s side of the court, so you need to master all of them.
Before Each Service
It is a good idea to perform a ball bounce before you serve, this allows you to get your grip correct while you get a feel for the ball and the bounce. Whilst you are bouncing the ball bring it to your racket face before you deliver the service.
Types Of Serves
There are four types of serves:- Flat Serve, Slice Serve, Topspin Serve and Kick Serve.
- Flat Serve
The most powerful of the four options, and the easiest to learn, as you do not have to consider spin. This will most likely be your first tennis serve and the other options are variants of this.
This serve leaves little time for your opponent to react, it is also a chance to get some easy points and you will reserve energy.
- Slice Serve
Similar to a flat serve, but you hit the ball slightly different. But instead concentrating on power the ball bounces low and can either move toward the outside of the court or into the opponent’s body.
The benefits of this serve is that it is fairly easy to learn, can keep your opponent guessing and can throw your opponent out of the court causing an awkward return.
- Topspin Serve
This is a disguised shot that travels straight like a flat serve but bounces really high, which gives you time to prepare for your second shot. It is also the more reliable and consistent of the four serves as it generally goes over the net.
The advantages of the topspin serve is it gives you a lot of time to approach the net, and is very consistent.
- The Kick Serve
This is the hardest serve to master, it is a sort of mix between a topspin serve and a slice kick. It has a combination of topspin, backspin, as well as side spin, so if you can get to grips with this serve you have a devastating weapon at your disposal.
The ball bounces high, moving away from the opponent, and changes direction when it hits the ground. It is highly effective against inexperienced players and is extremely hard to return.
Try to master and train hard to be able to perform all four serves well. Having a top, varied serve, will give you an advantage to put your opponent under pressure, and amount points early on in the match.