ATP Introduces Bold New Experiment to Address Ball Complaints

Ball changes are quite an important part of tennis matches. The tennis balls are at their liveliest when they are unwrapped, but become heavier and slower as the play continues. According to the rule made by the ATP, the first ball change comes after seven games from the start of the match. It is then changed every nine games thereafter. But the ATP will be trying something different for the upcoming Challenger event in Lexington.

They will be trying out frequent ball changes during the event that will commence on August 3, as per tennis insider Parsa Nemati. The first ball change in singles matches will take place after the first five games. The ball will then be changed every seven games thereafter, instead of the standard nine games. The Player Advisory Council has backed this move.

This decision has been made after taking player feedback on hard-court ball wear. It has been noticed that there is a big difference in the quality of balls in some tournaments. The ball ends up degrading quite early in many matches, and this only increases the risk of arm injuries. The complaints about ball wear have also increased significantly in the last few seasons.

There is no guarantee that this new rule regarding the ball change will be used in the ATP Tour as well. They have chosen a Challenger event to experiment with it for the first time because they aren’t sure whether it is the right move or not.

This move has been a long time coming, as many top players have been complaining about the quality of balls for years now. One of the players who has been quite vocal about the topic is Daniil Medvedev. He has been expressing concerns over the use of Dunlop balls since 2023. The brand’s balls are still used in several tournaments on the calendar.

“Last two games before they change the balls, the balls are like apples,” he had said during the 2023 Dubai Championships. “They are so, so big. You’re kind of playing like padel. You hit the ball, whoever hits it with an angle. You don’t feel like you’re controlling the game anymore. In Doha and here, I felt like every time, two or three games with new balls, then the game becomes slower.

“My game was 6-4, 6-2, and it was like one hour 40 minutes, which is almost a nonsense, to be honest. It’s because the serve doesn’t count as much, and it’s long points.”

Another player who has been critical of Dunlop balls is Taylor Fritz. The American had said that the quality of balls had degraded in recent years, highlighting that the manufacturer’s balls wear down more quickly than the others. “The thing is, the Dunlop, in general, is slow,” he had said before the 2026 Indian Wells Masters. “When it wears down, it gets even slower, and lately it’s been wearing down very quickly. I really think the quality of the balls has dropped a lot.” ATP’s frequent ball-change experiment can end up solving this problem. The balls won’t degrade too much if they get changed quickly.

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