A Level Physical Education Analysis & Evaluation
Eva Lancaster - Tennis
Summer 2023
Candidate number: 6136
Centre Number: 52439
,AA2 Analysis
normal text - description of my weakness within a competitive setting / explanation of my weakness
italics - how an elite model performs my weakness / analysis of my weakness - the differences in the
performance of my technique and the perfect model and the consequences this difference has
My weakness is:
Return of serve
Identification of my weakness
During my match on the 9th of June 2022 against Amber Knight in the Winchester Open, I
noticed my weakness was my return of serve. My opponent served with a lot of power, but this was
also combined with good placement. Due to the fast nature of her serve, I had very little time to
prepare for my return. Because of this, my movement to the serve wasn’t quick enough, meaning I
was aced on a few occasions. However, when I moved correctly (allowing me to be in a better
position to strike the ball) I was left with very little time. Therefore on many occasions, I had to block
my return. While my block was consistent, it did not cause any problems for my opponent. The block
returns travelled very slowly and landed short, giving my opponent a chance to attack and apply
pressure. This put me in a disadvantaged position as I was yet again in a defending position.
A return of serve is defined as ‘the moment right after a serve has been made.’ The receiving
player has just a split second to respond and send back the ball towards the server's court and
continue play. It’s a crucial part of every point as it’s the second shot of every rally. It determines
whether the returner, who is already on the back foot, will stay down, level or even up in the point.
An effective return should land deep in the court to keep the opponent back. This stops the server
from hitting an attacking shot on the third ball (this is one of the most common patterns of play in
tennis). Moving effectively to meet the ball in front and absorbing the pace from the incoming ball
produces successful returns that take time away from your opponent. This is a great advantage to
the returner, as it may stop the server from hitting such an aggressive third ball.
In addition, in the ATP tour, professionals are likely to win their service game 80% of the time.
A serve tends to be most players' strengths and therefore use it as a weapon. This is why returning
serve is so difficult. Yet the only way to win a match is to break your opponent's serve, therefore
having a return that is reliable and pressurising is crucial to winning a single match. Applying
pressure with your return places higher demands on the server to vary their tactics. They may
question their original plan and doubt their play. It forces them to try different things, which could
ultimately lead them to make a mistake.
A return of serve in tennis is an open skill as it is completely determined by the serve you
receive. There is no way of being certain where the serve is going to go and therefore there is no
way of being certain about the type of return you will hit. This makes it difficult for returners to hit
effective returns, as they have a split second to determine the most effective response. In addition,
the return is a gross skill as it is a whole-body movement where large muscle groups are recruited.
,For example, the quadriceps and the hamstrings in the leg allow the player to stay low and athletic.
Furthermore, a return is an externally paced skill, as the start of the movement is based entirely on
when the opponent starts their service action. This makes the return of serve a complex skill, as it
requires many decisions and adaptations. As each serve is different and unknown to the returner, it
demands returners to adapt each point and decide on the most appropriate and effective return.
If you do not move effectively it allows your opponent to hit ace after ace. However, even if
you move more efficiently it does not necessarily mean you will hit an effective return. If your return
is not pressurising enough and lands very short and central you may be at the receiving end of a
winner which costs you the point. Simply blocking the return after every serve is not enough to win
you the point. An effective return lands deep with good tempo to move your opponent. If this does
not occur your opponent will be able to use their preferred pattern of play and it allows them to
stick to their original game plan. It may also increase their confidence helping them hit stronger
serves, which in turn, reduces the quality of your return as well as your confidence.
Explanation and analysis of my weakness
At the start of the match, I stood on the baseline, however, this was very ineffective as I kept
hitting my return late as I couldn’t complete my swing in time for the strike. This led to my decision
to stand around a metre behind the baseline for the rest of the match. Amber was serving with a lot
of power, so standing a bit further back gave me more time to give myself the best chance of
completing my swing in time.
When preparing for the return, every time I made sure I was in my ready position. This is a low
position with a wide stance. It is an example of an isometric contraction as it is a static contraction
without any visible movement in the angle of the joint. To achieve this there is flexion at the knee
joint. This position can occur as the joint at the knee is a hinge joint. The articulating bones at the
knee are the patella, femur and tibia. To create the ready position the quadriceps and the
hamstrings act as antagonistic pairs. The hamstrings act as the agonist as they shorten and contract
under tension. Whereas the quadriceps act as the antagonist as they lengthen and relax. In addition,
flexion at the knee during the ready position is an example of a third-class lever. This is because the
effort (the hamstrings) is in the middle of the load (body weight) and the fulcrum (the knee joint).
