Richard Gasquet is the latest player to record his disdain for new ATP balls, joining the likes of Daniil Medvedev, who thinks the new balls are contributing to elbow and wrist injuries, and others. Gasquet who has been part of the tour since 2002 and is more consistent and injury free than an average player on the tour is clearly not a fan of the new Dunlop balls.
“We have a problem since COVID, all the balls are slower there is no longer any doubt about it. I’ve been saying it for two years, it’s nothing new.”
“As soon as they got that big (mimics a balloon), I said to my trainer, ‘what is this s***?’ Now people are starting to talk about this everywhere, but I’m sure they are not like before.”
He added, “So they were light, fast, it was one of my strengths, I was able to control them very well. Now, it doesn’t matter the brand and with only a couple of exceptions, its quality is close to being supermarket.”
The French veteran has raised the protest and echoed the views of former world no.1 Daniil Medvedev who has mocked them as ‘apples’, hurting the wrists and elbows.
“Last two games before they change the balls, the balls are like apples,” said Medvedev. “They are so, so big. You’re kind of playing like padel.”
Medvedev continued, “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, [Sebastian] 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 racket.”
Britain’s Andy Murray complained on the flat balls at the AO, after this marathon R2 match against Thanasi Kokkinakis, “It felt like there was no pressure in the ball, flat almost.”
“It’s just difficult to hit winners once you’re in the rallies. I think there was a 70-shot rally yesterday or multiple 35, 40-shot rallies, which is not normal.”
Despite problematic balls, the funny thing is that all three of these players have had a successful new year with Medvedev clinching three titles, Gasquet ending title draught (since 2018) by winning ASB Classic in Auckland and Murray being runner up in Doha.