A New Teaching System: Serve: Progressive Development

[johnyandell]

Would love to get your thoughts on my latest article, "A New Teaching System: Serve: Progressive Development"

[klacr]

Awesome series and congratulations of this teaching system. Very helpful for many of my students.

This video is where the rubber meets the road. Amazing how many players are great when aimlessly practicing serves into the corresponding service box. The technique looks good, but when you had a few stipulations...pressure paralyzes.
Progressive development will take some time but is really the only true test to making sure our students are meeting and exceeding not only the coaches goals for them, but their own expectations and aspirations for their game.
A true test for a specific stroke and its corresponding technique is to put it under fire with games, tasks and eventually points. Great technique shouldn't break down.

Kudos to Scott Murphy for serving and volleying on that very first point.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[johnyandell]

Doesn't surprise me you liked that one Kyle!

[GeoffWilliams]

The difficulty level of volleying is far higher than grinding. IT's always a gamble. If you wait until you only have an easy shot, you are going to be waiting a long time to come in. If you only come in when you've hurt them, you often are too late, and now have a harder volley than you would have if you'd gambled. Any volley can be missed. The ball has not slowed down and you have 2/3 the court to react to. No one likes getting crushed after a pop up. Few have strong enough serves to guarantee sitters. Ghost ins are not common.

The smart volleyer/all court players:

Have a deadly kick/twist high to the bh that cannot be run around to the ad side.

Have a fake twist down the middle.

Don't only serve seconds to the bh.

Ghost in off high spinners to the bh.

Ghost in when they accidentally hit a good shot.

Have a drop volley and know when to use it.

Have a shot they can draw in folks who cannot transition nor volley well.

Close in off drops.

Have a very good back pedal over head.


Approach down the line unless the cc is 30% more open.

Notice when the opp. can only slice their bh return or passes.

Use the return off seconds to approach dtl.

Notice when the opp. is using seconds as firsts.

Play inside the base line against pushers who hit with slice short.

[gzhpcu]

John, I used to do these drills regularly some years back. For some reason I stopped doing them.
Glad you came up with the video, it has motivated me to take them up again.

[johnyandell]

Phil,
Keep me posted on what you find.