The Problem With Aryna Sabalenka’s Serve

Next week, the WTA season comes to an end with the WTA Finals in Cancun, Mexico, where the top eight players will battle it out one last time. As a result, I want to delve deep into the world of tennis and explore the fascinating realm of Aryna Sabalenka's serve, particularly her second serve.

In the past, before she finally broke through and claimed her first Grand Slam victory, Sabalenka grappled with a perplexing problem - double faults. Many critics labeled her serve as subpar, but I'm here to make a bold assertion: Aryna Sabalenka possesses one of the finest serves in the world. 

In my opinion, she's the hardest striker on the tour, and this assessment encompasses her service motion as well. Biomechanically, there's nothing wrong with Sabalenka's serve.

You might be wondering, "How do you explain the double faults?" Well, here's the revelation: it's not her technique that's causing these double faults. It's a mental hurdle she's had to overcome. Therefore, in today’s article, we will look into why Sabalenka’s serve suffered in 2022, lacking trust in her own abilities and explore why it happened in the first place.

Less Kick, More Slice

In women's tennis, players often don't rely on the kick serve as their second serve, unlike their male counterparts. Some female players hit their second serve as if it were their first, or even slice it. 

Naturally, this approach can lead to more double faults. However, it's crucial to understand that it's not the quantity of double faults that matters; it's the impact on a player's psyche.

Maria Sharapova, for instance, was known for hitting numerous double faults, sometimes even exceeding 10 or 20 in a single match. Remarkably, it didn't faze her. She entered each match prepared to double fault but untroubled by the prospect. It didn't affect her confidence or mindset.

In contrast, Sabalenka wasn't comfortable with the idea of double faulting, and this apprehension significantly impacted her game. Now, her second serve has improved. I believe this mental hurdle has diminished, and we no longer see the same severe double fault issues as in the past few years.

Pressing The Pause Button

That said, let's get back to examining Sabalenka's serve. Biomechanically, there's nothing inherently flawed with her technique. Her toss aligns perfectly with the rest of her movements. She employs a pinpoint stance, employs a lag, and times her movements correctly. The outcome? One of the fastest and most effective serves in the world.

Yet, there's a small technical flaw in her serve that could be easily corrected. Despite achieving excellent results with her current serve, addressing this issue could make her serve smoother. So what exactly is the problem?

When Sabalenka steps up to the line, she tosses the ball first, allowing the racket to lag behind. However, she remains in this platform stance until the racket is about chest-high. It's at this point that she pulls her back foot forward, creating a slight hitch in her serve's flow.

This hitch is a result of her pulling her back foot in too late. To illustrate this, let's examine the serve of Petra Kvitova, whom I believe has one of the most beautiful service motions in the history of women's tennis.

Kvitova, like many great servers, uses a pinpoint stance. Her back foot comes forward simultaneously as her racket reaches the trophy phase. This coordinated movement ensures a smooth, uninterrupted serve.

While this adjustment may or may not drastically improve Sabalenka's serve – considering the challenge of breaking muscle memory – it's a change worth considering.

Serve Masters

When we examine the history of women's tennis, there's a distinguished list of incredible servers. The names that top this list include Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Sabine Lisicki, Yulia Goerges, Karolina Pliskova, and Christina Mchale.

And while there's room for debate, I would argue that Petra Kvitova's serve is the epitome of excellence in the women's game.

One notable omission you might have noticed is Steffi Graf, a tennis legend. While she possessed a formidable serve, I must reiterate that it's the likes of Steffi and Serena who transcend the sport's history. 

Steffi's serve unquestionably ranks in the top 10 of all time. When we examine the serves of these great players, we observe recurring technical elements.

One prevalent feature is a higher toss. A high toss enables the player to harness the momentum generated as the ball descends, delivering more power. Consider a volleyball serve.

Similar Qualities

Players toss the volleyball high into the air, allowing it to drop before impact. Similarly, in tennis, a higher toss can significantly enhance the power of the serve. But, crucially, the toss height must harmonize with the rest of the service motion.

Another shared aspect among these great servers is a more extended take back. Their rackets lag behind as the ball reaches its zenith, creating the potential for more explosive acceleration. This lag is a vital component of a potent serve. Players like Serena Williams, Sabine Lisicki, and Petra Kvitova exhibit this technique consistently.

The server's stance is another critical consideration. Many accomplished female servers employ a pinpoint stance, dragging the back foot forward as they prepare to strike. This technique, while less common among male players, allows women to tap into the inherent advantage of their serving mechanics.  

With slower body movements compared to men, females need these optimizations to generate power effectively.

Qualified For The Job

So, returning to the crux of our discussion – Arena Sabalenka's serve. Her biomechanics align well with these principles – a higher toss, an extended take back, and a pinpoint stance. There's no glaring technical flaw in her serve that would warrant a radical overhaul.

The small issue lies in the timing of her back foot's movement. By synchronizing this movement with the racket's journey towards the trophy phase, she could iron out the minor hitch in her serve's flow.

However, as mentioned earlier, altering an athlete's muscle memory can be a complex and precarious task. Sabalenka has honed her serve to a high degree of proficiency, and even a minor adjustment can have repercussions throughout the service motion.

The timing issue we've identified may or may not significantly impact Sabalenka's serve, and the decision to modify her well-established technique must be weighed carefully.

In the world of professional tennis, where fine-tuning can make the difference between success and mediocrity, it's essential to acknowledge that players are finely-tuned athletes. What might appear as a simple tweak can sometimes disrupt the delicate equilibrium of their game.

Psychological Fortitude

While Sabalenka's serve is biomechanically sound and capable of delivering tremendous power, it's also a reminder that tennis is as much a mental game as it is a physical one. The challenges Sabalenka faced with double faults serve as a testament to the impact of psychology in sports.

In Sabalenka's case, she allowed the fear of double faults to affect her mindset, causing her to serve cautiously and without full confidence. However, this mental block seems to have subsided in recent times, allowing her to unlock the full potential of her powerful serve. Her story serves as a valuable reminder to aspiring athletes – the mental aspect of sports is just as crucial as physical prowess.

To understand the technical intricacies of a tennis serve is to grasp the synergy between mechanics and mental strength. While an athlete's physical attributes and technique lay the foundation for a formidable serve, it's their mental fortitude that determines its effectiveness. Doubt and fear can hinder even the most physically gifted players, while confidence can elevate those with seemingly lesser attributes to great heights.

The journey of Aryna Sabalenka's serve, from double fault struggles to becoming one of the most potent weapons in women's tennis, encapsulates this dynamic. The technical prowess was always there, but it took overcoming mental obstacles to harness its true potential.

Final Thoughts

One thing to remember is that muscle memory is something that's very difficult to break. Sabalenka has hit tens of thousands of serves the way she's doing it now she's very much comfortable with this movement and she's making the best of it so it would all depend on how much work she would put into a new service action and if it would feel okay to her.

You have to understand that players of this caliber are very fine-tuned and sometimes even the smallest changes can throw other things off in the body. Having said that, generally speaking especially if you're concerned about your serve, if you are pulling in your back foot on a pinpoint stance when the racket is already in the trophy phase this is not the optimal way to do it. It will cause a hitch, a stoppage of the racket and sometimes additional movements of the racket.

If you look at Sabalenka she turns her racket inward a little bit which is not optimal either a much better way to do it would be like for example Petra Kvitová and time the pulling in of your back foot with the take up of the racket so that once you get here you are ready to unload your serve.