Wawrinka serve

[John Yandell]

There are none.

[hockeyscout]

Quirky

Quirkiest player to ever reach number one in the world?

[GeoffWilliams]

The quirky are never #1.

[stotty]

I think Stan's serve is downright weird. When you see it in slow motion it looks almost ridiculous. His arms lift up together and go into what we call a Y shape. For most students this is a n non-starter in itself.

Once Stan gets past the weird start, everything seems to come together really well, and he slips through John's checkpoints nicely.

I like weird shots that work. It restores my faith that perfect tennis technique cannot be defined, and that the game is as much about an individual's ability and their interpretation as anything else.

I thought it was terrific that Santoro survived in the modern game with that quirky game he had. He restored my faith too....

[klacr]

Despite Stan's imperfections, It takes a special talent to swing a racquet around and down and above your head at a high velocity and hit the ball. Is Stan's the perfect model? Probably not. But it works for him. Wawrinka is "country strong". He may not appear to have the ideal tennis body but having seen him train in Boca a few months ago and with his shirt off, he is solid muscle. There is a natural strength that he possesses in his upper body that cannot be taught.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[John Yandell]

And don't forget he drops his head at contact...

So why? Because he is Stan? He has the three positions in the upward swing. Look at the velocity of the racket he generates on all the shots. As Stotty implied in another post, technique can only take you so far. The fast twitch muscles or whatever it is--talent determines levels in the long run. Look at Tsonga and the forehand--same deal.

[gzhpcu]

he serves aces, has an average of around 200 kmph. He does not bend his knees much, does not have much shoulder turn, barely lifts off the ground after impact. So why is his serve so good?