Following his straight-sets victory over Lithuanian wild-card Vilius Gaubas at the Italian Open, Alexander Zverev raised eyebrows by questioning the quality of the tennis balls used at the tournament. The German star, who is a former finalist in Rome, didn’t hold back when discussing the noticeable differences he’s felt compared to other clay-court events this season.
“The balls are much slower this year. I don’t know what they’ve done new with the balls,” said Zverev in his post-match press conference. “Obviously, we’ve been playing with Dunlop balls all clay season. In Monte Carlo, Monaco and Madrid we played with extremely fast balls, and it was very, very big. I came here and things are different.”
While Dunlop as a brand has remained consistent across all major clay events, Zverev insists the ball in Rome feels significantly slower — so much so that he has had to adjust his racket’s tension settings to compensate.
“I’m stringing my racket about three kilos less than anywhere else during the clay season,” he revealed. “That’s what makes the court slower. I think the big difference compared to last year is the ball,” he added.
Zverev’s voices a growing concern among players over the lack of uniformity in balls across the ATP calendar. While court surfaces and climates naturally introduce variations, Zverev says the change in ball dynamics is more disruptive.
“It’s very strange,” Zverev said. “I don’t know what to say, because it’s the same company. They try to tell us it’s the same ball, but there’s no way in the world that it is.”
For a sport where precision and feel are paramount, even small inconsistencies can significantly impact performance. Zverev’s frustrations yet again reignite the debate that ATP should consider using the same balls throughout the calendar year.
