Basic Tennis Serve Tips

Having taught tennis clinics for years and spending my childhood as a ranked junior player, I realize the importance of the tennis serve. My students either got it right away or never caught on. Your tennis serve will make you or break you. Here's the basic rundown of one of the most important skills a tennis player can have.

Basic Tennis Serve Tip #1: Where to Stand

A right hander's left foot should be behind the baseline pointing towards the right net post. The right foot is a few inches behind the left, parallel to the baseline.

Basic Tennis Serve Tip #2: The Grip

The racquet's side should be facing you, not the strings. Pretend you're climbing a rope or shaking hands and place your palm on the upper right bevel of the racquet, but not on one of the flat sides. The thumb will be wrapped around the back of the racquet. This is called the Continental grip.

Basic Tennis Serve Tip #3: The Toss

Hold the ball with your opposite hand. Your thumb, index, and middle finger should lightly cradle the ball to the side or slightly below. Bring both hands to meet around the belly button, then lower your ball hand (not past your thigh) while your racquet hand dips. At this point your knees should slightly bend if you'd like more power.

Slowly raise your ball hand up and release your fingers as if a rose is blooming. Now your racquet hand is behind your head, pointing near the ground. The toss should be aimed at the opposite net post and about a foot in front of you.

Basic Tennis Serve Tip #4: The Contact

Extend your racquet hand above your head and this is where the point of contact should be made. Try to toss your ball higher than that though, so you have enough time to bring your racquet to this point. For a basic tennis serve, the racquet should meet the ball in the middle of the strings.

Basic Tennis Serve Tip #5: The Follow Through

After connecting with the ball, the racquet should swing down to the left of your legs (for a right hander). Practicing the tennis serve will perfect this skill.

Your right foot will slide across the baseline after you've hit the ball. Sliding your foot across the baseline before you hit the ball will result in a "foot fault" and a loss of one serve. Though this is an uncommon occurrence, try standing further away from the baseline if you are having problems with it.

There are different types of tennis serves, like the slice and topspin, but for beginners the basic serve will work well. Remember that your goal is to land your first serve in, so you won't have to use the second serve. But if need be, when hitting your second serve, it is best to take some power off of it, to ensure it goes in. Always remember to warm up before playing tennis, even for practice!