Rafael Nadal’s remarkable 11th win at Roland Garros completed yet another spring clay court season dominated by the mighty Spaniard, but behind his incredible achievement was a reminder that one of the truly great assets of the game of tennis is its surface diversity.
While the court measurements and net height remain exactly the same everywhere the game is played, the surface changes frequently depending on the time of the season and the location. And while Nadal clearly dominates on the clay, he doesn’t to the same extent elsewhere as the Tour switches from clay to grass to hard-court. Throw in outdoor tournaments and indoor events and you have a magical formula that keeps the season interesting throughout and allows players with different skills to shine at different times of the year. In short, there is never a dull moment in the way the game is played. It is a unique point of difference for tennis, and we at the ATP believe it is essential to preserve the diversity of surfaces on offer to players throughout the season.
But back to the clay where not only did Nadal win his 11th Coupe des Mousquetaires in Paris, but he recorded the same number of title wins at both the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Truly amazing. He also conquered again in Rome at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and finished the clay court spring swing with a staggering 24 — 1 winning record that kept him at the top of the ATP Rankings for a 177th week.
But while Nadal’s shadow loomed large over the clay court tournaments, we shouldn’t overlook some standout performances by other players during the season. Congratulations go to Austrian star Dominic Thiem for reaching his first Grand Slam final in Paris. As he left Roland Garros, Thiem lead the Tour so far this year for match wins, with a very impressive 35 — 9 record that included clay tournament victories The Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes in Lyon and the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires.
Elsewhere, highly talented German Alexander Zverev picked up a third career ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title by winning the Mutua Madrid Open — a remarkable achievement at the age of just 21.
As the season reaches the halfway mark and gets ready to head into a bolstered and extended grass court swing, a quick look back over the year so far shows popular performances by not only established superstars like Nadal and Roger Federer (Australian Open and Rotterdam champion), but others like American teenager Frances Tiafoe who broke through for a great win in Delray Beach, giving a big boost to American tennis.
John Isner put it all together at the Miami Open in March to win his first Masters 1000 title and the ever-popular Juan Martin del Potro scored a memorable win in the Californian desert to lift the Masters 1000 trophy at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
But now the attention turns to the extended grass-court season where 8-time Wimbledon champion Federer prepares for another run at the history books. While Nadal has dominated on clay, it is Federer who has frequently prevailed over the grass-court swing and with a good run could challenge the No. 1 ranking again. Six events will lead into The Championships at the All England Club with significant ATP World Tour 500 events in Halle in Germany (Gerry Weber Open) and The Fever Tree Championships at The Queen’s Club in London. Gone, by and large, will be the strategic long rallies of the clay, replaced by a more cut and thrust style of play on the faster grass surface. A different style that demands new skills from the players and provides variety for tennis fans. It is an important change that helps keep the game fresh and exciting and brings new names into the spotlight.
The surface changes are not the only variations in tennis these days as the sport continues to explore and innovate as a game and as a spectacle, the primary example being the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. The tournament, which showcases the best 21-and- Under players in the game, debuted very successfully in Milan last year and featured a host of new innovations.
This year the ATP will continue with a trial of best-of-five set format, shorter sets to 4 (tiebreak at 3-All), No-Ad scoring and No-Lets. Other innovations such as Electronic Line Calling through Hawk-Eye, a 25-second Shot Clock and In-Match player coaching via headsets will also return.
Player warm-up will be reduced by a further minute to 4 minutes from the second player walk-on and this year players will be instructed to use a towel rack at the back of the court to remove the onus on ball kids to handle towels. Free crowd movement and a limit of one medical time out per match will also remain.
While tennis is steeped in history and tradition and its important to protect that, the event allows us to look at some potential changes which have already received very positive feedback. We recognise though that we need a bigger sample size to help us draw effective conclusions and this year’s event will give us the continuity to help us assess which, if any, changes we want to incorporate onto the regular Tour in 2019.
