Quantifying Change of Direction Movement Demands in Professional Tennis Matchplay: An Analysis From the Australian Open Grand Slam

Abstract

Giles, B, Peeling, P, and Reid, M. Quantifying change of direction movement demands in professional tennis matchplay: An analysis from the Australian Open Grand Slam. J Strength Cond Res 37(7): 1419–1427, 2023—Change of direction (COD) contributes significantly to the movement repertoire of professional tennis players, yet the time-motion and degree demands of these changes are poorly understood. This study examines the velocity, acceleration, and angular displacement profiles of COD movements in modern professional tennis. One hundred eighty-two singles matches of Hawk-Eye player tracking data collected from the Australian Open Grand Slam were used for analysis. A novel COD classification algorithm was used to identify >120,000 medium and high-intensity CODs for analysis. Descriptive characteristics of the COD performance were calculated using player coordinate and time variables. Sex comparisons were analyzed using 2 mixed-effects models assessed for differences via likelihood ratios. Players performed 1.6 CODs per point. Both sexes executed, on average, 1.3–1.4 shots and covered 4.8 m per COD, with men performing changes every 2.7 seconds and women every 3.1 seconds. Medium-intensity COD comprised 88–94% of all identified changes. Approximately 2 in 3 CODs involved a degree of change >105°, whereas cutting maneuvers (<45°) were most commonly high-intensity COD. This study is the first to quantify the COD characteristics of professional tennis matchplay. Both sexes performed the same average number of CODs per point, however, men executed high-intensity changes twice as frequently as women, at an average of 1 every 5 points. These novel findings will help to improve the specificity of training interventions in elite tennis conditioning.

Change-of-Direction Speed Assessments and Testing Procedures in Tennis: A Systematic Review

“…Given that COD testing is often conducted to determine potential strengths and weaknesses that might benefit or harm an athlete's sport-specific performance, it is frequently recommended that the COD test of choice is relevant to the demands of the sport (50,103). Several studies have assessed the demands of tennis match play (1,(25)(26)(27)32,(35)(36)(37)(38)40,41,47,48,55,71,72,78,(89)(90)(91), concluding that the average point in tennis lasts between 3.8 and 12.1 seconds (41,55), during which tennis players cover 5.3-15.0 m (32,89). As for COD-specific demands, to the knowledge of the authors, only 2 studies have investigated the number of directional changes per point (25,41).…”

“…Several studies have assessed the demands of tennis match play (1,(25)(26)(27)32,(35)(36)(37)(38)40,41,47,48,55,71,72,78,(89)(90)(91), concluding that the average point in tennis lasts between 3.8 and 12.1 seconds (41,55), during which tennis players cover 5.3-15.0 m (32,89). As for COD-specific demands, to the knowledge of the authors, only 2 studies have investigated the number of directional changes per point (25,41). These studies observed that players perform an average of 1.5-2.5 directional changes per point (25,41).…”

“…Tennis is a high-intensity intermittent sport that requires players to perform many directional changes over the course of a match (41). In elite-level tennis matches, players perform approximately 1.5-2.5 directional changes per rally, resulting in over 100 directional changes per set (25,41).…”

“…Tennis is a high-intensity intermittent sport that requires players to perform many directional changes over the course of a match (41). In elite-level tennis matches, players perform approximately 1.5-2.5 directional changes per rally, resulting in over 100 directional changes per set (25,41). Most rallies are played on the baseline with lateral displacements being more common than forward displacements (89), therefore, indicating that players frequently perform sharp directional changes to recover back to the middle of the court after having hit the ball back to the opponent's side (87,89).…”

“…Most rallies are played on the baseline with lateral displacements being more common than forward displacements (89), therefore, indicating that players frequently perform sharp directional changes to recover back to the middle of the court after having hit the ball back to the opponent's side (87,89). Furthermore, player tracking data show that most directional changes occur within 4 m (41). Collectively, these findings suggest that CODS in actions characterized by relatively low entry velocities and sharp angles is crucial in tennis.…”