Essay: Battling Arm Injuries, a Tennis Player Changes ... Hands

Photo A southpaw learned to play right-handed at the Knickerbocker Tennis Club in Brooklyn. Credit Piotr Redlinski for The New York Times My forehand sailed deep — not just behind-the-baseline deep, but over-the-fence deep. I’ve played tennis for more than four decades, yet I was staring at my right hand as if it had never swung a racket, which was sort of true.

I am left-handed, and in recent years I’ve been plagued by one injury after another. Adding more topspin led to tendon and cartilage damage in my left wrist, requiring three months in a brace and physical therapy. Hitting and pitching thousands of baseballs while coaching my sons’ teams left me with constant elbow pain. An old injury…