ABSTRACT
Introduction: Technical skills in complex situations appear crucial for progress towards elite tennis performance. However, it is unknown how these skills develop in different age categories in a group of talented youth players. The aim of this study is to evaluate possible differences in technical skills among Dutch talented youth tennis players U15 compared to U17. Methods: A total of 19 players (12 males, 7 females; age 14.6 ± 1.4 years) were tested on ball speed, accuracy, percentage errors and spin rate using the on-court Dutch Technical-Tactical Tennis Test. With a ball machine, four games were simulated which were either fixed (game 1 and game 2) or variable (game 3 and game 4), depending on the complexity of the task. Each game consisted of two offensive, two neutral and two defensive rallies, representing different tactical situations. Results: A two-way ANOVA revealed a statistically significant interaction between the effects of age category and sex for ball speed (F(1,15) = 5.472, p = 0.034, η 2 = 0.267), indicating that males U17 produced higher ball speed compared to males U15, whereas no differences were found between females U15 and U17. A one-way ANCOVA showed that, regardless of sex, players U17 scored significantly higher on accuracy than players U15 (F(1,16) = 5.021, p = 0.040, η 2 = 0.239). No differences were found between players U15 and U17 for spin rate and percentage errors (p > .05), although there was a medium to large effect size for males U17 to produce higher spin rates compared to males U15. A closer examination of accuracy revealed that players U17 scored significantly higher compared to players U15 in game 4 (F(1,17) = 6.358, p = .022, η 2 = .272) and in defensive situations (F(1,17) = 9.602, p = .007, η 2 = .361). Discussion: In conclusion, the results of the current study suggest that technical skills, especially ball speed for males and accuracy in complex situations for both males and females, continue to develop in adolescence in talented tennis players. There is an increased understanding about underlying technical skills that contribute to progress towards elite tennis performance. To effectively develop technical skills, coaches are encouraged to design specific practices where these skills are performed in complex situations under high cognitive and temporal pressure.
ABSTRACT
To our knowledge, no feasible, valid and reliable instrument exists to examine tactical skills over the course of multiple training and game situations in tennis yet. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Tactical Skills Questionnaire in Tennis (TSQT). The TSQT is a new instrument with closed-ended questions designed to examine tactical skills in tennis players. Participants were 233 competitive tennis players (age: 17.06 ± 4.74 years) competing on national or regional levels. With a principal component analysis (PCA) we identified four theoretically meaningful subscales for the 31-item TSQT: "Anticipation and positioning," "Game intelligence and adaptability," "Decision-making," and "Recognizing game situations" and confirmed them with a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) (χ2 = 527.02, df = 426, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.045, SRMR = 0.079). Internal consistency was good, with Cronbach's alpha of 0.89 for the entire scale and McDonald's omega ranging from 0.69 to 0.78 for the separate subscales. A subsample of 57 players completed the TSQT twice to assess test-retest reliability. Absolute test-retest reliability of the subscales was good with no significant differences in mean scores between test and retest (p > 0.05). Relative test-retest reliability was moderate with ICC values ranging from 0.65 to 0.71. National players outperformed regional players on the subscales "Game intelligence and adaptability," "Decision-making," and "Recognizing game situations" (p < 0.05), and there was a trend toward significance for "Anticipation and positioning" (p = 0.07). This study supported the psychometric properties of the TSQT. Evaluating tactical skills with the TSQT provides players, coaches and other professionals with insight in players' self-assessed tactical skills over the course of multiple training and game situations. It creates the opportunity for players to reflect on their skills and detect personal development areas with their coach. We advise to use this information as input for tailor-made training programs.
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study is to examine whether technical characteristics predict current and future tennis performance of youth tennis players. Twenty-nine male youth tennis players (age 13.40 ± .51) were assessed on anthropometrical characteristics (height, weight, maturity status) and technical characteristics (ball speed, accuracy and percentage errors) using an on-court tennis test when they were under-14 (U14). Game situations were simulated, which were either fixed or variable. The variable game situations required players to consider the direction of the ball, as opposed to the fixed game situations where players needed to play every ball to the same side. Players' tennis ratings were obtained U14 ('current performance') and under-18 (U18) ('future performance'). According to their rating U18 players were classified as future elite (n = 9) or future competitive (n = 20). A multiple linear regression analysis showed that ball speed and accuracy were significant predictors of current and future performance (p < .001), with R2 of .595 and .463, respectively. When controlling for age, a one-way MANCOVA revealed that future elite players were more accurate than future competitive players (p = .048, 95% CI [.000 to .489]), especially in variable compared to fixed game situations (p < .05). In conclusion, the current study is the first to show that technical characteristics are crucial for current as well as future performance in youth male tennis players. Findings of this prospective study provide essential information to coaches about characteristics that require most attention in performance development in youth players.
Subject(s)
Athletic Performance , Tennis , Adolescent , Anthropometry , Body Weights and Measures , Humans , MaleABSTRACT
The aim of this systematic review is to provide an overview of outcome measures and instruments identified in the literature for examining technical and tactical skills in tennis related to performance levels. Such instruments can be used to identify talent or the specific skill development training needs of particular players. Searches for this review were conducted using the PubMed, Web of Science, and PsycInfo databases. Out of 733 publications identified through these searches, 40 articles were considered relevant and included in this study. They were divided into three categories: (1) technical skills, (2) tactical skills and (3) integrated technical and tactical skills. There was strong evidence that technical skills (ball velocity and to a lesser extent ball accuracy) and tactical skills (decision making, anticipation, tactical knowledge and visual search strategies) differed among players according to their performance levels. However, integrated measurement of these skills is required, because winning a point largely hinges on a tactical decision to perform a particular stroke (i.e., technical execution). Therefore, future research should focus on examining the relationship between these skills and tennis performance and on the development of integrated methods for measuring these skills.
