Abstract
The reasons for the overrepresentation of left-handed players (LHps) in some sports are widely discussed in the literature. In light of this debate, this study aimed to assess the associations between players’ handedness and selected performance indicators in table tennis, where LHps represent 25% of top-level players. A notational analysis was conducted on 20 men’s matches including any combination of players’ handedness. Participants were in the first 150 positions of the ITTF world ranking at the moment the matches were played. The table area of ball bouncing after serving, and the shot type used by the receiving and subsequently the serving player, were recorded for 1515 rallies. Each half of the table was divided into six equal rectangular areas. There was a significant effect of players’ handedness on percentage of ball bouncing in different areas. Specifically, LHps showed a greater capacity (or choice) to adjust the serve (in terms of areas of ball bouncing) than right-handed players (RHps) according to the opponent’s handedness. Furthermore, LHps used offensive shots more frequently. In conclusion, both play strategy and characteristics such as higher offensiveness, together may contribute to the success of LHps in table tennis. These findings emphasise the need for a multifactorial approach in future research aiming to understand why LHps may be advantaged in different sports.
Highlights
International Journal of Racket Sports Science 1 (1). Especially in those disciplines where the actions of players may directly affect the actions of their opponents, left-handed players (LHps) are overrepresented by up to 30 % of competitors (Loffing, Hagemann, & Strauss, 2009), leading to the supposition that left-handedness may be beneficial for achieving high competitive performance (Llaurens, Raymond, & Faurie, 2009)
A significant effect for players’ handedness (PH) was observed for area 2 (F3,36=5.36, p
The post-hoc comparisons revealed a higher percentage in the condition of both right-handed players than in the condition of both left-handed players
Summary
Especially in those disciplines where the actions of players may directly affect the actions of their opponents (i.e., interactive sports), left-handed players (LHps) are overrepresented by up to 30 % of competitors (Loffing, Hagemann, & Strauss, 2009), leading to the supposition that left-handedness may be beneficial for achieving high competitive performance (Llaurens, Raymond, & Faurie, 2009). An innate superiority linked to better neuropsychological predispositions (Bisiacchi, Ripoll, Stein, Simonet, & Azemar, 1985; Dane & Erzurumluoglu, 2003; Judge & Stirling, 2003), and a negative frequency-dependent strategic advantage (Brooks, Bussiére, Jennions, & Hunt, 2003; Raymond, Pontier, Dufour, & Moller, 1996; Schorer, Loffing, Hagemann, & Baker, 2012) are two well-known explanations of how LHps may be advantaged over right-handed (RH) players. At the highest competitive levels, lefthandedness would seem to represent no more of an advantage for competitive performance
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