Understanding Andy Roddick’s Serve Part 2: Page 2

From Different to Similar

So we have spent a lot of time going over the video and seeing the differences in Andy’s motion and how they may contribute to his racket speed. Now let’s look at the moment of truth–the contact point. What we see may surprise you.

If we look at the still images of Andy’s contact point and compare them to Pete, they look surprisingly similar. In fact, with a couple of exceptions (see below) you’d be hard pressed to tell any major differences.

Andy and Pete in the Deuce court (left) and the Ad court (right). How they get there couldn’t be more different, but the contact points are surprisingly similar.

Look at the ball on the left to right axis. We can see that both players are making contact at very close to the same position. This is further to his left than we might suspect for Roddick, somewhat to the left of a line drawn up from the hitting shoulder. Note also the angle of the racket, tilted about 20 degrees to the player’s left. This is an indication that there is a topspin component in the delivery as the racket face is crossing the…