Game is slower but also faster?

I see a lot of noise going on here about how the game has changed. People say the game is slower bc courts are slow, balls are made of different rubber, but at the same time people claim the game is faster which is forcing people to use lighter racquets (often even by the same people)….what gives? Is this just more tennis bro science? Cognitive dissonance?
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.
 
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting slower but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.

Did I say zverev/medvedev wrong? Also, bro scientists can be wrong mechanistically but correct with the outcome….regardless, which direction is it going then?

And I said “on here” didn’t I?

And balls are apparently slower, at least that’s what most of the emphasis is on: so it’s faster and heavier with slower balls? That’s the direction we’re choosing?
 
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No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.

And I haven’t heard zverev mentioning the need for a lighter racquet but I hear that a lot amongst the tennis bros
 

Slingshot

New User
Higher mph off the racket; slowing as through mud in the air. A ball currently slows disproportionately, partly because of surfaces but, especially, because of reduced ball quality, creating time for big-swing, white-noise powerhitting, the sort of powerhitting which is frequently required to generate winners. If your particular game isn't optimised around generating that power on a high, heavy spinning ball from a semi-defensive position then at the moment you're in trouble.

Hence Jannik Sinner is #1; a position he deserves, but it's no coincidence that only a handful of guys appear able to do damage to him, let alone beat him.

As a second order effect, the sport-wide doping worries are not going to go away while conditions are so conducive to a heightened power-and-retrieval game: the physical strain required to bludgeon a ball becomes increasingly intense; the disproportionate number of balls that make it back into play and, even from a defensive position, need to be fed back with interest requires a more extreme physical profile for power/agility/stretch/endurance in compensation with technique; to create the time for a big swing, players stand back on high, slowing balls, opening up more extreme angles and drop shot opportunities, which elevates even more, alongside brute top-spin force, top speed; essentially, the game as it currently is dangles every slight physical shortcoming and quirk in front of each player and expects each to respond morally through every period of their career, never falling prey to the temptation of an illegal equaliser. At this point I'm waiting for the next high-profile doping scandal.
 

junior74

Bionic Poster
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.

Inspector Zed has closed his investigations, and you are right.
 
When I was watching highlights of the 2009 AO semi-final recently, I noticed Nadal was a lot more athletic than anyone in tennis today.
And it helps that he used the racquet like a magic wand too, so he moved like lightning and was able to finish his quick movements with excellent racquet skills.
There's nothing like that today, skill and athleticism unlike anyone we've ever seen since (y)
Nadal made the game a lot faster than it is today, because the winners that people hit today would be retrieved by Nadal, so you'd get high velocity balls being sent back!
 
When I was watching highlights of the 2009 AO semi-final recently, I noticed Nadal was a lot more athletic than anyone in tennis today.
And it helps that he used the racquet like a magic wand too, so he moved like lightning and was able to finish his quick movements with excellent racquet skills.
There's nothing like that today, skill and athleticism unlike anyone we've ever seen since (y)
Nadal made the game a lot faster than it is today, because the winners that people hit today would be retrieved by Nadal, so you'd get high velocity balls being sent back!
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.
if its heavier tho, wont you need a heavier racquet per the users here for "stability" and "plow"?
 

timnz

Legend
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.
Courts have slowed down considerably comparing with the 90s and earlier. Wimbledon is no longer fast court tennis, more medium forinstance
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
Courts have slowed down considerably comparing with the 90s and earlier. Wimbledon is no longer fast court tennis, more medium forinstance
I was not even born before 90. Many of us were not.

So when we say courts fastened or slowed down, our frame of reference is what we saw.
 

timnz

Legend
I was not even born before 90. Many of us were not.

