Thanks for tuning in! I'm glad you're learning from the videos! What did you think of the hook serve? You can make a hybrid of the tomahawk and hook serve to make a new variation. Might be something to try?
I use this serve all the the time but I naturally serve it to the opponents backhand. I'm going to start serving it more often to their forehand. Great tip! Thank you.
Sometimes I have a tough time reading topspin vs backspin in games. At 2:20 it looks like you are coming down on the back of the ball which makes me think it would be backspin, but it clearly kicks and has top spin. Any tips on how to read top vs backspin on a serve like this?
You're on the right track. Generally if the player comes down the back of the ball it will be backspin. I'm coming down to lower the contact point, but as I contact the ball my racket is still going slightly forward and I'm hitting on the northern hemisphere of the ball. It's a tough read but my general rule on returning the tomahawk serve is that if I'm unsure of the spin then I assume that it's topspin. The backspin tomahawk is difficult to do and it's extremely rare. So until my opponent has proven they can do it with backspin then I assume that it is topspin.
^^^ That last tip is kind of a cop out strategy and it's always better if you can make the read and not just assume the spin. It's something that experience has taught me. What you really want to watch for is the racket angle and racket motion *at contact* with the ball
