Things You'll Need:
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Step 1
-- Position & Footwork --
Position your feet on the base line of the tennis court. Position yourself close to the center of the court for singles and wider for doubles. Keep in mind, if you touch the ball while touching the baseline or the court (in-play) it is a fault. The serve is one of the most challenging strokes to hit in all of tennis. My tip, visualize throwing a tennis ball over the net and into the diagonal tennis box. The same motion used to throw is a similar motion used to hit the serve. Footwork is critical in any shot in tennis. I don't care how good your strokes are...if you aren't position or ready to hit a shot, what good are your wonderful, fluid strokes? I will speak from a "right-handed" perspective. Place your left foot diagonally aligned to the baseline. Your foot should be approximately 2-4" from the baseline. Your legs should be slightly bent. Your right foot should be a few inches from your left heel. Keep in mind, the more your right foot points toward the front of the court, the better chance you will hit a flatter serve or serve it wide left. -
Step 2
Continental Grip-- Racquet Grip --
You will use a grip which will sound crazy at first, but it works. If you are not familiar with tennis grips, there are several kinds: 1)Western; 2) Eastern; 3)Continental. Some will debate what truly defines one grip over another but in general...the Wester in used for the backhand stroke, the Eastern is used for the forehand stroke, and the continental is used for serving, overheads and volleying. Let's explain the grip. Hold the racquet directly in front of you (if you were to drop the racquet, it would be perpendicular to the ground. Place your right hand on the face of the racquet and slide your hand down until your hand is on the lower part of the handle. Twist your racquet slightly to the right. This is the continental grip. Your knuckle should align with one of the angled planes on the handle. -
Step 3
The Toss
The method I employ is finding a stationary vertical target that I will use as a guide for elevating the tennis ball. I typically use the tennis post. It is always there and will not move. Notice I did not say "toss." I want you to treat the tennis ball like an egg. You don't wrap your big mitts around an egg like you are going to crush it...this is a soft, gentle four-fingered cradle for the tennis ball. Keep your left arm completely straight. Bring your left arm up, following the tennis post...when the ball reaches eye-level, "release" the ball. Some argue a ball toss should be high so that you are sure to reach as high as you can to hit it. Others say it's a bad idea because on a windy day, the ball will blow off-course. I do not like a very short toss because people have the tendency to drop their shoulders and swing without reaching up for the ball. Consistency is the key. I like a medium height toss (a few feet over my head). You want the ball to travel high enough so that if you are on your tippy-toes, with your racquet reaching as high as possible...you will have the ball a foot higher. This provides some slack time if your timing is off a bit on a bad day. Do not hold the bottom of the ball...hold the side of the ball. I only touch the tennis ball with my pinky, index finger, ring finger, and thumb. -
Step 4
-- Striking the Ball --
As the ball is tossed with your left hand, your right hand should be making the throwing motion (using the continental grip). The grip is loose and able to swing around in your hand. This provides additional power, when you got to "snap" at the ball. When you attempt to make contact with the ball...your right arm should be fully extended up. You will be reaching as high as you can. Keep your left arm up after tossing the ball. This deters dropping your front shoulder which creates a downward motion directing the ball into the net. At first, when practicing the continental grip, you will notice shanking the ball off the frame, mis-hits, fanning on the ball toss, etc. This is normal. When you are about to strike the ball, your wrist needs to turn itself from instead of facing the side of the court...facing the front of the court. Very slowly, go through the motion...you will see that if you attempt to hit the ball without turning your wrist, your racquet is facing the left side of the court. You need to turn the racquet face ("the strings") toward your target. Tennis can be over-complicated at times...keep it simple...whereever the racquet face is aiming, that's where the ball is going. As you can tell by now...I have not told you about jumping into the ball to gain better leverage or a "head-start" if you are a person playing serve-and-volley or doubles. Let's start with the fundamentals, then I can go into more advanced moves. -
Step 5
-- Follow-through --
After striking the ball, DO NOT bring your racquet down past your right hip. Instead, follow through across your body. Have you ever seen a major league baseball pitcher throw a pitch and follow directly down with their hand...NO! Follow through across your body to experience the maximum momentum and force. Your natural inertia should carry your feet onto the court...led by your right foot. Be sure, if your a baseliner, to hop back with using your stutter step so you are prepared to hit a ground stroke. If you are a serve and vollier...be sure to use the inertia to give you a running head start when approaching the net before performing your stutter step. -
Step 6
-- Review --
Position yourself diagonally on the baseline, use a continental grip, raise the ball up the tennis post (using it as a guide), release the ball slightly over your maximum reach on your toes and with the racquet extended. Swing the tennis racquet like you were throwing a football or baseball...modified however...you are reaching higher to "throw" the tennis ball with the racquet. Don't forget to follow through and prepare for the return shot.
Comments
pnstlion said
on 10/2/2009 Very nice! No doubt I can improve my tennis serve with these tips, which really isn't saying much.