Much has been said about the heaviness of the balls used at the US Open, and Jessica Pegula called for prioritizing player's health above anything else.
Tennis is a sport, but it's also a business, and any business looks to maximize profits first. Everything else comes second, including athletes who sometimes suffer because of that strategy. The late starting times of matches are just one way the events prioritise profits instead of athletes' health.
Nobody likes to work late, let alone chase a tennis ball, but there are generally bigger crowds later, which is exactly why the US Open doubled down on their late starts before the event. Another thing is the tennis balls, which are quite heavy compared to previous years.
The design of the balls was supposed to counter the growing shift to an attacking style of tennis resulting in short rallies. Short rallies are great for players and their bodies but bad for business which is why we have these balls.
They make it harder for players to hit winners but also contribute to the growing number of injuries. Many players talked about it, and Jessica Pegula shared her thoughts following her most recent match.
I think obviously the players' health is the most important. That's definitely something we're going to look at. Yeah, it's hard when you're trialing and you only have a couple weeks. That's not a lot of time for people to adapt and get used to.
As a WTA council member, Pegula is privy to information most people don't know, and they're looking at the situation this year. It's a Tour-wide inquiry asking all the players what they think of it, though we know what most think.
Yeah, it's something we're going to have to look at. Not just us, but we look at everybody. I think we did a survey for the whole tour. It's not like we're just making that decision. It's based off of what the players are leaning towards Player health is probably the main priority there.
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