1

THE ROLE OF

BIOMECHANICS IN THE

GAME BASED APPROACH

TO TEACHING TENNIS

Miguel Crespo & Machar Reid

Development Department

International Tennis Federation

2

INTRODUCTION

• Great development during

the last years of:

– Tennis

– Tennis teaching

• Why?

– Better educated coaches

– More application of Sport

Sciences

– Learn from other Sports

3

DEVELOPMENT OF TENNIS

TEACHING

• ITF research on perception

of tennis:

– Seemed not fun to play

– Pressure from other sports

– Something to do with

coaching?

• Need to find some answers

4

TEACHING

METHODOLOGY• Critical review of tennis teaching methods

• Found that things could be improved

• Coaches always want new things

• Primary objective: To help players play the game reasonably well

5

TRADITIONAL

APPROACHESPROS

• Direct teaching

• Good in skill acquisition

• Analytic approaches: uniform technique

• Teaching tips as correction techniques: quick fixes

CONS

• Helps players “play”

the game?

• Tactical issues

• Mostly:

– Command styles

– Line formation

6

TRADITIONAL

APPROACHES

• Technique is the

priority

• Tactics are taught

when the player is able

to master the

technique

• Matches are played

when players are able

to rally consistentlyOPEN - GLOBAL –

Match play

CLOSED -

ANALYTIC – basket feeding

7

TENNIS BIOMECHANICS &

TECHNIQUE IN THE

TRADITIONAL APPROACHES

TECHNIQUE

• Very popular

• Phases of the stroke

• Grips, swing, contact

point, follow through

• Importance of copying

a model

• Only 1 model?

BIOMECHANICS

• Not so used among

coaches

• Lack of understanding

and application of

BIOMEC principles

8

NEW

APPROACHES• Mini-tennis: Game modification,

improves skill acquisition,technique and tactics at the sametime

• Not so new in other sports and PE:

– Teaching styles (Muska Mosston)

– Loughborough Uni: Game based approach (Thorpe, Bunker &

Almond, 1989)

• ITF and other nations (ArgentinaAustralia, Belgium, Canada,

England, Switzerland and USA) are using them

9

GAME BASED APPROACH

Introduction

• Started in Loughborough University (UK)

• Applied to teaching sports in PE Classes

• MAIN IDEA:

Development of tactical awareness of the

game should precede the development of

the motor skills required to play the game

10

GAME BASED APPROACH

Basic elements

• Understanding the

game situation

• What to do?

• Form follows function

• Importance of setting

problems of the game

to make players find

solutions

OPEN - GLOBAL

OPEN - GLOBAL

CLOSED -

ANALYTIC

Basket

feeding

Introductory game

Match play

11

GAME BASED APPROACH

Role of tactics• What to do goes before how to do it

• Neglected before

• Decision making is key

• Tactical patterns: Improving tactical

and technical performance through

match situations and the game itself

• Drills with score and points

• Development of gamestyles

• Anticipation, shot selection, etc.

12

GBA

Lesson

Structure

Modified game form

(mini-tennis or adapted

match situation)

Match play

Game rules or tasks

problems. Players to

introduce general strategies

to develop tactical awareness

and decision making to solve

the problem. Understanding

Game situation to

implement and apply

the skill learned

Introduce the technical or

tactical skill needed to

improve and implement

the tactics

Coach / player

evaluation:

which skills need

to be improved?

13

GAME BASED APPROACH

Research in Tennis• Conflicting and contradictory results

• General conclusions:

– Traditional approach: improves tennis skills

and cognitive decision-making

– GBA: generate and plan greater number of

tactical responses but do not improve tennis

skills until taught directly

– Some players selected advanced tactics but

were unable to execute the necessary skills to

implement them successfully

• ITF is funding research on this area

14

GAME BASED APPROACH

Issues and controversies

• Name:

– Not clear

– Game based approach or

Games based

– Games for Understanding

– Play the game...

• Definition is not precise

15

GAME BASED APPROACH

Issues and controversies• Age and skill level of the player:

– Many people think it is for beginner levels

– Originally for 8-10 year olds

– Younger players...may need help (mini-tennis)

• Research and experience:

– Research not conclusive

– Need more experience in using this approach

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GAME BASED APPROACH

Issues and controversies• Goal of the teaching approach:

– Facilitate player´s understanding

– Skill improvement is not an immediate priority

• Methodology: Analytic methods are bad

• Role of the coach: – Should always ask the player and never

tell what to do

– Is not allowed to demonstrate the stroke

• Just let them play: It consists of putting one game after another

• Biomechanics and Technique: are not relevant.....

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GAME BASED APPROACH

Role of Biomechanics• Important Biomechanical aspects for all

strokes:– Production of power and control

– Kinetic or kinematic chain

– Number and way links are used in the chain

– Distance over the movement is performed

• More important than technique

• Can be introduced using problem solving approach

• Make players discover their own mechanics

18

GAME BASED APPROACH

Role of technique• Individual understanding of stroke

mechanics

• Traditionally very important but not taught as related to the game

• New approach puts it into perspective: use introductory game to assess technical and tactical skills

• Use drills to work specifically on them

• Specific repetitions are important

• Importance of combination of technical skills for skill mastery

19

GAME BASED APPROACH

When to introduce technique?• Basic to have some tennis specific motoric proficiency

• Learn tactics and technique together

• Do not expect for a perfect technique to introduce the tactical aspects of the game

• Adapt the game to the player to make it easier

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GAME BASED APPROACH

How much technique to teach?• Importance of quality

• Practical approach

• Help players to understand the application of biomechanics within the game

• Let them discover and solve problems

• B alance

• I nertia

• O pposite force

• M omentum

• E lastic energy

• C o-ordination chain

• T orque

21

GAME BASED APPROACH

Role of the coach

• Help the players learn

• Use of question and answer but do not abuse too much

• Introduce demonstration when needed

• Respect individual characteristics and preferences

22

BIOMECHANICS AND GBA

• Freedom to use grips, stances, swings, etc.

• Technique of top players as reference not as fixed model

• Relate biomechanical stroke characteristics to tactical intention

• Make players think of different stroke options (and therefore technique required) according to tactical intentions

• Use realistic drills

• Avoid “paralysis by analysis”

• Repetitions are important

23

CONCLUSION:

GAMES BASED APPROACH• Helps players better understand the

tactical challenges of tennis

• Encourages them to develop techniques

within the tactical context of the game

• More research is needed to validate its

effectiveness in tennis instruction

• Premature to abandon traditional

teaching approaches, effective in

helping players learn the skills of the

game

24

CONCLUSION: BIOMECHANICS

IN THE GBA

• Crucial role

• All strokes have a fundamental mechanical structure

• Stroke proficiency is key to play tennis with maximum effectiveness

• Coaches and researchers need to work together to continue to improve the application of the GBA and biomechanics