Royal Dutch Lawn Tennis Federation

Wheelchair tennis, a globally popular sport, features a professional tour spanning 40 countries and over 160 tournaments. Despite its widespread appeal, information about the physical demands of wheelchair tennis is scattered across various studies, necessitating a comprehensive systematic review to synthesise available data. The aim was to provide a detailed synthesis of the physical demands associated with wheelchair tennis, encompassing diverse factors such as court surfaces, performance levels, sport classes, and sexes. We conducted comprehensive searches in the PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, and SPORTDiscus databases, covering articles from inception to March 1, 2023. Forward and backward citation tracking from the included articles was carried out using Scopus, and we established eligibility criteria following the Population, Exposure, Comparison, Outcome, and Study design (PECOS) framework. Our study focused on wheelchair tennis players participating at regional, national, or international levels, including both juniors and adults, and open and quad players. We analysed singles and doubles matches and considered sex (male, female), sport class (open, quad), and court surface type (hard, clay, grass) as key comparative points. The outcomes of interest encompassed play duration, on-court movement, stroke performance, and physiological match variables. The selected study designs included observational cross-sectional, longitudinal, and intervention studies (baseline data only). We calculated pooled means or mean differences with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and employed a random-effects meta-analysis with robust variance estimation. We assessed heterogeneity using Cochrane Q and 95% prediction intervals. Our literature search retrieved 643 records, with 24 articles meeting our inclusion criteria. Most available information focused on international male wheelchair tennis players in the open division, primarily competing in singles on hard courts. Key findings (mean [95% CI]) for these players on hard courts were match duration 65.9min [55.0-78.8], set duration 35.0min [28.2-43.5], game duration 4.6min [0.92-23.3], rally duration 6.1s [3.7-10.2], effective playing time 19.8% [18.9-20.7], and work-to-rest ratio 1:4.1 [1:3.7-1:4.4]. Insufficient data were available to analyse play duration for female players. However, for the available data on hard court matches, the average set duration was 34.8min [32.5-37.2]. International male players on hard court covered an average distance per match of 3859m [1917-7768], with mean and peak average forward speeds of 1.06m/s [0.85-1.32] and 3.55m/s [2.92-4.31], respectively. These players executed an average of 365.9 [317.2-422.1] strokes per match, 200.6 [134.7-299.0] per set, 25.4 [16.7-38.7] per game, and 3.4 [2.6-4.6] per rally. Insufficient data were available for a meta-analysis of female players' on-court movement and stroke performance. The average and peak heart rates of international male players on hard court were 134.3 [124.2-145.1] and 166.0 [132.7-207.6] beats per minute, and the average match heart rate expressed as a percentage of peak heart rate was 74.7% [46.4-100]. We found no studies concerning regional players or juniors, and only one study on doubles match play. While we present a comprehensive overview of the physical demands of wheelchair tennis, our understanding predominantly centres around international male players competing on hard courts in the open division. To attain a more comprehensive insight into the sport's physical requirements, future research should prioritise the inclusion of data on female and quad players, juniors, doubles, and matches played on clay and grass court surfaces. Such endeavours will facilitate the development of more tailored and effective training programmes for wheelchair tennis players and coaches. The protocol for this systematic review was registered a priori at the International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols (Registration https://doi.org/10.37766/inplasy2023.3.0060 ).

Agility is an important ability for tennis players. To be successful in the rallies, players must perform rapid, multidirectional movements in response to the ball and/or the position of the opponent. For a test to be representative in monitoring agility performance, it should capture a combination of the physical and cognitive agility performance. Considering that literature reports no reliable and valid sport-specific agility test for tennis, the aim of this article was to design and evaluate the measurement properties of a Tennis-specific Agility Test (TAT). To evaluate the TAT, test-retest reliability, concurrent validity, and feasibility were assessed. For reproducibility, a two-way mixed ANOVA was performed. Concurrent validity was assessed using Pearson correlations. A total of 69 tennis players participated in this study of whom 16 competed at the international (22 ± 3.7 years, playing level (Dynamic Rating System): .8 ± .3), 43 at the national (14 ± 1.4 years, playing level: 4.6 ± 1.4), and 10 at the regional level (15 ± 0.8 years, playing level: 4.9 ± 1.1). Test-retest reliability was found to be moderate with an Intra-Class Correlation coefficient (ICC) of .74 (p < .01) and a percentual minimal detectable change (%MDC) of 6.2%. Concurrent validity was found to be moderate by comparison with a recognised agility test, the Spider Drill, which measures only the physical component (.70; p < .01), and by comparison with tennis performance for both boys (r = .67; p < .01) and girls (r = .72; p < .01). The feasibility was high with short time for preparation (five to ten minutes) and time per participant (<5 minutes). In conclusion, the TAT shows promising results for assessing sport-specific agility performance in tennis making it likely to be used in the practical setting.

In tennis, applying a proper game strategy is an important aspect in performance optimization. In this work, we perform tactical analyses for a specific professional tennis player by using a manually annotated data collection of 4,593 points. Primarily, we will apply Subgroup Discovery to find generic characteristics of successful points in tennis and descriptions that are specific for our player of interest. To demonstrate that easily understandable patterns can be gleaned from our method, that are relatively simple to put into practice, we will focus on finding the most important descriptions of won service points. In general, the most profound characterisation of successful service points in tennis are points that last maximally two strokes. For our specific player, we have found that more service points are won if the player avoids hitting a backhand.

