I really like that Nick still got plenty of aces in and you didn't need to fudge the drill to make it seem like you can crush ANY serve on the return. Felt more similar to match play that way and I really appreciated it.
also big shout out to Nick! he's got an awesome serve! very few misses (if any?) and spot on precision! "ace me! 2nd serve me! hit my forehand! short serve me!" one day I'll get there hahaha :)
You give out the most concise and comprehensive instructions among the tennis channels on YT. Great balance between technicality and court awareness. Exactly the kind of coach needed by a player who's gotten into the game pretty late but still wants to accomplish something. Keep it up!
I'm glad you like Jose! If you would like to learn more, subscribe to our newsletter, soon we will be having more lessons like these delivered by email as well!
Your lessons cannot be more genuine: you are a coach and a player who walks the talk. Showing the technical and tactical aspects of the return as they are is truly what people need. Great lessons, Karue! 👍 😊
I'm a 61 year old 3.5 player, who often plays against a 30's something 5.0 player in doubles and he always kills me on his serves, but after watching this video, the night before our 4 set match, i went from returning his serves less than 5% of the time to close to 70% with one sold winner when we were playing Austrian .Also, in general, I have been so discouraged with my return of serve; so inconsistent, even with players of lesser caliber. I have never watched a video that totally improved my game literally over night before. I realize that it will take a lot more practice and exposure to many different servers, to make it into a weapon, but wow what an improvement. I can't thank you enough!!! Totally awesome video.
Hi Karue, I think your tennis lessons are the most helpful! somehow it all makes sense to me! It’s way more detailed! And it goes straight to the point! I wish you good luck in your professional endeavors, and I am following you every step of the way! I live in Sydney Australia, I have a court in my complex! It will be my absolute honor to have you here playing a match or two if you ever come down under one day!
Very good teaching here. I love the fact that Nick served for real and the guy was not worry about showing that he good get it easy, like real game situation. Another one was when he got back and Nick open the angle. Many player try to go as far as they can from the base line and it just does not work. Finally as he said, don´t just block, make the swing.
Great video mate. Youre covering something that gets often missed even at advanced levels. Returning serve is always a learning process mid game and making micro-adjustments. I like that you don't beat yourself up over missed points/aces etc, we probably do it too much as a culture at high levels. Definitely getting take aways from here
Really good stuff. Quick question. Could you offer some tips on returning a 100+ serve directly at your body. I've always found the body serve by far the most difficult to return. Thank You.
Me too! I play wheelchair so it’s a little more difficult (I’m lying, it’s A LOT more difficult) to get out of the way of a bullet serve to the body! I’m left holding the racket vertically in front of me like a lollipop. Not very graceful, or effective. The best solution I’ve found so far is to hit a slice backhand standing square to the ball and chopping down with an open racket face - and praying I get the damn thing DEEP ENOUGH so I don’t totally EAT the next shot! Open to any ideas you may have. Thanks - JD, Montreal
I really like this channel. this is how everyone should teach Tennis, no bullshit and direct to the point, unlike other channels that makes tennis more complicated and so frustrating to learn.
Karu you consistently put up the best content on RU-vid for tennis. thank you so much for this tutorial It really put things into perspective. keep it up!
Awesome tips, thanks. I got the first step down by also having the same panda vibration dampener! Now just have to implement the rest of the lessons haha
Love all your videos Sell, i just bought a Yonex VCORE PRO 97 too so im glad to see you using the same stick as me. I always have issues returning big serves and this videos were really interesting coming from somebody with so much experience. Cheers !
Great discussion. By 4.5 -5.0, there are plenty of guys who crush first serves and move the ball around. Unless you already know their pattern of play, you'll have to figure out the code each time.
Hi Karue, huge fan of the channel. I think you produce some of the best material for college players like myself. Could you make a video discussing a training regime. For instance, weight room, footwork, and cardio workouts to improve our game? Thanks.
I don’t know if it’s ‘correct’, but what helped me the most is… Charge in on the return of serve as if I’m approaching the net right as the ball is approaching. Tends to keep the ball down and with a shorter swing, momentum gives me a better hit. VS just going left or right
Karue, how do we hit a OHBH return in terms of open stance? My understanding is that it's kind of semi-open with the right leg coming through right after the shot.
As a lefty, this would help me as well. I struggle returning right handers' serves because all of you serve to my backhand and it's tough to step around even on a body serve because of how it slices.
Hi karu i have a problem on my serve that i throw the ball once too much inside the court and then too much back on the flat serve and then the ball hits the upper side of the racket and barely gets any power, because of the toss i sometimes have to run threw my technique and sometimes i have time, so i think i should improve my timing and my toss, and things you would advise me to do?
Superb video!. Thanks. What grip do you recommend for us one handers? I my case I´ve used always continental. If the serve is fast I only block/slice it on forehand and backhand. And I don´t have to receive such big serves like Nick´s, haha.
I have a 1-H backhand and I still return with a grip similar to the one Karue describes. Dominant hand in a forehand grip, off hand up on the throat as if I'm preparing for a backhand. If the ball is coming to my forehand side I simply release my offhand and I'm ready to hit because my main hand is already in a forehand grip. If it's coming to my backhand I initiate the turn with my offhand, which is already stabilizing the racket while I switch the grip on my main hand. I find this much more stable than waiting with a continental grip or backhand grip on my main hand, because I can be more aggressive on my FH with less to think about, and the grip switch on my backhand is already instinctual during the turn.