So when we say courts fastened or slowed down, our frame of reference is what we saw.
I'm sorry but there are many more tennis fans than people born in the last 30 years and the 90s were the last time that the slams were all on reasonably quick surfaces.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
I'm sorry but there are many more tennis fans than people born in the last 30 years and the 90s were the last time that the slams were all on reasonably quick surfaces.
Yes then when someone says the court are getting slower, you can say it's faster than 2010s.
 

ibbi

G.O.A.T.
The game is literally faster than ever in terms of how quick they move, how hard they hit, etc. You can see the beginnings of it in the 90s, and it was completely out of control.

To counteract that they started using bigger balls on quicker surfaces to slow it down as much as they could. The surfaces I think has been more of a safety than speed thing. Players didn't seem to like carpet, they didn't like certain kinds of hard courts, so they got rid of them. The new ones seem to have more grit in them, making them easier to move on, but also making the ball slower going through them. The composition of Wimbledon courts is now perfectly manicured. It wasn't before, that's why you couldn't play then the way that they do now.
 

vokazu

Legend
Earth's rotation is slowing down, so every thing moves slower nowadays. The nights are longer and the days are longer too, wow.

 

RSJfan

Hall of Fame
No one is saying the game is slower but also faster. They’re saying the game is faster but also slower.

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Smecz

Professional
Higher mph off the racket; slowing as through mud in the air. A ball currently slows disproportionately, partly because of surfaces but, especially, because of reduced ball quality, creating time for big-swing, white-noise powerhitting, the sort of powerhitting which is frequently required to generate winners. If your particular game isn't optimised around generating that power on a high, heavy spinning ball from a semi-defensive position then at the moment you're in trouble.

Hence Jannik Sinner is #1; a position he deserves, but it's no coincidence that only a handful of guys appear able to do damage to him, let alone beat him.

As a second order effect, the sport-wide doping worries are not going to go away while conditions are so conducive to a heightened power-and-retrieval game: the physical strain required to bludgeon a ball becomes increasingly intense; the disproportionate number of balls that make it back into play and, even from a defensive position, need to be fed back with interest requires a more extreme physical profile for power/agility/stretch/endurance in compensation with technique; to create the time for a big swing, players stand back on high, slowing balls, opening up more extreme angles and drop shot opportunities, which elevates even more, alongside brute top-spin force, top speed; essentially, the game as it currently is dangles every slight physical shortcoming and quirk in front of each player and expects each to respond morally through every period of their career, never falling prey to the temptation of an illegal equaliser. At this point I'm waiting for the next high-profile doping scandal.
I know exactly what you're talking about, a perfect example here are tretorna balls, which I don't love...

Finishing them, especially on a clay surface is torture...

These are balls to play as many rallies as possible, when I see them I get goosebumps, shivers and I know that there will be horror on the court soon...:eek:

Tretorn has tried to create balls that are simply for defensive play and long rallies...
(Balls for Sisyphus, who likes to roll the Boulder)
 
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onehandbh

G.O.A.T.
A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).
Have you ever played on a red clay court?
 

Aretium

Hall of Fame
No one is saying court is slowed down today more than 10 years ago. It's actually getting a bit faster. But the balls have become heavier favoring power hitting.

A clay court ball comes much faster than on hard court but it's just because the opponent stands deep and gets more time to prepare the stroke and is using far more power today than someone in older gen (federer is closest older gen player to many of us but he was playing till 2021).


So game is getting faster but heavier. If you think it's just bro science then you must think top 5 players like zverev medvedev are just your average tennis bros and don't understand a thing about tennis despite being in top 5 for so long with medvedev actually being best player in the world for sometime.

Now choice is yours. Are these just your average tennis bros or not.
Im sorry but your logic is flawed, the balls being heavier does not favour power hitters, it favours flatter shots and consistent baseliners. The balls being heavy makes it hard to put the ball away. Some players are saying the ball is fast the first game or two but drastically changes so maybe that’s what is happening in regards to comments it’s faster.
 
Yep. Racket Tech did this.

