| | | | | Again, to reiterate, this motion requires that you rotate |
| Pronation is a term you’ll here a lot when | | | | your forearm and wrist together as one piece. |
| higher-level tennis players discuss proper serve | | | | Pronation is sometimes referred to as a wrist snap. |
| technique. Pronation is a special type of arm | | | | That is incorrect. |
| movement that allows you to accelerate your tennis | | | | |
| racket through the ball, increasing the amount of power | | | | So how do you pronate when serving? First, you need |
| and spin you can generate. All advanced players | | | | the correct grip. Either a continental or eastern |
| pronate when they serve, but very few club-level | | | | backhand will do. The continental is the most common, |
| players pronate properly. | | | | and you can find an explanation of the continental grip |
| | | | | here. To pronate, you start swinging up at the tennis |
| Let’s start with a basic explanation of what exactly | | | | ball on your serve as if you were trying to hammer a |
| pronation is. Place your hands out in front of your body | | | | nail into the ball. In other words, you would hit the ball |
| and point your palms at each other. Now rotate your | | | | with the side of your racket, the frame. But you |
| forearm and wrist together, as one piece, so that your | | | | don’t want to hit the ball with the edge of your |
| palms are facing the floor. This simple motion of your | | | | frame, you of course want to hit it with your strings! |
| arm is pronation; the act of turning your palm to face | | | | So just before you make contact with the tennis ball, |
| away from you. If you rotate in the opposite direction | | | | you need to rotate the racket about 90 degrees to |
| so that your palms are facing the ceiling, then you are | | | | get the strings facing the correct direction. That’s |
| “supinating” your arm, which is the opposite of | | | | where pronation comes in. Wait until the last second |
| pronating. | | | | and then pronate as fast as you can to make contact |
| | | | | with the tennis ball in the center of your strings. |
| Another good way to understand the motion of | | | | |
| pronation involves your cell phone. Take out your | | | | Now why exactly do you want to pronate? |
| phone and hold it to your ear like you were talking to | | | | What’s the point? When a high-level player |
| someone. Pretend that your computer monitor is a | | | | pronates, he’s rotating the racket very, very fast. If |
| person and you want to show them who you are | | | | the racket were allowed to continue rotating it would |
| talking to. Without adjusting the position of the phone in | | | | spin on its axis at a very high rate of speed. This |
| your hand, you have to pronate to turn your cell phone | | | | spinning racket has a lot of rotational energy, just like a |
| screen toward your computer monitor. Now that the | | | | spinning figure skater has a lot of rotational energy. |
| cell phone’s screen is facing the monitor, you have | | | | When a high-level player pronates and makes contact |
| to supinate to turn your phone screen back toward | | | | with the tennis ball that rotational energy is transferred |
| you. | | | | into the ball. That’s what adds power and spin to |
| | | | | your serve. |