John Yandell: The Myth of the Toss

What’s the real shape of the service toss? Look closely at how Pete’s toss arcs from right to left, dropping up to two feet at contact. “Just throw the ball straight up in front of you and hit it at the top of the toss.” This article really should be titled “myths” of the toss, not “the” myth of the toss, because there are two predominant misunderstandings here that have damaged players at all levels for years. The first has to do with toss height – the common belief that players should hit the ball at the top of the toss. The second myth has to do with the tossing motion and the placement of the toss. This is the belief that the toss and the motion of the tossing arm should be straight up and down in front of the body. To check if the toss is correct, players are often taught to let the toss drop, so that it falls to the court in front of the front foot (for a right-handed player.) Advanced Tennis (AdvancedTennis.com) high speed video shows that neither of these two beliefs are accurate. They don’t describe what top players do when they toss….