QSU6054

QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF HUMAN

MOVEMENT
TENNIS OVERHEAD TOPSPIN SERVES

ALIFF BIN ABU BAKAR

(M20122001748)

MUHAMMAD NUR FIKRI BIN MOHAMMAD ZAINURI

(M20122001746)

LECTURER :
DR. ONG KUAN BOON

1.0

INTRODUCTION
The serve is one of the most important skills a tennis player must acquire in

order to have an effective attack. The primary objective of the serve is to direct the
ball into the service area on the opponents side of the court. The serve is an
effective offensive weapon because the ball can be hit with a tremendous amount of
velocity, thus reducing the opposition reaction time and consequently their ability to
return the ball. Variations of the service action can also cause the ball to spin. A slice
serve is used in order to gain an advantage via the unpredictability of a spinning
balls bounce. The serve can be broken down into the following four phases:
preparation,

wind-up,

force-generation

and

the

follow

through/recovery.

Biomechanical analysis of the skills involved in each phase, enables us to give

effective instruction and appropriate technical cues to improve the performance of
students and athletes.
Preparation
The preparation phase primarily consists of the mental set in which the athlete
prepares mentally for the skill he/she is about to perform. During this phase the
athlete determines the location and type of serve they are going to hit based on the
positioning of the opponent and their knowledge of the opponents limitations. In
addition the athlete conducts preliminary movements in order to prepare the body for
the motion required of the skill.
Wind-up
The purpose of the wind-up is to store elastic potential energy or strain
energy. Strain energy occurs because the athletes muscles are stretched, the elastic
recoil of the athlete muscles convert the strain energy into kinetic energy, thus
generating a tremendous amount of force and momentum. During the course of the
windup the athlete weight is initially shifted from the front foot to the rear foot.
Concurrently the left arm tosses the ball; consistency is imperative to the
performance of the serve. It is important for a consistent toss, to have the left arm
extended throughout the toss. The action of the non-racquet and racquet arm is an
example of Newtons third law, which states that every action has an equal and
opposite reaction. The action of the left arm balances that of the right arm so that the
racquet arm does not initiate unwanted angular momentum. As the action of the

arms and torso occur the weight is shifted from the rear leg back to the front leg and
the knees are bent in order to store potential energy. This concept is known as
ground reaction force and will be discussed in greater detail in the force generation
phase. The action of the arms and torso to the rear is equal and opposite to the hips
shifting forward. The body therefore maintains balance and allows the body to flex
further backward, storing more strain energy and increasing impulse. The motion of
the racquet head is crucial in the development of power, consistency, and spin.
Force-generation
The striking action of the force generation phase is initiated via the extension
of the legs and the downward acceleration of the tossing arm. According to Newtons
third law, as the athlete pushes against the ground, the earth pushes back up
against the athlete with the same force, this is also known as a ground reaction
force. The upward motion of both the racquet and non-racquet arms are a form of
momentum transfer that helps to propel the athlete into the air by increasing the
amount of downward thrust exerted upon the ground. The ground pushes back up
against the athlete and the athlete becomes airborne. Dropping the tossing arm
serves a duel function, it initiates force generation along with hip rotation, and
increases the angular momentum of the racquet arm. The next key element of the
service action is the hyperextension of the spine and torso. Again due to Newtons
third law, the athlete legs counteract the angular momentum induced by the
backwards flexion of the spine and striking arm action by moving to the rear of the
player. The hips move forwards also as a result of Newtons third law because the
upper and lower body move backwards, thus balancing the action. The rotation of
the trunk and arm shifts the angular momentum of the body forwards and the legs
are forced to compensate by also rotating forward. The abdomen is flexed and the
rear end and hips move backwards as a result of Newtons third law. The sequential
body movements of the hips, torso, shoulder, arm, elbow, forearm, wrist and racquet
simulate the action of a whip. The body is comprised of a series of segments, which
form third class lever systems. A third class lever is when the pivot point is at the end
of the lever and the force is generated along the lever arm between the fulcrum and
the resistance. For example, the elbow is a pivot point, the bicep attaches to the
forearm in front of the pivot and the resistance is the tennis racquet. Each of the
bodys segments progressively become less massive and thus while the slower