Moreover, there is also flexion at the hip during a ready position. The angle between the
femur and pelvis is decreased. This movement occurs at the hip joint which is a ball and socket joint.
The articulating bones during flexion of the hip are the femur and the pelvis. Similarly to the knee,
there is an antagonistic pair where the muscles work together to help achieve a good athletic, ready
position. The iliopsoas and the hip flexors act as agonists as they shorten and contract under
tension. Whereas the gluteals act as the antagonist as they lengthen and relax. Flexion at the hip is
also an example of a third-class lever. This is because the effort (the iliopsoas and the hip flexors) is
in the middle of the load (body weight) and the fulcrum (the hip joint). Flexion at the hip and knee is
an example of a third-class lever. This lever is an example of a mechanical disadvantage as the
resistance arm is longer than the effort arm. As there is a mechanical disadvantage on the third class
lever, when I began my movement the force I produced was lower. However, it also meant that the
, lever system could move quicker with a greater range of movement. This allowed me to be more
explosive in my movement to create a powerful return.
In the ready position, I made sure my arms were held out with my racket in front and my
elbows slightly bent. Having my elbows bent is an example of flexion at the elbow. This is also an
isometric contraction. Flexion at the elbow occurs as the joint at the elbow is a hinge joint. The
articulating bones at the elbow are the humerus, radius and ulna. During this position, the triceps
brachii and the biceps brachii act as antagonistic pairs. The biceps act as the agonist as they shorten
and contract under tension. Whereas the triceps act as the antagonist as they lengthen and relax. In
addition, flexion at the elbow example of a third-class lever. This is because the effort (the biceps) is
in the middle of the load (body weight) and the fulcrum (the elbow joint). To allow my arms to be
held out in front of me, flexion (decreasing the angle available at a joint) at the shoulder joint
occurred. The shoulder joint is a ball and socket joint and the articulating bones are the humerus
and the scapula. There is an antagonist pair during flexion of the shoulder. The anterior deltoid acts
as the agonist and the latissimus dorsi acts as the antagonist.
Novak Djokovic is considered the best returner of all time as he can consistently return big
powerful serves point after point. When I watched his match in the third round of Wimbledon 2022
against Kecmanović, I particularly noticed how effective Djokovic's return was. His return was so
effective that it enabled him to break his opponent's serve six times which helped him beat
Kecmanović in straight sets. His return was considerably better than his opponent as Kecmanović
only broke Djokovic’s serve once. To be so successful Djokovic has a great technique as well as
efficient movement patterns to ensure great success. When waiting to return, Djokovic stayed in a
very low-ready position. He kept his knees flexed at an almost 90° angle to help keep a very low and
athletic stance. In addition, he stood with his legs just wider than shoulder-width apart to maintain
balance and help have a sturdier base ready for the following movement. He also stood with his hips
flexed to further help him achieve a low and athletic position. Djokovic held his racket out in front of
him with his shoulders flexed and his elbows partially extended. This made sure he had had enough
space between his body and his racket so that when he prepared for either a forehand or backhand
he would not be too close to the ball.
In the ready position, most players can achieve a low and sturdy base, this is why my ready
position is quite similar to that of Djokovic's. In both mine and Djokovic's return, we both maintain a
low and athletic position due to flexion at the knee and hip. Similarly, we both keep our rackets
extended in front of our bodies to prepare for the incoming ball. However, Djokovic prepared in a
slightly lower base than I do and he stood with his feet a little wider than mine. This meant that he
had a sturdier base than I normally do, helping him to be more balanced for the return. In addition,
when returning, even though my elbows were slightly extended they were still quite close to my
body. In contrast, when I watched Djokovic play I noticed he held his racket further in front of his
body due to greater flexion at the shoulder. This slight difference meant he had more space
between his body and the racket. This did not affect the ready position, however, when taking the
racket back for the return, Djokovic had much more space to swing on his return. He performed the
return much more freely and with more control, allowing him to hit a very effective return where he
planned to hit it. Whereas on many occasions I ended up being ‘jammed’ as my arms were too close
to my body. This meant I either hit a very weak return landing very central and short or I missed the
return altogether.
