How To Serve In Pickleball To Win Every Game? Expert Serving Techniques Revealed

Serving well in pickleball is absolutely critical for winning games and matches. The serve is the only shot where you have full control, so it’s important to make each serve count. We spoke with professional pickleball players and coaches to get their expert tips on how to master the serve in pickleball. Read on to discover the secrets to developing a winning pickleball serve.

Key Techniques For A Successful Pickleball Serve

The serve in pickleball requires both solid technical skills and smart strategy. Here are some key techniques shared by the experts:

Master Both Forehand and Backhand Serves

It’s important to be able to serve comfortably off both your forehand and backhand sides. This doubles your options and makes it harder for opponents to read your serves. Start by perfecting your natural side, then work up your weaker side through regular practice.

Develop Multiple Serve Types

Having shot variety is crucial in serving. Master topspin, slice and flat serves, and know when to use each effectively. Topspin dips quickly with extra speed, slice serves skid low with more spin, while flat serves have deceptive pace.

Dave Weinbach, a top pickleball coach, emphasizes mixing up serves: “You should use topspin, flat serves, slice serves – anything to keep your opponent off balance.”

Aim For Consistent Placement

Focus on consistently hitting deep serves into the back third of the opposite service box. Shorter serves are easier to attack. Work on precision aim rather than speed so your serves reliably hit the sweet spot.

Generate Spin

Both topspin and underspin (or slice) make serves more challenging to return effectively. Spin moves the ball in ways your opponent won’t expect. According to Simone Jardim: “Spin on your serve is a huge advantage and can win you a lot of quick points.”

Use Your Legs

Power starts from the ground up. Bend your knees and use your legs to drive upward into the serve. This engages larger muscle groups for more serving power and takes stress off your shoulder.

Follow Through Fully

Carry your swing all the way across your body and towards the non-hitting shoulder. This follows the ball’s trajectory to impart full power from your paddle through the ball.

Aim Strategically

Targeting weak spots in your opponent’s game can yield aces and unreturned serves. Most players have a weaker backhand – serving there can earn points. Identifying holes in service returns through observation gives you an edge.

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Spin Serve vs Power Serve In Pickleball

Spin and power serves utilize different techniques and strategies:

Spin Serves

• Use paddle angle and speed to impart spin
• Topspin dips fast with forward paddle tilt
• Backspin floats low with backward tilt
• Allows precision targeting of service boxes
• Changes speed and trajectory deceptively

Power Serves

• Focus is maximum ball speed
• Full racquet acceleration into contact
• Flatter contact for solid impact
• Requires great shoulder strength
• Aces from pure speed or angles

Many pros use a hybrid approach – moderate power with added spin. This combines speed, precision and unpredictability for a highly effective serve.

Serving Strategies: Doubles vs Singles

Serving strategies differ slightly between singles and doubles pickleball:

Doubles Serving

• Wider court means targeting sidelines is more important
• Hit down the middle to split opponents or induce weak returns
• Pull opponents wide by serving to extremes of service box
• Jam the returner by serving near center line

Singles Serving

• Entire court open so wider selection of targets
• Can exploit specific opponent weaknesses more
• Serves out wide force lateral movement and stretching
• Hit behind opponent just short of baseline to move them back

The principles remain similar – use variety, aim deep, and mix up placement. Overall, doubles provides a narrower set of smart serve targets.

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Varying Your Serves To Keep Opponents Guessing

Serving predictably makes returning much simpler. Throwing different looks at your opponent keeps them off-balance and creates scoring opportunities.

• Change Up Serve Type – Topspin, flat, slice, hybrid serves all with distinct speed, spin and bounce.
• Vary Placement – Keep opponents moving by avoiding repetitive patterns.
• Use Left and Right – Switch evenly between forehand and backhand serves.
• Alter Speed & Spin – Faster/slower, more/less spin, high/low bounce.
• Fakeouts & Pauses – Hide your serve type through disguised motions & hesitations.
• Randomize Sequences – Avoid repetitive and obvious patterns in serve sequences.

Common Mistakes To Avoid When Serving

Sticking to proper technique and fundamentals is crucial for serving success. Here are some key mistakes that can undermine your serving consistency and effectiveness:

• Insufficient Leg Drive – Not engaging your legs limits power and fluidity.
• Rushed Motion – Hurrying your serve messes up your timing and rhythm.
• Poor Stance – Having feet and shoulders misaligned reduces your balance.
• **Gripping Too Tight **- Hold the paddle gently like an egg – don’t squeeze too hard!
• No Follow Through – Failing to complete the swing properly dumps power.
• Overuse of Wrist – Wrist shouldn’t snap, keep a firm straight line.
• Toss Inconsistency – Varying ball toss spot makes consistent contact difficult.
• Telegraphed Serves – Disguised motions and release points help hide serve type.
• Floating Elbow – Keep elbow attached to body for stability during the serve.

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Advanced Serving Tactics From The Experts

The top players utilize additional advanced tactics to further enhance their serves and gain a competitive edge:

Quick Serve Motion

A compact, economical service motion reduces tells and telegraphs. Keep actions tight from the ready position through the strike.

Decoy Motions

Use non-hitting arm, paddle, stances and ball tosses to fake certain serves before hitting your intended one.

Rapid Fire Sequences

Serving two or three balls quickly in a row changes speed and timing. This can disrupt opponents’ focus and preparation.

Jam Serves

Aim serves very close to the center line or sideline to jam the returner. Their reaction time is limited for an effective return.

High Bounce Topspin

Extreme topspin results in a serve that bounces higher than expected. This can handcuff opponents.

Low Skidding Slices

Excess underspin makes serves stay low after bouncing. This demands very quick reflexes to return.

