Tips for Improving Your Tennis Serve

Formerly serving as president of TvT, Hans van Tartwijk leverages his expertise in development and construction to lead Princeton Property Partners. In his spare time, Hans van Tartwijk enjoys playing tennis.

In 2015, the top ten professional tennis players saved break points — pivotal moments when service switches from one player to the other — at a rate of 72 percent when effectively serving the first time. This statistic illustrates how crucial it is to develop a solid tennis serve and indicates the importance of target practice.

Target practice involves cones that are used to mark different spots in a service box. Your goal is to serve a ball as close to a cone as possible. Ideally, with repetition, you will hit the same cone multiple times. This drill improves your ball placement skills and increases the effectiveness of your serve during a match.

Additionally, work on making your swing fluid and knowing when to apply the most force. A fluid swing eliminates unnecessary movements, ensuring you reserve energy to swing through a ball in the final seconds. Serena Williams, for instance, keeps her swinging arm relaxed until she is ready to make contact with the ball. Just before contact, she accelerates her swing and transfers a great amount of energy through the ball, sending it powerfully into the service box.