Mental dynamics of performance in racket sports: a systematic review of attention, emotion, cognitive load, and decision-making in tennis and table tennis

Jurnal Riset Tindakan Indonesia December 30, 2025 Volume 10, Number 4 3 authors

Abstract

Performance in racket sports is shaped by attentional control, perceptual-cognitive processing, emotion regulation, and the availability of cognitive resources. This systematic review examined how attention and perceptual-cognitive processing, emotion and competitive pressure, and cognitive load and mental fatigue relate to performance in tennis and table tennis. Following PRISMA 2020, Scopus, PubMed, and ScienceDirect were searched for peer-reviewed empirical studies published within the 2020–2025 search window. The search identified 283 records; 19 duplicates were removed, 264 records were screened, 58 reports were sought for retrieval, 4 were not retrieved, and 54 were assessed for eligibility. Twenty-nine full-text reports were excluded, leaving 25 studies for qualitative synthesis. Methodological quality was appraised with the MMAT 2018. Because the included evidence differed substantially in study design, constructs, measures, and performance outcomes, no pooled effect size or meta-analysis was conducted; findings were synthesised through deductive thematic analysis. Reviewer-level screening/appraisal decisions were not preserved in the source record in a form that permits valid retrospective calculation of Cohen’s kappa, so no coefficient is imputed. Three themes emerged: attention and perceptual-cognitive processing; emotion, anxiety, and pressure; and cognitive load, mental fatigue, and regulation. Overall, external/holistic attentional strategies, perceptual-cognitive training, and selected self-regulation interventions were associated with improved performance, whereas anxiety, pressure, and mental fatigue were commonly associated with performance decrements.

Authors

  1. Andre Igoresky

    Universitas Negeri Padang

  2. Ifdil Ifdil

    Center for Educational Neuroscience, Trauma, and Human Behavior, Universitas Negeri Padang.

  3. Rudyanto Rudyanto

    Universitas Negeri Padang

Keywords

Racket sportsAttentional focusCompetitive anxietyMental fatiguePerceptual-cognitive skill

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