henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
Obviously not realistic but an interesting thought...
How would pro tennis change (in anyway) if polyester strings were outlawed?
- Thread starter henrytennisadelaide
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henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
Would the adaptation all be in proportion? Would the top guys still have the same edge over #150 in the world? Would the next gen be exposed, showing how much their game relies on the technology they played with as a junior?
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
Agreed, their games are all well balanced, none completely rely on poly to succeed. Rafa is probably the closest to being reliant.
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
not necessarily.
with more diversity in surfaces, a tad faster balls, and without poly, big 3 might have been history since a few years now. or not.
ron schaap
Hall of Fame
Its more realistic to outlaw gut strings and the top multis because they are all to expensive for ordinary players without deep pockets and furthermore they are less durable than a lot of poly strings.
In future when man is going to eat less meat because of climate change and because of reducing risk of transmitted diseases like corona, sars etc there will be less gut too.
In future when man is going to eat less meat because of climate change and because of reducing risk of transmitted diseases like corona, sars etc there will be less gut too.
"Ordinary players" who pay someone to string their racquets should all be playing with multi (or gut) that is kind on their body for 50 or 60 hours until it breaks, rather than using fresh poly for 10 hours or durable but dead poly for 100.
ron schaap
Hall of Fame
I remember a freshly gut stringjob in a closed stringpatterned wooden racquet already snapped within 2 hours of play in dry weather and i wasnt a player hit particular hard. So gut is not at all durable. Why do you think Borg took some 100 racquets to tournaments? Because the gut strings of some of his racquets already snappedin his hotel room without even playing. Soft multis notch much faster than stiffer poly, so that s less durable in my opinion.
LOL .. I play with gut, but I don't string it at over 80lbs like Borg did. His racquets were actually reinforced so the string tension didn't break them.
Of course multi notches faster than poly, but durability and playability are not the same thing.
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
Tennis did this to itself. They made the courts so slow that you almost need poly at that level for spin. If they sped up the courts to where you’d actually benefit from attacking and couldn’t play the “I bet I make less errors” game. You’d see more people move away from poly. On super fast surfaces poly wouldn’t be king any longer.
Yes, but in a discussion about what "ordinary players" should put in their racquets, he used the example of a goat who strung his racquets at 90lbs 40 years ago.
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
If we were killing less animals for meat doesn't that mean that there would be more live animals, hence the possibility for more gut?
Al Czervik
Hall of Fame
Rafa would have had a Thomas Muster type career.
no
because many of those animals are farmed.
they are only farmed as long as there is demand.
if say, tomorrow the demand for meat shrinks by 50%, do you think there will be same amount of farms, growing same number of animals?
if yes, can you try and imagine their cashflow, keeping 100% of costs, but capturing only 50% of income?
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
Also, If polyester was banned a true all court game would return, you know... tennis.
California
Semi-Pro
All court tennis would return if you combined the banning of poly with the speeding up of the courts. I think you need the increase of court speeds as well to really see the all court game return, banning poly alone won't do it.
I also think gut and multis last much longer than many people give them credit for... yes, 17g and thinner can be a problem, but the others last reasonable well. There are a lot of factors to consider, how often do you play? What racquet do you use? How much spin do you hit with? Etc...
I also think gut and multis last much longer than many people give them credit for... yes, 17g and thinner can be a problem, but the others last reasonable well. There are a lot of factors to consider, how often do you play? What racquet do you use? How much spin do you hit with? Etc...
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
Would people on this forum rather see court speed sped up at pro tourneys (universally) or the removal of all polyester strings?
JackSockIsTheBest
Professional
hahaha, i have no damn clue what anyone is really talking about and i use hyper g 19g at 52 lbs in my 2019 pure aeros so yeah i would die
JackSockIsTheBest
Professional
i use 19g hyper g 52 lbs in 2019 pure aeros
Neither.
I'd like to see variety of court speed and bounce. A third fast and low, a third slow and high and a third in between.
As for equipment, just limit string stiffness and racquet head size.
PMChambers
Hall of Fame
Limiting ATP to Gut only would be great, but make the game look slower. Can't see it happening, I don't see many changes happening any more. Things have stabilised since early 2000s. Poly string of choice, 95-100 racquet head size best suited to poly, BO3 masters finals, carpet gone, little to no surface changes, etc. Only changes in last 15 years are 5th set in Majors. More stadium / semi indoor Tourneys.
