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Tennis balls degrade after fast racket and ground impacts until they are changed after agreed number of games. The aim is to analyse the new (after the ball change) and used balls (prior to the ball change) match characteristics and the frequency of rally shots in matches in the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon in 2017. Paired samples t-tests and Cohen d were used to compare the point duration, number of rally shots, time between the points, rally pace and work to rest ratio among these tournaments. There was a significant difference in rally shots number played with the new balls (4.17 ± 0.86) compared to the used balls (4.60 ± 1.10) in female matches (p = 0.047); in males matches large effect size was found (d =-0.83) in the same variable with the new balls (4.44 ± 0.57) and used balls (4.95 ± 0.66), both happened in the Australian Open. No difference was found between the new and used balls in the rally pace in all the observed events. The Wimbledon match characteristics were least affected by the ball change. The ball degradation affected the match characteristic the most in the Australian Open, in terms of more rally shots, but not slowing down the rally pace. Our findings inform us how the ball change can affect the game performance in professional tennis.

Even on a lower level of tennis tournament, a player has a very short time to hit an incoming ball as the ball travels quickly and has various ball trajectory. The aim is to compare the rally pace and selected match characteristics between the clay and hard court at the lower level of international tennis tournaments. We compare two ITF Men's World Tennis Tour tournaments -the Milovice Open (hard court) and the RPM Open (clay court). We analysed 1629 points in 15 matches at the Milovice Open and 1296 points in 10 matches at RPM Open. The results showed that the rally pace was significantly faster at the Milovice Open (1,27 ± 0,05 s) compared RPM Open (1,32 ± 0,05 s) t( 23) = 2,68, p < 0,05, (d = 1,20); and also significant difference was found in the work/rest ratio between the Milovice Open (1:3,72 ± 0,75) and the RPM Open (1:3,02 ± 0,60) t( 23) = -2,25, p < 0,05, (d = 0,94). The rally was finished within the first 4 shots in 61% at the Milovice Open compared to 53% at the RPM Open. This study shows and compares selected match characteristics on lower level of international tennis tournaments in men's tennis. We found some interesting information, that can be useful for players and coaches.

Professional tennis players have a very short time to hit an incoming ball from an opponent as the ball travels very quickly. The aim is to find out the rally pace in Wimbledon 2017 and compare this rally pace and other match characteristics in the 1 st round matches to late stage matches of the tournament (semifinals and final). We analyzed 7 matches (four 1 st round matches, both semifinals and final). The mean players' ATP ranking was M = 45,1 ± 38,1. The results showed that the overall rally pace is 1,27 s. However, this rally pace was significantly slower in the 1 st round matches (1,33 ± 0,14 s) compared to late tournament stage (1,19 ± 0,03 s). In the late tournament stage, 74 % of rallies were finished within the first 4 strokes. The rally time and the work/rest ratio was significantly different compared to 1st round matches. This information can be useful for players and coaches.

Comparison of game characteristics at professional ITF and ATP tennis tournamentsBackground: Tennis players have only limited time to hit the incoming ball. This specific time and other game characteristics may vary depending on the performance level of the players. Objective: The aim is to analyze and compare the game characteristics and frequency of rally shots in men's matches between the ATP Challenger tournament and the ITF Men's World Tennis Tour tournament played on a clay surface. Methods: We compare selected game characteristics in two international men's tennis tournaments of different category, i.e. the ITF Men's World Tennis Tour (lower professional level) and the ATP Challenger (medium professional level). Altogether, we analyzed 2483 points in 20 matches. Results: The mean rally pace was faster in the ITF tournament compared to the ATP Challenger tournament, but this difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.06). There was a statistically significant difference in the work/rest ratio at the ITF tournament of 1:3.1 compared to the ATP Challenger 1 : 2.8 t (23) = -2.59, p = 0.03 (d = 0.55). Most often, the point ended in the first four rally shot, in the case of the ITF tournament in 53% and in the case of the ATP Challenger in 50% of cases. Conclusions: This study highlights specific aspects of game performance and the match characteristics in two categories of tournaments on clay court. From a practical point of view, the results can serve as a template for coaches to adjust training programs and to accurately model training sessions.