Tennis wheelchairs

Wheelchair tennis has been played for 35 years and it has become one of the most popular and accessible wheelchair sports. It is played on regular tennis courts and the only significant difference in its playing rules is that the ball is allowed two bounces before the point is deemed lost.

Tennis wheelchairs need to be highly manoeuvrable and very fast. This means that they have a strong rear axle and often feature a single front wheel or two front wheels that are closer together than those of other sports wheelchairs. They will also have an extra single (or double) rear wheel that will usually project backwards somewhat beyond the main frame of the chair. This is to prevent the chair from tipping backwards during fast turning manoeuvres or sudden reversing. They are very lightweight and extremely sensitive to the player’s controlling wheel turns.

Wheelchair tennis requires that the momentum of the wheelchair is not lost during the playing of a shot as a new target position will quickly be required for the next stroke. This means that these chairs need to have a fluid "momentum driven" movement. They must also be able to make the tightest of turns as tennis ideally sees the ball alternating from the backhand side to the forehand side of the court with great regularity.

The other feature of wheelchair tennis is that the chair is used to replicate the leg action of moving into a shot. With a wheelchair this requires the player to turn the chair into the shot (e.g. a forehand) in order to generate extra pace and power of stroke.

One of the biggest challenges in using one of theses wheelchairs is being able to grip and push the racket-hand side wheel whilst holding a tennis racket. For this reason this kind of wheelchair does not have reduced diameter hand rims like, e.g. a racing wheelchair.

The seat of a tennis wheelchair will usually be adjustable and this is important because many shots are played at the top of the bounce which places the ball at or above head height. It is also important to be able to start the hitting motion of the racket low down in order to bring it upwards. This generates power and will additionally add topspin.

For more information about wheelchair tennis take a look at www.itftennis.com/wheelchair.

Ultimately, as with all sports and all sporting equipment, the type of wheelchair that you choose needs to be one that suits you, your requirements, your sporting ambitions and your budget.

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