You are right about everything. But couldnt it be that the changes you just pointed out are because of the new grip? I tested this myself and if I do a flat serve, i dont really bend my arm that much and my arm doesnt go all the way back if you know what i mean. But if i use the continental grip, then automaticly my arm bends and goes all the way back to make a full swing. It just goes naturally for me. Maybe thats the same thing with nadal? Just want to know your opinion about this.
Very good observation! I focus on the trophy position in my players as well. It is also important to focus in the position of the shoulders. In first of nadal's serve, his shoulders seem to be more horizontal. However, in the second video, his right shoulder (tossing arm) goes over his left. This shows that he is loading better with his legs which will help the transfer of his weight into the ball. All of the players shown in this video do that! Good Job @xstf
@andytran010 Really! it's an analysis and watch the video follow-up to this one which proves his serve struggles I am just pointing out the flaws all the announcers (and you) missed.
@kching Ok Sampras has great trophy position, he just happens to dip his shoulders due to the way he leans and turns his back away from his opponent. Sampras's arm is more than slightly bent at trophy, it's actually perfect and so is his power position. There is not much difference in trophy position between Sampras and the current top servers like Federer, Del Potro or even Tsonga. Thanks for watching! Christophe.
Without a doubt your videos saved me hundreds if not thousands of dollars on tennis lessons. Very insightful analysis that probably very few coaches can pick up on!
When you have a grip change away from the continental towards an eastern grip you will lose spin and hit more flat. When you go flat you get more speed. Previously Nadal was hitting spin first serves...now that he is hitting less spin on his 1st serve he is getting more speed....Most importantly "repetition is the mother of skill"
What are some tips about hitting a good top spin i can only do it to players that are better than me but when i play ppl at same level or a little beter i cant hit my top spin as hard because everytime i do it goes out. should i practice doing it more or is something wrong?
If you look at 7:56 then you can see he is bending his arm! But now he bends his arm earlier, that makes the difference, and his wrist is more straight. Am I right?
Thanks for analysis, always enjoy your videos. I was wondering if it's acceptable to use an eastern forehand for flat serves, but stick to continental for spin serves? Thanks.
@12396Danny I am not a big of teaching the serve with an eastern grip. Boris Becker was the only guy to really master it. You can cheat a little towards the eastern grip but learn to pronate more to flatten out your serves. I hope that was helpful. Christophe
This guy should be a commentator! Would make watching so much more interesting. The commentators these days just say the obvious! This was very insightful.
this video is good in some ways but the point you're trying to make is completely wrong. nadal changed the grip on his serve at the us open not in miami. if it wudve been in miami the commentators would have talked about it in that tournament.
@coriaelmago101 My whole point is the commentators have not clue of what they are talking about. The proof is in front of you that in Miami is motion was already changed. It took that long for the commentators to catch on. I noticed it in Miami! If you watch Rafa today he still uses the same old grip (continental). He adjusts to the new grip (more eastern fh) then goes back to the old continental grip just before the start of his motion, hence it was not a grip change but a motion change. C.
Hi Christophe! Your vids are really helpful and fun to watch.
2 Questions:
What do you think about Nadal's serve overall? I dig his serve very much and have just changed my tossing motion and getting into the power position to what he does(hitting arm goes straight up without a loop) It gives me way more consitent serves and good placement.
I do lack power but I think as long as I am getting into the correct power position it does not matter how. Am I right?
@chroobyc I think his serve got better with his new motion. Make sure that you do not get in the power position too soon, that is one way to loose power. You must stay in the trophy position until you are ready to hit the ball, collapsing too soon in the power position will kill all your momentum. The serve like any other stroke is about rhythm and tempo. Let me know if you need more help. Thanks for watching. Christophe.
@Rafathaman94 Thanks for the tip but if I had the same angle i would have used it!. I just don't always have the same seats so i do the best I can with what I have! Thanks for watching Christophe.
nice analysis!! i used to serve so slowly and wrongly but now i feel great because my coach made a lot of adjustments to it...mainly the arm!! like u said! I kept it too straight and i rotate my body too much so now my coach makes me take it straight up like roddick so i always bend my arm and he told me to pretend thers a wall behind my back so i dont turn my torso all over the place which makes my serve slow.
