Keys to ball toss for "beginners": 1. Body balance: centre weight on left foot (big toe). Retain weight here throughout serve (body will still move naturally) 2. Release at eye / forehead level 3. Eyes up prior to tossing 4. Commence racket rise before toss (assists body balance). Remain essentially side on All these helped me enormously even though they may not be "textbook"
I can't wrap my head around the pronation part--- I'm a beginner, 8 months in with a solid groundstrokes, trying to learn how to serve as well and keep going back to forehand grip which is a huge NO, I know. I'm trying continental as well but the edge of the racket is hitting the ball. I think serve is the hardest to learn! Thanks for the video!
One of the best concepts he used was to act like you are high-fiving the ball when you make contact. So, rotate into a big, tall high-five with the racket and ball. Another tip is to make sure you are tossing the ball up with enough height. People tend to not toss it high enough because they lack control on the toss. If your toss is short the rest of the serve gets rushed. If you watch good servers you'll see they start slow and have plenty of time to hit the ball. It all starts with a good, high toss. I'd rather toss too high than too low when learning. But, adjust down if you find yourself waiting on the ball too much because it decreases you flow, and the more it drops to faster it's moving when you are trying to hit it. But, I think it's easier to adjust down than up. Once you get a good flow, you'll adjust down without thinking about it.
@@IamnotJohnFord Dude this is the absolute best comment on here!!! Everything you said is so true. I actually had to learn the hard way. I've been really struggling with my toss- I just can't seem to get it high enough so I can execute my serve form. It's like I know exactly what I need to do to properly serve but my toss just screws everything else up.
The funny thing about me is I never struggle with the continental grip, in fact it’s the most comfortable group for me I actually started hitting forhands with it, and then eventually switch to a western and then eventually semiwestern.
@@K4R3N we are still outside playing. We are comfortable playing tennis when the weather is in the 50s, but I'm looking for something on the southside in the winter so I can play indoors.
@@msedmocsu no better place than XS Tennis in Hyde Park. They had some great WTA tournaments there past couple months. Venus Williams showed up. Good time
Great job Nick, very entertaining as highlighted by others also. A few comments about the intricises of coaching the serve ...but Anna hasn't practised much since the last match so it's not as though there is the opportunity to break everything down into the smallest details. But if she had a re-match with her previous opponent i'm sure she'll ace a few (please Anna put in the rep's practising! 😂) . Be well you two and all in the tennis world
Thanks for the nice lesson. I have a question to ask: for my forehand ground stroke, should I use the same grip (semi-western) to handle all kinds of balls (no matter the ball is high or low, short or deep), or should I change/modify my grip according to balls' height and depth? Best, LG
Hi Nick: Do you have any drills for watching the ball? Have you ever done a video on this? I can focus and watch the ball easily when I am just rallying, but when I get into matches - particularly with shots where I am moving - I frequently yank my head. I think that this is a HUGE problem among amateurs like me.
Great video. What I see with Anna is what I also noticed with my daughter whom I teaching how to serve properly . She holds the racket with the continental grip BUT, right after the trophy position, she bends her wrist which makes the racket go in the waiter tray position. Then, as the racket goes up towards the ball, it’s not leading with the edge because of wrist is bent. My daughter can’t shake the habit (she can when she takes shadow swings without a ball but as soon as she tries to serve with a ball, she bends her wrist)
I think this happens from a tendancy to try to "aim the strings at the ball" too early out of nervousness. Opening the strings because the ball is above them. Inexperienced players are anticipating having to hit the ball in the air and are worried about it, so they try to prepare to "push" at the ball as early as possible, almost unconsciously, robbing themselves of a full motion. Maybe emphasizing that they have plenty of time and reminding them that the strings do not align towards the ball until the last fraction of a second will help.
I agree but the point of my comment is that, even with the right (I.e., continental) grip, players may still serve with the waiter tray as opposed to leading with the edge of the racket
Nikola :"I have done it 10 million times ,with practice gets better" 😂😂😂 Anyway we all have faith in Anna ❤️ definitely she is not a quitter , and she is really getting better, Great job guys👍🏻☺️ , and Nikola please don't 🤬 😂😂😂
Sometimes I use a small football and have players throw it . When you throw a football the side of your hand is on edge. You can’t throw a football and have the palm of your hand facing in the direction you throw. Also way back in the day some coaches had players throw old racquets over the net to get the feeling of throwing on edge. Try throwing a football. Yes I grew up playing football and pitching baseball so some of the concepts of serving carried over to tennis.
