Lindsea Vaudt
Laura Ruskamp
12.7.12
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Ball over the net and inside the service box
Difficult return or no return
High ball velocity
Ball spin
Score
Fluid rhythm
Energy storage
• Types of Serves:
• Flat: minimum spin, low, straight
• Most common
• Highest velocity
• Kick: heavy spin (top spin), more net clearance, direction change on
landing
• Greatest force and torque
• Highest injury potential
• Slice: side spin, curves toward or away from receiver
• Lowest force and torque
Men
Women
1. S. Groth (Australia): 163.4 mph (2012)
1. V. Williams (USA): 129 mph (2007)
2. I. Karlovic (Croatia): 156 mph (2011)
2. S. Williams (USA): 128 mph (2010)
3. M. Raonic (Canada): 155.3 mph (2012) 3. J. Georges (Germany): 126.1 mph
(2012)
4. A. Roddick (USA): 155 mph (2004)
4. B. Schultz-McCarthy (Netherlands):
126 mph (2007)
• Phase 1:
• Starting Position
• Preparatory Movements
• Phase 2:
• Coil
• Wind-Up
• Backswing
• Phase 3:
• Un-Coil
• Force Producing Movements
• Acceleration
• Phase 4:
• Follow-Through
• Recovery
*movements occur in all planes of motion
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcjZ5r_YHV0
• Begins at “ready position” and ends with ball release from the
non-dominant hand
• Knee flexion/extension, hip flexion/extension, shoulder rotation,
back flexion/extension
• Initiates the storage of potential energy in the upper limb
• Low injury risk
• Muscles used:
• Rotator Cuff muscles, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Gastrocnemius
• From ball release to point of maximal external rotation of
dominant shoulder
• Body twists away from net, knees and hips flex, back extends
and rotates away from net
• Helps to store even more potential energy in the shoulder
• Leads to a higher swing velocity
• Injury Risk:
• Higher risk
• Shoulder bears 40% of body weight
• Impingement, anterior labral injuries, musculotendinous injuries
• Muscles used:
• Abdominal muscles, rotator cuff muscles, pectoralis major is most active
• Power
• Flexibility
• Range of motion in the shoulder and back
• Racquet drop, “scratching the back”
• Racquet parallel to the right side of the body
• Rotation of the trunk and arm (shoulder over shoulder)
• Shifts the angular momentum forward
• Whip
• hips, torso, shoulder, arm, elbow, forearm, wrist and racquet movements
• Shoulders parallel to the net prior to impact
• Need to use both upper and lower body
• Skills following contact with the ball
• Racquet arm follows across the body to the center line
• Angular momentum into linear momentum
• Body and arm rotation
• Rotation of hips and shoulders
• Hip and trunk rotation to get the right leg whipped around
• End low and prepared for the return
• 2-20 injuries per 1000 hours played
• “Violent maneuver which requires power and acceleration”
• High internal forces and repetitive mechanics are source of
injury
• Limit serve number, proper physical preparation, proper
technique
• Tennis Elbow (lateral epicondylitis):
• Most common injury
• Shoulder injuries also common
• Focus:
• Back and shoulder strength
• Ex: resistance bands, light dumbbell exercises
• External rotator strength
• Stress experienced because of imbalance compared to internal
rotators
• Pronation and supination of wrist
• Abdominal muscles and core strength
• Lower limbs
• Flexibility - stretching
• Serve one of most important moments in tennis
• Small changes have large effect on biomechanics of the serve
and injury potential
• Initial phases store potential energy
• High potential for injury
• Proper technique is key
• Caused by high internal forces
• Abrams, G. D., Sheets, A. L., Andriacchi, T. P., & Safran, M. R. (2011). Review of
tennis serve motion analysis and the biomechanics of three serve types with
implications for injury. Sports Biomechanics, 10(4), 378-390.
• Elliot, B. (2006). Biomechanics and tennis. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 40,
392-396. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2005.023150
• Eygendaal, D., Rahussen, F. T. G., & Diercks, R. L. (2007). Biomechanics of the
elbow joint in tennis players and relation to pathology. British Journal of Sports
Medicine, 41, 820-823. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2007.038307
• Goktepe, A., Ak, E., Sogut, M., Karabork, H., & Korkusuz, F. (2009). Joint angles
during successful and unsuccessful tennis serves; kinematics of tennis serve. Joint
Diseases and Related Surgery, 20(3), 156-160.
• Pro Tennis Internet Network. (2012, September 12). Serve speed leaders. Retrieved
from http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20120910/ids-serve-speedleaders_2256076_1978722Abrams, G. D., Sheets, A. L., Andriacchi, T. P., &
Safran, M. R. (2011). Review of tennis serve motion analysis and the
biomechanics of three serve types with implications for injury. Sports
Biomechanics,10(4), 378-390.
• Reid, M., Whiteside, D., & Elliot, B. (2011). Serving to different locations: Set up,
toss, and racket kinematics of the professional tennis serve. Sports
Biomechanics, 10(4), 407-414.