Why is the second serve in tennis?

Question

so vunerable? They say second serve is easier to attack etc but I just dont get it,I mean you do exactly the same as when you first serve so why is the second serve so vunerable?

btw I dont play tennis to please forgive me if its a stupid question.

Answer 1

tongue in cheek has pretty much summed it up.

give the best answer to him.

First serve you go all out. hit it as hard as you can and aim to get it in the hardest place.

2nd serve is about balancing risk with losing the point. if you go all out you may hit it out resulting in a double fault and the loss of a point. doing it too light will mean that it is easy for the opponent to return and win the point. it is a fine balancing act, but in any case generally the second serve is easy to deal with.

Answer 2

Its more vulnerable and easier to attack because you only get two chances to serve the ball in.  If you double fault then the points goes to your opponent.  Now to answers your questions, its vulnerable and easier to attack because the server has to hit the ball slower because he does not want to miss the second time and loose the point.  Its mostly nerves

Answer 3

To avoid getting the dreaded double-fault i.e. when you missed both your first and second serves, which costs you the point, players tend to just try to get the second serve in when they missed the first serve.

The first serve gives you the opportunity to serve as hard, fast or wide and close to the lines as possible. If you missed the first serve, you will taking a huge chance trying to do the same thing on the second serve. Most players tend to go for placement and spin as opposed to speed on the second serve.

Answer 4

The second serve is hit much slower to make sure it goes in.If Murray hits the 1st serve at 135mph the second is about 105mph.So the opponent get a lot more reaction time to hit it back.However the 2nd serve usually has more spin to make the ball bouce higher.but it still is easier to hit

Answer 5

you have to hit the ball more cautiously and with less power to ensure you get it in

Answer 6

The second serve is another chance to get your serve in if you miss the first serve. A second serve is usually supposed to be much weaker than the first serve because it's like you "need" to get the second serve in. If you don't get it in, it's a double fault, and you lose the point. So a second serve is important. It is vulnerable because since it is weaker than the first serve, your opponent can attack the serve and hit the ball harder to you.

Someone once said, "A great tennis player is the one who gets more points on his second serve."

HOPE THAT HELPED!! =D

Answer 7

It's not a stupid question!  Since you don't play tennis, it's a good question.  Your first serve is your chance to try to ace somebody (where they don't even touch the ball).  So you try to have amazing placement on your first serve, or you try to hit it really hard or with a really difficult spin.  It's an agressive, offensive play.  If you don't make it, you get a second serve.  Since you don't want to double fault and give up a point that easily, you just try to get the ball in play.  You don't care as much about placement or power, but just try to hit a good, solid serve.  That allows the opponent to really attack it, since it's not hit very hard.

Answer 8

its because they reckon that you will be more careful slower and precise with your second serve as it will give your opponent

a point if you get it wrong

Answer 9

Most faults in tennis are on the first serve.  

Most "pros" or advanced players know that if you fault on the first serve, you usually try to take something off the second serve in order to get it in and in play.

Nervousness, pressure, or simply forgetting to keep to the fundamentals sometimes causes tennis players to choke on the second serve.

Answer 10

the second serve is usually slower and unaccurate this can be down to pressure and tension. Therefore it is easier for the opponent to attack the second serve because they have more time the returner has more time to pick his/her spot.

Answer 11

The second serve is usually slower but has a lot of spin on it.

The player must get the second serve inside the lines or lose the point and so that is why they can't hit it as hard and try for a line hit.

Answer 12

You get 2 chances to serve for every point, so obviously you can take chances with your first serve, which means you can hit it harder and closer to the lines.

With 2nd serve, you either have to get it in or you lose the point, so players naturally tend to hit the ball slower to make sure it clears the net and lands in, which makes it easier to return cos the ball is coming at you slower.