Serving Rhythm
and Serving Stances

Nick Wheatley

In the last article on serving rhythm we saw how the serve--as with the other strokes-- could be divided into two phases. The first is a slower more deliberate Phase 1, followed by an explosive Phase 2.

The transition point between the phases is with the tossing arm extended and the legs coiled, the point at which the player is ready to launch outward and upward to the ball. (Click Here.)

In this article, let's take our analysis a step further. Let's see how the development of 1-2 Rhythm is related to the two major types of serving stances--the pinpoint and the platform.

My view is that a platform stance makes it easier for players to move through Phase 1. I also believe the platform stance can add to the overall explosiveness of Phase 2 because it facilitates greater body turn.

Definitions

Stance is one of the most debated issues in coaching, teaching, and playing. Obviously there are great servers using both pinpoint and platform stances. So let's start by clarifying what we mean by each and also identifying some of the variations.

To put it most simply: In Phase 1, pinpoint players slide the rear foot forward and to their right. Platform players keep the rear foot in place until the uncoiling of the legs starts in Phase 2.

But there are variations in both types. Pinpoint players vary widely in starting stance. They vary in the length and timing of the back foot slide. And they vary in the timing of the slide in relation to coiling of the legs, the extension of the tossing arm and the time the player reaches the trophy position.

Juan Martin DelPotro for example has a fairly narrow stance and a moderate amount of slide. At the end of Phase 1, with his tossing arm extended and his legs fully coiled, his racket reaches the classic trophy position.

John Isner is at the other end of the spectrum. He has an extremely wide stance and slides his back foot substantially further than DelPotro. At the completion of Phase 1, his racket is lagging and is still to his side, substantially short of the trophy position checkpoints.

For platform servers the variations are probably less extreme. The positioning of the feet in the starting stance can be wider or narrower, and the angle of the backfoot to the baseline can also vary. Like the pinpoint players, the timing of the tossing arm extension and the coiling of the legs can also vary in relation to the trophy position. Roger Federer starts with a slightly narrower stance than Novak Djokovic. He is also closer to the trophy position with his arm and racket than Novak who, like Isner has substantial lag.

Andy Roddick starts with the feet much closer together than either Federer or Djokovic. Of the three he is also the latest to the trophy position.

Results

Does any of this make a difference? Let's look at how the stances correlate with results at the pro level. On the men's tour, a larger percentage of the top hundred players use the pinpoint, but a high percentage of the most successful players use platform. Looking at Grand Slam champions in the men's game over the last 13 years, half of all those players used platform. If we remove the French Open where the serve has the least impact, the percentage goes up to over 60%.

And let's also note that two of the greatest servers in the history of the game from the previous era, Pete Sampras and John McEnroe, both used platform stances. Between them they won 20 Slam titles.

On the women's side the overwhelming majority of all top players serve with a pinpoint stance. Many use very extreme versions, actually sliding the back foot past the front at the completion of the loading.

But Serena Williams, arguably the greatest women's server of all time, uses a stance with less foot movement than the majority of women pros, reaching the transition point with her feet basically in line. And interestingly Justine Henin who had a great serve despite her size, served with a platform that she modelled on video of Pete Sampras. (Click Here to see her serve in the Interactive Forum.)

Timing

So what are the implications of the stance differences in terms of developing rhythm? One the most interesting findings in the first article was the duration of the two phases.

The duration of Phase 1 was longer but could vary substantially from player to player, from a little less than a half to a little less than a full second. The duration of Phase 2 was shorter, but did not significantly vary.

It was virtually identical from player to player at a little more than a third of a second. As Brian Gordon and John Yandell have demonstrated, the overwhelming majority of the racket speed is generated in this second phase. (Click Here.)

I think the timing of the Phases says something. I believe that the simpler platform stances are more conducive to having a smooth and deliberate rhythm during the longer Phase 1. The additional moving parts and additional motion for player's using a pinpoint make Phase 1 more complex and difficult to coordinate.

This is because with the pinpoint stances, the back foot is moving up to several feet during Phase 1. But the back foot affects the movement of the hips and shoulders as well. And this adds additional complexity.

As the back foot moves to the players right the back hip naturally moves in that direction as well. Now if the player tries to turn his shoulders away from the court for more body coil, that shoulder movement is in the opposite direction of the movement of the back foot and back hip.

The body to some extent appears to be working against itself. All this makes it more difficult to develop the feeling of being relaxed, deliberate and smooth.

Watch this conflicting motion when John Isner turns his shoulders away from the ball. Obviously it's hard to argue with the resulting delivery when it comes to Isner.

But the difficulty of mastering the complexity of these movements, when trying to build rhythm, may explain why the pinpoint servers typically have far less body rotation. Even at the world class level, many fail to turn their shoulders past perpendicular to the net.

Obviously it's hard to criticize Isner's serve, but his motion is complex and in my opinion a very difficult model for the huge majority of players. You have to wonder how fearsome his delivery would actually be with a platform stance similar to Federer or Pete Sampras.

In my view, for pinpoint servers the less distance the back foot travels the better. If you look at Samantha Stosur, for example, technically she has a pinpoint stance since the back foot moves.

But look where it stops. In a position typical of the great platform servers. Click Here for more video of here serve in the Interactive Forum.

Conclusions

I've always believed platform stances to be the better option for players of all levels, due to the ease of attaining deliberate smoothness during the set up phase and building 1-2 rhythm. This makes possible a more reliable serve.

Currently there are 5 platform servers and 5 pinpoint servers in the top 10. A look at their career serving percentages is suggestive. The platform players are averaging over 63% as a group, with Novak Djokovic leading the way at 67%. The pinpoint servers are averaging 61%, but two, Stan Wawrinka and Tomas Berdych, are hovering at about 55%.

The highest percentage server iin the top 10 is Nadal who has a pinpoint. Not known for using the serve as a weapon, his first serve percentage is over 70%. Take him out of the average and the pinpoint servers as a group drop to 59%.

The platform stance is by far the simplest and most stable stance for the set-up phase of the serve. With neither foot adjusting position during the set-up phase, it becomes easier and more natural to reach the critical transition point between the phases.

For most players, a slightly narrower less extreme platform stance than Roger or Novak is a great place to start. You can experiment with more extreme variations from there. Check out one version of how to do this in John Yandell's article on stance in his new serve series. (Click Here.)

A platform stance also naturally facilitates body turn. In the windup the body naturally turns away from the ball along a line across the toes, with the hips and shoulders moving in the same direction.

You can see and actually feel this when you watch Roger Federer. The motion looks tremendously smooth in Phase 1 and highly explosive in Phase 2. And effortless throughout. It's is a gorgeous example of 1-2 serving rhythm.