In the early days of this year’s US Open, the playing conditions have generated debate among the tennis players, who have expressed various opinions on the speed of the courts and the condition of the balls. The problem lies in the lack of consensus among the players.
The US Open is the only Grand Slam that uses different balls for the men’s and women’s events, both from the Wilson brand, but the “extra duty” balls for men are slightly heavier. Court speed and the speed or slowness of the balls can be affected by temperature, wind, and humidity, but regardless of the weather, the players seem to disagree. The US Open organizers assure that the balls are the same as last year and that the courts maintain a medium-fast speed. However, opinions vary.The court speed, I don’t remember the exact year it changed, when it started to be a little faster than it used to be. But it has maintained the same speed for a few years.
Novak Djokovic
They are quite fast.
Alexander Bublik
On the other hand, Jordan Thompson expressed a different opinion after his first-round victory.They are fast and slippery.
Alex De Minaur
Thompson added that he feels the balls are very soft, especially when it’s cold, which affects the game.Generally, it’s much faster. But I wouldn’t call these fast courts this year.
Jordan Thompson
Jessica Pegula, seeded number 4, pointed out that some players are more skilled than others at judging the speed of the court.I feel like the balls are very soft, especially when it’s cold. Obviously, when it’s cold, it gets slower, but even during the day, I feel like the balls get lighter and older, they feel very soft and heavy now. It’s frustrating. You come here expecting it to be the same as every other year, and it’s just not.
Jordan Thompson
Daria Kasatkina commented that she felt the balls were flying.I think some people are very in tune with that, maybe too much, and others just don’t care. They say, I don’t know, it feels like that.
Jessica Pegula
The surface is quite fast. The balls don’t fluff up at all. They’re the opposite. They’re turning into rocks. It’s interesting because the more you play, the harder they are and the less controllable. They’re becoming completely bald and when you try to squeeze them, you feel a lot of pressure from the inside, which is a bit strange.
Daria Kasatkina
De Minaur mentioned that the balls have behaved differently in each tournament of the summer tour in North America.It’s because everything is based on their personal preferences. When they say it’s fast, that must be preceded by ‘it’s fast for them’ or ‘it’s slow for them’. Certain playing styles, players from Spain, Argentina, South America, will enjoy a slower surface, with the ball bouncing higher, and if the court doesn’t behave that way, if it maybe even arrives lower at the same speed, it will feel different for them, and they could easily say it’s fast when maybe it’s just lower.
Craig O’Shannessy
Djokovic revealed that he has been discussing the state of the balls with his colleagues.Many players were scratching their heads, because we don’t understand, we play with this ball at the US Open, and we have never felt that, wow, it’s uncontrollable, or we can’t feel the ball on the strings [as we did] in the preparatory tournaments. You could have asked any player in the draw and they would have had the same feelings.
Alex De Minaur
O’Shannessy explained that the speed of the courts varies depending on how much tennis has been played on them.I’ve been hearing that many of the players think there’s finally some consistency with the balls they’ve used in the US Open Series tournaments before the US Open. Most of the players I’ve spoken to say they’re almost the same now.
Novak Djokovic
Pegula highlighted that all the courts at Flushing Meadows behave differently.I’m working with Gabriel Diallo here, and we’ve practiced on several courts, including the Ashe, and his opinion is that each court is different. Some are faster than others. A lot depends on the wear and tear they’re receiving, how much play they’re actually having.
Craig O’Shannessy
The back courts are much faster than the Ashe. The Ashe is a little slow, almost. Armstrong is always a little faster than the Ashe. I’ve definitely played on a lot of these courts here and they’re definitely not the same. They try to make them as similar as possible, but they have to install them all at different times, different days, and the temperature and all this really changes that process.
Jessica Pegula
