The effect of acute physical fatigue on gaze behavior during tennis players' service return

Acute physical fatigue is an inevitable factor for athletes during tennis competitions. While previous studies have explored the relationship between gaze behavior and tennis performance, the impact of fatigue on gaze behavior during service return has not been thoroughly investigated. This study recruited 24 male tennis players with an average training history of 11 years. We recorded their gaze behavior in real-world settings using a eye-tracking device. All participants completed a service return task prior to the fatigue protocol, followed by the implementation of the fatigue protocol and a subsequent service return task. The results indicate that acute physical fatigue significantly affects the success rate of service return and alters the gaze behavior of athletes during this task, characterized by a reduction in average fixation duration and an increase in the number of fixations. This change was observed in both areas of interest (upper body and ball). Notably, we found differences in gaze behavior between successful and unsuccessful return serves under fatigue conditions. The findings underscore the influence of acute physical fatigue on gaze behavior and further elucidate how these changes may impact return serve performance.