“I don’t think these balls are good for hard courts,” Daniil Medvedev expresses his disappointment over the quality of balls used in the Qatar Open
The Russian star, Medvedev is not happy with the quality of balls used in the Qatar Open and expresses his concerns.
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Daniil Medvedev
The world No.7, Daniil Medvedev expressed his disappointment over the quality of balls used in the recently concluded Qatar Open. He claimed his second title of the season just a week after winning the title at Rotterdam, he won the title at Qatar. He defeated the Briton, Andy Murray in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4 in the finals to win another ATP title of his career.
With his recent win, he went past Rafael Nadal in the ATP rankings to number seven. However, he was not satisfied with the quality of the balls used and raised his opinion after the match. The quality of the balls used in recent times has been decreasing and it’s quite evident as there were several occasions where players raised their disappointment in the past.
Addressing this issue, Medvedev said, “I can say this now that the tournament is over. I don’t think these balls are good for hard courts. They changed something this year. I heard players are struggling with shoulders, elbows, & wrists. 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. I had wrist problems in Australia.“
He further added by saying, “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.”
Related: WATCH: Andy Murray wins an almost lost point against Daniil Medvedev in the Doha Open finals
Daniil Medvedev is not the first to complain about the balls this year
The quality of the balls has been an issue for a long time for many players in the past. Each manufacturer makes the tennis balls differently which affects the players who play a certain style. Recently, the two top seeds of the Australian Open, Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek raised an issue with the newly brought Dunlop balls for the tournament.
Before the first Grand Slam tournament of the new season, Nadal participated in two matches at the United Cup, playing against Cameron Norrie and Alex de Minaur. He then underwent a few intense practice sessions in Melbourne. During all of these activities, he used the new Dunlop balls. However, he expressed disappointment with the ball’s quality, stating that it was inferior to the balls used in Australia the previous year.
Swiatek too expressed her disappointment and felt that it is hampering her game and also added that many players who play a certain style will find it difficult to adapt to these balls. She also mentioned that players can get injured while playing these balls which is not good.
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Santhosh Tenneti
(308 Articles Published)