Introduction: In racket sports, it is necessary to devise a gripping method that facilitates both the efficient transmission of power and injury prevention. This study quantified grip pressure ...distribution (PD) in the hand using various gripping methods and investigated the relationship between these distributions and muscle activation. Methods: In a laboratory setting, a grip sensor was used to measure hand PD in 15 healthy adults during each task. Participants gripped the sensor device using three grip patterns with simultaneous electromyography (EMG) recordings from the extensor digitorum communis (EDC), extensor carpi radialis, flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS), and flexor carpi ulnaris (FCU). The device's hand-contact area was assigned anatomical regions, and the percentage PD of each region was calculated for each task. We compared the EMG in each grip pattern and analyzed the correlation between grip force and EMG.Results: The main outcomes measured were EMG and PD. For radial and power grips, there was a significant relationship between EDC and grip force (r = 0.52, 0.47). For the ulnar grip, there was a significant relationship between FDS and grip force (r = 0.55). Furthermore, the ulnar grip's EDC activity was significantly lower than that of the power grip, and FCU activity was significantly higher than that of the radial grip (p < 0.05). Discussion: The ulnar grip had significantly lower EDC activity than the power grip and higher FCU activity, which is involved in the elbow joint's stability, than the radial grip. The ulnar grip may be effective in preventing injuries.
•NOTCH® inertial measurement unit is a valid and reliable system.•NOTCH® demonstrates a strong level of agreement with the gold standard.•NOTCH® is one economic and portable alternative to kinematics ...analyse.
Portable and low-cost motion capture systems are gaining importance for biomechanical analysis. The aim was to determine the concurrent validity and reliability of the NOTCH® inertial sensors to measure the elbow angle during tennis forehand at different sampling frequencies (100, 250 and 500 Hz), using an optical capture system with sub-millimetre accuracy as a reference. 15 competitive players performed forehands wearing NOTCH and an upper body marker-set and the signals from both systems were adjusted and synchronized. The error magnitude was tolerable (5-10°) for all joint-axis and sampling frequencies, increasing significantly at 100 Hz for the flexion–extension and pronation-supination angles (p = 0.002 and 0.023; Cohen d > 0.8). Concordance correlation coefficient was very large (0.7–0.9) in all cases. The within-subject error variation between the test–retest did not show significant differences (p > 0.05). NOTCH® is a valid, reliable and portable alternative to measure elbow angles during tennis forehand.
Sport modalities are highly practiced in order to improve many aspects of human beings, including performance and health. The increasing interest in the quantitative and qualitative aspects of sport ...training is ascribable to the fact that several training systems and new methodologies are appearing in all sport modalities. These methodologies can have different effects on the organism depending on the degree of training.On the other hand, some of the main objectives in sport research are to describe match activity and to detect effective performance indicators. A better knowledge of players' performance adaptations and game dynamics during competition is extremely useful for optimizing the training process. The need to develop training methodologies according to actions occurring during the game is essential for each sport.
The study provided further validity for the use of the PWOL (percentage of matches which the winner outscored the loser) method within elite hard-court tennis. Over half of the ATP/WTA competitive ...calendar (January-March and August-November) is played on hard courts so is an important progression. Data from 810 men's and 586 women's hard-court matches across Grand Slams and ATP/WTA World Tours (i.e. Masters, 500s and 250s) between 2019 and 2023 was used for analysis. PWOL was validated alongside two traditionally used statistical methods (paired t-test, point-biserial correlation). Very high agreement between all approaches was shown using Spearman's correlation analysis for both men and women (>0.97). The study further identified the indicators most related to winning performance, identifying baseline points won, first serve points won, points won of 0-4 rally length and Winners:UE Ratio to be most strongly associated with success, whilst forced errors were most associated with losing. Ball three indicators lacked association with match outcome, suggesting any major focus training ‘one-two punches’ on serve should be approached with caution. PWOL has proven to be a valid method for assessing success in elite hard-court tennis (offering potential for wider sports application) to ultimately aid coach decision-making.
The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of two 8-week neuromuscular training (NMT) interventions on selected physical indicators in young tennis players. Twenty-four junior male tennis ...players were assigned to a machine-based (MG) (n = 8), flywheel (FG) (n = 8) or a control training group (CG) (n = 8). Tests at baseline, week 4 and 8 included: countermovement jump (CMJ); speed (S; 5, 10, 15 m); agility (right AR and left AL); serve velocity (SV) and medicine ball throws (MBT; overhead O, forehand FH, backhand BH). MG and FG attained large positive effects at week 4 in CMJ, S 10 m; AR, AL and MBT FH only in FG. Regarding inter- to post-test, MG achieved large positive effects in MBT O, FH and both groups in BH. Large negative effects appeared for FG in S 5 and 10 m and AR and AL. Both NMT interventions led to positive effects from baseline to week 4 measures in CMJ, S 5 m, 10 m and agility and at week 8 in MBT. Conducting the same NMT for a longer period of time did not lead to the same improvements and other negative effects in FG appeared. Results indicate that performing these interventions with little exercise variability or load management, especially after technical-tactical sessions, could interpose further beneficial outcomes and initial gains could be impaired.
