Pete Sampras - Slow Motion Serve and Volley

[fierte]

We can't blame today's players for the loss of serve and volley. A lot of the fault lies with the manufacturers who have been slowing down surfaces so that people can enjoy more rallies. They are instead just destroying the bodies of players. I feel sorry for them now.

[gwyneth00]

A thing of absolute beauty. Pete Sampras always did and always will have the best combination of serve and volley in the history of the sport. Poetry in motion. The only one that comes close is John McEnroe--who was a tennis genius the like of which will never be seen again. I would give almost anything to see those two go at it with wood racquets to allow for the artistry of their shot-making ability to be at its peak.

[lollerz16]

While I can appreciate the immense skill necessary to do this, I still much prefer tennis of today. You simply couldn't get the incredible rallies of the 2008 final with this. Not saying this is boring. Just saying I like the way tennis has evolved recently.

[TitaniumProAce]

@lollerz16 Contrary to what you might think, no top player wants a "incredible rally" they want to end the points quickly. Most players aren't taught the serve and volley in it's entirety so it's sort of turned into a lost art, but if you look at some of the greatest players of all time used the serve and volley like Laver, Mcenroe, Sampras and even Federer though not often.

[lollerz16]

@TitaniumProAce I'm not talking about what the Pros want. It's about what I want fro tennis as a spectator.

[matrixkurt]

Notice the elbow is 90 degrees to the body when he serves. This is quite important.

[kitt998]

serve and volley has a smaller role in contemporary tennis, because all the surfaces are being slowed down to facilitate more baseline rallies, and longer rallies. even wimbledon changed its grass in 2001 to do just this.

i for one never found serve and volley great to watch - its all over too quickly, and simply allowed good servers to dominate, even if the other aspects of their game (lob, drop shot, cross court etc) weren' that good

[TitaniumProAce]

@kitt998 Think about what you wrote here.....why wouldn't players want to do that? When players of any sport play they're not doing it for your enjoyment first, they're doing it to win first. This was one of the quickest and most effective ways to win and dominate, over too quickly to an actual player is a good thing.

[mutabrev]

He even had hair back then!

[dxuhuang]

so glad that serve and volleying is nearly gone. Too cheap. I like seeing players really go at at each other and fight it out like it's the last thing they'll ever do - i enjoy the power baseline game and long intense rallies today. i must say that i was too young to follow Sampras from an early age. no disrespect for Pete though. he's one of the greatest ever and no one can take that away from him.

[cain2335]

this, ladies and gentlemen, is the definition of a kicker

[tudorart]

yes it is the estuza stick. 10 points head light ...the best stic for slices

[jhgosnell]

i noticed the Becker raquet i think

[galloppa82]

#1 for style ever..he's the reason why i love tennis so much

[ruaridh2k7]

It looks easy enough right? Wrong!!! Every time I try this I either get the timing wrong like Roddick or I fail to pickup like Soderling. S&V is incredibly difficult and it's beautiful.

[theatlantean3]

Only a true tennis nut would know that Pete was playing Becker in this video. Puma racquet, high back-swing on forehand :-)...........Beauty.

[affenkeks]

@theatlantean3

Haha i just thought "man hes playing becker there" and then wrote your comment :)

And that even though ive never seen him play except for youtubevids because of my age.

[fringers814]

Serve and go to the net. That's a great idea.

[Mookusness]

Amazing. Totally flawless technique. Watch how he lands on the toes of his left foot, allowing him to almost instantly shift into a sprinting motion.

[loueylover15]

its a shame the serve and volley strategy has become a dieing breed. i love it though, its pure strategic and oppertunistic gameplay. Im merely a high school student but i love to use it, its a novelty among my peers so when i do use it, it really messes with them

[bugabutu]

i like his babolat style logo on those strings

[NormalFunctions]

ohhh look at that volleyy.. perfect spot over the net

[ruaridh2k7]

@RioJrTubeMaybe Roddick if he could win points at the net:L:L

[pitbull103]

Pete played a radically different game then we see today. He came to net on both serves. These days, it is highly unusual to see a woman (or man) approach on even the first serve. Has the game evolved away from serve/volley because of the sheer power of the athletes/rackets? Is the return of serve just too hard to handle? Players rarely take a short ball and come to net. Is that because passing shots are too hard? Or does the volley not get the amount of practice it deserves?I don't know.

[asianoutcast87]

@pitbull103

I don't know, I think it is the racquets. At junior level, there are a lot of good players serving and volleying with an all court game. Maybe its just physically exhausting to run up every single point. I've played with wooden racquets a few times just for the heck of it, and wow there is a big difference on how fast the ball goes. Also because of the racquets, its a bit easier to hit a hard or high passing shot. Top spin lobs and hard shots down the line are easier than ever.

[pitbull103]

@asianoutcast87 Yes, I agree that it is primarily the rackets. There were powerful men and women back in the 1960s and 1970s. I recently spoke with a long-time tennis pro, who is about 52 years old. He too agreed that the sheer power of the passing shots and returns has made volleys difficult to handle or just unreachable. Also, at Wimbledon, most of the players say the bounce is a LOT more true than it used to be because of better lawn care. This gives baseliners a better chance. Take care.

