In this vlog , I want to draw your attention to the phase 2.a)  movements both in terms of all three planes of motion and the physical forces acting on the body. As the loading  transforms into exploding upwards, I want to highlight the motions in all three planes and describe the physical forces being harnessed. See the the previous vlogs here:

the load phase  and the  transformational zone,

In the load phase , it is a  forward and back movement predominantly (sagittal plane) but there is motion in the other two planes, side to side (frontal) and rotational (transverse). The physical forces acting on the body are gravity (down) and ground reaction force (up). From this initial loading the force from the ground explodes up the chain  harnessing a momentum relative to your mass, as the front hip slides forward and up.

In simple terms, which this clip demonstrates, ground reaction force is harnessed by going back, down and around transforming into a drive forward, up and around. in a hybrid chain reaction. The  plane dominant motion now is  rotational , which coincidentally is the most powerful of the three:

I worked with a couple of school first team players yesterday who are the top pairing in their age group. They played at a good level as you would expect for 17/18 year olds at the top of their representative competition. They both agreed that their serve success wasn’t up to the standard of the rest of their game. They, like the majority of recreational players, placed the ball almost directly in front of them which resulted in:

  • No room in this placement for a rotational drive up in the racket throw.
  • Contact  mostly on the down slope of the racket throw.
  • Significant momentum loss up the chain from no front hip slide.
  • Little move forward  and under the ball from no front hip slide.
  • An arm dominant action generated by extreme force at the shoulder.

They understood the issue and were happy to practice a teaching method up against the back fence that I use with younger less accomplished players. The initial results were staggering in terms of consistency and power. A serve which hit high up on the back fence after one bounce was the most common result for both of them, and a good indicator of authentic technique. There was a drop off in performance as  point pressure took over and exposed old habits. Lets look again at this rotational motion and how it is driven up the chain:

 

Training in all three planes of motion

You can see the rotational global movement in the explode up to the ball and throughout the motion and highlighted again in the landing position. It is clearly a vertical rotational drive and not a horizontal linear drive up and through the action.

I suspect, like I do, most coaches teach the correct motion but we as students and players with our eyes in front and the service box target in front tend to place the ball in front.  To overcome this predisposition we need to train in all three planes of motion, and do it more, the less active we are in general life. What we do train in most of our lives, is to sit for long periods of time looking down and forward, which is not the best preparation for a serve action.  If the action works  in all 3 planes of motion then they should train that way. Therapists estimate that  between 25- 50% of recreational tennis players develop shoulder problems at this time of year as they take to the courts, inspired by the French and Wimbledon championships, and without any training. Is it a surprise then that the attrition rate is so high among them and should they consider  a training regime for tennis, and for life, that works your body according to it’s design. The six mobility chain reactions.

Part b) of Phase 2 will follow the Transformational zone 2. as I look at the actions of the shoulders and arms in the chain reaction.

Vaughan Ebrahim. LTA accredited Level 4

Gray Institute, CAFS 2013, 3DMAPS 2017, FGS 2023