Very powerfull and modern frames like Yamaha secret was there sińce late 80s but because of things like speed of the courts, balls, flat strokes and STRINGS they wasnt very suitable to high level game

Its circumstances like court and balls speed plus poły strings pushed players to use more powerfull frames Like right now many players are searching for more power because of slow balls
 
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socallefty

G.O.A.T.
The enhanced spin and control of poly has changed the game leading to modern swing types that generate even higher spin than the past. So, serves and shots started becoming higher pace and higher spin also helped by what anecdotally seems to be an increase in average height/reach of pro players. Better training techniques/diets seem to have helped even taller players be faster in their movement on average and maybe stronger anecdotally compared to the last century. The tennis authorities decided to react to the faster/taller/stronger players that had harder/heavier shots and serves in the early poly era by slowing down courts with a hope of having longer points.

As the pace of shots/serves has continued to go up necessitating faster movement to play defense and putting extreme physical burdens on the fitness of players, the tennis authorities are also trying to find a balance between court speeds and slower balls to slow down the game. There have been complaints of courts becoming too homogenized in terms of speed and so some hard court tournaments have faster surfaces than a decade or two ago, but they have resorted to slower balls to compensate.

The pace/spin of shots/serves and the movement of players is much higher on average on the ATP Tour compared to the pre-poly era - I've been going to pro tournaments regularly since the late Eighties and there is no debate in my mind about this and the stats bear that out also. In addition, 70% of points end within four shots (by the Return+1 shot) and the difference in this stat is not too great between slow clay and faster surfaces. The courts and now balls in many tournaments are however slower than they used to be in the pre-poly era, but not enough to slow down the pace of shots to slower than the pre-poly era. A few tournaments are faster in court speed than a decade ago, but they tend to use slower balls. When you have faster, indoor courts in the Fall, you barely have any breaks of serve on the ATP level and you end up with many tiebreaker sets. The tennis authorities don‘t want the tour to be like that for the entire year and they continue their efforts to have more breaks and longer points, but the players keep upping the ante in terms of how fast they serve.

Swing types in the poly era changed to swings with more of a vertical component to generate more spin. The faster speed of shots and quicker movement needed puts a premium on swings being high pace/high spin while being more compact. So, the linear, longer strokes of the past have been replaced at least on the ATP tour by more compact, more vertical swings with a premium on faster swing speed. This is why players racquet models are becoming lighter to facilitate fast swing speed while at the same time having thicker/stiffer beams to provide some stability/power compared to the past when thin beam, flexible frames also had extra mass for stability/power with linear swings. Modern frames seem to have bigger sweet spots and so hitting slightly off center with a lighter modern frame does not have the same negatives in terms of less depth, lower power as would happen with a small sweetspot, older frame which was light - so, some of the disadvantages of playing with a lighter frame in terms of stability are less than they used to be especially for advanced players.
 
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timnz

Legend
When I say the courts are slower I am comparing to the 1990's. Its sad to see the effects of this slowdown as it has elimated some aspects of the game.
 

nolefam_2024

Bionic Poster
When I say the courts are slower I am comparing to the 1990's. Its sad to see the effects of this slowdown as it has elimated some aspects of the game.
90s game is dominated by Sampras winning 13 slams. And his game is very divisive. Some do not like it at all.

I myself would not prefer that game returning to dominant position ever again. Serve and charge the net. Boring.
 

chjtennis

G.O.A.T.
When we talk about the conditions, we compare the current conditions to the conditions of pre-2000s. Court conditions used to vary so much back in the days that we used to have 'specialists' for different types of courts. Not so these days, the differences in speed and surface conditions have become much less. Players can slide more on grass, and the speed of what used to be super-fast courts are now slower, hence it has become easier for players to adapt to different surfaces, hence the term homogenization, and good players can do well on all surfaces. Probably that's one of the reasons why we had unprecedented domination by Big 4.
 

timnz

Legend
When we talk about the conditions, we compare the current conditions to the conditions of pre-2000s. Court conditions used to vary so much back in the days that we used to have 'specialists' for different types of courts. Not so these days, the differences in speed and surface conditions have become much less. Players can slide more on grass, and the speed of what used to be super-fast courts are now slower, hence it has become easier for players to adapt to different surfaces, hence the term homogenization, and good players can do well on all surfaces. Probably that's one of the reasons why we had unprecedented domination by Big 4.
Imagine Lendl on slow grass. He would have loved it!
 
