Serving
Hi PingSkills,
I am currently using the pendulum serve as my main service. It's quite good now as it has lots of sidespin on it. But as my friends will surely get used to receiving the serve one day, I want to vary the spin and the placement of the serve. So how can I make it side-top and side-under? Also, my serve is currently traveling cross-court. I want it to go down the line but I can't. How can I do this?
Hi Viet,
It is great you are doing the Pendulum serve well.
To get different types of spin you need to change the angle of your racket and hit the ball at slightly different times in your swing. If you hit it early in your swing the racket will be moving downwards and generate backspin. If you hit it later in the swing, then the racket will be going up and will generate topspin.
We have a full explanation and video in our Serving Secrets lessons.
Question actions
The kicker serve is one of our "must learn" serves. It's fast, fun, and has lots of topspin. It can be dangerous because if it's not fast enough and if you don't surprise your opponent then they may be able to attack it forcefully putting you on the defensive straight away. Used well though, and sparingly, it can be a great weapon. It can win you a point outright and it will stop your opponent from standing over the table waiting for your short serves since they need to be ready for anything.
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Viet Dang Xuan Posted 2014-08-10 08:58:05
Hi Alois,
Thanks for the useful tips. So how can I let it go down the line?
For down the line you can again alter the angle of your racket. It really is a subtle change. The best way to do it that will be most efficient is to place some targets on the table where you want the ball to go. The body will adjust automatically.
Viet Dang Xuan Posted 2014-08-10 08:58:05
Thank you very much