Finally...my serve video (in quicktime pro format)

[mdhubert]

One problem I see and I work on currently on my serve as well, is to reach the maximum knee bend, the trophy position and the apex of the toss (for the ball) at the same time. It looks you reach trophy position before your max knee bend, so you're forced to do a pause in your trophy pos., and that reduces your momentum and fluidity in the serve. Maybe should you use a more pendulum-like arm backswing like recommended by John.

[gzhpcu]

Looks good to me, if anything just a bit too much of an upper body left lean, and not going up forward and into the ball.

[evikshin]

Thanks for watching

Thanks everybody for your helpful comments.

I will upload a video later of me serving with a more forward ball toss.

The leftward ball toss seems to give me more consistency. If I throw it left, and not too far out in front, it forces me to hit up on the ball, rather than forward and down. I get more a hybrid power/spin serve.

I may go back to a more conventional toss.

warmly

Evan

[maverick1]

Thanks everybody for your helpful comments.

I will upload a video later of me serving with a more forward ball toss.

The leftward ball toss seems to give me more consistency. If I throw it left, and not too far out in front, it forces me to hit up on the ball, rather than forward and down. I get more a hybrid power/spin serve.

I may go back to a more conventional toss.

warmly

Evan

FWIW, I actually liked the left toss and the left lean. Based upon my limited obsevration, pretty much all pros do it, and the good servers do it more. (Edit)See Sampras here(leftmost in a row of 3 pictures near the middle of the article):

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/tour_strokes/john_yandell/sampras_serve/sampras_serve_tossingarm_part3_pg1_images/sampras_serve_tossingarm_part3_pg1.html

I am trying to do this myself now. I was surprised to find that it did improve consistency of my toss also. That is just am incidental benefit. The real reasons I am trying to learn it:

1. Injury prevention. This motion allows the left/right shoulders and elbow to be in one line without sidearming the ball or bending the elbow too much. If you toss it to the right, I don't see how you can get the left shoulder much below the right shoulder.

2. With the left lean, the abs seem to come into play and deliver some of the power

[gzhpcu]

Agree about the benefits of the left lean, what I meant was more that it seems that how you do it tends to throw you a bit off balance. Otherwise great racket drop and wrist movement.

[evikshin]

New Serve video (new toss)

Hi all,

Here is the latest video of me hitting a serve. This time, the toss is more out in front, and not quite as far left, though it is still somewhat left.

John pointed out that i wasn't landing inside the baseline on the last video. So I'm trying something different here.

Thanks for all ur advice guys,

Evan

[gzhpcu]

Evan,
Looks good to me. You have better balance. Very nice serve!

[johnyandell]

Email it to me again, please.

[evikshin]

Phil: thanks again for checking it out!

John, I resent you the video. I also sent another video of me with a slightly different toss.

warmly,

Evan