The reason for the long matches at the Australian Open? Novak Djokovic is clear! He’s agreed with Rafael Nadal

The Australian Open 2023 brings everyday stories on and off the court. But few could have guessed before the tournament that one of the most controversial topics of the opening Grand Slam would be the (in)quality of the balls. The tournament favourites, led by Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, agree on one thing: this year’s batch will shuffle the cards.

Choosing the right type of tennis balls. A matter that the vast majority of amateur players have never given much thought to. But every surface requires specific characteristics.

On a hard surface, players primarily need the ball to have sufficient endurance and a significant bounce after contact with the pad. But in both of these requirements, by all accounts, this year’s batch for Australian concrete falls short.

Dunlop, named after the former Australian tennis player, has been awarded a five-year contract to produce tennis balls for the opening chapter of the 2019 season. Until this year, the collaboration had been outwardly trouble-free.

However, everything suddenly changed before the start of this year’s Australian Open. “The balls are not of the right quality, I have no doubt about that. They lose pressure after a few strokes and you can’t give them maximum spin,” said Rafael Nadal, who lost both of his preliminary matches in the United Cup, about the manufacturers.

“Rafa needs them to jump as high as possible. He adds significant top spin, however you won’t find balls that don’t play up over time,” responded home favourite John Millman, not seeing the situation nearly as serious.

However, Nadal’s season opener didn’t go well as he departed after the second round. We can only guess how much the balls were responsible for that.

“They are different than last year. The longer we play, the more the exchanges get longer. I watch Popyrin’s game, he plays for four hours. Ruud again three and a half, we will see more of these long matches this year than in previous years,” Novak Djokovic joined his old rival’s opinion. He adds, however, that he has to adapt to the balls, and the conditions are identical for all of them.

The manufacturer itself has not officially commented on the criticism of several leading players. Tennis players are said to be assured of the quality and adherence to the standard of years past. Either way, Dunlop has not really created a comfortable bargaining position to extend the contract for further years.

The question is simple. How will this year’s apparently different balls affect the overall outcome of the tournament? Experts agree on one thing, the advantage goes to players with so-called “flat strokes”.

Tennis players such as the home team’s Alex De Minaur and Sebastian Korda can benefit from their strokes without much rotation. Indeed, both of these youngsters have so far passed through the spider without much trouble and are already in the eighth round.

Source: Wide World Of Sports, ESPN