is the surface slower at IW than at Miami
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yes it is
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Depends on where the dirtballers have better results, obviously
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Miami has always been the epitome of a slow hardcourt I think
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It's different. in IW it's the desert so the ball flies a bit, but the surface looks so slow, especially in person. in Miami, the bounce is higher but I think it skids a little more. Several players describe IW as "sandpaper" so the ball kind of dies a bit where as Miami it just bounces high. I do think IW is a bit slower though, but Miami has the higher bounce :shrug:
Haha, so true, :yeah::yeah:
No need for sarcasm.
In fact, it doesn't matter that much how slow it is. It's medium fast anyway. But what really matters is that it catches topspin very well, so matches turn into over-the-shoulder topspin contests. And that's something in what Rafa has a chance against anyone, as it's similar to how his game looks on clay. Wear them down with heavy topspin high-flying balls - while retrieving all but the very best offensive strokes, using his amazing movement speed.
One just needs to check out those nice graphics provided by hawkeye, the one about a typical trajectory of forehand shots made by Rafa as opposed to those made by anyone else. Rafa's bounce a good meter above anyone else's and kick really hard. If the surface is quick enough, that'd be suicide as it would allow any half-decent striker to hit it downward with full force and literally blow him off. But if it's slow enough for Rafa to be able to chase down most of those attempts of winning a point outright, eventually people sort of lose patience and start making ridiculous errors. Like Tsonga the other day (didn't watch Blake so I can't comment on that).
This is not to say that Rafa is never aggressive. In fact, it's an integral part of this strategy: when the victim already shows signs of losing spirit, then he mounts a suprise series of attacks to completely shatter their confidence. But if he attacked all the time, surely he'd also make heaps of UEs just like his opponents.
bravo. that was (Nadal) the reason of creating such threads
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:yeah::yeah:
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No, Miami is slower.
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I really don't think so. It's a slow HC IMO. And I really do think it's slower than Miami. The thing with IW is that the surface is gritty so as you said, it takes spins really well. Miami skids a bit more but :shrug:
Q. You know Charlie thinks that these courts really suit you here at this tournament. He also thinks you maybe haven't played your best at this tournament even though you've had good results. What you are your thoughts about this tournament? Does it suit you?
ANDY RODDICK: I don't know if it suits me per se. I mean, it's really slow and kind of very high bouncing.
I don't think it's surprising that Nadal won this last year. But it's -- I mean, it's all right. He's probably right with saying I've played okay but probably not my best here. So I probably would agree with most of what he said.
Q. These courts are allegedly pretty slow, though. It's not easy to play and attack every return, right?
MARDY FISH: Well, they are slow. They are a slow hardcourt. It's, you know, not ideal. I think it's a little bit slower than Australia, and Australia is a little bit faster than these, you know. But I was able to play well down there, played a few good matches down there, too.
I think again, like I say, you know, if I stay aggressive and I stay on top of my game plan and play well at the same time, I feel like I can really play well and beat some great players.
Q. Do you like this court here? Generally you like a little slicker fast court.
JAMES BLAKE: For some reason seems like I've played well on this one. Maybe because of the altitude. The ball flies a little more so it still feels like it's a little quicker. I also feel like I have time when the ball is being gripped by the court.
I don't know what it. Is I'm terrible explaining things. Mardy was just asking me before the match which I think was slower, this or Australia, and his opinion was completely different than mine. I think I'm generally wrong in those things. I was just saying in the locker room I think I'll make a terrible coach. I'll just stick to playing.
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Considering youre right about the surface in IW, id agree with u.
And if u didnt see the match, Blake did make some stupid errrs when he got impatient just like Tsonga but the 3rd set was much better frm both. I guess Blake and Tsonga are so used to finishing off points from 1 winner but that wasnt the case yesterday.
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From what I remember players saying from previous years, the court speed is the same. The difference, of course, is the climate. The air in Miami is humid and makes the balls heavier. Air in the desert is bone dry so balls fly a little more.
I think the IW surface is grittier than Miami as well.
I think the IW surface is grittier than Miami as well.
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Justin Gimmelstob said that he practiced on it the other day. he said it is faster than the surface at the Australian Open. it is not as fast as the surface at the U.S. Open and the one in Cincy.
i did hear that iw is slower than miami and also that again humidity plays a major factor. the blow stays very low in the humidity and you can put the ball alway much better where as the dry desert the ball will fly. so nadal will not fair well in miami in those conditions.
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Low humidity, altitude, and heat causes the ball to jump up more with speed. It is also harder to pull off low percentage shots. Miami is humid and cool which cause it to be slower but also the ball stays lower. Much more in the comfort level of flat hitters than players who use a lot of spin. Miami though is also rough on big servers as they won't get as many free points.
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But being faster than the AO (and obviously other players have disagreed, as I pasted) doesn't make it faster than Miami. For me it's slower, but they're different because of the desert atmosphere compared to Miami in the humid sea level. But for me the ball seems to come off the court more slowly at IW than Miami :shrug: It's a matter of opinion, I think the difference is probably pretty small except that it's just different so obviously, some players will prefer one over the other - for example Andy quite clearly prefers Miami's surface to IW for whatever reason or another. Who knows :shrug:
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They're both the slowest HC tournaments on the ATP tour that anyone actually cares about.
The actual surface in Miami might be a tad faster, but the ball travels fasters in IW through the air... so it evens out.
The actual surface in Miami might be a tad faster, but the ball travels fasters in IW through the air... so it evens out.
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