How to Hit an Underhand Serve in Tennis: 3-Step Serve Guide

Underhand serves use a different service motion than most overhead serves, with the contact point and follow-through traveling below the shoulder. This type of serve is the least commonly used serve technique in tennis matches. The serve is primarily used to instruct children, or by tennis players with injuries to their shoulders, backs, or tossing arms that can no longer perform their regular serving motion.

Underhand serves fall short on the tennis court, eking over the net like a drop shot, leading the ball to bounce twice before the returner has a chance to reach it. While this seems like an efficient strategy, some view it as an “unsportsmanlike” shot.

Although some professional players like Nick Kyrgios—who used the serve technique against Rafael Nadal during the 2019 Mexican Open in Acapulco (as part of the ATP 500 series)—and Alexander Bublik sometimes use an underhand serve, competitive and professional circuits look down at this strategy. Players in favor of the move argue that it is a perfectly valid strategy if the returning player is standing far behind the baseline during a serve.

Although underhand serves are less powerful than the flat serve, they can be useful if you have a shoulder or back injury and cannot perform the standard service motion. If you are looking to change up your first serve or second serve techniques and learn how to execute an underhand serve (with as few double faults as possible), check out the steps below:

1. 1. Keep the ball toss low. Unlike an overhand serve or slice serve, an underhand serve does not use a high ball toss. Keep the ball at waist level and allow it to drop onto the racket face.
2. 2. Leave your racket face open. An open face with a continental grip is essential for the underhand serve, as it creates just enough height to clear the net and land in the opposite service box (preferably a few feet before the service line), without the dramatic motion of a typical serve.
3. 3. Execute a proper swing. If you are a right-handed player, you’ll swing the racket from right to left, and vice versa, if you play with your left hand. The trick is not to add topspin like you’re feeding a ball, but whip the racket beneath the ball to create enough side or backspin. This motion keeps the ball low to the ground, while also bouncing away from the opposing player.

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