Here’s a good clip relevant to this topic.

Well material sugest that "racket technology improved massively during the 90s" which isn't true. In the next sentence he sugest players like Goran and Pistol benefitted from this

And serve and volley still exist in pro tour Most of the players uses It as suprise tactics.I even seen Rublev doing that :D
 
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Gary Duane

Talk Tennis Guru
When you have faster, indoor courts in the Fall, you barely have any breaks of serve on the ATP level and you end up with many tiebreaker sets. The tennis authorities don‘t want the tour to be like that for the entire year and they continue their efforts to have more breaks and longer points, but the players keep upping the ante in terms of how fast they serve.
This is the best explanation I have seen on this site about why we are seeing what we are seeing.

Whether you like the modern racket technology or not, it is too late to put the genie back in the bottle. There is now an unprecedented advantage to a good server because of the increased spin on the second serve. That means that a great service can win more points even on the second serve, and that cuts down the number of return games players can win. So the only way to keep more and more sets from being decided in tiebreakers is to give returners more time to react. One of those ways is to make sure that there is a high bounce.

And that also explains why in modern tennis the two handed backhand is so effective. It allows the average pro player to handle those higher bounces better, and that allows them especially on the backhand to fire back shots that in previous decades would not even be possible. That's also why we see so little net play today. The balance of power in a rally has greatly shifted to the defender in a way that makes approaching the net to be suicide except when the receiver is way out of position.
 

vokazu

Legend
Tennis courts don't have speed nor velocity because they can't move like human can and they can't be moved like tennis balls.
 

ppma

Professional
Have you ever played on a red clay court?
Im sorry but your logic is flawed, the balls being heavier does not favour power hitters, it favours flatter shots and consistent baseliners. The balls being heavy makes it hard to put the ball away. Some players are saying the ball is fast the first game or two but drastically changes so maybe that’s what is happening in regards to comments it’s faster.

I dont understand the effort put in answering some posters here.
 

Smecz

Professional
This is the best explanation I have seen on this site about why we are seeing what we are seeing.

Whether you like the modern racket technology or not, it is too late to put the genie back in the bottle. There is now an unprecedented advantage to a good server because of the increased spin on the second serve. That means that a great service can win more points even on the second serve, and that cuts down the number of return games players can win. So the only way to keep more and more sets from being decided in tiebreakers is to give returners more time to react. One of those ways is to make sure that there is a high bounce.

And that also explains why in modern tennis the two handed backhand is so effective. It allows the average pro player to handle those higher bounces better, and that allows them especially on the backhand to fire back shots that in previous decades would not even be possible. That's also why we see so little net play today. The balance of power in a rally has greatly shifted to the defender in a way that makes approaching the net to be suicide except when the receiver is way out of position.
Good thoughts, I would add more:

Slower balls allow you go to the net before the opponent receives the ball on the racket, while a fast ball with a weak attack (without pressure etc.) makes it easier to counterattack, and regardless of whether the ball is fast or slow it has to be very precise to win the point...

Paradoxically, the harder it is to hit the ball hard, the more serve and volley (woods racquet) the easier it is to hit hard the less serve and volley.

And also the number of passing shots has increased with modern racquets, which makes tennis players afraid to go to the net, they know that they can be easily passed..
 

Gary Duane

Talk Tennis Guru
Slower balls allow you go to the net before the opponent receives the ball on the racket, while a fast ball with a weak attack (without pressure etc.) makes it easier to counterattack, and regardless of whether the ball is fast or slow it has to be very precise to win the point.
To me when we talk about precision we're talking about a combination of speed and placement. In today's tennis coming to the net means hitting a ball first that doesn't let the other guy attack it and that means getting him out of position. That is also much harder today.
And also the number of passing shots has increased with modern racquets, which makes tennis players afraid to go to the net, they know that they can be easily passed..
I think that the main factor. When players go to the net they not only face incredible speed but also so much spin. I won't believe any modern player can approach with anything like the regularity of former players, successfully, until I see it happen.
 