moving, more massive segments (hip and trunk) rotate forward to initiate the force
generation the lighter body segments (arm, forearm, wrist and racquet) complete
their backward extension. Furthermore each of these body segments are third class
levers that become shorter in length. The combination of these two factors result in a
whip like action in which each of these segments sequentially accelerate, thus
producing tremendous racquet head velocity. This concept demonstrates the
importance of the wrist rotation as it forms the final accelerating segment that
produces racquet head velocity, hence service power.
The ball is contacted though the centre of the racquet and the athlete can do one of
the following:
1) Apply top spin by flexing the wrist over the ball
2) Cut the ball to the side by contacting the ball through the centre of gravity and
then flexing and rotating the wrist to the side of the ball inducing sideways rotation on
the ball. To help students visualize this action instruct the student to wrap the
racquet around the pole. This action induces spin on the ball creating the Magnus
effect, which causes the ball to follow a curved flight path. The Magnus effect
essentially describes the action of a spinning ball through the air. As a ball spins, it
creates a boundary layer of air that adheres to the ball and rotates with it. As a
result, on the side of the ball that this boundary air collides with the air flowing past
the ball, it decelerates the ball producing a high pressure zone. While on the
opposite side, the spinning ball moves in the same direction as the air flowing past it,
which accelerates the ball and creates a low pressure area. As a result, the ball
curves in the direction of the low pressure. Applying the Magnus effect to the serve,
flexing the wrist over top of the ball produces a low pressure gradient below the ball
and therefore a ball hit at a tremendous velocity will still drop down and into the
service box. While the side spin will cause the ball to violently curve to the outside of
the service box, thus after it bounces it shoots outside of the court. Once the ball
leaves the racquet the force generation phase is complete.
Follow-through / recovery
This phase of the skill commences following contact with the ball. In order to
reduce the stress placed upon the muscles, joints and bones the server must
increase the amount of time that the force of body contacts the ground. Accomplish

this by landing first on the ball of the left foot, flexing at the ankle, lowering the heel
to the ground and flexing at the knees and hips. Converts the angular momentum
produced via the body and arm rotation into forward linear momentum. This is
accomplished by arresting the rotation of the hips and shoulders once they become
perpendicular to the court, forcefully pushing off the left leg and driving the right leg
into the court. Generate much more power via the hip and trunk rotation because his
right leg is forcefully whipped around and through. The motion depicted in pictures
indicate that hips do not rotate as forcefully and follow a much narrower pathway.
Finally, immediately crouched in a low and prepared stance upon the conclusion of
the follow through, while appear to stand up. In preparation for the opponents return,
need to immediately conduct the split step, in order to get into a proper ready
position. The knees should be bent, should be on the balls of the feet and the
racquet should be up and in front of the body so that can react quickly and anticipate
the oppositions attack.

2.0

CASE STUDY

SUBJECT

IMRAN DANIEL B. MOHD HAZLI

Nationality - Malaysia

10 Jun 2005

9 years old

Left handed

Height 1.28 cm

Weight 30 kg

Sekolah Kebangsaan Seri Hartamas , Kuala Lumpur

Club Duta Academy

State Team Kuala Lumpur (2012-2014)

Played since four year

Sponsor : Dunlop

3rd place State MSSWPKL U12

1st place MSSM 2012 u12-groups event

OUR GOAL

RAFAEL NADAL PARERA

Born in Spain on June 3, 1986, Rafael Nadal is a Spanish professional tennis

player who has been ranked among the world's Top 5 since 2003. Nadal is only the
second male player to achieve the Career Golden Slam and the first to win seven
French Open titles. He won the Roland Garros for four consecutive years, from 2005
to 2008, and went on to win Wimbledon 2008 against tennis star Roger Federer. In
2009, Nadal won the Australian Open, and came back to win his second Wimbledon
in 2010, as well as his first U.S. Open and fifth French Open title. The following year,
a No. 1-ranked Nadal lost his top ranking as well as Wimbledon 2011 to Serbian
tennis star Novak Djokovic. Also in 2011, he won his sixth French Open, followed by
a seventh French Open victory in 2012. In the 2012 Wimbledon semifinals, a No. 3ranked Nadal lost to Czech player Lukas Rosola match that some commentators
labelled one the biggest upsets in tennis history. In June 2013, Nadal won his eighth
French Open title against David Ferrer.

At the age of 8, Nadal won an under-12 regional tennis championship, giving Toni
Nadal the incentive to step up his training. Toni noticed at the time that Rafael played
his forehand shots with two hands, so he encouraged him to play left-handed,
thinking it could give Rafael an edge on the court. When Nadal was just 12 years old,
he won the Spanish and European tennis titles in his age group, and at age 15, he
turned pro and started playing on the junior circuit. At the age of 16, in his first ITF

junior event, Nadal made it to the semi-finals of the Boys' Singles tournament at
Wimbledon. By age 17, he became the youngest man to reach the third round at
Wimbledon since Boris Becker. At the age of 19, in 2005, Nadal won the French
Open the first time he played it, and his world ranking went to No. 3. Nadal won 11
singles titles that year, eight of which were on clay, and he was soon dubbed the
"King of Clay."

