Tennis is intermittent high-intensity on an aerobic base
Points average under 10 s at work:rest 1:3–1:5; condition speed/power/agility AND aerobic recovery capacity, not steady-state endurance
Key Findings
Tennis has evolved over 20 years from long, crafty points to a fast, explosive power-strength-speed game where 210 km/h serves are common.
Competitive players need a mixture of anaerobic skills (speed, agility, power) combined with high aerobic capabilities.
Work-to-rest ratios range between 1:3 and 1:5; the average point lasts <10 s and has declined substantially over 20 years; fatigue greatly reduces hitting accuracy.
Competitive male players keep body fat <12% and have VO₂max >50 ml/kg/min, as high as 70.
Lactate findings are inconclusive — some studies show increases, others little or no change.
The review calls for research on tournament play and its effects on fatigue, recovery, hormones and injury.
Practical Application
Points average under 10 s at work:rest of 1:3–1:5, fatigue degrades hitting accuracy, and competitive players carry VO₂max above 50 ml/kg/min — so train repeated short anaerobic efforts (speed, agility, power) and the aerobic capacity that lets accuracy survive a long match; steady-state endurance alone is the wrong stimulus (RSA logic, REF-551).
Intervals mimicking play: short maximal efforts with rests three to five times as long, then progress density (Not from this paper; the base's own practice for the format — the ratio is the review's).
Limitations
Narrative; figures vary by surface/level/sex/format; pre-2007 base (the power game has shifted rallies further); the abstract gives male-player values only.
How this entry was checked and changed
Why this level
regraded 2026-09-27 from C: narrative review without systematic method (rubric C+)
Content correction 2026-09-27
Work:rest "≈ 1:2–1:3" -> the abstract says 1:3 to 1:5; rally "~5–10 s" -> average point <10 s.
Removed numbers not in the abstract: 10–20 s between points, 90 s changeovers, 20–30% effective play, HR 60–80% HRmax, VO₂ 50–60% VO₂max, "1–4+ h", VO₂max "~50–60" (abstract: >50, up to 70), the 5–10 s / 10–25 s interval prescription.
Added the abstract's body fat <12%, 210 km/h serves, fatigue-accuracy and inconclusive-lactate findings. Level C -> C+; Tier "mixed" -> Tier 2-5.