Learning and Perfecting the Serve: Part 1

The basic serve is the easiest shot to learn.

The serve is the easiest stroke to learn but the hardest to perfect. That statement may come as a surprise. You may think that the serve is difficult to learn due to the challenge of coordinating the actions of the ball toss with the racket swing. But I believe that the basic serve is actually the easiest stroke to learn, for many reasons.

The serving motion is essentially the same as throwing a ball. In tennis, you just throw the racket, not the ball. In fact, a great way for beginners to start learning the serve is to first throw a ball, but to do this while imitating the service motion and balance.

On the serve, you can take your time, nobody is rushing you. You can set up in the proper starting position, checking to ensure that the positioning of the feet and racket and the starting weight distribution are all correct.

The toss gives you control over the point of contact.

Through the correct toss of the ball, you have control over the point of contact. Unfortunately, many players, when they toss poorly, “chase” and swing at the errant…