@dorker1992 Nice advice about pretending the back is against a wall. I have the problem of turning my torso too much. Thanks for the tip, I will give it a try.
@Cory221989 Yeh i never thought about it until a coach got another coach to analyze my serve...and omg it works!! Give it a try and tell me your result!! :D its gonna make ur serve a lot more consistent and faster.
0:36 trophy position 2009 rafa. but at 0:30 rafa's legs position on his serve is different, and its now into a postition where he would get more pace with his new grip and he'll jump into it more to add to that pace,unlike before where he didn't really jump that much into the serve like he does now with his new footwork during the serve
@affenkeks my point is that his arm motion did not get into the trophy position at the proper time. I obviously know what a trophy position looks like and i know that he did get there but keeping his arm straight at the beginning did not allow him to get the most out of his serve. Thanks for watching . Christophe.
HI Chris. Open Stance is the most used when hitting forehand but the heel to toes weight transfer goes on the left foot in close position on the forehand? Thank you for great job :)
@miki8122 yes Heel to toe weight transfer with the left leg on the forehand closed stance if you are right handed of course. Sorry it took me so long to answer your question.
Nice theory, but my theory for the increased mph is that if you look at his tossing arm after he lets go of the ball he is bring the right arm more back towards him and getting a greater stretch or load from both his front hip (right hip) and his core, on the video on the left from last year you can see his core doesn't really stretch backwards, but in new footage from the US Open you see a much greater core stretch and load. Combine this with his grip change, and there you have it.
@chieface good observation but the arm has to be set up in proper position to get ultimate racket head speed. i often demonstrate serving from my knees with hardly any leg movement or upper core stretch and get great racket head speed. I get your point but it was very obvious the grip change alone was not the only adjustment made by Rafa. Thanks for watching. C,
@xstf Great video; instructional and well put. I'd just like to know what, in more detail you think about the apparent grip change. Because I've heard some people say he went from an eastern backhand to a continental, which makes sense, but I believe the commentators said it was continental to eastern, which would impede your pronation and give you less speed and control. Thoughts?
@TheAnonymousViewer Yes i agree with you he went from an eastern BH grip to a true continental grip maybe continental forehand. The continental grip is the grip of choice you cannot pronate properly with anything but a continental grip. The only exception was Boris Becker. When the ESPN broadcaster are in the booth i turn the volume down. Thanks for watching. Christophe
Well you are making total sense but when rafa was talking about a new grip hes talking about from how he was serving this year. His 09 serve was pretty horrible but starting this year he changed it to the "trophey position". so to rafa he says new grip because hes been serving with the trophey pose all year but at the us open he adjusted his grip to get a faster paced ball.
dont you think hes also standing more upright now than he used to, before even the sony-ericsson? I see him now more upright, and before I thought he tilted a bit too much to his right side, and that, plus his grip, made his serve too spinny. Maybe hes been using his new motion since early this year, but just changed his grip right for the USO, thats why hes just talkin about his grip....
It was risky decision but I apparently the correct one :)
Also, Rafa says he always is working in his serve, because for him, his serve is one of the weakest strokes he got...
so..I think that the change you are saying its obviously a result of months and months of training....you can be a pro, but still you can't make big changes in your serve motion suddenly, because it could be a totally disaster...we have Guillermo Coria's example...
truth, but he indeed changed his grip...Luckily I speak spanish so I can understand what he is saying in a press conference he made after arriving to Spain.
He states that he decided to change a bit his grip 2 days before the beginning of the US open, why? he said he wanted more contact with the ball in order to go a bit faster, and sharper because during his training he realized his serve wasn't sharp enough, for that reason he was struggling to win his serve against the wind.