Nadal went on to win the next three French Opens. In 2006, after winning the
French Open despite both shoulder and foot injurieshe won four other titles. The
following year, he won again at Roland Garros and took home five other titles. Nadal
poured it on in 2008, winning the French Open again, in addition to winning
Wimbledonwhere he beat long-time rival Roger Federer in the longest final in
Wimbledon historygold at the Beijing Olympics, and five other titles. After
Wimbledon, Nadal's winning streak stood at a career-best 32 matches. Since 2008,
despite being occasionally hampered by injuries, Nadal has been one of the
superstars of the tennis world, winning 15 titles and hitting No. 1 in the world-ranking
twice (in August 2008 and again in June 2010). He won the Australian Open in 2009
and came back to win his second Wimbledon in 2010, as well as his first U.S. Open
and fifth French Open title. The following year, a No. 1-ranked Nadal lost his top
ranking as well as Wimbledon 2011 to Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic. In June
2012, however, Nadal defeated top-ranked Novak Djokovic to win his record seventh
French Open titlea feat never accomplished before in men's tennis. That same
month, a No. 3-ranked Nadal lost to Czech player Lukas Rosol in the Wimbledon
semi-finalsRosol's fifth Grand Slam win, and a match that some commentators
labelled one the biggest upsets in tennis history.

In June 2013, Nadal won his eighth French Open title against fellow Spaniard
David Ferrer, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 marking his eight French Open victory in nine attempts. "I
never like to compare years, but it's true that this year means something very special
for me," Nadal said after the match, in an interview with ESPN. "Five months ago
nobody of my team dreamed about one comeback like this because we thought that
[was] going to be impossible. But here we are today, and that's really fantastic and
incredible." Later that same month, Nadal lost in the first round at Wimbledon to

Belgian player Steve Darcis. A shock to tennis fans who expected a strong
performance from the Spanish player, Nadal lost the match in three sets, by 7-6(4),
7-6(8), 6-4.

Nadal is only the second male player in tennis history to complete the Career
Golden Slamwinning the French, Australian and U.S. Opens; Wimbledon; and the
Olympic Gold medal. Additionally, by 2011, he had taken the Spanish Davis Cup
team to victory four times (2004, 2008, 2009 and 2011).

In 2013, the future of Nadal's career became the subject of much speculation. He
won the French Open that year, but he made a poor showing at Wimbledon. At
Wimbledon, Nadal was eliminated in the first round of competition. He seemed to be
back on the upswing, however, at the U.S. Open. He defeated Novak Djokovic to win
the men's singles title.

3.0

ANALYSIS FRAMEWORK

There are several models of qualitative analysis of human movement.

Traditionally, kinesiology professionals have used a simple error detection and
correction approach to qualitative analysis. Here the analyst relies on a mental
image of the correct technique to identify errors in the performance and provide a
correction. This approach has several negative consequences and is too simplistic a
model for professional judgements (Knudson & Morrison, 2002). The application of
the principles of biomechanics is illustrated in the present book using a more
comprehensive vision of qualitative analysis than the simple error detection /
correction of the past. This text uses the Knudson & Morrison (2002) model of
qualitative analysis. This model provides a simple four task structure: preparation,
observation, evaluation / diagnosis and intervention. This model of qualitative
analysis is equally relevant to athletic or clinical application of biomechanics to
improving human movement.

In the preparation task of qualitative analysis the professional gathers relevant

kinesiology knowledge about the activity, the performer, and then selects an
observational strategy.
In the observation task the analyst executes the observational strategy to
gather all relevant sensory information about the performance of the movement.
The third task of qualitative analysis has two difficult components: evaluation
and then diagnosis of performance. In evaluation the analyst identifies strengths and
weakness of performance. Diagnosis involves the prioritizing of the potential
interventions to separate causes of poor performance from minor or symptomatic
weakness.
Intervention is the last task of qualitative analysis. In this task the professional
executes some action on behalf of the performer. Often in live qualitative analysis,
the analyst will return immediately to the observation task to monitor the intervention
and the movers progress.

