Dropping the ball, not throwing it

A small thing that could make your lob serves even harder to return comes in the way you throw the ball – or don’t throw it. Typically, we all throw the ball up to hit it when we serve, as this throw gives the ball some momentum and energy, making it easier to hit, and of course gives us space to swing.

However, you can use the throw to have different effects on your serve, as we’ve discussed previously. To enhance your slow, high lob serve even more you can ‘drop’ the ball rather than throwing it, or roll it down your hand and let it fall out, so that the ball has less momentum and energy. When you then hit your lob serve, the ball has less energy and momentum than normal and so if you aim it right, it will just drop or fall into the back corner and never be in danger of coming back out.

It can be a little tricky at first but it’s a nice addition to the lob serve and can make for a nice option to have available to you against players who dread a slow ball or serve, or those who struggle to deal with shots high in the air.