Not only do I hope they keep the blue clay in Madrid, but make all clay blue.
- Thread starter BreakPoint
- Start date
cc0509
Talk Tennis Guru
LOL.................
ChanceEncounter
Professional
Yes, we should all go back to the days of watching tennis matches in black and white, on grainy 9 inch TVs. I mean, they did it in the old days!
I'm glad you like to brag about your perfect vision, but it doesn't matter that you or I can see the ball fine. If a significant portion of your audience is having trouble, then as a TO, you should be thinking of ways to make it better. I applaud Tiriac and his inventiveness and willingness to make the viewing experience more enjoyable. It's not perfect, obviously, but he's at least making strides to help and promote the sport.
Moose Malloy
G.O.A.T.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
You may have a color sensitivity to the color. Do you have difficulty with full spectrum lighting or light with a bluish tinge? How about bright natural lighting? You may be in the minority on this.
I find the red clay color to be very taxing on my eyes. In fact, I find it down right annoying. Perhaps is partially due to the lack of contrast with a yellow ball. I also happen to be somewhat sensitive to the yellow/orange part of the spectrum.
Blue appears to be the future of tennis courts. The AO, USO and the USO series are all played on blue courts.Many (hard) courts in my area have been switching to blue in the past couple of years.
ITF currently mandates that the fabric color of tennis balls must be white or yellow. Premium (tournament) balls have become significantly brighter since the 90s. It might be difficult to make them any brighter.
http://www.itftennis.com/technical/rules/equipment/appendixi.asp
Current optic yellow balls are greenish-yellow. They could be changed to a different "yellow" and still comply with the rules of tennis. My vote would be for an orange-yellow color for green (or blue) courts. Optic orange balls stand out quite well on a green court. However they are not legal for play for most tournament (while an orangish-yellow should be ok) . Note that orange is one of the official colors for table tennis balls (the other official color is white). Don't see why tennis cannot adopt a third color.
Neither orange or orange-yellow would work well for red clay. Some other solution is needed for clay. Blue clay seems to be a good solution. I may be wrong but I believe that blue tennis balls might be more difficult to track (even against a red clay background). I believe that the human eye might do better with a green ball against a red background.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Acuity has very little to do with color discrimination. Visual tracking is also different from acuity. 20/15 vision really says nothing about smooth pursuit and saccadic tracking abilities.
Also, the modern Slazenger Wimbledon ball is probably the brightest ball on the planet. It may also have less green than most greenish-yellow tennis balls. To my eyes, the Dunlop Grand Prix ball is the next brightest.
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BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
I'm watching the Madrid highlight show on Tennis Channel right now and the difference in visibility of the moving ball on the blue clay versus the red clay during the Nadal-Ferrer Rome semi that I just watched earlier is DRAMATIC! It was so hard to track the ball during the Nadal match on red clay and so easy to track the ball on blue clay in the Madrid matches. This was essentially a side-by-side comparison and blue clay wins hands down!
cork_screw
Hall of Fame
I love the blue color. But also, I would just love to see a different variation of a clay surface, preferably one that's faster.
When the clay season rolls around, all the tournies whether 500/1000 all seem to mirror each other. There's no difference and it creates a monotonous viewing experience. I get sick of the clay season, it seems that whether you're watching rome or monte carlo or barcelona, they're all the same.
Madrid this year stood out, it felt refreshing to see something much different. If anything, they should keep the color but maybe put an additive or tweak the formulae to make it more manageable. It doesn't have to be one or the other whether you have it or not, you can maybe add some type of loose grit to make it gain more traction and experiment. I don't know why people are treating it like it's either or nothing.
When the clay season rolls around, all the tournies whether 500/1000 all seem to mirror each other. There's no difference and it creates a monotonous viewing experience. I get sick of the clay season, it seems that whether you're watching rome or monte carlo or barcelona, they're all the same.
Madrid this year stood out, it felt refreshing to see something much different. If anything, they should keep the color but maybe put an additive or tweak the formulae to make it more manageable. It doesn't have to be one or the other whether you have it or not, you can maybe add some type of loose grit to make it gain more traction and experiment. I don't know why people are treating it like it's either or nothing.
1
1970CRBase
Guest
It isn't just the surface that decides how fast the game is played, it is also the racquet and string tech and what balls they decide to use. Don't talk about "tradition" and "real" clay, today's clay court game is not like the 70's or 80's super slow clay court game, it is medium slowish.
10is
Professional
I don't quite understand this "blue" clay business -- it's clay regardless; by that line of reasoning we should also be distinguishing between the various subtypes of hardcourts and their varied colors and contesting the legitimacy of a certain type of hard surface (with a certain type of color) being called a "hardcourt".
tlm
G.O.A.T.
Exactly right.
kragster
Hall of Fame
Blue is a pretty cool color for clay but I don't agree with any tennis surface having less than perfect footing. Yes MC also needs to be fixed from what we saw this time. The blue is nice to see on the TV, if they can keep the color and improve traction then we have a winner.
stormholloway
Legend
What's funny is that you're absolutely okay with being absolutely wrong. A yellow ball on a deep blue surface is scientifically demonstrably more clear to a viewer than a yellow ball on a traditional red clay surface. There is simply a higher color contrast.
