Loading...
Upgrade or join Advantage to secure priority access to tickets for cinch Championships 2025
Skip to content

Beginner's guide

How to hit a serve for beginners

Top view of woman in the middle of a serve
Share this article

Serves are one of the most important shots in tennis as they start every point.

Of course, you don’t have to serve to start a rally when you are practicing, – an overarm throw or an underarm shot is absolutely fine – but it’s important to practice the shot, as it’s vital when playing the game and starting a point. To improve your technique, LTA expert coach Matt Smith has you covered.

Step one – racket grip

You want to make sure the racket is comfortable in your hand.

Using your dominant hand, hold the bottom of the racket grip as if you’re trying to shake hands with someone.

Step two – get side ways on

Next up, positioning. You want to be stood sideways-on behind the baseline.

As a beginner you can start in a throwing position, or what we sometimes call the ‘trophy’ or ‘tick’ position’ with your non-dominant hand pointing down the court holding the ball, and your dominant arm behind you in a 90 degree angle, holding the racket.

Remember, for a serve, your feet can’t go over the baseline!

Step three – place the ball above your head

Eden Silva serves.jpg

With the ball in your non-dominant hand, try placing it directly up in the air above head height and slightly out in front.

If you think about a clockface above you, you want to be throwing the ball at about one o’clock and just in front of you.

This is something you can practice anywhere at any time with the non-dominant hand. The more the practice, the easier and more consistent it will become in the future.

Step four – throw your racket

No, not literally – but the motion of hitting a serve is very similar to throwing your racket towards the other end of the court.

When the ball is above head height, and often at the pinnacle of the toss, you want to try and make contact with the ball, swinging your racket arm at a comfortable stretch.

Try and keep the racket face pointing towards your target as you hit the ball.  

Bonus tip: As you get more comfortable you can add in more of a full swing motion. Start with the racket and ball in front of you and then begin the motion by moving both arms – down together, parting at your waist and then up together, to get into the same ‘trophy’ position, ahead of hitting.

Book a tennis court

Find your nearest tenis courts and book your next hit.

Book now

Create a free account to enjoy unlimited reading

  • Access exclusive articles and videos
  • Gain expert advice from top-level coaches
  • Receive newsletters with special promotions, announcements and content
Create an account

or

Already have an account? Log in

Want to learn more about our account options? Explore account options

Cookies on LTA site

We use cookies on our site to ACE your experience, improve the quality of our site and show you content we think you’ll be interested in. Let us know if you agree to cookies or if you’d prefer to manage your own settings.