Research on mental fatigue in ball sports (2000–2025): A bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND: Mental fatigue resulting from prolonged cognitive load and emotional stress, significantly affects athletes in high-intensity ball sports. It impairs attention, decision-making, and performance, potentially reducing career longevity. As "cognitive resilience" gains attention, understanding the advancements and future directions in this area becomes increasingly critical. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This bibliometric study analyzes 186 English-language articles from 2000 to November 2025, sourced from WoSCC and Scopus databases. Multidimensional visual analyses using CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and R-Bibliometrix mapped the knowledge structure and evolution of the field. RESULTS: Mental fatigue research has grown rapidly, particularly since 2015, with the highest annual output recorded in 2025 (partial data), signaling continued expansion. Australia and Brazil are key hubs, with European/North American institutions leading in high-impact journals. Research evolved through phases: from "concussion/perception" to "cognitive fatigue/exercise performance," and now "athlete monitoring/accuracy/recovery." Since 2020, terms like "brain," "decision-making," and "elite athlete" indicate a shift toward neural mechanisms and precision monitoring. Intervention studies, though lab-based, increasingly address psychological aspects like "burnout" and "anxiety." Collaboration is highly integrated, with key contributions from Australia, Brazil, Malaysia, and Spain. CONCLUSION: Over the past 25 years, research on mental fatigue in ball sports has evolved from descriptive studies to mechanistic analysis and technology-driven interventions. Key challenges remain in bridging laboratory findings to real-world contexts, addressing geographical and cultural biases in global knowledge, and applying the "monitoring-intervention-recovery" system in practice. Future research should combine neuroscience, sports psychology, and data science to develop personalized fatigue management models, enhancing athletes' long-term health and performance.