While long-term training with stroboscopic eyewear suggests performance-enhancing effects on visuomotor abilities, it remains unclear whether a short-term application, for example, during a warm-up, ...results in immediate performance gains. This study evaluated potential performance-enhancing effects of stroboscopic eyewear applied during warm-up on reaction speed that may provide athletes an edge in visuomotor-demanding sports.
Twenty-eight international-level table tennis athletes participated in this study. Participants performed their individual 10-minute table-tennis-specific warm-up under normal visual conditions and with stroboscopic eyewear. Prior to and after the warm-up, visuomotor reaction time was assessed in a sport-specific reaction test where athletes had to return 30 table tennis balls played by a ball machine at high speed to their backhand side. Reaction time was determined as the interval between ball output and movement onset as triggered by a mechanical switch. Furthermore, the time between ball-table contact and ball-racket contact (hit time) was analyzed as an indicator of how early the athletes intercepted the ball.
Reaction time significantly improved following the warm-up (P < .001, ηp2=.393). However, there was no additional benefit of the stroboscopic eyewear (P = .338, ηp2=.034). No changes after the warm-up were observed for hit time (P = .246, ηp2=.055).
The results indicate that warm-up facilitated visuomotor reaction speed; however, stroboscopic eyewear did not provide additional positive effects when compared to a warm-up under normal visual conditions. While shutter glasses may be useful for training over longer periods, short-term positive effects were not supported in this study.
Los objetivos fueron analizar los resultados de cada set en partidos World Padel Tour (WPT) disputados a tres sets, según la incorporación o no del punto de oro y evaluar si la diferencia de juegos ...en el primer o segundo set y la introducción o no de la regla del punto son variables predictoras de ganar el tercer set de un partido. Para ello, se analizaron 1018 partidos disputados de tres sets. Los resultados indican que el primer y segundo set de los partidos de pádel en WPT suelen ser igualados, mientras que el tercer set no suele ser igualado. Por otro lado, a mayor diferencia de juegos en el segundo set, mayor probabilidad hay de que la pareja que haya ganado dicho set, gane el tercer set. Aunque esta probabilidad disminuye cuando se jugaron los partidos con punto de oro, respecto a cuándo se jugaron con ventaja.
This study aimed to analyse effectiveness at the net and its influence on match outcome regarding serve situation in professional padel players. The sample contained 2107 rallies from the 15 male ...matches of the 2013 Masters Finals World Padel Tour. Variables pertaining to game result, attack effectiveness, players' location, and serve situation were registered through systematic observation. Statistical analyses included a series of binomial logistic regression analyses. Results showed that six out of ten rallies finished at the net. Furthermore, points scored at the net accounted for over 80% of the total. More importantly, playing effectively at the net increased the likelihood of winning the match. Specifically, winning players scored 34% more points and made 49% less unforced errors at the net than those who lost (P = 0.011). Additionally, scoring odds for winners were further increased when resting (OR = 1.65; P = 0.014) compared to losers. Therefore, controlling the net game seems to be a key factor in professional padel that distinguishes between winning and losing players. The reported data may constitute a useful guide in the design of appropriate game strategies and specific-training sessions based on actual competition context.
Although performance analysis in padel represents a useful process to gain references about players’ technical and tactical behavior, most of the research was conducted in elite compared to the ...sub-elite competitions. Therefore, this study aimed to describe sub-elite competitions in order to enhance scientific knowledge for sub-elite athletes and technical staff. 4287 shots were analyzed within five areas (time-motion analysis, shots characteristics, errors, serve and points won). Effective playing time and work-to-rest ratio were lower than in elite competitions, while strokes per minute and total match duration were in line with it. Shots were mainly forehand volleys performed under the head, while volleys and smashes were more likely to end with a point in comparison with ground or wall shots. However, sub-elite winning pairs performed fewer volleys than the losing side and fewer errors on volleys. One serve out of five ended in errors (almost half were net errors); fewer errors during serve return shots represented an advantage for the winning pairs. Finally, 65% of the points scored were caused by unforced errors of opponents. This knowledge should help technical staff design specific training programs for sub-elite padel players.
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects on upper strength in high-level male players playing four successive wheelchair tennis (WT) matches. Eight international WT players took part in a ...competition, playing one match per day over four consecutive tournament days. Before and after the match, the maximal isometric handgrip strength was measured on the dominant and non-dominant hand. Additionally, each player was equipped with one radiofrequency and IMU device on their wheelchair to control his activity profile (distance). The results showed significant differences between successive matches, with decreasing dominant handgrip strength (
= 0.02, η
= 0.043), and there was a significant interaction between successive matches and the accumulated distance (
= 0.013, η
= 0.049). The pre- and post-match strength values of the dominant hand decreased throughout the matches over a number of days, and post hoc analysis showed differences between the first and fourth matches only in pre-match strength (49.06 ± 6.96 vs. 45.94 ± 7.1;
= 0.045; ES: 1.04) but not in the non-dominant hand. Successive matches caused a decrease in the strength values of the WT players, mainly in the dominant hand. These results should be taken into account in the recovery and prevention of injuries in competitions with successive matches.
