"ATP should change it, if not, every player's going to be injured" - Carlos Alcaraz on ATP tour using over 20 different tennis balls in a year
Carlos Alcaraz made his ATP Finals debut in Turin on Monday (November 14). While he was unable to get a win under his belt, the Spaniard is still in contention for a spot in the knock-out stages.
Addressing the media after the three-set loss to Alexander Zverev, Alcaraz spoke about a range of issues, including his recent injury troubles and the use of different balls for different tournaments on the ATP Tour.
Alcaraz claimed that a lot of players have injured themselves trying to adjust to new balls each week. He also suggested that the ATP needs to rethink its policy if it wishes to ensure players' well-being.
"I think if I hear well, we've played with 20 or 21 different balls, something like that, in a year," he said. "It's crazy. There are a lot of players that got injured because of that."
"If the ATP want the best players in every tournament, they should change it," he continued. "If not, every player's going to be injured because of that."
As possible solutions to the problem, Alcaraz said the ATP could consider playing the same swings - like the Australian Open swing, European clay and grass swings, and so on - with the same ball.
"Well, they should do something about it 'cause it's unbelievable that if we play three or four tournaments in a row, we play four tournaments with different balls," Carlos Alcaraz said. "This is amazing. They should do something about it."
"Every swing should play with the same ball," he continued. "For example, Australia, the tournaments in Australia, with the same ball, and then come to South America with the same ball, America with the same ball. Every swing should play with the same ball and not change in every tournament."
"The best walk-out that I've ever done" - Carlos Alcaraz on ATP Finals debut
Shifting his focus to his ATP Finals debut, Carlos Alcaraz said he had a great time out on the court despite not being able to get the win against an inspired Alexander Zverev.
Calling the overall experience "unbelievable," the Spaniard said he did not come into the tournament in the best of shape but was still happy to be competing for the year-end championships title.
"It is unbelievable. Honestly, the best walk-out that I've ever done," Carlos Alcaraz said. "It was an unbelievable experience for me to play my first match in the Masters, even if I lost."
"I would love to reach the Masters in a better shape, in a better feeling than I did today," he continued. "But the experience was unbelievable."
Alcaraz will next take on Andrey Rublev and Daniil Medvedev, the other two players in Group Red at this year's tournament.