[blueadamov]

Yes,I'm

[measuringtap3]

a legend

[martiniho12]

pause at 0:04 just shows how flexible his shoulders are, his racquet head is at his knees.

[JDMFLiPBOi]

hitting a backhand in the ally is not the hardest shot lol the backhand smash is the hardest shot in the game.

[hongfa23yt]

kick serve

[poorcku]

this is against becker. the racquet can be seen. puma

[mathiyus]

@poorcku i read that in the comic book guy voice from the simpsons

[FrTennisChp]

wow that has to be the best serve of all time

[jono1971]

Was this from the '95 Wimbledon final? I was at that match on Centre Court.

[davenavarroforpm]

Reminds me of me when I play tennis :)

[sizzlinhihat]

I can only imagine the amount of kick that serve probably had.

[userpass97]

nice one. a BABOWILSON racket.

[jembals]

kind of haha.

babolat strings

[Mastersquishy]

federer's beaten his grand slam record now. a shame, but shows tennis is always one step ahead.

[fuzyconker1]

true

[chakkara1985]

Sampras was awesome - a great champion

[chakkara1985]

Sampras was the greatest I have seen play . Next comes Federer , though I like both - Sampras is very special to me .

Cheer Pete

[shotyboy]

he seems like he dosn't explode like some of the players do in todays game...maybe because it's a second serve...i think!

[pradeepanisonline]

hehe. ya. and I've seen him casually serving Big Aces on the 2nd serve..

[supertrex2]

Pete made hes racquet almost part of his body, natural looking strokes.

[eaterofcandy]

pete sampras's serve and volley is second to none. im thinking about temporarily switching to a serve and volley style from a defensive baseliner because of an injured knee. cant wait to try this out

[Samprasisthebest]

All I can say is Good Luck!

[nekbeth]

I believe that serve and volley is the best way to succeed in Tennis. You will need two natural gifts: A powerful serve & outstanding reflexes. In my opinion Federer went to N.2 because he changed his game from volley to backcourt (like Nadal). You can´t beat a Nadal or Agassi with backcourt shots, they will kill. You need to finish them off quickly & make them risk shots (something they rarely do).

These generations of tennis players lacks great serves & volley players like Sampras.

[Taryll22]

@nekbeth: I agree with you except that Federer never actually played many volleys. The problem with him is that he continues to play his all-round tennis even when he's approaching his 30s and he can no longer succeed against the younger players. As you say, they simply kill him in the rallies. He should have switched to a more aggressive style a few years ago, attacking Nadal or Djokovic directly from the serve and finishing it off early. As Sampras got older, he played more aggressively too.

[nekbeth]

@Taryll22 Federer is well known for being the best all around player of all time but when you say "he never played many volleys", I disagree with you, because Federer was a serve/volley player most of the time early in his career, he then evolved his game and became the all around player that we know him for. If you watch his match vs Sampras (which cut his streak in Wimbledon), it was almost like a mirror, he then won 2 to 3 slams the same way, Nadal came and Federer's game changed too.

[XizelSF]

@Taryll22 With slower surfaces in recent years, I doubt Federer would want to approach the net frequently. Players are able to generate pace off of nothing with high topspin for consistent passing shots. Federer won't make it out alive.

[squinty1292]

C'mon...McEnroe had better volleys than Pete, but Pete is still my all time favorite!

[Samprasisthebest]

Yep. Mac had better talent on the volleys, but Pete had better technique, which is why he could deal with more difficult volleys better than Mac. Also Pete's big serve gave him easy volleys quite often against the less talented returners.

[GueorguiJoukov]

Such a great technic, you are right. He's got some sick mechanics on these; almost like he simply laid them down, although some of these shots were quite powerful.

He was so well matched to Agassi; the best server-volleyer of all time versus the best returner of all time.

[daraemkar]

I don't believe Pete could deal with more difficult volleys better than Mac. McEnroe was a great serve and volleyer whereas Pete was a great server with volleys. Both amazing just hard to compare.

[haywoodlbc]

But Mac's serve is easier to return :S

[logant44]

Sampras is one the game's best volleyers.

Look at how he handles a half volley in this clip. That's the hardest shot in tennis right there.

[kundimaharaj]

@logant44 hardest shot in tennis is not a halfcourt volley you just need agility and timing for that i think a backhand in the alley is the hardest because that requires real precision

[mrbobevans]

@kundimaharaj Hardest shot in tennis is the backhand overhead smash - at least for me.