The purpose of the current study was to assess the inter-trial reliability and construct validity (talented juniors vs. international adult players) of four wheelchair tennis field tests using inertial measurement units (IMUs). Twenty-one elite wheelchair tennis players completed four tests, which evaluate the sprinting and manoeuvrability abilities in wheelchair tennis. During all tests 3 IMUs were attached to both wheels and the frame of the athlete’s wheelchair. The IMUs enabled analysis of individual test dynamic characteristics, i.e. the linear/rotational velocity and acceleration data, as well as detected pushes. All tests showed high ICCs (0.95–0.99) for the inter-trial reliability for the IMU-based end times and also the construct validity was good, i.e. talented juniors could be discriminated from international adults. Also, velocities and accelerations during the tests could be consistently visualized, meaning that differences in test performance among participants could be designated. Within the experimental context, the field tests could be regarded as reliable and valid. With the use of IMUs it is possible to verify more detailed performance characteristics, visualize the test execution, as well as differentiate between a talented junior and international adult group and within individuals over time.

Advances in technology have changed the way that we understand and consume sports performance.From an injury epidemiology perspective, the data generated from these technologies -particularly those related to player exposure or load -can also provide cause to reconsider accepted norms of how to report injury data.Using tennis as a case study, we highlight the opportunity for these new data to provide richer and more meaningful injury insights.

The purpose of this study was to determine possible differences in propulsion technique between propelling the wheelchair with and without a racket in the hand. Eight experienced wheelchair tennis players performed three submaximal exercise tests and six sprint tests on a wheelchair ergometer. Torque and velocity were measured during the tests and power output and timing variables were calculated. Differences between the conditions with and without racket were analyzed. When propelling with the racket, the racket side showed a significantly lower push time (P=0.03), lower percentage push time (P=0.001), shorter contact angle (P<0.001), more power loss before (P=0.006) and after (P=0.001) the push, a higher peak (P=0.009) and mean (P=0.005) power output during the push, and a lower mean overall velocity (P=0.03). When the same hand is compared when propelling with and without racket or when the sprint data were analyzed, similar significant differences were found. Propelling the wheelchair while holding a racket has negative effects on the propulsion technique and may lead to injuries of the upper extremity. The longer time needed to couple the hand with the racket to the rim leads to higher power losses and subsequently higher power output generation during the shorter push phase.

The Consensus Statement by Racinais et al 1 on training and competing in the heat provides practical recommendations for athletes, clinicians and event organisers to optimise performance during sporting activities in the heat. The focus is on three different areas: heat acclimatisation, hydration and cooling strategies, with practical recommendations for event organisers. Heat acclimatisation is the most important intervention available to reduce physiological strain and optimise exercise capacity in hot ambient conditions. Most adaptations develop within the first week of heat acclimatisation, and more slowly in the subsequent 2 weeks.2 Consequently, athletes benefit from only a few days of acclimatisation, but may require up to 2 weeks for optimal performance. Training sessions should last at least 60 min per day and induce a significant increase in body and skin temperatures, as well as …

Exercising in the heat induces thermoregulatory and other physiological strain that can lead to impairments in endurance exercise capacity. The purpose of this consensus statement is to provide up-to-date recommendations to optimise performance during sporting activities undertaken in hot ambient conditions. The most important intervention one can adopt to reduce physiological strain and optimise performance is to heat acclimatise. Heat acclimatisation should comprise repeated exercise-heat exposures over 1–2 weeks. In addition, athletes should initiate competition and training in a euhydrated state and minimise dehydration during exercise. Following the development of commercial cooling systems (eg, cooling-vest), athletes can implement cooling strategies to facilitate heat loss or increase heat storage capacity before training or competing in the heat. Moreover, event organisers should plan for large shaded areas, along with cooling and rehydration facilities, and schedule events in accordance with minimising the health risks of athletes, especially in mass participation events and during the first hot days of the year. Following the recent examples of the 2008 Olympics and the 2014 FIFA World Cup, sport governing bodies should consider allowing additional (or longer) recovery periods between and during events, for hydration and body cooling opportunities, when competitions are held in the heat.

The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) is a jewel in the global primary care sports and exercise medicine crown. In a very competitive market for their society dollars, US primary care physicians vote overwhelmingly for AMSSM, giving it a landslide victory. Membership is (almost) universal because of the benefits such as education and research support combined with networking opportunities. Conference attendance climbs year over year. Quality sponsors such as Donjoy (DJO) add substantial value (eg, travelling fellowship programme). Membership is available for less than the price of a kid's phone (US$400). The organisation serves as a role model, a ‘success story’. And as health reform rolls though the USA, the support of AMSSM has never been more critical for sports physicians (ominous background music…, see ‘Chris Madden’ below). 1. Strength in numbers: AMSSM is a nationwide sports and exercise medicine interest group exclusively dedicated to US primary care sports physicians. No need to get primary care on the agenda—primary care sports and exercise medicine is the agenda . As the medical landscape transforms in the USA, shared wisdom becomes ever-more critical. What changes are coming via the Centre for Medicare/Medicaid …