Elite tennis player sensitivity to changes in string tension and the effect on resulting ball dynamics

Abstract

Eighteen elite male tennis players were tested to determine their ability to identify string tension differences between rackets strung from 210 N (47 lb) to 285 N (64 lb). Each player impacted four tennis balls projected from a ball machine before changing rackets and repeating the test. Eleven participants (61%) could not correctly detect a 75 N (17 lb) difference between rackets. Only two participants (11%) could correctly detect a 25 N (6 lb) difference. To establish whether varying string tensions affected ball rebound dynamics, the ball’s rebound speed and landing position were analysed. The mean rebound ball speed was 117 km h⁻¹, with only the trials from the 210 N racket producing significantly lower (P < 0.05) rebound speeds than the 235 N and 260 N rackets. This is contrary to previous laboratory-based tests where higher rebound speeds are typically associated with low-string tensions. The anomaly may be attributable to lower swing speeds from participants as they were not familiar with such a low string tension. Ball placement did not appear related to string tension, with the exception of more long errors for the 235 N racket and fewer long errors for the 285 N racket. It was concluded that elite male tennis players display limited ability to detect changes in string tension, impact the ball approximately 6% faster than advanced recreational tennis players during a typical rallying stroke, and that ball placement is predominantly unrelated to string tension for elite performers.