Thank you for lovely video. I will try not to make a comment on Anna's outfit. I can serve pretty well. But I have to really focus to dial it up. I actually don't like my coaches telling me what to do. I need them just to make me do some serves in the session and let me just get to the point where I feel it. Other people may learn differently.
Coach Nik, please tell me some drills or exercises to help me with my follow thru. I’m pretty good, until I’m under pressure during a match. I think it’s definitely a problem with a lot of tennis players starting to play later in life. Follow thru seems so natural for young kids, but not so much for the older crowd that have not been playing most of their lives.
@@IntuitiveTennis Thanks man. You are doing a great job. My tennis (i'm getting closer 4.5 in my 50's 😎) has been really improved since I've been watching your videos. Step by step. I wish I saw your channel earlier... Although, I think this is not video that I'm thinking about. There was more about commitment, intensity and stuff like that. Nevermind Greetings from Zagreb.
@@IntuitiveTennis Before two days I overrun through all your videos but I didn't succeed to find. I remeber that you explained, for example for intensity, how important is to when you are about to receive serve, to keep your body intense because of quicker reaction... But, as I said, nevermind. Thanks for trying.
Mr Nick how much of patience you have????????? Your level of tolerance and trying to teach her is simply Great and Hilarious as well.😀😀😀😀. I have just 2 questions One for you one for Anna..... Please don't mind.... 1. When do you get Angry and Loose patience????? 2. What's the name of individual who has asked this Beautiful lady to start playing Tennis???? 😀😀😀. I really doubt that this Gorgeous lady even listen what ever you advise. Just joking. 😀😀
When i started to play tennis i also had this problem that my toss was never the same. I felt like the tip with not letting it roll out of your hand helps alot and what helped me alot is that you need to control your toss. The same with keeping the tennisball up with the racket. Dont be to wild and let the ball go to high. A third thing that helped me is that you shoudn't toss the ball to high. It's harder to hit the serve when the ball is coming down then when the ball is at it's highest point and for a split second not moving in the air.
such a great athlete she is, but one thing about the toss which i had troubles getting rid of it for years . Though she manages to do a great toss, she is still "throwing" the ball. This will always lead to problems and inconsistency
probably depends on the person, but personally, i think the margin of error is bigger when you bend the arm like Nadal and push the ball up rather than swing the ball up. i think djokovic semi does it this way as well. not saying we need to copy them.
Exactly. Lock the elbow, arm is straight, a swing toss is consistent. A consistent toss is everything. Like Nick does here th-cam.com/video/K_iz3u-Ye48/w-d-xo.html
@@formica. i'm saying for me the bent arm is easier. margin of error is bigger. i spin the ball too much on a swing toss. but my serve is still evolving so the toss still might change.
You are a great coach and i can understand why you teach continental on serve even to beginners. But i prefer to let my students start with forehand grip just to build their confidence and at least get the ball in. Then eventually when they are advanced enough we switch to continental. I think it is better and allows for a gradual progression into proper service technique.
4.0 player here, this is the hardest thing for me. With continental grip on the serve I struggle if the toss isn't in the exact correct spot. So I don't do it. I sacrifice pace for accuracy.
@@Better_Call_Raul Not all are the same. For me, continental grip does not go in as much and I can never place it. There's just something unnatural about it for my arm and wrist. I feel for Anna and know why she wants to change it during the matches. Also, it's very hard to do with a large grip IMO. Maybe that's how my issues started, I would always use hand-me-down racquets of my very tall brother, with grips too large. I suspect even a 4-1/8 will be too large for a lot of women. Now that I use a properly-sized racquet I just still find it difficult. Also, the goal of most of us is not to try to serve like Andy Roddick or Serena. We don't have that kind of time or bodies. Sometimes we have to pick and choose how we advance our game. If a continental grip just feels unnatural for Anna, I just think she should stick with it for now and change it later if she gets to that point.
@@Better_Call_Raul After some research, it seems even at the pro level, there are some exceptions, most notably Boris Becker who did not serve with a continental grip. He did OK.
I'm definitely guilty of this no pronation... 🔨..... when I used to teach break dancing classes I would always tell my students I dont have talent I'm good because I practice.
