Technical and Anatomical Analysis of Reilly Opelka's Serve
Chris Lewit
Reilly Opelka: one of the tallest servers in tennis with one of the biggest serves.
Reilly Opelka is one of the biggest servers on the ATP Tour--and he is also one of the biggest players, standing at 6' 11'' tall. I have followed his career closely since he was a junior and spent a week closely observing his game a few years back at a USTA training camp.
The tennis serve is a complex biomechanical movement utilizing both the upper and lower body. In this article, I will analyze the serve movements during three main phases of the motion: Start to Power Position (Setup), Power Position to Contact (Acceleration), and Contact to Landing (Deceleration).
These stages build on the research of Mark Kovacs and Todd Ellenbecker and their excellent study on the 8 Stage (3 Phase) Serve Model. I highly recommend this study for those who want to brush up on their serve biomechanics.
And you can see more high speed footage of Reilly from an amazing overhead view in the High Speed Archive. (Click Here.)
Chris Lewit is a leading high-performance coach, author, and educator. He is the
author of the best-selling book, The Secrets of Spanish Tennis, and a new technique
book, Winning Pretty, which will be published by New Chapter Press in paperback in
2025. Secrets of Spanish Tennis, Second Edition will be published in September 2024,
also by New Chapter Press. He is also a contributing editor for Tennisplayer.net
magazine and a long-time member of the USPTA and PTR. As an educator, he has
presented at several large conferences including the PTR International Tennis
Symposium. Chris is currently studying kinesiology and biomechanics and headed for
graduate school in that field.
As a player, Chris Lewit played No. 1 for Cornell University and competed on the
USTA and ITF pro circuits. As a coach, he has recently worked with several No. 1 junior
players in the US and has trained hundreds of nationally ranked juniors. He directs a
full-time academy for homeschool/online players and a high performance summer camp
program, as well as high performance training for all ages and levels, all at his
club in the beautiful green mountains of Manchester, Vermont. Contact Chris directly by
phone/WhatsApp 914-462-2912 or chris@chrislewit.com.
Tennisplayer Forum
Let's Talk About this Article!
Share Your Thoughts with our Subscribers and Authors!
