Evaluation of bilateral strength asymmetry and hamstring–quadriceps balance in competitive university handball players

The strength of quadriceps and hamstrings muscles play a crucial role in maintaining optimal athletic performance and to prevent injury.Isokinetic testing allows for the isolation of specific muscle groups, such as the knee extensors and flexors, enabling more accurate identification of bilateral deficits relevant to sport-specific actions.Therefore, the purpose of the study was to evaluatebilateral asymmetry of knee extensor strength, knee flexor strength, and H:Q ratioof female handball players. To accomplish the purpose twenty-three (23) female handball players were selected as subjects from Annamalai University. The peak torque of knee extensor and knee flexor was obtained for 60°/s and 180°/s in both dominant and non-dominant leg and H:Q ratio was calculated. To assess the bilateral differencepaired t test was applied.The paired ttest demonstrated significant inter-limb differences in knee flexor peak torque and the H/Q ratio at 60°/s (p< 0.05). However, all remaining comparisons failed to reach statistical significance. Therefore, the findings of this study show that the dominant leg possesses significantly greater hamstring strength and a stronger hamstring-to-quadriceps balance compared to the non-dominant leg. These results provide clear evidence of bilateral strength asymmetry in the knee flexors among female handball players.