At the risk of confusion and completely throwing newer players into a state of shock, I feel that presenting a different perspective on the game of Pickleball is healthy.   This view on the, "Statistical Logic of Serving", presented by Steven Bloom, a retire mathematician, is not the one held by tradition teachers, coaches, and players, but then Pickleball is not your traditional game. I would ask you to read Steven's controversial advice and then post your comments to this forum.

Here is Steven Blooms Statistical Analysis of the Serve and the Odds you need to know. Should you change your philosophy on the serve. Read and you be the judge.

“Serving in pickleball isn’t like other racquet sports because of the double-bounce rule. In pickleball, the highest percentage of wins off the serve goes to the receiver. The reason is that the side that gets to the net first wins more rallies – around 60 to 70% more. The serving side has to wait back near the baseline because of the double-bounce rule, so the receivers always reach the net first and they win more often."

“Since my chances of winning while serving are less than the receivers’, I should try an extraordinary serve to even the odds. I’m better off serving the ball with my maximum power, skill, and deception and miss the serve entirely than delivering an easy serve because, if my opponents are any good at all, they’ll send it back with thanks and a victory. When I serve hard or send the serve to the outside corner of the service box, for example, I’m risking a fault to achieve a point. My old tennis coach used to say that a service ratio of an ace to an error is a good ratio. The same thing applies here. It really doesn’t matter if I miss my serve – my chances of making an ace on the serve are small.”

“Lots of people just concentrate on getting the serve into the box, but I disagree with that. You shouldn’t be afraid to miss a serve. Statistics say you won’t win that point very often anyway, so why not take a chance and try a tough serve? If it goes in, even if your opponent sends it back, they won’t do as well as if you handed them the ball on a platter. Serving hard and with as much skill as you can muster has everything to gain and nothing to lose, [assuming you get it in 50% of the time].”

“This changes the serve in pickleball from a defensive opening to a power play that can win points and reclaim the edge (or at least even the odds). The question shouldn’t be what percentage of your serves are in. Instead track the ratio of your service winners to errors. Track an error if you miss the box. Track a winner when your serve makes them miss or the return is weak and sets up an easy point for you. If the ratio is even or better, that’s great.”
 
 
Comment:The opinions expressed here are those of Steven's and not mine.  I do not recommend this approach for new or intermediate players but is it something experienced, competitive players, might want to think about. It goes against everything I teach but maybe it is worth at least a passing thought. How can you argue with a mathematician, he's got the figures to prove it.To read more of Steven Blooms strategies of Pickleball visit his blog at http://bloompickleball.blogspot.com/