The serving motion can be particularly challenging for the shoulder. It needs to control the arm in the tough overhead positions as well as generating enough power for a 263 km/h serve (well…that is if you’re Sam Groth).
Why does it hurt
Impingement, tendinitis, bursitis and tears often gets thrown around as causes of shoulder pain. But in reality, for most tennis players, regardless of what it is – all we need to do is “free it up and get it stronger”
Free it up
Making sure our shoulder can move through the whole range is essential. In most cases it is restricted by tight or sensitive muscles, so things like foam rolling, massage and taping can often help in the short term.
Get it stronger
Once most of the symptoms are settled and you have regained movement, strengthening your shoulders in the overhead position is the next step. The stronger those muscles are, the better it will cope with those high loads as you reach back and power through the serve.
Here is one of many exercises we can do to strengthen…
Does serving technique matter?
Yes. Everyone has a slightly different service motion, but making sure that we are positioning the shoulder and the arm in the optimal position will allow the shoulder to generate power more efficiently. We will look at everything from the ball toss, and the trophy position to how you are making contact with the ball.
