BIOMECHANICAL ANALYSIS OF PENALTY CORNER DRAG FLICK IN FIELD HOCKEY

The present study, entitled “Biomechanical Analysis of Penalty Corner Drag Flick in Field Hockey,” was undertaken to identify the dominant biomechanical factors influencing ball velocity during the drag flick among hockey players. For this purpose, 50 male hockey players (N=50) aged 18–30 years, with a minimum of eight years of playing experience, were selected from colleges, universities, clubs, and departments in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Ball velocity was considered the dependent variable, while selected biomechanical variables related to the approach, contact, drag, and follow-through phases were analysed. The performances were recorded using Pylon Basler Gige and Canon EOS 5D Mark II cameras and analysed using Kinovea software. Pearson’s product-moment correlation, partial correlation, and multiple regression analysis were employed using SPSS, with the level of significance set at 0.05. The findings revealed that ball velocity was significantly associated with selected biomechanical variables, particularly the distance of the right foot from the ball, drag length, stance width, stick velocity, and distance of the left foot from the ball. The mean ball velocity was 28.66 m/s with a standard deviation of 1.68 m/s. The selected biomechanical variables explained 86% of the variance in ball velocity, with a multiple correlation coefficient of 0.740 and a statistically significant predictive model, F(18,31) = 4.91, p < .0005. The study concluded that biomechanical factors across the approach, contact, drag, and follow-through phases play an important role in determining the effectiveness and velocity of the penalty corner drag flick. The findings recommend that coaches and players give particular attention to improving drag length, stick velocity, stick angle, and the distance of the left foot from the ball to enhance drag-flick performance.