Mustard

Bionic Poster
Tennis today is "faster" in the sense that there's more power used. It's "slower" in the sense that there's a lot of topspin, thus you can hit with a lot of power but with plenty of margin for error.

The main reason is the poly strings. It enables players, with any given shot, to hit more topspin, thus they can use more power with a higher margin for error. And that is the main reason why baseline play is so dominant, and why serve and volley play is rare. For serve and volley play to start thriving, you need to make it harder for players to dictate rallies with power and authority without making errors, so that the chance of an error brings them to the net early to finish off the point.

With gut strings, more power meant a greater chance of making an error, while more spin meant a higher margin for error, but would mean less power. With any given shot using gut, the ball was flatter than with poly, meaning a higher chance of making an error with gut.
 

Smecz

Professional
To me when we talk about precision we're talking about a combination of speed and placement. In today's tennis coming to the net means hitting a ball first that doesn't let the other guy attack it and that means getting him out of position. That is also much harder today
Yes,today the attack before going to the net must be precise and sharp.!

However, in the times of wooden rackets, it was enough to play well and deeply and go to the net.
Wooden rackets forced the serve and volley game...

To me when we talk about precision we're talking about a combination of speed and placement. In today's tennis coming to the net means hitting a ball first that doesn't let the other guy attack it and that means getting him out of position. That is also much harder today.

I think that the main factor. When players go to the net they not only face incredible speed but also so much spin. I won't believe any modern player can approach with anything like the regularity of former players, successfully, until I see it happen.
It's better to play angle volley and smash from the air than to play lob or passing shot with a wooden racket...

It seems that only fast balls with a fast surface can save serve and volley and 1OB, because the defender has to have little time to react.!!!

However, with wooden rackets, even if you have time and still have a weak hit, it is still difficult to have a good passing shot...
 

Smecz

Professional
Tennis today is "faster" in the sense that there's more power used. It's "slower" in the sense that there's a lot of topspin, thus you can hit with a lot of power but with plenty of margin for error.

The main reason is the poly strings. It enables players, with any given shot, to hit more topspin, thus they can use more power with a higher margin for error. And that is the main reason why baseline play is so dominant, and why serve and volley play is rare. For serve and volley play to start thriving, you need to make it harder for players to dictate rallies with power and authority without making errors, so that the chance of an error brings them to the net early to finish off the point.

With gut strings, more power meant a greater chance of making an error, while more spin meant a higher margin for error, but would mean less power. With any given shot using gut, the ball was flatter than with poly, meaning a higher chance of making an error with gut.
Solid true,and slower balls don't help either...:(
 

bnt333

New User
I remember, in the early 2000, ITF decided to slow down the balls. At the same time old fast courts (like carpet, cement and wooden) were progressively replaced almost everywhere in my country (Italy). I was lucky to play again on 80s courts in the last 10 years when I moved to Spain: it is an amazing experience. Rackets wise a lot changed in the early 2000s with the introduction of Babolat Aero Pro Drive (first version) and Babolat Pure Drive (first version). Progressively good poly strings were introduced (more flexible, with better plow and less rounded). All these changes made the game more accessible for low level players and more competitive for high level players, however tennis now is lacking variety in court speed and ball types, the risk of seeing it as a super boring sport in the next few years is very high.
 

TTMR

Hall of Fame
Because most people here are morons and equate "faster" with "serve and volley".

In the real world, the game is far faster than it used to be due to improved nutrition/fitness, technique, and racquet and string tech. Average service speed, aces and service games won percentage across the ATP have gone up significantly over the decades and are now higher than they've ever been. If the game had been slowed down, the opposite trend would have occurred. The game is too fast nowadays for serve and volley. It's far safer to play behind the baseline where the ball is at its slowest and you have more reaction time.

