Tennis Injuries

Tennis is a widely played sport in Québec, both at the amateur and professional levels. Many physiotherapy consultations are related to injuries that occur during play. Due to the repeated and large-range movements required in tennis, many injuries affect the shoulder and elbow.

In tennis, the serve requires an extreme range of motion to bring the racket as far back as possible before striking the ball. At the end of this movement, a condition called shoulder impingement syndrome can occur, potentially leading to tendinitis. In some cases, torsional stress on the biceps brachii tendon can cause a tear at its attachment to the shoulder. Additionally, the player must generate significant muscular force to bring the racket over the head and hit the ball with maximum impact. The shoulder velocity during this phase of the serve has been measured at over 2420°/sec in an Olympic-level athlete. Repeated movements force the body to adapt, causing some muscles to become much stronger than others, which creates a muscular imbalance between the external and internal rotators of the shoulder. This leads to overload in the shoulder’s stabilizing muscles, known as the rotator cuff. These negative effects can be mitigated: scientific studies show that a strengthening program focused on muscle balance improves the strength ratio of external to internal rotators by 14%. Furthermore, a well-designed stretching program reduces shoulder injuries in tennis players by 38%.

The other key movement, the backhand, can cause elbow pain due to tendinitis of the wrist extensor muscles (also called lateral epicondylitis or tennis elbow). This injury affects 40–50% of amateur players and is often linked to a technical change. Although commonly called Tennis Elbow, tennis players account for only 10% of cases in the general population.

Finally, here are a few tips to try if shoulder or elbow pain develops, or if a decrease in power, endurance, or control of the serve is noticed:

1. Apply ice to the painful area for 12–15 minutes
2. Take a rest period (7 days)
3. Review and adjust technical aspects of your stroke

If the pain persists for more than a week, a physiotherapy consultation is recommended to address the issue and help you return to your sport as quickly as possible!