The Alden Catalogue of Choice Books, May 30, 1889

ore than merely the beginning of a rally. With the rise of American tennis and the advent of Dwight Davis and Holcomb

eries that revolutionized the game, and caused the old-school players to send out hurry calls for a severe footfault rule or some way of stopping the threatened destruction of all ground strokes. M'Loughlin made service a great

, reliable, and varied. It must be used with discretion and served with brains. I believe

the net at its lowest point (3 feet in the centre), there is only a margin of 8 inches of the service court in which the ball can possibly fall; the remainder is below the net angle. Thus it is easy to see how important it is to use some form of twist to bring the ball

e it is to cause the receiver to fall into error. Do not strive unduly for c

t popular forms of delivery and as such deserves special treatment. The usual forms of service are (1) t

nd proves so effective that many great players use it. It is the service of

er can COMFORTABLY reach. To stretch unnecessarily is

ting plane, and then start a slow shift of the weight forward, at the same time increasing the power of the swing forward as the racquet commences its upward flight to the ball. Just as the ball meets the racquet face the weight should be thrown forward and the full power of the swing smashed into the service. Let the ball strike the racquet INSIDE the face of the strings, with the racquet tr

ootfault is crossing or touching the line with either foot before the ball is delivered, or it is a jump or step. I am not going into a

y unnecessary. The average footfault is due to carelessness, over-anxiety, or ignora

cquet passes up and over the call, travelling from left to right and slightly forward. The result is a curve to the left and the break of the bound to the right. This service is not fast, but gives

front of the body and not high. The swing is a sharp wrist twist from right to left, the ball carried for some distance on the face of the racquet. The curve is from left

ce, thus imparting no spin to the ball. It is a case of speed alone. This service is a point winner when it goes i

e court and serve the whole dozen to No. 1 court with one style of delivery. Then, crossing, I would serve them back with another type of service. Next, I would try the left court from both sid

e was delivering the ball. William M. Johnston, the American Champion, has a remarkable service for so short a man. He times his stroke perfectly, and hits it at the

r points by a man who knows anything of the angles and effects of twist. These deliveries are affectation if used more than once

-class tennis, he has brains enough to use a straight service. The freak services delight a

ith the minimum effort. This statement holds true for a

rection, that about nine out of ten first deliveries are faults. Thus, one half your

should always strive to put his first delivery in court. In the first place it is apt to catch your opponent napping, as he half expects a fault. Secondly, it c

they can be sure of, but to serve both deliveries at about the same speed. D

g. The first ball is the ball to ace. The second should never be risked. Your aces must

s regards holding it; but the need for individual brilliancy is not so gr

nd a successful attack