Alright, so I was messing around on the tennis court the other weekend, just hitting balls, you know? And my mind drifted to Coco Gauff. It’s pretty wild watching her play, especially thinking about the huge shoes she’s stepping into, like Serena Williams’.
Seeing Coco’s intensity, particularly that powerful serve she’s developing, got me thinking. It’s got that whip, reminds me a bit of Serena back in the day, just pure force. So, I got this idea, maybe a bit dumb, to try and add some of that explosive energy to my own serve. Not expecting miracles, just wanted to see if I could get a little more oomph.
So, I started practicing. Just focusing on the serve. I grabbed a whole basket of balls. First few attempts? Terrible. I was trying to copy that leg drive and the high toss I see Coco use sometimes. Felt super awkward. My timing was completely off. One ball nearly hit the fence behind me, another barely cleared the net. It felt forced, not smooth like how they do it.
I remembered watching some old footage of Serena practicing. Just hours and hours of the same motion. Repetition. So I figured, okay, stop trying to be Coco or Serena, just focus on one thing. I decided to work on the ball toss consistency and getting my body coiled up more before swinging. Just that.
Here’s what I did:
I spent maybe 30 minutes just tossing the ball. Trying to get it in the same spot every time. Sounds easy, right? It wasn’t. My arm got tired just doing that.
Then I slowly added the swing back in. Focused on rotating my shoulders and hips, trying to generate power from the ground up, like I see them do. Not just arming it.
It was slow going. A lot of serves still went long or wide. But every now and then, maybe one out of ten, I’d hit one that felt… better. Cleaner contact, a bit more pop. Not Gauff or Williams level, obviously, not even close. But it felt like I was using my body more effectively.
What I realized
Honestly, my serve didn’t magically transform overnight. It’s still a work in progress, probably always will be. But the whole exercise kinda hammered home the insane level of dedication and physical tuning these athletes have. You watch Coco handle the pressure, carrying the expectations that come from following a legend like Serena, and you see the power on court. But trying to mimic even a tiny part of the physical mechanics? It gives you a whole new level of respect. It’s not just talent; it’s thousands of hours grinding away, refining every little movement. Made me appreciate watching them both even more, seeing the legacy and the hard work firsthand, even if it was just me flailing around on a local court.
