You will often have seen a volleyball player beat from above seemingly effortlessly. This is a more versatile serve than the bottom serve, but also more difficult. It requires more coordination, timing and strength; for this, you will have to practice a lot to learn it well. You may not be able to serve effortlessly, but you can improve the accuracy, speed and power of your serve.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Service from Above Basic
Step 1. Get your legs in the right position
Keep your feet shoulder-distance apart. Place the one opposite the batting hand in front of the other. Shoulders and hips should be parallel to the net. Bend your knees. It is very important that the weight of the body is supported by the rear foot.
Posture is the most important part of the joke. The power of a serve does not come from the strength of the upper body, but from that of the legs. To hit well, you will need to be able to correctly transfer your body weight from the back foot to the front foot. Maintaining the right starting position is essential to serve strongly
Step 2. Keep the ball in front of you
Place your non-dominant hand directly in front of you, with your arm extended but your elbow not locked. Keep your palm up and the ball in your hand.
You can cover the ball with your dominant hand
Step 3. Prepare the batting hand
Bring your arm back close to your head. Keep your elbow bent upward and your hand at ear level. This position allows you to open the body.
Step 4. Throw the ball into the air, about 30-45cm from the palm of your hand
Keep it aligned with your right shoulder and push it about 12 inches in front of you so you can serve by stepping forward. Keep your right hand at a 90 ° angle behind your body. The hand must make contact with the ball as soon as the ball has passed the highest point of its trajectory.
- Don't throw the ball too high, too low or to one side. If you did, you would have to "chase" her and the service would not be effective.
- In some variations, you will need to prepare the batting arm when throwing the ball and not before.
Step 5. Try to serve with your whole body
Much of the power of the hitting comes from shifting your body weight from the back leg to the front leg. To perform this technique correctly, make sure you are starting in the right position. Apply more force to the ball by stepping forward with your dominant foot as you serve, shifting your body weight.
The ball will go where your hand and feet are facing, so aim them according to the desired trajectory
Step 6. Hit the ball with the bottom of the palm
Starting at the elbow, bring your dominant hand forward. Comes to impact with the lower part of the palm. Do not strike with your fingers or fist. Make sure your dominant hand is tilted slightly upwards; this will help you get the ball through the net. Try to hit the center of the sphere to give it a perfectly straight trajectory. Stop moving your hand after impact.
- Note the rotation of the ball. This information can tell you if you hit correctly: if you see a backward or lateral rotation, the impact did not occur in the center.
- Bring your arm quickly towards the ball by pushing with your shoulder.
Step 7. Get in position
After hitting the ball, use the push of the movement to run to defend.
Method 2 of 3: Top-Spin Jump Service
Step 1. Get into the correct position
Start with your feet aligned behind your shoulders, facing the net. Keep your dominant arm directly in front of you, with the ball in your hand and palm up.
You should stay at least 1.5-2 meters behind the baseline to take a run of 3-4 steps
Step 2. Throw the ball into the air, step forward with your right foot and align the throw with your right shoulder
As you step forward, throw the ball high in the air and slightly forward with your dominant hand. Snap your wrist as you lift the ball to give it rotation.
A good pitch allows you to give more consistency to your serve. The pitch affects all aspects of the serve, and if you get it wrong, you can't serve well. Throw the ball with your dominant hand, hold it in front of you and at the right height. If you don't, the joke won't be effective
Step 3. Take a run of 3 or 4 quick steps
Accelerate gradually, to take the last two steps more quickly, almost at the same time. With the last step, jump. Use the momentum of the run-up to get higher.
If you are right, you will need to make a left-right-left run. If you are left handed, the run-up will be right-left-right. The last two steps must be the most explosive ones
Step 4. Prepare the strike arm
You should bring both upper limbs back to give more strength to the jump. When you take off the ground, swing your dominant arm behind your body at a 90 ° angle. As with the basic serve, you should keep your elbow bent upward, with the wrist stiff at ear level. Point your other arm towards the ball to follow it.
The non-dominant arm should follow the ball in a bow and arrow motion
Step 5. Learn how to hit the ball
Try to impact it just above the center. Unlike what you did for the basic serve, don't stop your arm after you hit the ball. Complete the movement and snap your wrist.
If you can't get the right movement, train. The flick of the wrist is what makes the topspin serve powerful and unique. Practice perfecting it and also practice hitting the ball in the right place to send it over the net
Step 6. Hit the ball
Generate a lot of forward thrust by rotating your hips and body towards the serve. You should finish the jump on the court when performing a jump or float serve. At the highest point of the leap, lower your hand in a snapping motion just below the ball. In this way you will be able to aim upwards and, thanks to the movement of the wrist over the sphere, create a downward trajectory. This technique also allows you to give topspin to the ball.
If you are right, start the movement with your left hip and left shoulder. Then complete the push with your right hip, followed by your right arm
Method 3 of 3: Floating Jump Service
Step 1. Prepare to throw the ball
Start by holding the ball with both hands, straight in front of you. Hold it between your two palms, with your elbows extended but not locked.
Some people throw the ball differently than with normal jump serve. Some use their dominant hand, others non-dominant, others both. The most important thing is the effectiveness of the launch, not the way you perform it
Step 2. Throw the ball
Step forward with your dominant foot, then complete the run up with three quick steps. On the last step, throw the ball up and slightly forward. For a floating serve, you will only need to lift the ball 30-45 cm, as with a normal overhead serve.
- The throw determines the effectiveness of the serve. Make sure it's not too high or too low. Raise the ball with your dominant hand, with a trajectory in front of the body.
- Practice throwing the ball until you have perfected it. As with any other drill, practice throwing the ball for hours to learn the correct technique.
Step 3. Skip
Immediately after throwing the ball high, jump with the next step, using the momentum of the run-up. Bring your dominant arm back, keeping your elbow high and close to your ear.
Step 4. Hit the ball
Starting at the elbow, hit the ball with the lower palm of your dominant hand as you did for the basic top serve. Keep your wrist stiff and, after hitting the ball, stop the movement of the arm, with the palm facing the target.
- With each serve, try to get the ball into the open defense areas. Your opponents must move to be able to receive.
- Make sure your feet are off the ground before you cross the bottom line. Land over the line.
Advice
- When throwing the ball into the air, don't try to reach it. Wait for it to get to the right height to hit it.
- A good serve will emit a characteristic and full sound.
- Train as much as you can. This service isn't easy, so don't expect to learn it right away. Throwing, height and run-up are the most important fundamentals to master.
- Taking advantage of the thrust of the body can be very useful, especially if you are weak. You will need a lot of strength to send the ball over the net.
- If you have trouble with your serve, try practicing just ball pitching. The ball should land exactly in front of your right foot.
- If the throw isn't optimal, catch the ball again. Don't try to hit a bad pass or you'll lose control of the ball.
- Don't throw the ball too high or you could lose control and commit a foul.
- If you throw the ball incorrectly and catch it, you will commit a foul and the service will not be considered valid. If the pass failed, drop the ball and try again.
- If you throw the ball too far from your head you will have to correct your lift or you will risk getting hurt.
