This is a poll which is very tight to call but will be interesting to see the result.

Richard Krajicek.

Why is this in the Resources Forum? :huh:

I'll say Pistol Pete. :)

The best server ever is not listed in the original post. It is actually Karlovic by a mile.

Goran for me, shame his volleying wasn't up there with the best of them or he would have had more Wimbledons I think.

This post is in the wrong place. Murraynator this is the second time man...you been drinking?

I picked Goran ,his first serve was unreturnable, but Sampras was probably a better second server.
These are all recent players, though .They have the benefit of modern racquet technology.

With the old wooden racquet, what about either Mac or Roscoe Tanner?

Shouldnt a mod re-direct this? :huh:

Anyway, Sampras by a mile, the variety he had on first and second serves, just superb. Probably the best ever on grass by far and probably best of all time at its peak.

Goran's isnt far behind..............

Murraynator roflmao

You just post wherever you feel don't you :lol:

So do we Dav, just stamp all over people's threads roflmao

Oh yeah :unsure: roflmao

At least we keep the chat relevant to the forum we're in...

Just like the, err, Lindsay chat in Heyupp now :unsure: roflmao

So, its not as though we have much to talk about, unless we're discussing Fed's plans for next year :rolleyes: roflmao

I'd rather talk about Patty's plans than Fed's to be honest :rolleyes: roflmao

Have you heard about Patty's plans to be top 5? :rolleyes:

Stick to stinking up the tour Patty and losing to Venus in consecutive matches :rolleyes: roflmao

I haven't even looked in that thread, Patty news does not interest me roflmao

But yeah, it ain't happening :lol:

There's more chance of Venus beating a Bulgarian roflmao

It's a slightly dodgy list (why on earth are Federer and Ljubicic in it?) but as most people are saying, it's between Ivanisevic and Sampras. The Croat probably had the better first serve, but the poll says 'best serve', which means the complete package. Goran's second serve was inconsistent, because he was unable to control his nerves on the big points, whereas Pete had nerves of steel and regularly delivered second serve aces. I'd give Goran 10/10 for first serve but only 7/10 for his second, and Sampras 9/10 for his first and 10/10 for his second. What's clear is that both guys had incredible serves.

I'd have put Karlovic in to replace Federer and Krajicek to replace Ljubicic. Krajicek's first serve was similar to Pete's but his second serve wasn't as good. Karlovic, when on form, has an outstanding first serve but I'd stop some way short of saying he's got the best. It's very prone to collapsing, and there's added pressure on him knowing that if the opponents get it back, they'll probably win the point. Too inconsistent.

I wouldn't include Rusedski or Lujbicic in this list.

Federer, though.. yes.

Why? He also has variety to his serve. He is able to serve himself out of trouble so often in matches. When was the last time that you saw his service break down under pressure?? It's so technically solid, and as ever is underestimated. Tim Henman said that it was impossible to read Federer's serve, in contrast o Roddick who pretty much telegraphs where he is going to place the ball.

Federer's ratio of aces to double faults this year was something like 10 to 1. That is a phenomenal performance, any which way you slice it (no pun intended!). I'd be interested in the stats for Sampras at his peak, if there are any available. I doubt if they'd be much better than that.

To that list I would personally add McEnroe. Unconventional service action, great placement, smart server, in the same way that Federer is. Probably also Edberg too, for technique.

Yes, yes, yes, Ivanisevic can serve. Saw the match from yesterday. So boring! Ace, ace, ace, ace. Yawn. Reminds me of how dull a lot of tennis was in the 90s. Yes, DULL..!! Agassi was a breath of fresh air in amongst the boring serving machines of that time..

Im really sorry i did it again.

Don't be sorry, it's funny :lol:

As long as people know im not doing it on purpose.

We are talking about the best serve ever right? So what is the best serve? The one allowing you to get the most points on this shot alone or the one the opposition fears most without of course considering, the volleying or any other shot besides the 1st and second serve. And in that category, Karlovic is simply the best server in history, at least that is what the stats show.
Roddick himself said once that Karlovic serve was probably the best weapon on the tour and we shoudl recognaise that here. (that's probably the only thing Karlo has, let's give it to him).

Then Goran for me, then Johanson (but he has had too short a career to really put him up there)

I have to go with sampras purely for the reason that when it came down to the big points in big matches his serve proved to be the biggest weapon in tennis.To hit as many second serve aces or unreturnables as he did all through his career was incredible.I think sampras and ivansevic head to head record proves who was the better server.

I think Goran's was the best, but I voted for Sampras as he was more consitent and had the great second serve too. So it was more successful than Goran's but I still prefer Goran's. :D

Where is Becker in this poll? Scud?

I think McEnroe deserves a place high on the list , he didnt have a fast serve by todays standards but it was the deadliest of his time. Feared by Borg and Connors alike for its disguise and spin .
There were others like Becker Lendl Tanner and Curren who deserve mention also. And the Scud as SB mentioned .

So in other words this thread i produced is rubbish.

roflmao roflmao

I'd say Sampras for it's renown and for the second serve. Okay he would have still won slams with a lesser serve but not 14..it is amazing.

I'm not sure if I prefer Federer or Goran for second. Federer serves much less aces (but lots of unreturnables) and lots that give him an easy free point. ALso virtually no double faults.

roflmao Maybe you should just rename it 'The best serve of recent times' or something like that.

it would still be rubbish roflmao

Well , Sampras is coming out on top , so its not that rubbishy .

I guess so

Glad you mentioned Mac, I thought the same but kept quiet as everyone might think I am biased anyway! Yes it looks tame today but as you say at the time he gave his peers (who are all time greats) a hell of a lot of trouble as a serve and volley expert. Connors was able to challenge it as he was the best returner in the game at the time, and that plus the baseliner v the serve volleyer element made for interesting match ups.

I have vague memeories of Curren and Tanner (was he the cannonball kid?) and they did have great serves. Lendl defintiely deserves credit, he was consistent and mechanical with his serve.

If you're talking just the quality of the delivery,then Goran's is the best.He just looks fluid and easy.It's not over-complicated.At his best it was as though he could just say ace in his head and he would get one.

Although the combination of great 1st serve and 2nd serve goes to Pete.I voted on service action alone,with the effectiveness of it,and it's ease of execution.

Yes Curren had a very good serve, I remember seeing video highlights of him blasting Mac off court at Wimbledon in 1985.

And also the final against Boris was a classic display of power tennis, both serving and thunderous passing shots.

Curren also destroyed Connors in the semis , as well as beating him two years earlier, which says a lot about how good his serve was .

I missed far too many players out. :( .Sorry guys.

Who remembers Roscoe Tanner? He hit the ball as his toss was still rising. Does anyone else do this today?

I think Waske does occasionally, possibly to try and catch his opponent unawares. The only other example I can think of is Hingis's famous under-arm serves in the French Open final!