Thank you for the translation, yes he definitely changed his grip. I just thought that the new motion was the major change. Thanks for watching and your comments. Christophe.
Good analysis. I heard commentators like Mac repeating the "grip change" quote, but also adding that they doubted that's all there was to it.
Probably part of Rafa's problem with his original serve is that he's doing it left handed, which we all know he's naturally not, so he has to learn everything very mechanically and not by fluid instinct.
i just dont understand why the commentators are talking smack to the people listening and saying its his grip, and more importantly why is rafa saying it.
However apparently it is being sugested his serve is bigger than in miami at the us open
@farood5 . i just don't think Rafa wanted to get into it during the interview, yes he made a grip adjustment but the main difference is the arm motion. I have always said he needed to change his serve motion if he wanted to develop his serve as a weapon. Thanks for your comments and watching. C.
i have a prob w/ not pointing the racquet head all the way to the ground after i swing from the trophy position... im not inflexible so maybe it's b/c my racquet arm is too tense?
You are right about everything. But couldnt it be that the changes you just pointed out are because of the new grip? I tested this myself and if I do a flat serve, i dont really bend my arm that much and my arm doesnt go all the way back if you know what i mean. But if i use the continental grip, then automaticly my arm bends and goes all the way back to make a full swing. It just goes naturally for me. Maybe thats the same thing with nadal? Just want to know your opinion about this.
tshirttime84 3 days ago
yeah serve improvement only for one tourney.
youziness 1 week ago
This has been flagged as spam show
VERY GOOD DEMONSTRATION!!!!
pop90ful 1 week ago
iiiis same you ididot very bat demodtration
delliosligety 2 weeks ago
@delliosligety Learn how to spell first before commenting and get a life troll.Thanks for watching Christophe.
xstf 2 weeks ago 2
Unusual responses on this video again.
beverlybradley210 1 month ago
Very good observation! I focus on the trophy position in my players as well. It is also important to focus in the position of the shoulders. In first of nadal's serve, his shoulders seem to be more horizontal. However, in the second video, his right shoulder (tossing arm) goes over his left. This shows that he is loading better with his legs which will help the transfer of his weight into the ball. All of the players shown in this video do that! Good Job @xstf
aspillaga 1 month ago in playlist tennis
@aspillaga thank you for your comments. Christophe.
xstf 2 weeks ago
he never learnt to serve..!!!
leangutierrez 1 month ago
wtf is the player on the right doing
nadalrocks941 1 month ago
Your video is a favorite on Slovakia
rickmcclure1229 1 month ago
this is a horrible demonstration, you stop the video to the point where nadal wasnt even finishing his form. good job trying to make him look bad.
andytran010 3 months ago in playlist Favorite videos
@andytran010 Really! it's an analysis and watch the video follow-up to this one which proves his serve struggles I am just pointing out the flaws all the announcers (and you) missed.
Thanks for watching! C.
xstf 3 months ago
Great analysis. Thank you very much.
brycewatana 3 months ago
@brycewatana You are very welcome! Christophe.
xstf 3 months ago
i notice nadal clenches his fingers at contact point LOL
Kiser153 3 months ago
fantastic analysis. really enjoyed this video and i plan on adding these tips to my own serve
sNip3sh0t626 3 months ago
@kching Ok Sampras has great trophy position, he just happens to dip his shoulders due to the way he leans and turns his back away from his opponent. Sampras's arm is more than slightly bent at trophy, it's actually perfect and so is his power position. There is not much difference in trophy position between Sampras and the current top servers like Federer, Del Potro or even Tsonga. Thanks for watching! Christophe.
xstf 4 months ago
Without a doubt your videos saved me hundreds if not thousands of dollars on tennis lessons. Very insightful analysis that probably very few coaches can pick up on!
dctrex 5 months ago
@dctrex Thank you very much for your kind words keep watching more videos coming soon. Christophe.
xstf 5 months ago
no shit sherlock
AceGuitarR7 5 months ago
@AceGuitarR7 Hey troll, why don't you take some serving lessons and let me know why the entire CBS booth did not see the motion change!
