Ben Shelton continues to grab eyeballs during his rapid rise in the tennis world. The biggest weapon in the young American’s arsenal is undoubtedly his blazing serve. And here is how he pulls off those rocket-like serves, even on the second serve of a point.
Unlike most players who slow down on their second serve, Shelton’s second serve frequently clocks around 125mph (200 kph). His first serve, meanwhile, comes in at searing speeds north of 140 mph (225 kph). He recently made headlines after sending down a 124 mph ace on his second serve in the 2024 Australian Open in his first-round clash against Christopher O’Connell. He hit a 149mph serve at the 2023 US Open against Tommy Paul, just three clicks short of the all-time US Open record set by Andy Roddick in 2003.
The two main components of a tennis player’s serve are his body weight and the racket head speed, providing the mass and acceleration, respectively. The higher these two are, the more force in the serve.
Compared to others, Ben Shelton starts his service motion with a slightly narrower stance. As he goes through his motion, both feet align parallel to the baseline, coming even closer. Coiling up for the serve, the World No.16 bends his knees more than most of his peers, crouching deep.
However, he unloads rapidly, staying bent only for a flash second. This allows him to push more of his body weight into his jump and do it quicker. This fast jerk-like coiling and unwinding of his knees acts as a solid platform for his torso to rotate and generate momentum. His impressive rotation of his body, with most of his mass, is crucial to getting the thundering power.
Shelton’s left arm goes very low before coming back up, whizzing past in a blur. Extending his serving arm so low gives the 21-year-old an extra bit of time and distance, allowing him to reach higher racquet head speed before making contact with the tossed ball. The speed of the serve is directly linked to the speed of the racquet head, which provides the acceleration component.
Ben Shelton can bomb down rocket-like serves mainly because he puts his body behind the service. He also achieves a lot of airtime, which allows him to give more height to his serves. He will be next seen terrorising opponents with his serve in the ATP 250 Dallas Open.
