Rally pace and match chararacteristics in Wimbledon 2017

Abstract

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.