ma-long-pendulum-serve
Sweetiele asked 5 years ago
Hey Tom and Dan,
I am curious to know the ways, tricks and techniques Ma Long implements to create variations in his pendulum serves.
Thanks
Dan Academy Coach answered 5 years ago
Hi Sweetiele,
Great question, I’ve spent quite a bit of time thinking about it and watching a few of videos of Ma Long playing. One thing he does really well is contacting the ball fast and low but at the same time it goes short over the net. Professional players are very good at disguising the spin and speed. Ma Long often serves with a high toss which allows him to impart even more spin on the ball, but contacting the ball from such a height requires great control and skill.
I have asked a few pro players who have played Ma Long this question in the past and they have responded with this, “it’s not always about how effective Ma Long’s serve are, its about his follow up shot that makes him so strong.” This means when you are going for the return you can be more hesitant as you are worried about what shot Ma Long is going to play next.
Not to sure if I have answered your question here 🙂 In terms of variation, Ma Long also changes his angle of bat very minimally which allows him to disguise the spin at the very last minute.