Old coach of mine said to return up the middle. Part of it is people coming out of their serve motions are in a vulnerable state, what do you think of that? Also aiming up the middle can help with timing, if you catch the return early aiming up the middle you can hit a good cross court ball, if you catch it late you hit a ball DTL What are your thoughts? Great content as always
Karue: how do you track the ball with your eyes?? Are you tracking the ball from the moment that it leaves your opponent's racket to the moment it hits the ground?
It felt like this video was primarily aimed at singles play. Are there any things you would say differently if you were speaking to the doubles return? Specifically, I feel like when I return from farther behind the baseline it gives the net player too much time to poach. And I’ve seen a lot of successful 4.5 players stand well inside the baseline and simply chip the return back so they can charge the net right off the return. Thanks for the great content as always!
Great video, played a really tall and massive server the other day (former davis cup), and I thought backing up would do the trick, however as you said in the video if they can hit there spots you're screwed. And that i was... WIll definitely try stepping in next time especially on the second serves which kick up lick crazy.. Also, what racket and string are you using? It looks identical to my setup, Im using the new vcore pro 330h, with weiss cannon ultra cable. Anyways, great video and thanks alot!
Could you do a video explaining a bit better what cues can you use to read a bit the serve? At a certain level ball toss is pretty similar for slices and flat serves. I was intrigued by the shoulder rotation tip but I don't know what to look for
I understand the importance of the open stance in returning, but what to do if you use a 1HBH? Also, what about slicing the return off the backhand side, Karue?
Love your videos brother, this is super helpful, thank you! Have you swtiched from the VCore 95 to the new Gravity Pro? And if so, why? Thanks man I appreciate the channel!
Hi Karue, is there a difference in contact point or follow through for a flat serve that bounces up and a flat serve that skids and stays low? I thought flat serves only stayed low. But after watching this vid and also by some fluke managed to hit a flat one that kicked over my opponents head today, I've come to think that maybe it is possible to serve both types of flat serves. Could you please elaborate on the fundamentals of each of these types of flat serves? Much appreciated.
My notes so far: 1. Wide stance and tall split step, move actively after split step - outer leg must push towards where you need to go. 2. Open stance return 3. Short swing but full follow through for acceleration. 4. Racket high and in front At 5:40
Last 3 notes: racket position needs to be higher for high bouncing serves and lower for lower serves. Stand where it makes sense, eg further back for big serves. Aim for big targets.
serves up to 100-110mph you can actually stand close to the base line and rob huge time away from the server. You also cause them to want to hit yet faster, reducing their percentage.
Hey Karue, super helpful, great video, thank you so much for posting! Quick question: is there a way to talk to you privately about lessons for my son? Either you or maybe you can recommend somebody good. I tried emailing on your website a couple of times but got no response. Thanks!
My brain can't wrap around how to quickly change the grip of the racquet. I've noticed more and more that with those rocket serves I tend to close up the racket when trying to get into a backhand. Any advice on that? :)
Ótimo vídeo! Está gostando dessa nova Vcore pro? Sei que você costuma usar a Vcore 95, gostaria de saber sua opinião sobre a pro. Como eu ainda não consegui testá-la, talvez uma opinião me ajude a decidir se devo comprar ela ou não. Um abraço!
Essa era a 97D, 320 gramas. Gosto do lineup em geral. Confortável, bom peso, bom feel na bola. Prefiro a 95 pro meu estilo mas essa nova geração da Pro é melhor que a anterior
Great video Karue. Thank you. No matter how hard I try I start my split step just while the ball is being hit which is only a touch better than not split stepping! Any cues as to when exactly you should start the split step ie the hop/jump part so that you land just after ball is hit?
I don't usually have time to hit my single-handed backhand from fast first serves (there's not time to adjust to my, slightly extreme grip), so I try sliced backhands -- but sliced backhands don't really work with an open stance... any thoughts..?
Not to sure if you mentioned it, but what type of grip are you using/ what is best for service-returns? I struggle on my FH return, so was thinking if its best to change it up (i use a continental grip). Great vids as always, Thanks!
Great videos, thanks. Ime, a lot of players struggle with the upper body rotation and uncoiling into the return of serve. For my part, this is due to not being able to read the correct side fast enough, and the associated feeling of being stuck. As you point out in the first video, anticipating or favoring on side over the other, is a good strategy (just trying it out after your video). For my part it seems to work, as the anticipation let's me focus on a longer sequence of movement to execute (than just split stepping): f.inst. split step, load right leg, turn upper body right, uncoil and move into the shot. It seems to me this works, as most of us (recreational players) do not have the necessary upper body rotation speed to have a "neutral" approach to the ROS, as this inevitably leads to being stuck. Is this the main "solution" to being stuck or do you have other keys?
Well a lot comes down to reaction speeds and recognizing the direction of the ball quickly. The same happens on groundstrokes if the ball is being hit too fast. At the end of the day you need lots of repetition. Pay a lot of attention to the ball as your opponent is hitting it so you can identify the direction of the ball fast
is it possible to react if he aim for the farthest left corner and you stay in right corner and speed is ~160mph, i think its impossibl, why pros not serve like that all the time
To take the name of Jesus in vain during the video is offensive to christians... that is not good enough on a tennis video... i was offended and stopped watching.
