Sampras Serve: The Left Launch: Page 2

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Pete’s contact point has moved radically to the left, but remains well in front of his body.

Creating the contact point for the left launch requires a corresponding ball toss position, again, to the left and in front. 

Arc of the Toss

If we observe the flight path of Pete’s toss, we see that it travels on a curved arc, moving about three feet from his right to his left, from the time it leaves his hand until the contact.

Notice that the arc traced by the ball is not only from right to left, but also outward over the court. At the same time that the toss is traveling to the left, it is also traveling forward about three feet, that is, three feet out over the court. 

Great serving theory of the past held that the tossing motion should place the ball in front of the body and to the right. Jack Kramer advised placing a handkerchief in front and to the right of the front foot, and then practicing the toss until you could drop the ball on the handkerchief 100 times in a row. The ball should be tossed so that it travels straight…