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
We can hope. The NCAA went to BBCOR bats because they decided composite bats are just ridiculously unfair for that level (not to mention unsafe but that’s not the point). Bottom line, if the ATP ever believes poly is taking away from the game they will do something about it. I can see a limit in racquet tech before poly. All it takes is x amount of people getting hurt (serves to face, forehands to the face at the net, etc) for there to be a change.
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
I do not think physical harm would result in a change because on a pro level, players have lightning fast hands so can get either frame or string between them and the ball.
A bit of an ignorant comment but does anyone see too much more room for advancement in racquet/string technology over the next 5 or so years. I suppose the Clash and LXN Smart were the closest we've been but neither are all that popular/revolutionary.
I do think the next generation of Clash-like racquets are going to make the situation even worse. I have a Clash 100 and although I haven't used it in months, must admit that I've never used a racquet that is both so light yet so stable.
What I see down the track is even lighter and more stable tweeners. That just equates to more baseline play and less variety, if that is even possible.
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
They do have fast hands but fast can only get you so far. It depends on and who had the harm. Think of the Posey rule in baseball. For over 100 years it was fine but all it took was for one superstar to get hurt before there was a change. If Novak or Rafa (people who draw big crowds on name alone) got seriously injured directly related to tech I bet they would take a look at it. I also believe less people come to net because of the potential injury. Tennis ball or not anything 100mph is going to hurt.
LOL .. do you mean at a professional level?
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
Mostly although it probably occurs at all levels, especially lower level mixed doubles. I’m obviously speculating but with the wrong volley you might get a little squeamish thinking your opponent might go after you.
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
Not so sure....
I doubt any player in the history of tennis has been more dangerous in this sense than Lendl was. McEnroe never took a backward step and he was followed by Edberg, Cash, Becker, Sampras and Rafter. Fear didn't drive pro players from the net, slow courts and poly did.
Maverick13
Semi-Pro
I don’t think Lendl was hitting 100mph groundstrokes either. But either way fear doubtfully plays a roll. I’m just saying if a big name player got seriously injured directly relating to what technology has changed the game into they could possibly revisit what’s permitted.
The rule would have to be written carefully to match the goal behind the ban. OP specifying a ban of all monofilaments, just polyester monofilaments, or polyester monofilaments and polyester multifilaments?
Polyester strings were used before Kuerten, but it was after his success that loads of other players also began using them. Still think they’re worth banning?
Polyester strings were used before Kuerten, but it was after his success that loads of other players also began using them. Still think they’re worth banning?
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
it sucks that there isn’t quite as much variety of surfaces
3 of the 4 majors used to be on grass. Now grass is barely a thing, and the AELTC changing their grass in 2001...
there are plenty of big clay-court tournies leading up to the French
even the indoor part of the calendar is not bad
3 of the 4 majors used to be on grass. Now grass is barely a thing, and the AELTC changing their grass in 2001...
there are plenty of big clay-court tournies leading up to the French
even the indoor part of the calendar is not bad
henrytennisadelaide
Semi-Pro
The ITF used to update rules frequently to ensure that the sport didn't get ruined by equipment. They banned spaghetti stringing and limited string savers to ensure they didn't become "ball grippers", so as to ensure the game wasn't ruined by "undue spin" (that's the term that was used in the rules).
When the ATP basically took over top level of men's tennis, the ITF stopped being in charge and the ATP just let the sport devolve into the baseline bashing mess it is today.
That's pretty common knowledge. Not only are the balls bigger when new, but they quickly fluff up to be simply enormous.
I hadn’t known that the balls that Wilson makes for the men’s draw at the US open and the women’s draw are different
just learned that they make the balls differently, heavier felt to slow the men’s game down, lighted felt to speed the women’s game up
then what do they use for mixed doubles?
just learned that they make the balls differently, heavier felt to slow the men’s game down, lighted felt to speed the women’s game up
then what do they use for mixed doubles?
jmacdaununder2
Legend
Women's balls are used for mixed dubs.
Bobby Jr
G.O.A.T.
What? When at the net a shot hit from the baseline virtually never hits a net player in singles. A net player would have to be rudely slow to get hit by a shot from the baseline. There's just way too much time to get a racquet out in front. The times you see guys getting hit are when a net guy is caught on a sitter where their opponent runs way into the court to hit the ball. Even then it's rare for someone to get hit.
Bobby Jr
G.O.A.T.
For some players a lot more than others. Federer/Djokovic could change from gut/poly to guy/kevlar or gut/really stiff syn gut and find the right balance pretty quickly I think. Full poly players like Nadal and Thiem would see a bigger struggle to adjust to a no-poly game.
If they would ban poly on the basis of anything above a certain stiffness wouldn’t it make sense to ban aramid too?
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