World No. 1 calls for fewer hardcourt tournaments

MELBOURNE: Rafa Nadal has marked his breakthrough victory at the Australian Open by calling for a reduction in the number of hardcourt tournaments to save top players from injuries and burnout.

Despite having just claimed his first grand slam title on a hardcourt, the world No. 1 said there were too many tournaments played on the surface.

“Hardcourt surface is tougher than grass or clay for the body, and all the time we are playing more on this surface,” the Spaniard told reporters yesterday. “In my humble opinion, we have to change that a bit more.”

More than half the season is played on hardcourt, including indoor carpet, while a month is played on grass and the rest on clay.

Nadal has made no secret of his preference for clay after winning the French Open four times and had previously been reluctant to criticise hardcourts because of his failure to win a Grand slam title on them.

“I can say that (now) because I’ve won a grand slam on hardcourt,” he said, referring to his stunning five-set victory over Roger Federer in Sunday’s Australian Open final. “Before, if I said that, a lot of people would think ‘he (just) wants to change because he’s a clay player’. — Reuters