Winning Pretty is currently available exclusively in digital format with lavish video illustrations at Tennisplayer.net magazine. The book will be published in paperback by New Chapter Press in 2025
Winning Pretty is a new tennis technique book by Chris Lewit, author of the best-selling book The Secrets of Spanish Tennis. Winning Pretty is an expert’s guide to modern, world-class tennis technique and features cutting edge biomechanics, evidence-based technique analysis, diagrams and models, and many excellent technique drills for building beautiful, elastic technique. The book is being serially digitally published by John Yandell at Tennisplayer.net, the world’s best tennis technique magazine. One chapter is released per month with lavish video illustrations embedded into the text. The foreword is by John Yandell and there are special sections by top coaches and biomechanists. After digital release, the book will be published in paperback edition in 2025.
The Three Kicks
In this chapter, “topspin” and “kick” are used interchangeably to describe any high bouncing serve with forward rotation on the ball. In reality, however, there are three variations of the kick serve. These three variations are what I call true topspin, slice topspin, and twist. The differences are in the path of the ball through the air, the path of the ball after the bounce—and most importantly—to understand how the racket moves to the contact to produce these differences. Let me define what I mean by each of these three serves.
True topspin bounces high and straight ahead. This serve is the most basic kick serve and most players will use it for the second serve a large percentage of the time. When well executed this serve is heavy and difficult to deal with because it can bounce well above the returner’s preferred contact height. Slice topspin bounces high but (from the server’s perspective) also has a right-to-left movement after the bounce. Players will use this serve less frequently than the true topspin, typically when hitting second serves down the T in the ad court, or into the body or out wide in the deuce court. The advantage here compared to the true topspin, is that the ball fades or curves away from the returner (or in the case of a body serve, jams the returner). This serve is a must to hit effective second serves against left handers. The third topspin variation is the twist. The twist serve bounces high but actually moves from the server’s left to his right. Typically it is hit to the returner’s backhand, especially in the ad court, where it kicks high away from the player after the bounce. This serve is used to pull the returner out of position, force him to take additional steps to the ball, and play a contact point at shoulder level or even higher. It is used most often on clay, but can also be extremely effective on hard courts–especially gritty or high-rebound hard courts–when hit with the right combination of speed and spin.
The Technical Components
There are multiple technical components in the kick serve, and this complexity makes the serve difficult to master. Even though there is a lot of information, it is important to understand each of the components clearly, and then how to put them together in the complete motion. Let’s go over the components from start to finish starting with the grip.
Grip
The grip is critical to learning an effective topspin serve. Most players who come to me do not demonstrate a strong enough grip to effectively hit heavy spin. I call this grip a strong continental. The problem is that most players try to hit the serve with a milder version of the continental, or even with a grip rotated toward an eastern forehand. The frustrating thing about defining the right grip is that coaches—and especially coaches from different countries–use different terminology and also tend to have different opinions about the position of the index knuckle. Whatever you want to call it, I believe in this strong continental, with the index knuckle very near bevel 1 (top bevel). This grip promotes heavy spin without slowing down the ball too much, as a more extreme backhand serve grip can do. I also believe players can hit the first serve with this grip, rather than making a dramatic grip change between first and second serves, which can hurt disguise. Players can also have a subtle change between first and second serve grips. Of course, some players are extremely talented with their wrists and hands, and they can get away with a less extreme grip. There is also an alternate option to using one grip. Rather than using the exact same grip for both serves, some players choose to make a subtle shift of the palm position–or even of the knuckle position–between the first and second serve. I would estimate that this includes a quarter of the top players or slightly more, based on my first hand observations. Many players can use the strong continental for the kick–and the other serves.
Whether a player shifts grips for the second serve usually depends on personal preference and the philosophy his developmental coaches had when building his game as a junior. Some players don’t even realize that they make a shift. They naturally adjust the heel of the palm slightly more toward the top of the frame–to maximize the brushing action upward to the ball. I believe that this is acceptable. However, the grip shift should not be extreme and the shift should not be noticeable by the opponent.
When building a world-class serve, disguise with all the serves–flat, slice, and kick–should be an important priority. Many elite coaches insist on the single grip, but I allow for a subtle change if it helps the player and does not hinder disguise. From a developmental standpoint, encouraging this grip shift can help a player break through a learning roadblock. As a player develops, the placement of the hand can be moved toward one universal grip and most players should be able to use one grip for all serves.
The Mid-Swing Switch
When a player is learning this strong grip, the coach, or the player himself, must watch the student very carefully in mid-swing. Many kids show me the right grip before the kick serve and then, somewhere in the backswing, whether consciously or unconsciously, they slip back to a weaker grip (closer to the eastern forehand) before they hit the ball. Coaches and players must watch that hand like a hawk. The way to make sure the grip is remaining the same is to check the grip at the end of the swing, not at the beginning. Using video analysis is also an excellent way to monitor the grip. The hand can often shift midswing, so you have to be strict if you are coaching and honest with yourself, if you are a player.
You can read more of this chapter now digitally online at Tennisplayer.net or when it is published in paperback format in 2025.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine: Keys To The Kick Serve: An Excerpt From Chris Lewit’s New Technique Book, Winning Pretty
New York Tennis Magazine: Keys To The Kick Serve: An Excerpt From Chris Lewit’s New Technique Book, Winning Pretty
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