The effect of constraints on the elite female tennis serve: a developmental perspective

[Truncated abstract] The serve has been described as the most important stroke in tennis, as it provides a player with an opportunity to gain the ascendency in a point, or even win it outright. It is used to start each point and, as a closed motor skill, is the only stroke that affords the player complete control over its execution. The importance of the stroke is apparent given the amount of research attention it has generated. Contemporary practical instruction has been developed from this research base, however the disproportionate research focus on adult males limits the applicability of empirical findings to other playing populations. Consequently, the evolution of service kinematics along the development pathway (i.e. from junior through to professional levels) is poorly understood. With considerable monetary investments afforded to the pathway, exploring serve development appears relevant to high performance coaches and administrators. At present, the available literature has described the discrete kinematics crucial to the generation of velocity in the tennis serve. These data provide reference points for coaches, who attend to these mechanics in their evaluation of serve performance. However, with these data largely borne out of research attending to adult males, coaches of female and junior players must effectively rely on extraneous evidence, or extrapolate information, as they develop their instructional techniques. The motor literature challenges this approach and advocates an appreciation for gender and age related differences in service kinematics. Specifically, Newell's constraints model (1986) proposes that, within the dynamic movement system, emergent movement patterns are a product of the interactive elements within the organism, task and environment. Within this constraints framework, there appears sufficient scope to extend the current understanding of serve mechanics.