Correlation Between Upper Body Balance, Muscle Strength, and Power in Cricketers Belonging to Different Age Groups

Intrinsic and extrinsic variables impacting upper quarter Y-balance test scores in sporting cohorts: A systematic review

INTRODUCTION

The upper quarter y-balance test (YBT-UQ) is a functional screening tool used to detect musculoskeletal injury risk, aid rehabilitation, and monitor dynamic function, strength and control, yet little is currently known about intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influence reach scores.

OBJECTIVES

This systematic review aimed to determine if age, sex, or interventions influenced reach scores and whether between-limb differences were common in non-injured sporting populations, with a secondary aim to identify if sport impacted YBT-UQ reach.

METHODS

Web of Science, PubMed, and SportDiscus were systematically searched from January 2012 to November 16, 2023, revealing twenty-three studies satisfying inclusion criteria of published in English between 2012 and 2023, healthy participants of any age including both males and females, athletic populations, YBT-UQ use to assess upper limb mobility/stability, report normalised reach scores, and peer-reviewed full-texts. Methodological quality was evaluated via National Institutes of Health (NIH) quality assessment tools for controlled interventions, observational cohort and cross-sectional designs, and pre-post with no control group.

RESULTS

Age, sex, sport, and fatigue were influencing factors; greater reach scores were achieved in older athletes (i.e. >18 years), males, and in a well-rested state. Between-limb differences were not common in sporting populations; therefore, asymmetries may be useful for practitioners to aid injury risk identification.

CONCLUSION

This is the first systematic review investigating YBT-UQ influencing factors and thereby provides context for clinicians regarding characteristics that impact reach scores in sporting populations, from which normative values could be determined and further aid clinical decisions or areas to improve regarding injury risk.

Adaptations of the Upper Body to Plyometric Training in Cricket Players of Different Age Groups

CONTEXT

Neuromuscular adaptations following exercise training are believed to enhance sports performance. While abundant research is available on adaptations of the lower body to plyometric training, little is known about adaptations of the upper body to plyometric training.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the effect of plyometric training on neuromuscular adaptations in cricket players of different age groups.

DESIGN

Randomized parallel group active-controlled trial.

SETTING

Research laboratory, school cricket ground, and sports complex field.

PARTICIPANTS

Fifty-nine cricket players were randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group.

INTERVENTIONS

The experimental group was subjected to 8 weeks of medicine ball plyometric training held thrice per week. Neuromuscular adaptations were analyzed pretraining and posttraining in 3 age groups: <18, 18-25, and >25 years. Analysis of variance was used to ascertain the training effects between and within the 6 subgroups, that is, age group <18 years (control and experimental), age group 18-25 years (control and experimental), and age group >25 years (control and experimental).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Muscle activation, upper body balance, upper body power, and muscle strength.

RESULTS

Out of 59, 55 participants completed the study. Subjects aged <18 years (adolescents) showed significantly greater improvements than those from the groups 18-25 years and >25 years (adults) on upper body balance and upper body power. Significant improvements were observed in the experimental subjects of all age groups on their muscle activity of biceps brachii, upper body balance, and upper body power following medicine ball plyometric training.

CONCLUSIONS

Though adolescent subjects were found to be more adaptive than adult subjects, experimental subjects showed significantly greater neuromuscular adaptations to medicine ball plyometric training than controls. These findings emphasize the need for coaches and athletic trainers to inculcate medicine ball plyometric exercises in training regimes of cricket players so as to improve their upper body performance.

Variations in cricket players' upper body dynamic balance across different levels of competition

BACKGROUND

Balance ability has been associated with performance and injury prevention in athletes. Previous studies have investigated the differences in lower body dynamic balance abilities among male high school, collegiate and professional soccer players.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the differences on the Upper Quarter Y-Balance Test (UQYBT) in school, collegiate and employed cricket players.

SUBJECTS

Dynamic balance data were collected for school (SCH; n = 22), collegiate (COL; n = 19) and employed (EMP; n = 15) cricket players of Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India using the UQYBT standardized protocol.

METHODS

For the UQYBT, the participant reached with one hand in the medial, superolateral and inferolateral directions while maintaining three points of contact (other hand and both feet). The test was performed for both non-dominant and dominant hands.

RESULTS

The SCH group had the least medial reach distance than the other two groups (p = 0.010). Also, SCH players tended to exhibit a lower composite reach score than the other groups, but this difference was not significant (p > 0.05). No bilateral differences were observed among the three groups in any of the reach directions.

CONCLUSIONS

Upper body dynamic balance performance varied with the competition level. This may indicate that athletes' movement strategies may be different depending on the competition level and that normative values may need to be established for each competition level.