Blind tennis is becoming a popular sport worldwide with the first show case being held at the Paralympics in Tokyo in 2021. It was first developed in the 1980's in Japan and has since spread around the world with competitive and exhilarating world championships now being held each year. Below are some adaptations that can be made for students or athletes with a vision impairment when playing tennis.

Like all information on this website it is important to understand that these are just possible adaptations and for further information please contact your advisory teacher or Andrew Whisson (PE teacher at the SA School for Vision Impaired).

Communication is important in all sport adaptations and tennis is no different. Before play begins in any point the athlete serving should ask their opponent "Are you ready?". Once they hear the response "Yes" they should then call "Play!" immediately before serving. This warning allows athletes or students to understand and prepare themselves for the serve and gives them the best opportunity to return it. During play, however, it is important that both athletes do not talk as noise prevents the ability of athletes to track the audible bounce of the tennis balls.

Considering the individual vision needs of the athletes with vision impairment allows for adaptations to be individualised for their specific needs. Students with no functional vision should be allowed to have up to 4 bounces before they are expected to hit the ball, an athlete with less than 6/160 vision should be allowed 3 bounces before attempting to hit the ball and an athletes with 6/60 or less vision to have 2 bounces. For information on your student's visual acuity please contact your advisory teacher. While these are the international rules, while running units on tennis, or first introducing the sport to an athlete with vision impairment it may be necessary to allow students with greater vision than 6/60 to have more than one bounce while they become aware of the specific movements in tennis and gain control over the tennis racket.

When playing against a mainstream peer it should also be a rule that the ball must bounce before it is hit or no athlete can perform a volley in game play. This allows the ball to slow and allows the athlete with vision impairment to hear where their shot bounced and gives them time to react to the possible angles of return.

Tracking a moving ball is not easy for an athlete or student with vision impairment. When playing a sport like tennis where the ball is moving quickly often the student or athlete relies so heavily on audible tracking to pick up the ball and to track the position in space.

Depending on the individual students the equipment will differ greatly. For all student's, however, the choice of ball is an important first step to ensure an inclusive unit or lesson. Depending on the vision of the individual student it may be important to include an audible ball, or a ball of high contrast to the environment being played in (see PE adaptations pages). Blind tennis balls are available to order, either through the United Kingdom or Japan and both consist of a soft foam ball with a rattle inserted inside. The balls come in either yellow or black which can be used depending on the students need for contrast to the environment or need for reduced glare in the lighting conditions. The soft nature of the ball acts to reduce the fear of injury for the student or athlete with vision impairment while simultaneously slowing the speed of the ball down both off of the racket and after the bounce.

By ensuring the adaptations above, the lesson, unit or training will automatically become more inclusive and encourage all students or athletes to be involved. However, further rule changes could also encourage inclusive practice. The could be as simple as all students must touch the ball before a goal can be scored. This forces all students to turn to their team members or peers and support their involvement in the game.

For more information contact your advisory teach or Andrew Whisson (PE Teacher at the SA School for Vision Impaired).