xstf 5 months ago
watch?v=fmU2-HjB-_c&feature=related
this vid on yt it's older than yours and his TP it's quite nice to me. ; P
laqueteremil 5 months ago
Comment removed
laqueteremil 5 months ago
When you have a grip change away from the continental towards an eastern grip you will lose spin and hit more flat. When you go flat you get more speed. Previously Nadal was hitting spin first serves...now that he is hitting less spin on his 1st serve he is getting more speed....Most importantly "repetition is the mother of skill"
tennischicago 5 months ago
What are some tips about hitting a good top spin i can only do it to players that are better than me but when i play ppl at same level or a little beter i cant hit my top spin as hard because everytime i do it goes out. should i practice doing it more or is something wrong?
fakmenow 5 months ago
the last part loopey first motion means he could get more spin on the
serve but with straight he gets it flat
ahmedlama2 6 months ago
If you look at 7:56 then you can see he is bending his arm! But now he bends his arm earlier, that makes the difference, and his wrist is more straight. Am I right?
Brighton1422 6 months ago
This is really good video. Thank you.
AMFFF4E 7 months ago
@AMFFF4E You are very welcome. Christophe
xstf 7 months ago
Youre a tennis genius! Very nice video!
cgilbreth 6 months ago
@cgilbreth well i would not go that far!!!! but thank you for your compliment and keep watching. Christophe.
xstf 6 months ago
@AMFFF4E You are welcome. Thank you for watching.
xstf 6 months ago
wheres sampras? T_T
TheFatKid128 7 months ago
Safin's service motion is absolutely perfect.
rounick 7 months ago
great explanation, great idea to show footage of many players for comparison
raisen90timpa 8 months ago
@IFUDARECC But the main difference is the new motion and not the grip.
xstf 8 months ago
@IFUDARECC It is much more pronounced on the new serve and you can tell has put more thought into using his legs. Thanks for watching. C.
xstf 8 months ago
Thanks for analysis, always enjoy your videos. I was wondering if it's acceptable to use an eastern forehand for flat serves, but stick to continental for spin serves? Thanks.
12396Danny 10 months ago
@12396Danny I am not a big of teaching the serve with an eastern grip. Boris Becker was the only guy to really master it. You can cheat a little towards the eastern grip but learn to pronate more to flatten out your serves. I hope that was helpful. Christophe
xstf 10 months ago
@12396Danny i meant to say not a big fan of teaching the....
xstf 10 months ago
he didnt just change the grip he started using more roids
manny1a2a3a 10 months ago
@manny1a2a3a grow up, the video shows how he improved his serve
ppppdmt 10 months ago
Bravo xstf tes vidéos sont tjs au top! Ciao du maroc
tennismaroc 10 months ago
This was a great video commentary! I'd love to hear you do a commentary on Pete Sampras' serve.
TheShannon76 11 months ago
@TheShannon76 Thanks for the compliment. I don't have any Pete footage yet but i will as soon as i can my hands on it.
xstf 11 months ago
This guy should be a commentator! Would make watching so much more interesting. The commentators these days just say the obvious! This was very insightful.
pendleaussie 1 year ago
@pendleaussie I thank you for your compliments, I watched the entire AO finals this morning with the volume off! C.
xstf 1 year ago
My oh my, this is such a great help to improve the serve o.o.
EternalChaos000 1 year ago
this video is good in some ways but the point you're trying to make is completely wrong. nadal changed the grip on his serve at the us open not in miami. if it wudve been in miami the commentators would have talked about it in that tournament.
coriaelmago101 1 year ago
@coriaelmago101 My whole point is the commentators have not clue of what they are talking about. The proof is in front of you that in Miami is motion was already changed. It took that long for the commentators to catch on. I noticed it in Miami! If you watch Rafa today he still uses the same old grip (continental). He adjusts to the new grip (more eastern fh) then goes back to the old continental grip just before the start of his motion, hence it was not a grip change but a motion change. C.
xstf 1 year ago
Djokovic's serve. not much analysis needed there, right? :P
adamwhair 1 year ago
@adamwhair I think he also changed his motion, I am looking for recent footage to do his serve analysis.
xstf 1 year ago
Hi Christophe! Your vids are really helpful and fun to watch.
