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Roger Federer and Andy Roddick - the Serve

Jim McLennan

I thoroughly enjoyed the Pacific Life Open. The court coverage, shot making, and “heart” were incredible in the 7-6, 6-7, 7-6 semifinal between Hewitt and Roddick. Though I did note that on the last two points of the third set tiebreaker Roddick missed both first serves. I am starting to believe that Andy's serve though monstrous and often unreturnable, somehow goes “off” in the crunch; same thing at the US Open against Joachim Johansson. When a gyroscope wobbles, the “precession” (The motion of the axis of a spinning body, such as the wobble of a spinning top, when there is an external force acting on the axis) draws off energy from the spinning momentum, and similarly, I suspect just the slightest wobble in Roddick's delivery.

Then in the final, Federer's accuracy just continues to amaze. He hits the ball slightly harder and slightly closer to the lines than anyone else – when Roddick or Hewitt are satisfied with a ball into the corner, Federer hits that same ball just slightly better, and makes Hewitt appear somehow second rate in the process. But back to the precession model, Federer just does not wobble on any of his hits, including his serve, and his accuracy just flows and flows.

Figure 1: Tossing Arm and Weight Shift

Let's take a peek at the serves of Roger and Andy using the powerful video analysis tool, "siliconCoach" to create a side-by-side comparison.

Practically all the basic elements are identical or nearly so. But here and there just the slightest differences occur, and to my eye they speak to gyroscopic stability and the balance of a spinning system.

Toss and Release

This is a good one to copy. Both players release the ball with their weight on the back foot and their eyes up.

Roger positions his tossing arm more forward; Andy tosses with the arm more or less parallel to the baseline.

Figure 2: Sink and Bulge

Often in the old days a teaching prompt on the serve was to move the arms down and then up together. Andy's arms have moved up together, Roger lags with the arm and racquet down, but this difference is more an element of style than mechanics.

Sink and Bulge

In order to swing up and into the ball, players bend their knees and bulge so that their hips move across the baseline while their shoulders and upper body remain back.

As is obvious Roddick sinks and bulges much more than Federer. The bulge or arch can be likened to the energy placed into a bow to shoot an arrow. Andy's greater racquet head speed flows from this as much as any aspect of his serve.

Figure 3: Left Side

Left Side

Both guys are pushing up from the previous picture (Figure 2), and both are still grounded on the left side. But here is the first indication of mechanical differences between the two players.

The swinging left arm contributes to the rhythm, power, and balance of the service delivery (as well as a pitchers baseball delivery). When in rhythm, there is more or less a straight line from elbow to elbow as is the case with Federer (Figure 3) on the right and as we would see in Sampras' or McEnroe's delivery as well.

Andy's arm has obviously dropped sooner and further than Roger's, and to my eye, this indicates Andy is slightly out of sync and rhythm here, a little like Venus Williams.

Figure 4: Pulling Up

Pulling Up

This is also a good one to copy.

Both players appear nearly identical at this moment. The elbow is up and bent and the racquet head is down (this used to be known as scratching the back but now a better term I believe is a “swinging drop”).

This may be one of the most difficult positions for recreational players to find, and also creates a lot of movement and potential for strain within the rotator cuff muscles in the shoulder. But when discovered, this swinging drop adds a lot of zip to the serve. In order to get the feel of this, try loosening the grip and easing off the muscles in the forearm.

Figure 5: Impact

Impact

Serve tall. Both players are well up and off the ground. And in both instances the moving images will show that they continue to move “up” for even an additional moment after contact.

The old books on tennis always advised the server to “hit up” and both these guys follow those instructions to a “T.” But ever so slightly, Roger seems more balanced and going up.

Ready to Play

Finally, as they regain readiness for the return, Roddick has thrown “the entire kitchen sink” into the serve, but at what cost?

Figure 6: Ready to Play

To my eye he has finished every so slightly forward and off balance, his left arm has swung backward whereas Federer's appears more comfortable at his side. And though Andy can spring back up and into action, this picture does capture the “work” he puts into his game.

Roddick's Tremendous Racquet Acceleration

Years ago I spoke with Tarik Benhabiles about the young but tremendously powerful Andy Roddick. I asked where this huge serve came from. Tarik described the deep and dual legged knee bend, suggesting many of the pros bend their knees but are not equally weighted at that moment. But then he also said that Roddick was the most limber player on tour. I have seen a picture of Sampras touching his elbows behind his back, and Tarik implied that Roddick had taken that looseness even further.

Figure 7: Racquet Acceleration

In this sequence (Figure 7), the racquet gains tremendous momentum, from the internal rotation of the upper arm and forearm. And kids you may not want to try this at home alone.

On the left photo the upper arm is up and roughly vertical, but the racquet is well back. In the photo on the right the upper arm is still up but the racquet has sprung forward, dramatically, violently, powerfully. All the professionals employ this action, but Roddick gets absolutely the most from it.

When snapping a wet towel, or a bullwhip for that matter, one starts a slow and continuous swinging motion and then stops the arm and hand to pop the towel or whip. Similarly Roddick creates truly the biggest whip on tour, as these pictures and the following measurements clearly indicate.

Wrap-Up on Federer/Roddick Serve

Key elements within the serve include balance, rhythm, looseness, and going up after the ball. But at the professional level, and even higher, at the absolute top of the professional game, the elements then include disguise and pinpoint accuracy. Many of the big servers can indeed hit it “big,” but to my eye there is more about disguise and placement than power when serving in the crunch. If players are only as good as their second serve – and was true of both McEnroe and Sampras - then we can appreciate yet again the mastery of Roger Federer, and equally we can wait and see if Andy Roddick can “grow” this aspect of his game.

Lessons Learned for Your Serve

If the three most important things in real estate are “location, location, and location,” then the three most important things on the serve are rhythm and balance, rhythm and balance, and rhythm and balance.

The height of the toss influences the swinging rhythm. When too low the delivery is rushed, when too high the delivery often includes a hitch or a stopping within the swing. And truly one does not stop and then restart a bull whip. It just doesn't work that way.

Swing up and into the ball, always with an awareness of balance. As you sink and bulge, feel how your legs are weighted and centered. As you push up and into the hit, again monitor balance. It is easy to tip, to lean, to fight or struggle when serving. But your best hits always feel somehow effortless, and interestingly those effortless hits are always made on balance.

Finish on balance. Monitor how you land after the serve, have you fallen forward or to one side or the other. Ideally one finishes forward but equally with their head and eyes up, ready to pounce on the short return.

Your comments are welcome. Let us know what you think about Jim McLennan's article by emailing us here at TennisOne.

siliconCOACH Ltd produces a range of sports analysis software designed to analyse motion, enhance performance, and reduce the risk of injury. The video analysis software is now used around the world by athletes, coaches, sports scientists, teachers, podiatrists, physiotherapists, chiropractors, and biomechanists.

siliconCoach has many advantages over normal video. For exampl,e you can split a movie frame into two fields. This allows you to view 50 PAL/60 NTSC images per each second of original digital video which is essential to accurately analyse fast or complex movements. siliconCOACH Pro also comes as siliconCOACH Pro Server Edition for multiple users in an institution.