Daniil Medvedev has expressed his concern about the Dunlop balls used at the Australian Open and other ATP hard court events, saying they are responsible for an increase in injuries to elite players.
The world No.7 expressed his annoyance over the quality of the balls after taking out the Qatar Open, and insists he isn’t the only player who is concerned.
Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Andy Murray have mentioned their problems with the balls used at the Australian Open with some saying they are ‘fluffing up too much’ and others complaining they lose bounce.
However, Medvedev’s protest that the balls are now causing injuries is something new.
‘Last two games before they change the balls, the balls are like apples,’ said the Russian.
Daniil Medvedev has expressed his concern about the Dunlop balls used at the Australian Open and other ATP hard court events, saying they are responsible for an increase in injuries to elite players
Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Andy Murray have mentioned their problems with the balls used at the Australian Open, with some saying they are ‘fluffing up too much’ and others complaining they lose bounce
‘They are so, so big. You’re kind of playing like padel. You hit the ball. Whoever hits it with angle… You don’t feel like you’re controlling the game anymore.’
Medvedev has been in great form and won two titles this year, so his criticisms can’t be put down to sour grapes.
‘I want to talk a little bit more about it because in Australia, I felt like these balls were not good for hard courts, and in the match with (Sebastian) Korda, before the match, I had a very big pain in my wrist, but I thought, ‘okay, that’s my problem, so I’m not going to talk much about it,’ he said after his recent win in Doha.
‘Then in Rotterdam, when doubles players came to me and started talking about balls and started talking that everyone has problems with their elbow, wrist, from doubles players, they think it’s because of the balls. I’m like, ‘wow, so I’m not the only one’.
‘Now I see (Holger) Rune, (Stefanos) Tsitsipas, who else, Korda, all wrist, elbow, shoulder. So I think that these balls are not good for hard courts. They get very fluffy, and as I say, it’s a big shock to play them with your racquet.
‘I think this should be reconsidered because I feel like if I don’t do enough job on my wrist every day, it’s gonna just, you know, be very painful.’
Medvedev urged other players to voice their issues with the balls in the hope that changes are made.
‘I talked a little bit to the supervisor, but the thing is that I wonder what other players think. You’re not going to be in the locker, you know, coming to every other player asking about the balls,’ he said.
Medvedev believes there’s a link between the balls and players injuring themselves and has urged other players to voice their complaints in the hope that changes are made
Tennis Australia has renewed its deal with Dunlop for another five years, despite criticism from players about the balls
‘So maybe if people going to start asking them, maybe finally I’m going to be the only one arguing about the balls, and then I’m just, that’s my problem.
‘If there is going to be 15 players that come out and say, ‘yeah, I feel the same’, then it’s a problem of the balls. I’m just going to wait and see what happens when other players get asked this question.’
Tennis Australia has renewed its deal with Dunlop for another five years, despite criticism from players about the balls.
‘Tennis Australia and Dunlop have renewed their partnership for a further five years,’ said a TA spokesperson.
‘Dunlop has a long history of producing high-quality tennis balls with consistency, durability and little variance. Dunlop is the most-used ball on the international tennis tour.
‘Player satisfaction is vital and we will continue to gather feedback from the playing group and ensure it is factored in to the design, manufacturing and testing process.’
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