I have an old book by Oscar Fraley, "How to Play Championship Tennis", 1954, and thought you might like to see this:
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Regards, Phil -
Boy, he sure did keep his elbow down for a long time, didn't he? I only know there's a certain romance in that, and I fell victim to it for a long time. Getting
the straight arm up high soon, with the elbow in it, has simplified life for me at least a bit.
But I'm a player, like you, who has trouble getting racket tip pointed low enough toward the court-- and there are zillions of us. Whether my suggestion
is a cure for those zillions or even for myself, I don't know, but it led to clear improvement and could lead to more. -
Here is Gardnar Mulloy's slice serve from the same book..
He gets his elbow up higher up.... but Tony had the better serve...
Regards, PhilComment
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But who had more longevity in the top ranks of tennis? The one guy just became a TV broadcaster, was supplanted by John McEnroe, and then made a broadcasting comeback with less pomposity than during his first stint.Comment
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Neither set of pics how the details at the critical points. You can't really see how linear things are where it matters....at least not with Trabert. I think both set of pics could be misleadingStottyComment
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With Trabert, you can't see the elbow and shoulders line up together at the critical point.StottyComment
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With Trabert, you can't see the elbow and shoulders line up together at the critical point.
Also, the pics of Mulloy's serve are very tame. I've seen him serve as an older man and it's a lot more dynamic than those pics.StottyComment
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This better?
Regards, PhilComment
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Yes, pic number 3 is revealing. Thks, Phil. Looks like a good serve...
Still think Mulloy is stroking a basic serve in for the camera
StottyComment
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From a Friend
I am perusing my dusty copy of Tony Trabert's 1984 "The Serve, Key to Winning Tennis," which contains turgid, even arcane, sentences, which have always, until today, caused me to start dozing. It was like beginning to comprehend Zen, then giving up on it. Here is a somewhat lucid sentence, on page 67, that grabbed me, as would a giant squid, somewhere deep in the Indian Ocean, if one happened to be diving out there, off an obscure island, while on a much-needed vacation: "Fourth, he should realize that his eyes should be fastened on the ball beginning no later than the time it leaves his fingers and continuing until racket contact takes place." He added, "Failure to do so can cause many unnecessary service errors."Comment
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Question for Bottle
Simple advice, but oh so true!
Did Tony have in another chapter on returning that it is absolutely vital that the receiver pick up the ball and focus on it as it leaves the server's hand in the toss? That's one of the reason's Tanner's early contact was so effective: most people don't really focus on the ball until it stops, reverses direction and starts to come down. That's too late!
donComment
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The racquet drop and flexibility of those guys is frightening!Comment
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Yes, right on. The elbow is in perfect position in Traberts trophy position. It's just that he has alot more tilt in his shoulders than Mulloy at this stage. So it appears low.Last edited by 10splayer; 02-15-2011, 02:51 PM.Comment
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And Then Don't Focus on the Ball Going Away from You in Doubles!
But rather focus on the receiver's racket work. Just thought I'd throw that in before confessing to various crimes. The writer of # 11 is our grass court owner from New Jersey, the one and only Ochi, who used to contribute so much to these pages. When I entitled that post "From a Friend" I wasn't kidding, and I suppose I should have enclosed everything in quotation marks. But such marks were already spread through Ochi's comment, and I would have had to change them all into apostrophes! But now Don has posed me a question on the material, and since I haven't had time yet to purchase Trabert's book through a good used book dealer, I can pursue my deception no longer and must relay Don's specific question to Ochi. Even the part about the giant squid was pure Ochi, not pure Bottle, although it was a pretty good imitation! Listen. I've taught English. And the big thing we American Lit majors do is crack down on plagiarism, no excuses accepted or excepted, can't remember which.
As for the idea of watching a doubles opponent's racket rather than the ball
departing from yourself after you hit it, that came from Pat Blaskower's
THE ART OF DOUBLES, a book I just got although Ochi suggested that everybody at TennisPlayer purchase it about two years ago.
I steal and want to steal more-- I confess, I confess, I confess!Comment
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