TOP SPIN SERVE

In tennis because of a net being in the middle of the court, using topspin will
increase the player's consistency. Topspin also allows a player a greater margin of
error. Because topspin brings the ball down toward the ground quicker, a player can
hit the ball higher over the net, thus increasing the margin of error. This may help in
lobbing an opponent who is waiting at the net, or playing directly to a player's feet.
Hitting low to high as the player approaches the contact point will impart lift. Keeping
the racquet face (the strings) slightly closed from perpendicular will impart the
topspin to the ball that the player wants. However, balls that bounce lower due to
greater force or backspin are much more difficult to return using a grip that confers
topspin such as the semi-western and western grips, as the racket is angled too far
downwards to 'lift' the ball back over the net. As such, topspin is more effectively
used on slower, higher bouncing surfaces such as clay. Topspin is also far more
difficult to impart on backhand strokes due to the physical limitations of an arm
stretched across the body.
Developing a consistent topspin serve is the key to becoming a competitive
tennis player. Unless youre comfortable with your second serve and believe that
your opponents wont ever be able to consistently attack with an aggressive return,
you need to learn how to serve with topspin.
Most professional players use topspin on their second serve, but topspin can
also be effective for first serves at the recreational level. With topspin, you can serve
over 100 miles per hour (161 km/hour), while clearing the net at a safe height and
consistently keeping the ball in play. Without topspin, however, the server has to
come dangerously close to the net in order to ensure that the ball stays in the service
box.
The topspin serve is difficult to learn. Compared to other basic tennis serves,
you toss the ball in a different location, strike the ball at an unusual angle, and use a
different grip. If you are new to the game, it might be beneficial to work on fine-tuning
your slice and flat serves before tackling topspin serves. However, your game will
have a major hole and your second serve will never be fully effective if you plan on
overlooking topspin serves altogether.

The Grip
The grip is extremely important when trying to execute a topspin serve as it
helps generate the needed spin for a successful serve. The Continental grip
maximizes the brushing effect that you put on the ball when you strike the back of
it, which produces topspin.
The Ball Toss
The ball toss is perhaps the most important step for hitting a topspin serve,
and it will always be thrown with your non-dominant hand. An inaccurate toss
sacrifices both the control of your serve and the amount of topspin you generate. For
a flat serve, you generally try aiming your toss so the ball would land on the shoulder
of your dominant hand. On a topspin serve, however, you position the ball farther
back and slightly to the left (for righties) in a location directly above or slightly behind
your head. You dont want to toss the ball so high that it disrupts your rhythm, but
you need to toss the ball high enough that your arm is fully extended when you make
contact with the ball.
The Swing
Begin your swing at the same time as your toss. You should bring your
racquet back in unison with your non-dominant hand as it throws the ball in the air.
Your body should be turned sideways to the court, but not so extreme that your feet
are parallel to the baseline. As you toss the ball, transfer your weight from your front
foot to the back foot and arch your back.
Your swing should flow in a sideways direction, almost parallel to the
baseline, rather than forward towards the net. This step cannot be stressed enough:
Topspin serves veer away from the traditional serve where you swing in a straight
ahead, towards-the-net motion. Imagine that you are hammering a nail into the
ceiling, and your tennis racquet is the hammer. This exercise emphasizes the
upwards motion that your dominant hand and racquet need to be making you
arent swinging down on the ball, youre swinging up. You want to brush the back of
the ball while striking it in an upwards motion.

As you bring your racquet up to meet the ball, accelerate your racquet head up and
over the ball to generate the desired topspin. The motion should be fluid, so dont
tense up or shorten your stroke.
Hot Tip: Crank Up the Speed
Your racquet head needs to be moving faster for topspin serves as compared
to other serves because of the upward motion you take when you brush up on the
ball. The faster you swing, the more topspin you can generate, but this swing takes a
lot of practice to master. Start off slow, and gradually build up your racquet speed as
you grow more comfortable.
Tips
Before you start working on your swing technique, keep in mind the following
suggestions:
Line up at the baseline with your non-dominant shoulder pointing towards the
target. Turn your head sideways to face the net, and have your feet parallel to
your shoulders.
Dont drop your non-dominant arm. Many players drop their arm after they
toss the ball, but this is a critical mistake. Your shoulder and head will follow in
the direction of your arm, so keep that arm pointed up and your chest square
to the ball as you swing.
Bend your knees and load up on your back foot as you toss the ball. You
generate power from your legs, so bend your knees and explode up and at
the ball as you swing.
Dont worry about spraying balls all over the court. Most players really
struggle while learning topspin serves, and its not uncommon for balls to soar
onto adjacent courts. You will become more comfortable with the stroke over
time, so keep practicing.
Its a good sign if youre consistently hitting the ball long. Serving the ball long
is an indication that you are learning how to control the ball, but you might
need to use more spin in order to make the ball dive downward and into the
service box.
Practice with Persistence

 There is nothing more frustrating than missing serve after serve, especially
when the balls are landing in the service box on the court next to you. Try not
to worry yourself with where the ball initially ends up. Its more important that
you focus on proper mechanics and to familiarize yourself with the stroke.
Over time, you will see the benefits of your hard work just know that youll
have to go through hundreds, possibly thousands, of balls before you can
consistently keep your serve in play.