2 Questions:
What do you think about Nadal's serve overall? I dig his serve very much and have just changed my tossing motion and getting into the power position to what he does(hitting arm goes straight up without a loop) It gives me way more consitent serves and good placement.
I do lack power but I think as long as I am getting into the correct power position it does not matter how. Am I right?
Keep up the great work! Regards
chroobyc 1 year ago
@chroobyc I think his serve got better with his new motion. Make sure that you do not get in the power position too soon, that is one way to loose power. You must stay in the trophy position until you are ready to hit the ball, collapsing too soon in the power position will kill all your momentum. The serve like any other stroke is about rhythm and tempo. Let me know if you need more help. Thanks for watching. Christophe.
xstf 1 year ago
@Rafathaman94 Thanks for the tip but if I had the same angle i would have used it!. I just don't always have the same seats so i do the best I can with what I have! Thanks for watching Christophe.
xstf 1 year ago
@Rafathaman94 He already had changed his serve in Miami Hence the video proof!
xstf 1 year ago
nice analysis!! i used to serve so slowly and wrongly but now i feel great because my coach made a lot of adjustments to it...mainly the arm!! like u said! I kept it too straight and i rotate my body too much so now my coach makes me take it straight up like roddick so i always bend my arm and he told me to pretend thers a wall behind my back so i dont turn my torso all over the place which makes my serve slow.
dorker1992 1 year ago
@dorker1992 Nice advice about pretending the back is against a wall. I have the problem of turning my torso too much. Thanks for the tip, I will give it a try.
Cory221989 1 year ago
@Cory221989 Yeh i never thought about it until a coach got another coach to analyze my serve...and omg it works!! Give it a try and tell me your result!! :D its gonna make ur serve a lot more consistent and faster.
dorker1992 1 year ago
Great video. I wasn't expecting to see Roddick in here but that part was helpful too.
tennisDOTdo 1 year ago
0:36 trophy position 2009 rafa. but at 0:30 rafa's legs position on his serve is different, and its now into a postition where he would get more pace with his new grip and he'll jump into it more to add to that pace,unlike before where he didn't really jump that much into the serve like he does now with his new footwork during the serve
ElectricalCloud 1 year ago
Comment removed
ElectricalCloud 1 year ago
In his old Servicemotion he got into the Trophyposition as well, just sligthly later...
affenkeks 1 year ago
@affenkeks my point is that his arm motion did not get into the trophy position at the proper time. I obviously know what a trophy position looks like and i know that he did get there but keeping his arm straight at the beginning did not allow him to get the most out of his serve. Thanks for watching . Christophe.
xstf 1 year ago
great video thanks
sfn3 1 year ago
HI Chris. Open Stance is the most used when hitting forehand but the heel to toes weight transfer goes on the left foot in close position on the forehand? Thank you for great job :)
miki8122 1 year ago
@miki8122 yes Heel to toe weight transfer with the left leg on the forehand closed stance if you are right handed of course. Sorry it took me so long to answer your question.
xstf 1 year ago
Nice theory, but my theory for the increased mph is that if you look at his tossing arm after he lets go of the ball he is bring the right arm more back towards him and getting a greater stretch or load from both his front hip (right hip) and his core, on the video on the left from last year you can see his core doesn't really stretch backwards, but in new footage from the US Open you see a much greater core stretch and load. Combine this with his grip change, and there you have it.
chieface 1 year ago
@chieface good observation but the arm has to be set up in proper position to get ultimate racket head speed. i often demonstrate serving from my knees with hardly any leg movement or upper core stretch and get great racket head speed. I get your point but it was very obvious the grip change alone was not the only adjustment made by Rafa. Thanks for watching. C,
xstf 1 year ago
nice
ZawShin 1 year ago
great analysis
goyacc 1 year ago
@xstf Great video; instructional and well put. I'd just like to know what, in more detail you think about the apparent grip change. Because I've heard some people say he went from an eastern backhand to a continental, which makes sense, but I believe the commentators said it was continental to eastern, which would impede your pronation and give you less speed and control. Thoughts?
