Momentum in US Open men’s singles tennis

Most of the research in racket sports has focussed on point outcomes rather than point sequences and other events that may trigger positive or negative momentum. Therefore, the purpose of the current investigation was to determine if point outcome in US Open men’s singles tennis matches is associated with (a) the outcomes of the previous one, two or three points and (b) events within previous points such as aces, double faults, winners and errors. A further purpose was to investigate whether the outcomes of service games were significantly associated with the outcomes of the receiving and next serving games that followed. Ninety player performances from 45 US Open men’s singles matches were analysed as a sample and individually. The outcomes of the previous 1 to 3 points within service games had no significant influence on the outcome of the current point (p ≥ 0.291). Where breaks of serve had been achieved despite the server having game points, the player breaking serve was significantly more likely to hold serve in the next game (100% v 74%, p < 0.001). The investigation suggests that momentum effects different players in different ways which has implications for coaching and psychological support for tennis players.