4.0

FACTOR ANALYSIS

CRITICAL VARIABLES

5.0

INTERVENTION

PREPARATION PHASE

Stand with the appropriate distance behind the baseline.

Holds the ball and racquet out in front of his body, and his weight resting
primarily on his right leg.

Toss the ball curve and high to the back body. Bent knee 45 and swing
racquet handed from the back.

Contact the ball at your highest point. Make follow through with front leg.

OBSERVATION PHASE

In games

EVALUATION PHASE

Prioritize weaknesses:
1. Height of the ball when toss curve to back body
2. Knee flexion over 45
3. Body angle not straight
4. Contact end point before the ball goes down

INTERVENTION PHASE

Priorities turned into verbal cues

Visual feedback to explain the verbal cues

Toss(ball toss curve high to the back body)

Bent (knee flexion 45)

Hit (before ball going down)

Live video streaming using Kinovea software to provide visual feedback

2 WEEKS TRAINING PROGRAM

TRAINING 1 - CUE

Curve to back body

High-higher more better.

Knee bent 45

Swing racquet at back

maximizing the swing racquet for more power

Racquet at highest point

Hit ball point of contact before ball going down

Follow through

The windup phase also incorporates Newtons third law every action has and
equal and opposite reaction.

Once the player tosses the ball into the air, the arm is left in the air to create
an equal and opposite force with both the arms.

The action of the ball toss arm balances out the action of the racket arm,
which means the faster the toss arm and torso are rotated the more force can
be generated through the ball (Hass, R. 2011).

Subject take training by toss and catch the ball 30 times per set. 6 set toss
training to provide the ball goes curves at the back and high.

TRAINING 2 VIDEO ANALYSIS (FEEDBACK)

Based on slow motion video from Rafael Nadal topspin serve found that he
created a body gesture while toss the ball curve at the back highest point
direct to right hand.

After toss it, Nadal bent his knee at 45 to give more power of speed and the
racquet reach at the highest point to make more impact of acceleration.

Meanwhile the subject didnt take serious of body gesture before proceed with
topspin serve. After instruction and guidance provided to subject, he still not
apply the body gesture at the earliest stage of serve.

His body also not straight enough when hit ball and this may cause him not to
achieve the maximum performance of serve.

Subject toss and knee bent training with and without ball. 10 repetition per
set without ball and 10 with ball. After toss the knee must bent at 45 to make
power of serving.

Instruct student to do serve training for 2 weeks to improve his serve level.

After instruction and training for 2 weeks subject achieve the main target.
Student toss the ball curve high to back body and bent his knee at 45 which
same with his model, Rafael Nadal.

6.0

RESULT

BEFORE

AFTER

After toss it, he did follow the contact end point before the ball goes down to
serve the ball with speed and inside the serving box with follow through.

The higher the contact point can make the ball to be hit with more power and
speed.

Top spin is produced by brushing the racket up the back and over the top of
the ball as it is leaving the racket. "This leads to a negative lift force (or larger
pull downwards) which makes the ball loop down towards the ground at a
steeper angle. The steeper angle makes the bounce higher and wilder (kick)
making it difficult to return"(Thomas, 2012).

7.0

CONCLUSION

We can see improvement of overhead topspin serve steps for subject after
training and instruction given.

In training, subject more focus on instruction cues given by coach that make
increase his performance.

Subject easy to adapt the topspin serve steps due to have tennis experience
since four year.

He also able to hit the ball accurately and most of the serve attempts went in
easily.

The power and speed of topspin serve improve after training and instruction
cues provided.

Trajectory is influenced by the projection speed, the projection angle and the
relative height of projection (Blazevich, A, 2012, Pg 25). When serving the
ball at a reasonable high speed there is minimal room for error.

The ball needs to be hit a couple of degrees below horizontal otherwise the
ball will be served into the net or go to long.

8.0

SUGGESTION

For further research need to allocated more timeframe to monitor student

improvement. Such as 4 to 8 weeks to get better result and progress.

Next researchers also can focus on other factor such as preparation, wind-up
or follow through.

This studies also can use for secondary school athletes for better
performance in overhead topspin serves.

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