Fresh Takes: Go Big or Go Home

Today’s young pros are adding new and sometimes radical shots to the classic tennis repertoire. Here’s how to make these next-gen plays work for you, too. If your serve is feeling good, and you’re ahead in the scoreboard, send a message by cracking a couple second serves.

Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev have all made this seemingly risky play a regular part of their service attacks. Djokovic and Medvedev do it to catch their opponents off guard; Zverev does it because his kick second serve is so shaky. Should you follow their leads? It’s clear from the rankings of these three men—they’re all in the Top 10—that this is a high-level play. To start, you need a reliable first serve, and you need to be making a high percentage of them on that day.

“It’s not something for everybody,” Malmqvist says. “You should ask yourself how well you’re hitting your first serve, and whether your opponent is hurting you on your second serve.” You should also be cognizant of the score. No one can afford many double faults at 15–15 or 30–30. But if you’re up 40–0 or 40–15, and your opponent has been reading your second serve, going big can be worth the risk. It could win you a free point, but even if it doesn’t, you may make your opponent think twice about stepping into the court on your next second serve.