Big mistake to force a beginner to try the full motion of serve.. it should be always done with an abbreviated trophy pose until the pronation and toss are fully understood both theoretically and practically.
ikr, the ball is all over the place, but i guess the point of that lesson was to at least make her hit the ball in a service motion so that it ended up on the other side of the net 🤔 despite what Nick said, i didn't see her holding the racket correctly at all, it was a waiter serve from start to finish
Quit telling Anna to toss the ball. Toss equals to throw in a person's mind. Throwing motion is faster than lifting. She needs to LIFT the ball. She needs to pretend to lift the book and place it up on the bookshelf. Or better yet she needs to place the book up high on the bookshelf.
I use the term ball placement instead of toss. Part of my lesson is to mention that the service is the only stroke they you can place the ball where you want to hit it.
Related: Optimal Toss Technique
👉 th-cam.com/video/Ui2-wDmNGFY/w-d-xo.html
My favourite Tennis channel ❤️
One of the MOST funny tennis educational video ever so far.
It's amaing and inspiring about how you approached Anna to the concept of pronation. Great work and teaching, Nick.
I love the little bloopers, definitely worth keeping in! Adds a nice complexity!
Keys to ball toss for "beginners":
1. Body balance: centre weight on left foot (big toe). Retain weight here throughout serve (body will still move naturally)
2. Release at eye / forehead level
3. Eyes up prior to tossing
4. Commence racket rise before toss (assists body balance). Remain essentially side on
All these helped me enormously even though they may not be "textbook"
What a beautiful lesson.
What a great coach . Congrats.
Just the way you should learn playing tennis. Excellent video's. Helps to reflect my problems. Thnx!!!
I can't wrap my head around the pronation part--- I'm a beginner, 8 months in with a solid groundstrokes, trying to learn how to serve as well and keep going back to forehand grip which is a huge NO, I know. I'm trying continental as well but the edge of the racket is hitting the ball. I think serve is the hardest to learn! Thanks for the video!
Nick has 6 videos with pronation in the title. Start with th-cam.com/video/0mrat6fpa8k/w-d-xo.html
I feel your pain. I am going tthrough the same growing pains.
One of the best concepts he used was to act like you are high-fiving the ball when you make contact. So, rotate into a big, tall high-five with the racket and ball. Another tip is to make sure you are tossing the ball up with enough height. People tend to not toss it high enough because they lack control on the toss. If your toss is short the rest of the serve gets rushed. If you watch good servers you'll see they start slow and have plenty of time to hit the ball. It all starts with a good, high toss. I'd rather toss too high than too low when learning. But, adjust down if you find yourself waiting on the ball too much because it decreases you flow, and the more it drops to faster it's moving when you are trying to hit it. But, I think it's easier to adjust down than up. Once you get a good flow, you'll adjust down without thinking about it.
@@formica. @Brad Smith Ah, nice! Thanks
@@IamnotJohnFord Dude this is the absolute best comment on here!!! Everything you said is so true. I actually had to learn the hard way. I've been really struggling with my toss- I just can't seem to get it high enough so I can execute my serve form. It's like I know exactly what I need to do to properly serve but my toss just screws everything else up.
The funny thing about me is I never struggle with the continental grip, in fact it’s the most comfortable group for me I actually started hitting forhands with it, and then eventually switch to a western and then eventually semiwestern.
ANNAAAAAAAA! I love it when she comes on. Go Anna!
What's up with this Chi weather? Terrible
@@K4R3N I know! I was able to go out Wednesday and practice. I hope this rain stops so I can go out in the morning and practice with my brother.
@@msedmocsu I booked indoor time in Oakbrook. Had a great time playing outside past few months but I think we're done outside until like April 2022
@@K4R3N we are still outside playing. We are comfortable playing tennis when the weather is in the 50s, but I'm looking for something on the southside in the winter so I can play indoors.
@@msedmocsu no better place than XS Tennis in Hyde Park. They had some great WTA tournaments there past couple months. Venus Williams showed up. Good time
Ana is going to have a great serve!!
Now that is a fantastic coach.
anna you look fabulous🔥
wish she didn't wear sunglasses
Came here for more tips to practice on next time playing
Great job Nick, very entertaining as highlighted by others also. A few comments about the intricises of coaching the serve ...but Anna hasn't practised much since the last match so it's not as though there is the opportunity to break everything down into the smallest details. But if she had a re-match with her previous opponent i'm sure she'll ace a few (please Anna put in the rep's practising! 😂) . Be well you two and all in the tennis world
"super glued paper"; that made me laugh, specially after admitting having "lotion" on the hand; ahhh that Continental grip
Thanks for the nice lesson. I have a question to ask: for my forehand ground stroke, should I use the same grip (semi-western) to handle all kinds of balls (no matter the ball is high or low, short or deep), or should I change/modify my grip according to balls' height and depth? Best, LG
Definitely use the same grip for all forehands.
