How to know where your opponent is going to serve - before he serves?

This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
May 2013
1,056
889
2,578
Read 2 reviews
Observe your opponent's behaviour and look for clues/patterns. Some people adopt a completely different stance and/or position relative to the table when executing different serves. Others try to steal a look at the part of the table they're about to serve.

Of course, the really good servers don't do any of that and change the type/direction/placement of the serve at the very last moment. The really mean ones look one way and serve elsewhere :)
 
says 2023 Certified Organ Donor
says 2023 Certified Organ Donor
Well-Known Member
Sep 2011
12,821
13,210
30,387
Read 27 reviews
Well,somebody gotta make gadget,,,like the one in the movie DOA( Dead or Alive) . lol

Sent from my XT1068 using Tapatalk

Carl DID make such a device and it is embedded in hiz mobile phone. I wrote an app for it... but you will catch hell trying to get that sucker from Carl.

So far, on this forum, only Agold has managed to take anything from Carl forcefully.
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Active Member
Aug 2013
714
277
1,731
Hello Net, 1st you have to familiarize yourself with diffrent types of serves,
principle behind how each serve is done.
contact point of bat and ball of each type of serve
ball rotation after the serve executed/possible directions of the ball
how the ball should be returned by you depending on your judgment as to the amount of spin.
The hard part is reading body language from shoulder to arm.. most high level players try to develop 1 stroke with diffrent ball contact points and diffrent amount of spin given to the ball so you really have to read the serve. My opinion you have to familiarize yourself first. Experience with our players even if they are advance and high level the tendency is that whenever they are tired they forget to read the ball and just simply put a soft graze on the stroke, it sometimes work but the problem is the body tends to relax and not to prepare for the incoming ball. The anticipation level is moving down.

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
You also have to understand that, a good serve will read the receiver's stance and readiness. At my level, I see a lot of players set up to receive a serve and it is almost like they are telling you: "please serve to my backhand." Or: "please serve to my forehand." If the opponent is set for and asking for the serve to go to one side or the other, a good server will read that and frustrate that desire. Also, aiming for a person's switching point is never a bad idea when serving. And the switching point changes based on the receiver's stance. So, sometimes figuring out the serving side of things can also help you figure out what someone serving to you is likely to do.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: JeffM
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
This user has been banned.
Nov 2010
367
134
502
It is hard to predict where a serve is going to go. Good servers can twist their wrist at the last moment so that the ball can go just about anywhere. I try to be as unpredictable as possible.
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
I guess the other thing would be to practice receiving serve as much as possible.

I have a few training partners where we practice serve and receive drills that are designed to focus on the random nature of the receive of serve.


Sent from Deep Space by Abacus
 
Last edited:
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
This user has been banned.
Nov 2010
367
134
502
I guess the other thing would be to practice receiving serve as much as possible.

I have a few training partners where we practice serve and receive drills that are designed to focus on the random nature of the receive of serve.
I told my first coach I was only interested in the first 4 strokes. Much of each lesson was simply serve and serve returns. Serve returns require a lot of attention and this requires mental energy. One must correlate the motion and angle of the server's paddle with the sound of contact or visual contact.

I find that the problem is not returning the serve but returning the serve so that it doesn't get attacked.
 
Top