Taylor Fritz had a really good run at the Madrid Open, but it ended against Andrey Rublev, which left him quite disappointed.
Fritz was just one match away from the Madrid Open semi-final, and he was facing a player whom he had given a lot of problems in the past. Rublev lost more than once to him, and the conditions in Madrid certainly played to Fritz's liking.
Unfortunately for him, he didn't play on the courts he used to play on up until that point, and it impacted his play. La Caja Magica structure houses the three biggest courts at the ATP Masters 1000 event, and many players have noted that the outside courts play faster than the big ones.
Fritz played on the outside courts and got used to that speed, so playing on the main was a surprise to him, and it impacted his level. It was slower and quite slipper, according to Fritz.
"When I was playing on I guess Arantxa Sanchez [Vicario] and Stadium 3. I feel like, for sure, it's faster in there it's bouncing higher in there. Center court's definitely slower and it was pretty slippery as well."
Obviously, the conditions weren't the only reason why Fritz lost. Rublev played pretty well, but the American player certainly didn't play as well as he could have. He lamented the lack of serving excellence, which he had in previous matches as part of the problem against the Russian.
"I wish I would have served a lot better. I've been serving well all week, I didn't serve well and I just felt very, like I said, I felt like the court was, I know for a fact that there's not as much clay on Center than all the other courts."
He'll now try to keep the same level at the Italian Open in Rome next week. It certainly won't be as fast as it was in Madrid, but the American will try to deal with that.
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