The tennis serve is the most important hit of the game.
Why?
Having an awesome tennis serve allows you to control the pace of the game. It also gives you the opportunity to win every point when you serve.
In this article we will be covering everything you need to know when it comes to how to serve in tennis like a pro!
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How to Serve in Tennis Like a Pro
The perfect serve in tennis is one that can cause your opponent to fumble or miss the return. This means what serve works well for one opponent may not have as high of a success rate for another. In order to get the perfect serve you need to be able to aim with accuracy and control your speed based on your opponents strengths and weaknesses.
There are 3 main types of serves including: slice serve, flat serve, and kick serve. Being able to do all three types of serves will give you multiple ways to serve in a way that it is difficult for your opponent to return.
Although it is not seen often…technically you can serve underhand in a tennis match.
Where should you stand when you serve in tennis?
When you are serving in tennis you need to stay behind the baseline. This is the same in singles and doubles.
The baseline goes straight across the back of the court.
Most tennis players will stand somewhere near the mid court dash.
This is helpful in singles because when the ball is returned, you are in a good position to reach just about anything that comes your way.
If you serve from the corner near the alley, you opponent can return it cross court and you will have a hard time getting there.
You can read more about doubles strategy here.
Proper Tennis Serve Stance
When you are serving a tennis ball your feet should start out parallel to the baseline.
You will want your feet about shoulder width apart. This may vary a bit from person to person.
Some may have a bit of a wider stance while others are a bit more narrow.
Your knees should be slightly bent or soft.
How to Toss a Tennis Ball for Serve
The toss is one of the most important parts of the tennis serve.
So what is the perfect toss?
This varies from one expert to the next.
I remember when I started playing tennis I was told my serve was not high enough.
It was always drove into my head the most powerful tennis serves were ones where the toss is high.
Still to this day…my toss is not that high. But you know what?
There are a lot of times my opponent can’t hit my serve and I think that is even more important then having a “high” toss.
Tennis Serve Toss Height
Ideally your tennis serve should be higher then if you were to hold up your racket vertically when your arm is outstretched.
This is about 22 inches give or take.
There are some people that have really high tosses and that works for them. There are also people with not so high tosses. Those can work as well.
The best thing you can do is go out on the court and experiment with your toss.
You should even practice tossing WITHOUT actually hitting the ball.
Throw the ball up in the air for your toss and see where it lands.
See what height feels right to you.
Really get comfortable with just tossing the ball into the air.
Making Contact with the Ball
Your racket should make contact with the ball while your arm is fully extended overhead.
After you make contact, make sure to follow through with the rest of the stroke as this will help get the ball where it needs to be.
Tennis Serve Placement
What are you aiming for when you are serving the tennis ball?
Obviously, the service box.
The service box is big though. You have lots of options.
In a perfect world you will want to be able to serve to your opponents weakness.
If they have a weak backhand. Serve for that. If they don’t do well with deep shots aim for the back corner.
In order to be able to hit serves where they need to be you need to have lots of practice so that you can do that with accuracy.
Try these tennis serving drills in order to improve your aim and accuracy with your serve.
Can you serve underhand in tennis?
Absolutely!
Legally you can serve underhand if you would like…however I am not quite sure why you would want to.
The rules in tennis state that the serve needs to be hit before the ball touches the ground (you can read more about that here.)
In all of my years of tennis play I have never hit an underhand serve…not even in practice.
It seems that you would get much less power and accuracy would be a bit off I would imagine.
However…would it through off your opponent?
Probably!
So if you are looking to make a tennis comeback and throw your opponent off the pace…I suppose you could try an underhanded serve to see what happens.
You can read more about tennis rules for beginners here.
Essential Tennis Slice Serve
I use a slice serve A LOT! Like I said earlier I don’t toss the ball super high and I find using a slice serve works well for me.
You can use a slice serve for either your first or second serve if you become efficient at it.
If you are not quite comfortable with your slice serve it may be something you just try out every now in then as part of your tennis strategy.
How to Do a Slice Serve in Tennis
When you are doing a slice serve you want to think about “brushing” the ball instead of just hitting it head on.
As you are bring down the racket to make contact with the ball you can flick your wrist to change the angle of you make contact with the ball.
If you are on the deuce side of the court you want to aim it towards the outer corner of the service box.
This will make your opponent chase the ball and have to leave their mid court position.
If you are on the add side of the court aim for the “T” of the court.
Tennis Serve Rules
There are a few rules when it comes to serving in tennis.
One of the best rules is not only do you get one serve…but you get two!
Of course you want to get your first serve in, but if you don’t you get a second try.
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Tennis Serve Let
If you serve and the ball grazes the net but still falls in bounds you can call a “let.”
This simply means you get to redo the point like it never happened.
If the serve grazes the net but falls out of bounds the point is over.
Calling out the Tennis Score
It is best practice to call out the serve for EVERY point. This helps everyone stay on track.
You do not want to forget the score and this is one of the best ways to prevent that from happening.
What is a foot fault in tennis?
A foot fault in tennis is when the server goes across the baseline or touches the baseline with their foot while serving.
You do not want to lose a point from a foot fault so make sure to pay attention to where you are standing when you serve the ball.
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Who can call a foot fault in tennis?
The receiver or the receiver’s partner can call a foot fault during a match.
You can read more about fair play in tennis HERE.
How to Hit a Consistent Second Serve
When you are learning how to serve better in tennis it is important to know that your second serve is just as important as your first serve.
Actually…maybe it is even more important because it is your last chance to get a serve in and win the point!
The goal with your second serve is to make sure it consistently gets in.
You NEVER want to miss a second serve.
You should practice your second serve along with your first serve.
Typically, second serves lack spin and power.
However, if you can do either of these things consistently then go for it on your second serve!
Just keep in mind that your goal is not to “win the point” with your serve. Your goal is to get the ball in the service box.
How to Practice Tennis Serve at Home
Your tennis toss is one of the EASIEST things to practice at home. You don’t even need your racket if you don’t want it.
Focus on tossing the ball up and letting land. This will help you experiment with different heights.
If you have a backyard or a place to actually hit a tennis ball you can practice your toss along with the actual hitting of the ball.
You could also mark off a spot to aim by using cones (like this) to help with your accuracy on the court.
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