@@samkibler5326 Thanks!
Hi Nick: Do you have any drills for watching the ball? Have you ever done a video on this? I can focus and watch the ball easily when I am just rallying, but when I get into matches - particularly with shots where I am moving - I frequently yank my head. I think that this is a HUGE problem among amateurs like me.
I’ll make a video on that topic
The main benifit from boucing it before the serve, is to focus down your vision on the ball. at the top of the toss you see it really well.
Pronation is great. It's the only way to 'Rifle' the tennis ball giving it flight stability and that slight dip and curve.
Great video. What I see with Anna is what I also noticed with my daughter whom I teaching how to serve properly . She holds the racket with the continental grip BUT, right after the trophy position, she bends her wrist which makes the racket go in the waiter tray position. Then, as the racket goes up towards the ball, it’s not leading with the edge because of wrist is bent. My daughter can’t shake the habit (she can when she takes shadow swings without a ball but as soon as she tries to serve with a ball, she bends her wrist)
I think this happens from a tendancy to try to "aim the strings at the ball" too early out of nervousness. Opening the strings because the ball is above them. Inexperienced players are anticipating having to hit the ball in the air and are worried about it, so they try to prepare to "push" at the ball as early as possible, almost unconsciously, robbing themselves of a full motion. Maybe emphasizing that they have plenty of time and reminding them that the strings do not align towards the ball until the last fraction of a second will help.
I agree but the point of my comment is that, even with the right (I.e., continental) grip, players may still serve with the waiter tray as opposed to leading with the edge of the racket
Nikola :"I have done it 10 million times ,with practice gets better" 😂😂😂 Anyway we all have faith in Anna ❤️ definitely she is not a quitter , and she is really getting better, Great job guys👍🏻☺️ , and Nikola please don't 🤬 😂😂😂
Never 🤬😂
Beautiful content great coaching
🙏🙏
Sometimes I use a small football and have players throw it . When you throw a football the side of your hand is on edge. You can’t throw a football and have the palm of your hand facing in the direction you throw. Also way back in the day some coaches had players throw old racquets over the net to get the feeling of throwing on edge. Try throwing a football. Yes I grew up playing football and pitching baseball so some of the concepts of serving carried over to tennis.
Thank you for lovely video. I will try not to make a comment on Anna's outfit. I can serve pretty well. But I have to really focus to dial it up. I actually don't like my coaches telling me what to do. I need them just to make me do some serves in the session and let me just get to the point where I feel it. Other people may learn differently.
Coach Nik, please tell me some drills or exercises to help me with my follow thru. I’m pretty good, until I’m under pressure during a match. I think it’s definitely a problem with a lot of tennis players starting to play later in life. Follow thru seems so natural for young kids, but not so much for the older crowd that have not been playing most of their lives.
th-cam.com/video/O9mm58MVmPI/w-d-xo.html
Nick, what happened with your video called, if I recall correctly, 10 most important things in tennis (Intensity, Commitment and so on)?
th-cam.com/video/dLV4XmSChZc/w-d-xo.html
@@IntuitiveTennis Thanks man. You are doing a great job. My tennis (i'm getting closer 4.5 in my 50's 😎) has been really improved since I've been watching your videos. Step by step. I wish I saw your channel earlier...
Although, I think this is not video that I'm thinking about.
There was more about commitment, intensity and stuff like that. Nevermind
Greetings from Zagreb.
@@bruno7917 try this one th-cam.com/video/hSRy12FzLgY/w-d-xo.html
@@IntuitiveTennis Before two days I overrun through all your videos but I didn't succeed to find. I remeber that you explained, for example for intensity, how important is to when you are about to receive serve, to keep your body intense because of quicker reaction...
But, as I said, nevermind. Thanks for trying.
Mr Nick how much of patience you have????????? Your level of tolerance and trying to teach her is simply Great and Hilarious as well.😀😀😀😀. I have just 2 questions One for you one for Anna..... Please don't mind....
1. When do you get Angry and Loose patience?????
2. What's the name of individual who has asked this Beautiful lady to start playing Tennis???? 😀😀😀. I really doubt that this Gorgeous lady even listen what ever you advise. Just joking. 😀😀
Hopping for more videos with Anna!!! kkk Jokes a side, Toss for me is the worst part of a serve! Nice class!
