Dominic Thiem commented positively on various rule experiments in tennis on Sunday.
Short sets or timed matches have been tested again and again for some time.
However, none of these measures have yet been adopted on the ATP tour. Even the “no-ad” rule that has become common in doubles on the tour, i.e. the decision comes at the start of the game, does not yet apply in singles.
“With all the trimmings, I’m in bed by 4 a.m.”
“I would definitely be in favor of it. I think, apart from Grand Slams, where it’s a given, that the matches are just too long. I’ve seen it every week, too, so many matches last two and a half to three hours,” explained Thiem before his first appearance in Vienna against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The Austrians’ schedule at the Erste Bank Open >>>
Most recently in Antwerp he only finished after midnight twice. “With all the bells and whistles, I’m in bed by 4 a.m. I don’t think that’s particularly sustainable.”
There’s nothing wrong with trying out other formats every now and then, even on tour. “You shouldn’t be too rigid that you have to play the same rules in every tournament.”
The quality of the balls has “just gotten worse”
The long matches recently had another reason.
In the past few weeks there has been a lot of discussion about the different brands of balls, which either “rise” quickly, i.e. lose the felt, or are very heavy.
Many players complained about pain in their hitting arm. The players also don’t like the fact that the ball selection is up to the tournaments and the brand is changed often.
Tennis stars complain about the balls on the ATP tour >>>
Thiem sees it ambivalently. “On the one hand, of course, the appeal of the whole tour is that you have to adapt to new circumstances every week.”
However, he did also criticize: “What I can say is that the quality of the balls has simply gotten worse in recent years, and everyone can feel that.”
Many players have pain or problems. “When it comes to that, you have to start thinking about something.”
These 20 Austrians cracked the top 100 of the ATP rankings
2023-10-23 07:10:46
#matches #long