TheAnonymousViewer 1 year ago
@TheAnonymousViewer Yes i agree with you he went from an eastern BH grip to a true continental grip maybe continental forehand. The continental grip is the grip of choice you cannot pronate properly with anything but a continental grip. The only exception was Boris Becker. When the ESPN broadcaster are in the booth i turn the volume down. Thanks for watching. Christophe
xstf 1 year ago
@xstf Thanks for the imput.
~Zack
TheAnonymousViewer 1 year ago
Well you are making total sense but when rafa was talking about a new grip hes talking about from how he was serving this year. His 09 serve was pretty horrible but starting this year he changed it to the "trophey position". so to rafa he says new grip because hes been serving with the trophey pose all year but at the us open he adjusted his grip to get a faster paced ball.
binaryhex1 1 year ago
dont you think hes also standing more upright now than he used to, before even the sony-ericsson? I see him now more upright, and before I thought he tilted a bit too much to his right side, and that, plus his grip, made his serve too spinny. Maybe hes been using his new motion since early this year, but just changed his grip right for the USO, thats why hes just talkin about his grip....
pabletion 1 year ago
amazing video
blassenhoff 1 year ago
It was risky decision but I apparently the correct one :)
Also, Rafa says he always is working in his serve, because for him, his serve is one of the weakest strokes he got...
so..I think that the change you are saying its obviously a result of months and months of training....you can be a pro, but still you can't make big changes in your serve motion suddenly, because it could be a totally disaster...we have Guillermo Coria's example...
Anyway.. good one...I really liked your analysis
TheRhormaza 1 year ago
truth, but he indeed changed his grip...Luckily I speak spanish so I can understand what he is saying in a press conference he made after arriving to Spain.
He states that he decided to change a bit his grip 2 days before the beginning of the US open, why? he said he wanted more contact with the ball in order to go a bit faster, and sharper because during his training he realized his serve wasn't sharp enough, for that reason he was struggling to win his serve against the wind.
TheRhormaza 1 year ago
@TheRhormaza
Thank you for the translation, yes he definitely changed his grip. I just thought that the new motion was the major change. Thanks for watching and your comments. Christophe.
xstf 1 year ago
Comment removed
TheRhormaza 1 year ago
Would London 2009 be a good example since he was injured at that time? In other words, I'm asking if that one's the same with the others (old) :P
ductrung3993 1 year ago
Good analysis. I heard commentators like Mac repeating the "grip change" quote, but also adding that they doubted that's all there was to it.
Probably part of Rafa's problem with his original serve is that he's doing it left handed, which we all know he's naturally not, so he has to learn everything very mechanically and not by fluid instinct.
A550RGY 1 year ago
Great analysis!!!!!
dirk23thebest 1 year ago
i just dont understand why the commentators are talking smack to the people listening and saying its his grip, and more importantly why is rafa saying it.
However apparently it is being sugested his serve is bigger than in miami at the us open
farood5 1 year ago
@farood5 . i just don't think Rafa wanted to get into it during the interview, yes he made a grip adjustment but the main difference is the arm motion. I have always said he needed to change his serve motion if he wanted to develop his serve as a weapon. Thanks for your comments and watching. C.
xstf 1 year ago
@farood5 rafa's probably saying that b/c he can't explain himself well in english, so he say's that b/c it's easier to express.
ghlover2001 1 year ago
very impressive... i think u nailed it, my friend
i have a prob w/ not pointing the racquet head all the way to the ground after i swing from the trophy position... im not inflexible so maybe it's b/c my racquet arm is too tense?
i should send u a video
mephatboi 1 year ago