Toni Nadal recommends “reducing the size of racquets”

In an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde on Monday, Toni Nadal suggested a series of measures he would recommend to the tennis authorities, prioritising the idea of ‘making the ball travel slower’.

“In tennis, the size of the net is immutable, whereas the average height of players on the circuit has risen from 1.75m in my time to 1.90m today, and they are also more powerful,” Toni said (translated). “I propose reducing the size of racquets. Because the very nature of the game has changed.

“Can you imagine a football match starting with a penalty kick? It would be a bit absurd. But that’s what happens in tennis, because serves are increasingly difficult to return (…) Faced with a player like Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who serves his second balls at 220 km/h, there’s no possible tactic other than to let the storm pass.”

Tennis, just like football

Toni wants tennis to take measures as strong as those taken by football in the 1990s, when rules-makers made it illegal for a goalkeeper to handle the ball after a pass back by a team-mate. He also believes that young players are now turning to padel, which is easier to master.

“When I watch a match today and someone asks me for tactical advice, I don’t know what to say other than ‘you have to hit harder’,” lamented Toni Nadal, speaking in an interview about French women’s tennis.

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