Consistency Is Key For Winning Games

Dave Weinbach notes, “The most important thing is to be consistent with your serve.” While having variation is good, avoid overly focusing on trick shots. Your aim is getting serves in play reliably.

A consistent, well-placed serve will force weak returns. This allows you or your partner to then smash home winners.

So dial in fundamentals first – then work in more sophisticated tactics. Mastering your go-to high percentage serve gives a base for winning points.

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Drills And Practice Routines To Improve Serving

Dedicated practice is how the pros build serving consistency and skills. Try adding these drills into your routines:

Target Practice – Set up cones or markers in the service boxes and practice hitting them at different speeds, spins and heights.

Wall Volleys – Rapid fire volleys against a wall hones hand-eye coordination and swing speed.

Bucket Serves – Toss a bucket of balls and hit serves continuously to groove mechanics.

Blizzard Serves – Have someone rapidly feed you balls to serve, reacting and adjusting on the fly.

Shadow Serving – Go through the serving motion and follow-through without the ball to build muscle memory.

Serve + Return – Practice serving against various shots you or a partner feeds to maintain concentration.

Step-Off Serves – Start serves from out of the service box to get more power and leg drive.

Serve Endurance – Do sustained serve practice for 5-10 minutes to build stamina and technique endurance.

Effective Serve-Return Combinations

To fully capitalize after a serve, you need to be prepared to follow it up strategically:

• Short Slice + Dropshot – Low skidding serve followed by a drop exploits poor reaction time
• Jam Serve + Angle Volley – Forced weak return can be angled into open court
• Topspin Serve + Smash – High topspin serve sets up overhead slam
• Deep Flat Serve + Third Shot Drop – Move opponent back, then bring them forward and make them stretch
• Serve to Backhand + Crosscourt – Attack the weak side then wrong foot opponent

Pro players have a plan for getting back on offense after the serve. Work with your partner to refine your combinations.

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Mental Focus Makes A Difference For Serving Success

Serving errors often happen due to lapses in concentration or confidence according to the experts. Some keys for strong mental performance:

• Have a consistent pre-serve routine to get focused
• Visualize your serve hitting your targets before starting
• Breathe and stay calm – muscle tension reduces serving fluidity
• Recover quickly from mistakes – stay positive for the next serve
• Tune out distractions – crowd, opponent, weather etc
• Commit fully to your chosen serve and execute with conviction
• Keep strategies simple to avoid overthinking
• Stay aggressive and assertive with your service game

By honing both physical skills and mental tenacity, you will be able to maximize your serving performance and consistently gain the upper hand on opponents. Master these advanced pickleball serving techniques from the pros, and you’ll be on your way to serving up more wins on the pickleball court!

FAQs

How to serve a pickleball?

To serve a pickleball, you must follow these steps:

1. Stand behind the baseline, between the sidelines and the centerline.
2. Hold the pickleball in your non-dominant hand.
3. Toss the pickleball up into the air, slightly out in front of your body and to the side of your dominant hand.
4. Make contact with the ball below your waist and with an upward arc.
5. Follow through with your swing and hit the ball into the diagonally opposite service court.

How to serve in pickleball for beginners?

Here are some tips on how to serve in pickleball for beginners:

• Focus on consistency over power. It is better to hit a consistent serve that lands in the court than to hit a hard serve that goes out of bounds.
• Start with a basic drop serve. This is the easiest type of serve to learn and is a good option for beginners.
• Toss the ball slightly out in front of your body and to the side of your dominant hand. This will give you time to get into position and hit the ball with an upward arc.
• Hit the ball below your waist and with an upward arc. This will help you to keep the ball in the court.
• Follow through with your swing and hit the ball into the diagonally opposite service court.

Can you jump serve in pickleball?

No, you cannot jump serve in pickleball. According to the USA Pickleball Rulebook, Section 6.D.1, “At the time of contact with the ball, at least one foot must be on the ground behind the baseline.” This means that you cannot jump while serving. If you jump serve in pickleball, your opponent will be awarded a point.

Is it better to serve first in pickleball?

Yes, it is generally considered to be better to serve first in pickleball. There are a few reasons for this:

• The server has more scoring opportunities. The server has the opportunity to score on their serve and on their opponent’s return. Their opponent, on the other hand, can only score on the return.
• The server can control the tempo of the game. The server can choose to hit a fast serve to put their opponent on the defensive, or they can hit a slower serve to try to keep them off balance.
• The server can gain an early lead. If the server can win their first serve game, it can put pressure on their opponent and make it more difficult for them to come back.

How do you determine which side serves first in pickleball?

There are two ways to determine which side serves first in pickleball:

1. Coin flip: This is the most common way to determine who serves first. Each team flips a coin, and the team that wins the toss gets to choose whether to serve first or receive first.
2. Paddle flip: This is a less common way to determine who serves first, but it is becoming more popular among pickleball players. Each player holds their paddle up to the net, one side facing up and the other side facing down. The referee then flips a coin, and the player whose paddle side matches the coin toss gets to serve first.

Can you serve backhand in pickleball?

Yes, you can serve backhand in pickleball. In fact, many professional pickleball players use a backhand serve as part of their game. A backhand serve can be a very effective way to keep your opponent off balance and to create scoring opportunities.

Can you spin a pickleball serve?

Yes, you can spin a pickleball serve. There are two main types of spin that can be applied to a pickleball serve: topspin and backspin.

Topspin: Topspin is a type of spin that causes the ball to curve upwards. This can make it difficult for the opponent to control the ball and can also cause the ball to bounce higher.

Backspin: Backspin is a type of spin that causes the ball to curve downwards. This can make it difficult for the opponent to hit the ball deep into the court and can also cause the ball to bounce lower.