The impact of fitness characteristics on tennis performance in adolescent players is not clearly understood. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to test whether physical characteristics are related to players' competitive level (i.e., national youth ranking). A secondary aim was to compare adolescent tennis players by performance level (i.e., regional selected players and the national team). A total of 902 male and female junior players (aged, 11-16 years) in Germany were evaluated using a physical testing battery: grip strength; countermovement jump; 10 and 20-m sprint; tennis-specific sprint; overhead, forehand, and backhand medicine ball throws (MBT); serve velocity and tennis-specific endurance test (hit and turn tennis test). Results showed that serve velocity (r = -0.43 to 0.64 for female subjects [♀]; r = -0.33 to 0.49 for male subjects [♂]) and upper-body power (e.g., MBT r = -0.26 to -0.49 ♀; r = -0.20 to -0.49 ♂) were the most correlated predictors of tennis performance (i.e., national youth ranking) in both female and male tennis players. Moreover, national selected players showed better performance levels than their regional counterparts, mainly in the most predictive physical characteristics (i.e., serve velocity: effect size [ES], 0.78-1.04 ♀; ES 0.92-1.02 ♂, MBT: ES, 0.66-0.88 ♀; ES, 0.67-1.04 ♂) and specific endurance (ES, 0.05-0.95 ♀; ES, 0.31-0.73 ♂). The present findings underline the importance of certain physical attributes, especially serve velocity and strength- and power-related variables (upper body), and suggest the need to include these parameters in the area of training, physical testing, and talent identification of young tennis players.

In tennis, sport-specific technical skills are predominant factors, although a complex profile of physical performance factors is also required. The fitness test batteries assist in examining tennis players’ capabilities for performance at different levels in the laboratory as well as in the field, in the junior or elite level. While laboratory tests can be, and are, used to evaluate basic performance characteristics of athletes in most individual sports, in a more specific approach, field-based methods are better suited to the demands of complex intermittent sports like tennis. A regular test battery performed at different periods of the year allows to obtain an individual's performance profile, as well as the ability to prescribe individual training interventions. Thus, the aim of the present review was to describe and evaluate the different physical tests recommended and used by practitioners, sports scientists and institutions (national tennis federations).

Fett, J, Ulbricht, A, and Ferrauti, A. Impact of physical performance and anthropometric characteristics on serve velocity in elite junior tennis players. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2018-This study aimed to investigate the impact of physical performance components and anthropometric characteristics on serve velocity (SV) in elite junior tennis players depending on the sex and age group. A sample of the best 1,019 (male = 625, female = 394) junior squad tennis players of the German Tennis Federation participated in the study involving complex anthropometric measurements (body height, body mass, sitting height, and arm span) and physical tests (e.g., SV, medicine ball throws [MBTs], hand grip strength, push-ups, back extension, countermovement jumps [CMJs], horizontal jumps, 20-m sprint, and tennis-specific endurance). Of all the anthropometric and physical characteristics analyzed, the MBTs (r = 0.49-0.60♂; r = 0.20-0.60♀), hand grip strength (r = 0.43-0.59♂; r = 0.27-0.37♀), arm span (r = 0.37-0.56♂; r = 0.24-0.36♀), body height (r = 0.31-0.52♂; r = 0.26-0.38♀), and body mass (r = 0.44-0.57♂; r = 0.35-0.39♀) were particularly closely correlated with SV. The results of the multiple regression analysis indicated that the combination of selected predictors (e.g., MBTs, grip strength, arm span, and body mass) explained 41-66% of the variance in SV of boys and 19-45%, respectively, for girls. The results reinforce that service speed is dependent on physical abilities and anthropometric characteristics but also strongly on additional factors (i.e., technical components). In particular, the upper-body power/strength highlight is important to the junior players' service, especially in athletes with a greater body height and arm span (i.e., biomechanical advantages), whereas purely lower-body power (e.g., CMJ) is less important. To this effect, talent identification and intervention programs focusing on the specific requirements are recommended.

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