A 10-week neuromuscular program improved specific skills in young competitive tennis players

Abstract

The aim of this study was to test the efficacy of neuromuscular training on the performance of young tennis players. Eleven young tennis players (4 girls, 7 boys; age: 13.36 ± .5; weight: 46.54 ± 7.97; height: 160.45 ± 8.38; APHV 12.90 ± .51) participated and were randomly assigned to an experimental group (EG), which underwent neuromuscular training twice a week for 10 weeks, or a control group (CG), which followed only their regular tennis training without physical preparation. Performance was measured by variables such as bilateral and unilateral countermovement jump (CMJ), 30cm drop jump (DJ) bilateral and unilateral, bilateral and unilateral horizontal jump (SH), modified 505 agility test (CD) performed with both right and left legs, 20-meter sprint (20m), 3kg medicine ball throw (BM) overhead, and the Course- Navette test (CN). The impact of the training was determined by effect size. The results showed that the EG significantly improved in all variables while the CG did not, indicating that implementing a neuromuscular training program may be an effective method for improving the performance of young competitive tennis players, enhancing their physical attributes in both lower and upper body.