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Is her serve underrated?

is sharapova's serve underrated?

2K views 14 replies 15 participants last post by  RVD 
#1 ·
is sharapova's serve underrated?

everyone here all the time seems to talk about how sharapova's serve is so bad now and puts her at a heavy disadvantage when she faces serena (lol).

so I was checking out the current WTA Match Stat leaders here: https://wta-playerzone.com/matchfacts1.aspx

and it seems sharapova has some pretty good service stats:

ACES
1. Serena Wiiams - 299
2. Sabine Lisicki - 230
3. Maria Sharapova - 176
4. Kirsten Flipkens - 160
5. Petra Kvitova - 154
...
47. Victoria Azarenka - 48

1ST SERVICE POINTS WON

1. Serena Williams - 76%
2. Maria Sharapova - 72%
3. Marina Erakovic - 71%
4. Kaia Kanepi - 70%
5. Sabine Lisicki - 70%
...
18. Victoria Azarenka - 66%

SERVICE GAMES WON

1. Serena Williams - 86%
2. Maria Sharapova - 79%
3. Madison Keys - 75%
4. Maria Kirilenko - 75%
5. Sabine Lisicki - 75%
...
9. Victoria Azarenka - 71%

i included azarenka for comparisons sake.

so do you think sharapova's serve is underrated?
 
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#4 ·
First, I am a layman here, and with the use of stats even worse. With that said, wouldn't this poll be more BENEFICIAL if we show the win/loss record of each player? IMO, that will show the AFFECT of large number of aces, first service points won, and service games won..
 
#6 ·
I think she's generally gotten to a point where her serve is more than usable. It will still occasionally break down at times, but not as much as it used to, and she can often to use it out of tense situations at deuce or at break point down. She still hits more double faults than she'd probably like too, but I think it's more or less as good as it's going to get now and isn't the massive hindrance it was even 2 years ago.
 
#7 ·
Yup, it is very underrated, and has been her saving grace in numerous matches over the past 18 months. Most of her defeats in big matches since the start of 2012 have been caused by her groundstrokes letting her down rather than her serve. I've said it before, but I actually kind of suspect she and team are focussing on her serve in practice too much, at the expense of the rest of her game.
 
#8 ·
I do believe her serve is underrated. I think the reason why her serve is underrated is because it's overshadowed by all the double faults she tends to throw in. I think it's one aspect of her game that she's constantly working hard on. Her first serve is excellent and can really win her free points. Her second serve can either be a liability or an asset because she's not afraid to go for them. I think partly the reason why she's constantly working hard on improving her serve is partly because of Serena. She knows in order to beat Serena she must hold her own because Serena has a fantastic serve.
 
#9 ·
the high number of DFs is also very easily explainable - she is essentially hitting two first serves all the time and not allowing other players to put her on the backfoot in her service games. She realized that she has little chance to win those 2nd serve points while just rolling the ball in, like so many other chicks do, so she probably decided - "screw it, I'm just gonna decide my service games one way or another on my own". Hence the DFs and all the 2nd serve aces and unreturnables
 
#14 ·
No. Who is underrating it?

It's something she relies on and she has top 3 double faults on tour?
For a top 3 player that's unacceptable.
 
#15 ·
Don't her service numbers speak for themselves?
And who ever said that her serves were bad?
I've often found that her serves have gotten her out of dire straights when facing Serena.
It's just that they tend break down when she's pressured, and then she starts producing DFs galore.
No secret or misunderstanding here.
 
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