Taylor Dent- Serve & Volley- The Selective Split Step

[BikerVic1]

Split steps may be the most important movement in most sports. Timing your movements is as important as the movement itself. With the Split Step Coach you can do both. Do you know the inside story or why the pros land on one foot instead of two? Check this site Sports-Split-Step for the full story on the Modern Split Step in all sports. The white paper "Fundamental Sequence of Movement" shows the whys, hows and what to use in teaching the split step.

[djsoroket]

the best serve and volley video i`ve ver seen ,thanks a lot dude

[federerownz]

@djsoroket have u not seen sampras? lol

[hattrickster33]

@federerownz and Federer lol....

[gradius55]

that's too much to think about. i think if it's not natural, you can't learn it.

[RafaeINadal]

elevation here:zero...

[miltyu97]

@flynnabeln131

Perhaps if they didn't get classical training. Landing on both feet is how I was told to do in HS and college, but I always thought it felt more natural to land on one foot if going in one direction or another.

Sampras split steps are much closer to landing both feet at the same time. But we all know how "old school" or "classical" his technique is from the ultra heavy racket, eastern grip, flatter strokes, fluid service motion, and footwork.

[miltyu97]

And I thought I've doing the split step "wrong" the whole time! It's actually a more efficient way to split step!

(So that's what that episode of Prince of Tennis was yacking about.)

[MadSkillsJohn]

i was one of the ball kids at one of the tournaments he played at whenever he served in my direction is got scared he is an animal

[RafaeINadal]

THIS IS BULL. NO ONE LANDS ON BOTH FEET

[miltyu97]

@RafaeINadal

Some people do. That's the way it is classically taught.

[RafaeINadal]

@miltyu97 I play tennis and if you put power in the serve and rotation its is almost impossible and very unnatural to land on two feet. I have not seen a single player since the 90s on tour land on two feet.

[miltyu97]

@RafaeINadal

I play tennis too.

But the split step the video is refering to is not to have a server land on both feet after the service motion. Rather, they are talking about a split step, as Dent is demonstrating, to help explode in one direction or another for the first volley.

[GueorguiJoukov]

@miltyu97

The purpose of a split step is actually moving... if you do it perfectly, you are in the air at each ball contact your opponent does and you can land on the right - I mean the correct - foot to explode.

It's useful, even at the baseline. What's important to note is also that he DOESN'T stop upon landing; he continues to go forward. For better footwork, see how Federer moves around the court and if you have the chance to see him serve-n-volleying, pay attention to his feet.

[miltyu97]

@GueorguiJoukov

Yeah I understand that.

But it was calssically taught to do a split step landing on both feet.

It's a more modern technique the one foot way.

[GueorguiJoukov]

@miltyu97

It was also thought to use a continental or eastern grip on a forehand and Federer is the last player to play with an Eastern in the top ten...

[miltyu97]

@GueorguiJoukov

Agreed, but what's your point?

[GueorguiJoukov]

@miltyu97

It's not because it is taught that it is good and thinking about the purpose of a given gesture may lead someone to figure out more efficient ways of doing it.

Before coaches had even thought about changeing the method, before even pros started using this footwork, it was already more explosive and efficient. It's a critic of this idea, saying that a selective split step is an "alternative footwork"; it's not an alternative, it's the preferable solution which makes a split step useful

[miltyu97]

@GueorguiJoukov

Oh, yes, I totally agree with that. You're preaching to the choir.

I was previously only replying to someone saying "no one does a split step on both feet". Of course what they said was untrue (as I was pointing out ESPECIALLY) because the split step WAS taught to land on both feet for a long long time.

[miltyu97]

@GueorguiJoukov

Oh, yes, I totally agree with that.

I was previously only replying to someone saying "no one does a split step on both feet". Of course what they said was untrue (as I was pointing out ESPECIALLY) because the split step WAS taught to land on both feet for a long long time.

[nolangleason]

i think most people split step with both feet landing like a hop almost. The whole point of the split step is that you are in movement so you are quicker to go right left for the next shot. Not st anding flat footed

[nipal1234]

nice...

[badbahama]

great video...