The game isn't 'slower but faster', it's just faster.
 

Smecz

Professional
Because most people here are morons and equate "faster" with "serve and volley".

In the real world, the game is far faster than it used to be due to improved nutrition/fitness, technique, and racquet and string tech. Average service speed, aces and service games won percentage across the ATP have gone up significantly over the decades and are now higher than they've ever been. If the game had been slowed down, the opposite trend would have occurred. The game is too fast nowadays for serve and volley. It's far safer to play behind the baseline where the ball is at its slowest and you have more reaction time.

The game isn't 'slower but faster', it's just faster.
Maybe that's why Sinner and Swiatek weren't punished enough for doping, according to the development of tennis, since the body can't keep up...

If the game has really sped up so extremely, why do we see so much defense and rallies?!...(loose balls?)

Because it's easier to stay on the base line, since my body can't keep up anyway?!
 

TTMR

Hall of Fame
Maybe that's why Sinner and Swiatek weren't punished enough for doping, according to the development of tennis, since the body can't keep up...

If the game has really sped up so extremely, why do we see so much defense and rallies?!...(loose balls?)

Because it's easier to stay on the base line, since my body can't keep up anyway?!

I am not going to bother with googling this because you won't listen anyway. But a simple measure would be the radar speed of the average rally ball in 2025 vs in 2005 vs in 1985. Do you really believe that it's faster in 1985 compared to today? If so, you are truly hopeless.

What you are complaining about is strategy. But the reality of faster ball speed is this: If the serve is hit too hard, the return is hit too hard to volley effectively on. That is why the server stays back.

You complain about baseline rallies. Forehand and backhand winners from the baseline are now incredibly common. They used to be rare. They almost only happened in the form of a passing shot. It was incredibly hard to hit a winner from the baseline against a baseline opponent. If the game is slower now, it would be harder today to do that, not easier.

Playing from behind the baseline gives you the most safety in playing a point in a very fast paced game.
 

Smecz

Professional
I am not going to bother with googling this because you won't listen anyway. But a simple measure would be the radar speed of the average rally ball in 2025 vs in 2005 vs in 1985. Do you really believe that it's faster in 1985 compared to today? If so, you are truly hopeless.

What you are complaining about is strategy. But the reality of faster ball speed is this: If the serve is hit too hard, the return is hit too hard to volley effectively on. That is why the server stays back.

You complain about baseline rallies. Forehand and backhand winners from the baseline are now incredibly common. They used to be rare. They almost only happened in the form of a passing shot. It was incredibly hard to hit a winner from the baseline against a baseline opponent. If the game is slower now, it would be harder today to do that, not easier.

Playing from behind the baseline gives you the most safety in playing a point in a very fast paced game.
I agree with you, but there was a misunderstanding, I'm thinking about something else.

I am already translating:

The game has indeed sped up, but not as much as it seems at first glance...

Serve speed has increased, the number of winners has increased, the number of passing shots has increased, the number of aces has increased, etc....

But so that the game doesn't speed up too much, the ATP authorities have given slower balls and slower surfaces, and they have also removed the wood and carpet surfaces, for the spectators, so that they have a better spectacle.!!

And if we're talking about extremely fast tennis, we're talking about rallies: 1-5 or 5-12 (max), after 12 bounces and subsequent bounces the game slows down, and the rally is prolonged...(It's supposedly fast on the court, but the players play longer)

It's like driving a super fast car and driving from 150 km/h to 200 km/h on the track and not accelerating, just driving the same speed all the time, then you'll eventually get used to it.!

Fast tennis was played by Sampras, Edberg, Rafter, Ivanisevic, Federer,
that contemporary examples are Perricard.

For me, it is important how long the exchange lasts, after current tennis it is often a sinking on the end line, playing long rallies (because you can't go to the net after you can get a passing shot)
 
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