[afrodude144]

ye sampras may have won more wimbledon titles but federer is my favourite tennis player he is unbelievable he may have lost that thrilling final against nadal but he is the master of tennis his backhand is devastating when he can play it directly down the line

[Paramorerocks19]

well, im thinking about changing too

but my volleys sucks, so i have to work on that lol

[leengsta94]

you should, something that i noticed was that alot of the serve and vollyers have been world number 1. they used to dominate the courts, and still do

[stell29]

Pete's ability to hit that first volley off a screaming return is second to none. He makes it look so effortless

[djsewell]

i want to make love to his style... it's so beautiful and fluid

[riessypiecy]

It's incredible, how much talent he has.

[rosantekin]

When I see this I jizz in my pants, god it's beautiful. I wish I was born in sampras era

[lukeinarizona]

you are right...its a 1/2 volley

[yoimcrazy]

You obviously are new at tennis. It's called a half-volley which is still technically a volley.

[LesYeuxDeDarius]

and i though that a volley per definition is then when you hit the ball which had not touched the ground yet .

3 years of training and a half of giving classes to others and see ? You can always learn something new ^. ^

[yoimcrazy]

HALF volley man, shiet. Which is a return that is returned at the beginning of the balls bounce. 3 years of training and half of giving classes is nothing. Anyone can outsmart someone with more experience then them.

[RioJrTube]

What can be more beautiful than this style?How can some people say that serve and volley styles are boring?The most beautiful things in this game are a good one handed backhand and a good second kick serve and a point won in the second or third volley.Unfortunatelly people loves more power and speed, and when Roger quit the circuit who will give us those classic shots?

[FlorissAM]

@RioJrTube

Too right, my friend. I guess only the Nadal's and Verdasco's will remain. Man, this styles look crap.Happy Roger is still here.

[RioJrTube]

@FlorissAM

Yes. I think that the top ranked baseline players for sure have some great skills, but the art of tennis was exatcly in the difference between styles and tatics. If we have baseline power players as the only option to watch a tennis game, that´s gonna be boring. If they preserve at least in Wimbledon a faster grass for serve and volleys, it will save a little bit of the classic spirit of the sport. And we also will remain seeing great baseline power shots in all other tournaments...

[alloneword154]

@RioJrTube  Ryan Harrison the next great american

[RioJrTube]

@alloneword154

Yes, he has good style.. but I would like to the see players with classic shots and volleys fighting for the top rank positions, and titles... and about Harrison, I think that it´s too much pressure on this american young guy. But it´s for sure a good tennis style to watch.

As an example, I was in the Us Open, and saw on court the french guy Gasquet playing some real classic points against davidenko... it ´s a pleasure to watch somebody win a game playing that way...

[KaminariKatta]

@RioJrTube its gonna get worse,each year the grass at wimbledon gets slower and slower.Wait and see,ten years down the road,winners at wimbledon wont even be Serve and volleyers.T_T

[RioJrTube]

@KaminariKatta

I still hope that in the future they will try to preserve a little bit of the classic tradition of wimbledon tennis style, like they do on the classic "white clothing" code for tennis. .If "just" shots from baseline will happen there, it´s better to see tennis on hard courts, where´s more power and precision that on grass. The interesting thing about Wimbledon is exactly the change of players and styles that became "on fire" using the grass... Grass is for volleys and serves.

[KaminariKatta]

@RioJrTube Tell that to those Engish dickheads at wimbledon.Argggghhhh feel like killin them juz becuz of trying to increase ticket sales for profit by ruining the tradition of TENNIS!

[CristianoTenis]

beautiful

[JDMFLiPBOi]

i love his serving motion! its so fucking fluent and clean.

[sampras3112]

Lo mas grande Pedro...

[fireace10s]

Good eye, you can see Becker's wind-up as he goes through the screen. This is Sampras and textbook tennis, kick it out wide to the backhand, awesome half-volley cross-court, and easy put away back to the open court. Of course Pete makes it look too easy.

[richarddkbr]

kick serve.

[Fulllatears]

What kind of serve was this? Flat?

[ilikespamandeggs]

topspin

[hammerholds10]

ha... you can tell that he's playing Boris Becker

[Oreoclan]

Does anybody else use the same racket as Becker? It's a pretty... Unique racket. It stands out so much.

Good to see Sampras come in on second serves.

[THES0L0IST]

What do you mean good to see Sampras come in on second serves? Aside for the beginning of his career, he came in consistently on both first and second serves.

[exile137]

He didnt mean it as if Sampras never came in. He said it as if it were a breath of fresh air that he did.

[Kishnabe]

Becker uses a Volki Raquet. U can check it on the web.Really unique design and has it own strength compared to normal raquet.

[federermagic]

the ESTUSA!!!

[lacobra27]

volkl raxcquets are the shit! Lightweight and very forgiving sweetspot. Good for beginners.

[synergee]

yeah, I thought the same thing too...although i think it was from Becker's windup than his racquet that caught my eye

[federer]

he is still one of the greatest tennisplayer ever

[oathseeker]

true dat brutha, cept ur name is federer >:O lol yeah you gotta give the pros their props

[Pshnookems]

@federer id say 2nd best behing laver

[87Logitech]

@federer

Roger greatest ever then Sampras, Nadal have boring style, I don t love to watch Rafa...