Abstract
During tennis-specific movements, such as accelerating and side stepping, the dynamic traction provided by the shoe–surface combination plays an important role in the injury risk and performance of the player. Acrylic hard court tennis surfaces have been reported to have increased injury occurrence, partly caused by increased traction that developed at the shoe–surface interface. Often mechanical test methods used for the testing and categorisation of playing surfaces do not tend to simulate loads occurring during participation on the surface, and thus are unlikely to predict the human response to the surface. A traction testing device, discussed in this paper, has been used to mechanically measure the dynamic traction force between the shoe and the surface under a range of normal loading conditions that are relevant to real-life play. Acrylic hard court tennis surfaces generally have a rough surface topography, due to their sand and acrylic paint mixed top coating. Surface micro-roughness will influence the friction mechanisms present during viscoelastic contacts, as found in footwear–surface interactions. This paper aims to further understand the influence micro-roughness and normal force has on the dynamic traction that develops at the shoe–surface interface on acrylic hard court tennis surfaces. The micro-roughness and traction of a controlled set of acrylic hard court tennis surfaces have been measured. The relationships between micro-roughness, normal force, and traction force are discussed.
Highlights
During tennis-specific movements the traction provided by a shoe–surface combination will influence a player’s injury risk and performance [1, 2]
This paper aims to further understand the influence microroughness and normal force has on the dynamic traction that develops at the shoe–surface interface on acrylic hard court tennis surfaces
It was found that the relationship between average dynamic traction force and normal force could be described using a linear fit, linear regression analysis was used to analyse the relationships found for the different surfaces
Summary
During tennis-specific movements the traction provided by a shoe–surface combination will influence a player’s injury risk and performance [1, 2]. Insufficient static traction can lead to a slip (unwanted movement of the shoe relative to the surface), which will result in a loss of performance or, if the slip is severe, lead to a fall which may cause injury itself [4]. A player may choose to purposefully perform a controlled slide on a tennis surface; a type of movement that is common for clay surfaces, but is becoming increasingly common at elite level on hard courts as well. The success of this type of movement will depend on the dynamic traction developed at the shoe– surface interface (the force acting to slow down a shoe moving relative to the surface). The tractional properties of a shoe–surface combination must be within an optimal range [5]
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