During bright day matches in Rome, the coverage on Tennis Channel made it relatively much more difficult to track the ball.
It's one thing if you want to argue for tradition but don't try to pretend there is any scientific basis for what you're saying. You'll just look foolish and stubborn.
This has nothing to do with the color of the clay. The tournament in Rome is very old and very traditionally Roman. Madrid is a new blood tournament.
I guess we'll just assume you've been to both tournaments, right?
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
Yes, because both Djokovic and Nadal proved that in Madrid......uh....oops.....they were both clueless and couldn't adapt on blue clay and lost early, didn't they?
drakulie
Talk Tennis Guru
Didn't realize that less is more.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
Whatever. Federer is the only guy who can play on anything......blue clay, carpet, wood, ice, gravel, brick, sand, - you name it.
1
1970CRBase
Guest
Whatever. Federer is the only guy who can play on anything......blue clay, carpet, wood, ice, gravel, brick, sand, - you name it.
Hence such fierce resistance by the boys. They fear where one change, intentional or not, just might lead.
FlashFlare11
Hall of Fame
Well, depending on the result tomorrow, Djokovic and Nadal may not be at the top. As of right now, Federer and Djokovic are top two. That may not change.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
But he still has the best overall W-L record this year.
tlm
G.O.A.T.
Ya right he has the best game but he can no longer win a major, this makes a lot of sense. It really looked like he had the best game today against joker. Well i guess it makes sense if you are a ******* that lives in la la land.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
The best movie doesn't always win an Oscar.
The best TV show doesn't always win an Emmy.
The best book doesn't always win a Pulitzer.
The best song doesn't always win a Grammy.
The best scientist doesn't always win a Nobel Prize.
Likewise, the best game doesn't always win a major. Winning a major is not the only thing that determines "the best game".
FlashFlare11
Hall of Fame
Well, when you already have the most majors...
mellowyellow
Legend
Some of Fed's loses were somewhat out of his control. Players he usually beats playing out of their comfort zone. Like Tsnonga, Berdych, Arod... I really think the Berdych and Tsonga matches would have went that way for Nadal too, Djoko would maybe have toughed them out but but even skeptical of that. If it was not for those draws and performances Fed may have been No.2 already especially if he would play Monte Carlo. That is a 500 point hole right from the get go if he wins the extra 500 to replace it!
mellowyellow
Legend
No it seems to be the best draw. Good points.
beast of mallorca
G.O.A.T.
mellowyellow;6550135 If it was not for those draws and performances Fed may have been No.2 already especially if he would play Monte Carlo. That is a 500 point hole right from the get go if he wins the extra 500 to replace it
Sentinel
Bionic Poster
Reminds me of ...
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
1
1970CRBase
Guest
A game that can easily adapt to playing on blue clay.
especially, significantly, when everybody was unprepared for this surface and the way it turned out to play.
Like a surprise test.
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
Ok, so Fed ONLY made it to the SF at the 2012 AO and, at this point, he has the best W-L match record for the year. And currently #2 on the planet. How does this make him an increasingly distant 3rd?
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1
1970CRBase
Guest
have ppl really forgotten? the clay game of the 70's and 80's was slow as in SUPER slow, today it is medium slowish, it's not just the surface it is also the tech that was the game changer as to how the clay game as a whole played.
Lets have a new experiment : the next Madrid tournament, Tiriac suddenly announces just before the first match that ALL the players will be playing with a mandatory wooden Jack Kramer/Maxply strung with old strings. No more babolatian madness. The players will be provided with their racquets before the beginning of each match....
Lets have a new experiment : the next Madrid tournament, Tiriac suddenly announces just before the first match that ALL the players will be playing with a mandatory wooden Jack Kramer/Maxply strung with old strings. No more babolatian madness. The players will be provided with their racquets before the beginning of each match....
darrinbaker00
Professional
Lets have a new experiment : the next Madrid tournament, Tiriac suddenly announces just before the first match that ALL the players will be playing with a mandatory wooden Jack Kramer/Maxply strung with old strings. No more babolatian madness. The players will be provided with their racquets before the beginning of each match....
One small problem: only players who are sponsored by Wilson or Dunlop could play.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
The wood racquets will be painted all black so any pro sponsored by any company can play. Just put a sticker with the sponsor's name on the racquet and its logo on the strings.
tlm
G.O.A.T.
A game that can easily adapt to playing on blue clay.
To bad the majors are not played on blue clay, because he does not seem to be able to adapt to those surfaces any longer.
tlm
G.O.A.T.
So this means what? Fed has the best ability but cannot execute it anymore? Wow what a waste he has the most ability but can't out play joker or nadal any longer when it counts at the majors. Ya okay this makes a lot of sense i guess to somebody.
1
1970CRBase
Guest
The wood racquets will be painted all black so any pro sponsored by any company can play. Just put a sticker with the sponsor's name on the racquet and its logo on the strings.
one game with those we shall hear from the traditionalists that they want to go back to REAL tennis racquets.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
darrinbaker00
Professional
The wood racquets will be painted all black so any pro sponsored by any company can play. Just put a sticker with the sponsor's name on the racquet and its logo on the strings.
Works for me. As Capt. Jean-Luc Picard would say, "Make it so!"
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
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