Evaluation of groundstrokes in tennis with neuromechanical methods

The aim of this study is to investigate the perception-reaction time, kinematics and muscular activation strategies of tennis players during the four stroke phases (preparation, back swing, forward swing and follow through) of successful and unsuccessful forehand strokes to the balls coming with a constant speed (72-75 km/h). The participants of the research were 12 volunteer male tennis players who play at club level and participate in national tournaments. Dual-Energy X-ray Absorbsiometry (DEXA) system [Lunar Progidy, USA] for collecting anthropometric, semi-infrared Motion Capture system [Qualisys, Sweden] for motion capture, and 16-channel wireless Electromyography (EMG) system [Delsys, USA] for muscle activation analysis were used during the data collection process. Players equipped with a total of 16 EMG electrodes and 52 reflective markers and then performed 10 strokes to the balls sent by the ball throwing machine placed on the opposite side of the court. All kinematic and EMG data were analyzed (Two-Way Repeated Measures ANOVA) in terms of 4 stroke phases created by the determination of 5 time points and 4 ball performance interaction determined as aut, net, low and high strokes. Based on ball performance in the study, it was concluded that muscular activation, timing and kinematic components differed according to stroke performance, but there was no statistical difference in total stroke times.