THE PHYSICS OF TENNIS .3. THE BALL-RACKET INTERACTION

A simple, one-dimensional, rigid-body model of a tennis racket interac ting with a tennis ball agrees well with data taken when balls are fir ed at a stationary, free racket. The results are then transformed into the tennis court frame of reference, where the racket is moving. Data obtained on the rotational aspects of a tennis swing are then include d in the model. For ground strokes, the results are used to predict st rategies that will reduce unforced errors by players. The serve is the n analyzed with respect to the current problem of the speed of the gam e. This paper is the third of a series of papers on tennis by this aut hor. The two previous papers were ''Physics of die Tennis Racket'' [Am . J. Phys. 47, 482 (1979)] and ''Physics of the Tennis Racket. II. The Sweet Spot'' [Am. J. Phys. 49, 816 (1981)]. (C) 1997 American Associa tion of Physics Teachers.