More videos with Anna coming soon
Starting from deuce court was easier for me and hold the ball with the edge of fingers
When i started to play tennis i also had this problem that my toss was never the same. I felt like the tip with not letting it roll out of your hand helps alot and what helped me alot is that you need to control your toss. The same with keeping the tennisball up with the racket. Dont be to wild and let the ball go to high. A third thing that helped me is that you shoudn't toss the ball to high. It's harder to hit the serve when the ball is coming down then when the ball is at it's highest point and for a split second not moving in the air.
Nick: "Anna, I'm proud of you. Beautiful toss!"
Anna: ( shakes her tail ) !!
th-cam.com/video/K_iz3u-Ye48/w-d-xo.html
such a great athlete she is, but one thing about the toss which i had troubles getting rid of it for years . Though she manages to do a great toss, she is still "throwing" the ball. This will always lead to problems and inconsistency
probably depends on the person, but personally, i think the margin of error is bigger when you bend the arm like Nadal and push the ball up rather than swing the ball up. i think djokovic semi does it this way as well. not saying we need to copy them.
Exactly. Lock the elbow, arm is straight, a swing toss is consistent. A consistent toss is everything.
Like Nick does here th-cam.com/video/K_iz3u-Ye48/w-d-xo.html
@@formica. i'm saying for me the bent arm is easier. margin of error is bigger. i spin the ball too much on a swing toss. but my serve is still evolving so the toss still might change.
@@Lunchpgap Ok, for me I need to reduce the number of variables. I have the angle pretty good, it is the height that I wish I could make repeatable.
It is time for Anna to give us her ads exercises lessons. )
Check her IG annarogers7
You are a great coach and i can understand why you teach continental on serve even to beginners. But i prefer to let my students start with forehand grip just to build their confidence and at least get the ball in. Then eventually when they are advanced enough we switch to continental. I think it is better and allows for a gradual progression into proper service technique.
4.0 player here, this is the hardest thing for me. With continental grip on the serve I struggle if the toss isn't in the exact correct spot. So I don't do it. I sacrifice pace for accuracy.
@@bournejason66 My serve isn't bad, BUT it takes some knee bend and shoulder drop, better than others, to get there.
@@Better_Call_Raul Not all are the same. For me, continental grip does not go in as much and I can never place it. There's just something unnatural about it for my arm and wrist. I feel for Anna and know why she wants to change it during the matches.
Also, it's very hard to do with a large grip IMO. Maybe that's how my issues started, I would always use hand-me-down racquets of my very tall brother, with grips too large. I suspect even a 4-1/8 will be too large for a lot of women. Now that I use a properly-sized racquet I just still find it difficult.
Also, the goal of most of us is not to try to serve like Andy Roddick or Serena. We don't have that kind of time or bodies. Sometimes we have to pick and choose how we advance our game. If a continental grip just feels unnatural for Anna, I just think she should stick with it for now and change it later if she gets to that point.
@@Better_Call_Raul After some research, it seems even at the pro level, there are some exceptions, most notably Boris Becker who did not serve with a continental grip. He did OK.
@@Better_Call_Raul That sounds like a good plan.
Thz
She’s a sweetie. Love her bling hat.
I'm definitely guilty of this no pronation... 🔨..... when I used to teach break dancing classes I would always tell my students I dont have talent I'm good because I practice.
I am a tennis student jopaul jaferson
And saying that i will be a champion once
Big mistake to force a beginner to try the full motion of serve.. it should be always done with an abbreviated trophy pose until the pronation and toss are fully understood both theoretically and practically.
damn sticky paper 🤣
😃
Trying to teach her the full serving motion is pointless when she can't even toss correctly and repeatedly. Start from the very first step.
ikr, the ball is all over the place, but i guess the point of that lesson was to at least make her hit the ball in a service motion so that it ended up on the other side of the net 🤔 despite what Nick said, i didn't see her holding the racket correctly at all, it was a waiter serve from start to finish
Quit telling Anna to toss the ball. Toss equals to throw in a person's mind. Throwing motion is faster than lifting. She needs to LIFT the ball. She needs to pretend to lift the book and place it up on the bookshelf. Or better yet she needs to place the book up high on the bookshelf.
I use the term ball placement instead of toss. Part of my lesson is to mention that the service is the only stroke they you can place the ball where you want to hit it.
LIFT! I like this word much better
I think we could visualize the body mechanics better if Anna wore a bikini.