Disguise On Serve

Steve Keyes Asked 13 years ago

Hi Guys

As you work on practising the different serves and the ability to place the ball short and long on the table, I was wondering on the disguise of the serve.

Like cricket, as having the same arm movement, variations of different spins and no spin, I was wondering on your thought processes as you get down to serve.

Would you ever look up before serving, to see the body language of your opponent, are they too ready for the short serve, serve down the line, fast topspin serve into the body, etc.

Many Thanks Steve

Alois Rosario Answered 13 years ago

Hi Steve,

This is a really good point.

Disguise is one of your best weapons.  Without it you make it too easy for your opponent.  The key is to have the same preparation for your serves.  Try to make the swing for your various spin and placement options as similar as possible.  The less that changes the harder it is for your opponent to tell what serve you are doing and the less time they will have to react.

Regarding looking at your opponent, this is also really important.  It doesn't have to be a long look but just a quick glance up will tell you a lot about where you should be serving the next ball.

With that quick glance I often see a gap.  It can be hard to explain but I see a position that I should be serving to.  Sometimes it is short, sometimes in their middle and sometimes out wide or long and fast.  It is quite amazing what you can pick up with that quick glance.  Don't try to analyse it too much just take a quick look and see what you can see.

It would be good to hear your thoughts once you have had a go at this.