The effect of temperature

[kickingbird]

Hi I need your opinion on this!

I had this really really disappointing session of tennis the other night. The most notable thing was that it felt like I was hitting the ball with a wooden board- it felt like the strings of my racquet had no elasticity at all!!! It never felt like I was hitting the sweetspot (maybe I was, but it didn't feel like the ball was being launched off the strings) and my shots lacked power. It was a very cold night.

Then this morning I played with the same racquet, but different conditions. It was sunny and my body was nice and warm. And wow, what a difference it makes. The strings felt alive again and making explosive noises. It was pocketing the ball rather than just deflecting it.

ANyone else have similar experiences??? If so, I have solved the mystery as to why I sometimes play absolutely terribly at night.

I use synthetic gut if that helps.

Hope to hear some replies!!!

 

[peter]

That's pretty normal I'd say.

Colder -> Balls bounce less, strings get harder -> less feel.
The worst conditions I've actually played in was last spring when we had a series match on a Sunday morning (on clay). That morning it was raining (very) lightly and the temperature was just above freezing point (5-10C). I had three layers of clothes

I actually had the opposite problem this summer during a week when the temperature was really high - I had hell of a problem getting the ball to "stay" on the strings on my racket - it would bounce like crazy and I'd spread my shots all over the place. I just _couldn't_ control the ball. Horrible...

 

[SageOfDeath]

Does this also happen to synthetic? Hotter days the strings are more responsive?

 

[All Court]

I believe so. Cold temperatures, like peter said, make the strings more stiff. Hot temperatures do the opposite.

The heat (or lack of it) also has an effect on the ball's bounce. When it's cold the ball will bounce lower. When it's hot it'll bounce a little higher.

 

[Owfred]

Based on the chemistry I know, I believe you are right.
When it is colder, the molecules in the string are closer together, which means there is less elasticity resulting in a stiffer feel. When its hotter, the molecules tend to seperate more, resulting in more elasticity. Its probably the same with altitudes too, but im not sure how big of a difference that would be.

 

[kickingbird]

Thanks for the responses!!! I am now convinced and am satisfied that I finally have an excuse when I play poorly at night!

 

[shindemac]

I noticed that on a cool day. I was like woah! My shots aren't going long today. And they seemed to lack power. I guess you have to adjust to temperature when you play.

 

[armand]

Warming up seems to be the hard part. Played in my club championship doubles final last night and it was awful. The legs were ok but groundstrokes stank; really lacked flexibility and strength. And I was wearing sweatpants and a thick turtle neck sweater! And we had tried to warm up for 40 minutes and still it wasn't good enough.

Tonight I'm playing in the singles final and I have to avoid the same thing. I'm thinking about going to the indoor squash court and hitting for a while and/or sitting in my car for 30 min with the heat jacked up.

 

[Swissv2]

Hi I need your opinion on this!

I had this really really disappointing session of tennis the other night. The most notable thing was that it felt like I was hitting the ball with a wooden board- it felt like the strings of my racquet had no elasticity at all!!! It never felt like I was hitting the sweetspot (maybe I was, but it didn't feel like the ball was being launched off the strings) and my shots lacked power. It was a very cold night.

Then this morning I played with the same racquet, but different conditions. It was sunny and my body was nice and warm. And wow, what a difference it makes. The strings felt alive again and making explosive noises. It was pocketing the ball rather than just deflecting it.

ANyone else have similar experiences??? If so, I have solved the mystery as to why I sometimes play absolutely terribly at night.

I use synthetic gut if that helps.

Hope to hear some replies!!!

no excuses for you!

Best way is to keep your racquets at room temprature. Try not to leave your racquets in the car too long because that really can make the tension of your strings fluctuate. So say you have a 58 tension, it could go down to 56 or 55 and your stringing at 58 was a waste of time. (or just string at 60, then it will start to loosen up over time).

Also consider that your body is colder during that night session so your muscles are contracted a bit - so things feel tighter then.

 

[kevhen]

Yes, cold air means balls don't bounce and string doesn't stretch. I think I break more string when playing in cold weather. The strings can feel pretty dead when playing in cool weather. I try not to play outdoors anymore if it's below 50F. When I first started playing alot I would play in 40 degree weather but it's a different game then with everything staying low and slow and can be hard on the muscles too if they aren't properly warmed up first.

 

[mahouFuji]

no excuses for you!

Best way is to keep your racquets at room temprature. Try not to leave your racquets in the car too long because that really can make the tension of your strings fluctuate. So say you have a 58 tension, it could go down to 56 or 55 and your stringing at 58 was a waste of time. (or just string at 60, then it will start to loosen up over time).

Also consider that your body is colder during that night session so your muscles are contracted a bit - so things feel tighter then.

i argree u shouldnt keep ur racquet inside a hot shed or in a freezer

 

[Bottle Rocket]

I am not trying to start any type of argument or say what's best, but Luxilon strings are unaffected by weather. There is a very consistant response whether it's 100 degrees or 30 degrees. Being able to leave my racket in my trunk or play in the middle of winter without having to mess around with heaters or different string tensions is nice.

 

[LuckyR]

All the above it true of course, but the impact of temperature on you is a lot more apparant than the effect on strings and balls. My secret for winning early morning tournament matches: ride my bike to the court. Your core temp is significantly higher than the other guy's. Just watch him hit balls out as you approach the net every point...

 

[xtremerunnerars]

Look, it doesn't matter what temperature it is. You both (or you four) all have to play in it. If it rains, it rains, if it's windy, it's windy...you know?

 

[0DegreesKelvin]

Besides Luxilon, what type of string plays better in the cold? I was planning on stringing my back-up racket just for cold temperatures.

 

[OrangeOne]

Warming up seems to be the hard part. Played in my club championship doubles final last night and it was awful. The legs were ok but groundstrokes stank; really lacked flexibility and strength. And I was wearing sweatpants and a thick turtle neck sweater! And we had tried to warm up for 40 minutes and still it wasn't good enough.

Tonight I'm playing in the singles final and I have to avoid the same thing. I'm thinking about going to the indoor squash court and hitting for a while and/or sitting in my car for 30 min with the heat jacked up.

It may well be too late for this advice depending on when your final is - but according to my physio, you're better doing the former as opposed to the latter. I was always a fan of doing stretching after a hot shower, and from memory he said that even that doesn't provide comparable muscle-warmth to movement.

Good luck!

 

[armand]

It may well be too late for this advice depending on when your final is - but according to my physio, you're better doing the former as opposed to the latter. I was always a fan of doing stretching after a hot shower, and from memory he said that even that doesn't provide comparable muscle-warmth to movement.

Good luck!

Yeah, it was too late; I lost

I just did some stationary jogging, jumping and stuff to warm me up. It helped, I played not too badly, but my opponent was a hardcore Canadian boy; while I played in 2 t-shirts and a turtleneck and sweatpants, he played in shorts and a t-shirt!

Still, thanks for the advice. It will be useful later!