Quantifying the technical-tactical diversity of elite tennis players during match-play.

Aims: The study aimed to model the diversity in technical-tactical performance among elite tennis players during matches in relation to match outcome and gender.

Methods: Match performance data of 236 singles matches from the 2023 Australian Open and US Open were collected. Standard entropies were calculated for five technical-tactical performance indicators (shot type, forehand/backhand groundstroke direction, first/second serve distribution) to reflect each player's technical-tactical diversity. The linear mixed model (LMM) was used to examine the effects of match outcome and gender on each performance category.

Results: The results showed that there was no statistically significant interaction effect between match outcome and gender on the diversity of five performance indicators (p > 0.05). However, both match outcome and gender independently had significant main effects on shot type, forehand/backhand groundstroke direction, and first-serve distribution (p < 0.05, conditional R-squared = 0.17-0.70). Losing players showed higher diversity in shot type [Effect Size (ES) = 0.33, small] compared to winning players. Male players generally showed greater diversity in shot type, and forehand groundstroke direction (ES = 0.63-0.97, moderate) than female players, but less diversity in backhand groundstroke direction and first-serve distribution (ES = 0.62-0.70, moderate).

Conclusions: These findings suggest that (i) the technical-tactical diversity may help describe match styles of tennis players, instead of serving as a reliable indicator for assessing match outcome; (ii) the stability of technique usage is more crucial than the diversity of techniques used for elite players; and (iii) male players should focus on improving the attacking ability of the backhand to achieve higher rankings, while female players with exceptional serving abilities should prioritize the stability of first serve.