How to stop worrying about your serve
The serve is the most important shot in tennis, so it’s normal to worry about it. Here’s how you can banish the anxiety and learn to love serving…
There are lots of reasons why beginners and even experienced players worry about their serve.
The overarm motion is a tricky, unnatural action and the margin for error is small. Double faults can be embarrassing and demoralising in a way that other mistakes aren’t. It’s common for players to dread their turn coming round in a game of doubles, afraid of letting down their partner with double faults or setting them up as a sitting duck at the net.
But don’t forget, serves are also brilliant. They’re the only shot in the game that you’re in complete control of. You can decide when the point starts and how you want to initiate it. And how cool is it when you hit that corker of a serve and it doesn’t come back?
Worrying about serving should never be a barrier to enjoying tennis, so here’s how to turn your serve into your new favourite shot…
When practicing...
1. Practice the right things
Think about how many forehands you’ve hit in your tennis life, compared to the serve. My guess it’s at least ten times more. So it’s no wonder if your serving isn’t up to the same standard as your groundstrokes.
But you can do something about it…
Embrace solo practice. Make a virtue of the fact that the serve is the only shot you can really practice on your own. Find a time to take a bucket of balls up to the court (a lot of clubs have a basketful available to borrow), put out some targets (a drinks bottle and a jumper will do) and start hitting.
Keep solo practice fun. I get it, serving a load of balls can be boring. But it only needs to be ten minutes here and there. Little mental games and personal challenges can make it more fun, more targeted and even create a bit of game pressure. (For example, you can ‘play a set’ against yourself: you get two serves each side, and if you get one in then you score a point (15-0). If you then double fault your imaginary opponent scores (15-15), and so on. See if you can win the virtual ‘set’.)
Practice your whole serve routine. Everyone should have a serve ritual, typically: a certain number of ball bounces, some big deep breaths in and out and a visualisation of where you want to hit it. In practice, make a point of sticking with the same rhythm, so you’re not doing anything different to a match situation.
Include serving in your fun hits with friends. Start off your friendly rallies with serves rather than just underarm feeding – not necessarily to get it in the box, but to get into the habit of the ball toss and overarm serving action
Throw stuff. Even when you don’t have a racquet in your hand you can do things to help your serve. Chucking a ball for a dog or playing catch with your children with the overarm serve hitting action can really help your muscle memory, strength and racquet speed.
You can also practice the ball toss, which is actually one of the most common things to go wrong in a serve. But be aware that you need to repeat the whole action with a racquet in your hand to get effective ball toss practice. Just lobbing a ball up and down in your throwing hand isn’t going to do much: it’s the full coordination and balance of the whole motion you need to get right.
However, remember that it’s critical to practice the right things, not just groove the wrong habits. So if serving technique is an issue for you, I strongly advise taking some lessons before you spend hours practicing...
2. Invest in your second serve
Your second serve is more important than your first. It’s not as fun and you won’t get many scorching aces, but there’s a saying in tennis that you’re only as good as your second serve. The best players in the world, like Djokovic and Serena, will only get about 55% of their first serves in on a good day. They need to rely on their second serve.
A reliable second serve will help you stop worrying about double faults, and will enable you to enjoy letting loose with your first serve. But what you really want is a second serve that’s not just reliable (goes in most of the time), but is actually good. It should be a positively hit shot, with the same energy as your first serve, just a different technique to increase the percentage. That usually means lots more spin, rather than just a slower, more cautious version of your flat first serve.
A good second serve is a slightly different technique to your first, so it’s worth investing in lessons with a tennis coach to teach you how to do it properly.
During matches...
So that’s practicing. But what about during an actual game, when you get an attack of the serving jitters? Here are some tips for in-game serve confidence…
3. Embrace the serve
Think of the serve as a positive opportunity - it’s a way for you to get on top of the point straight away.
Never go into a serve only thinking ‘I hope I don’t miss!’ Have your mind visualise the exact spot you want to hit, the space you want to open up, the volley opportunity you want to give your partner – rather than focusing on the score or the fact it’s your second serve.
You can help yourself get into a better frame of mind with a ‘fake it til I make it’ approach to the serve. In singles, elect to serve first if you can, and in doubles, agree with your partner to serve first: seize the initiative!
Love that this is the one shot you’re in complete control of ...and own it.
4. Stick to your serve routine
If you get an attack of serve anxiety it’s easy to get paralysed, or conversely, to rush and try to get the whole thing over with. This is where your serve ritual that I talked about earlier comes in. Slow down, take a deep breath, and trust the whole routine that you’ve been practicing.
5. Stay positive when you’re not serving well
It’s easy to get into a downward spiral and a negative mindset when you a miss a few serves, which we all know doesn’t help improve things. If you struggle to just ‘be positive’ generally, focus on a specific action or place you want to hit the ball which can work as a good distraction. If you keep missing long, or in the net, analyse what’s going wrong and think about how to fix it - that gives you something positive to focus on (and if you still don’t know, a good tennis coach can help you with basic problem-solving in just one lesson).
6. Get your confidence back by playing the percentages
If your fast first serve is misfiring, don’t get flustered. I see lots of players trying to continuously whack their biggest serve, having an off day and missing, and then just getting more and more frustrated.
The key is to take your serve back a few steps. This might mean only hitting 70% pace, aiming for the middle rather than the lines, adding more spin… This will get your consistency back, your first serve percentages up and gradually rebuild your confidence to get you back to serving how you know you can.
7. Don’t get hung up on double faults
Remember the best players in the world do double faults. Wipe the last double fault from your mind - don’t let it destroy your belief. The next point is a fresh start and an opportunity to get it right and build your confidence.
In doubles matches, double faults can be extra mortifying. Sometimes it will feel like you’ve never spent so much time apologising in your life as on a doubles court! So agree with your partner not to keep saying sorry for serving mishaps - neither of you are trying to mess up!
Worrying about serving should never get in the way of enjoying your tennis. A few simple steps and the right mental approach can boost your confidence and help you learn to love the serve!
See also:
How to cut down on double faults
How to practice your second serve consistency
Aggressive Patience - the essential strategy for winning more tennis matches
Smart tennis: why you should hit a lot more balls cross court
Lizzie Flint is a writer and a practicing level 3 LTA professional tennis coach.
She has been in love with the game since picking up a racquet at the age of four – and she has seen it from every possible angle: playing, analysing and reporting on tennis all over the world. Read more about Lizzie here.