What You Don't See on TV from Madrid
The altitude! The wind... the speed (or lack thereof) of the clay court. This is all true when watching tennis matches from other tournaments and on other surfaces as well. However, playing in high altitude at only 2100 feet in Madrid, can have a huge impact on the
flight of the tennis ball, even with special "high-altitude" tennis balls. The tennis ball simply flies! It bounces higher and moves through the air faster. As a result, it speeds up the play on the slow red clay and the ball feels more difficult to control. Players also get out of breath a little more easily after a tough rally.
The challenge for a tennis player when competing in altitude is to decide whether, and if so how (much), to alter his/her playing style, strokes and/or string tension to adjust to the faster and higher flight of the tennis ball. In a way, it's like adjusting to serving in the sun. Some players don't change anything while others shift their toss, etc. Tennis pros are experts at the game and very adaptable, but they are also very sensitive to slight changes. Therefore, it's always a tricky balance between adjusting too much or too little.
The challenge for a tennis player when competing in altitude is to decide whether, and if so how (much), to alter his/her playing style, strokes and/or string tension to adjust to the faster and higher flight of the tennis ball. In a way, it's like adjusting to serving in the sun. Some players don't change anything while others shift their toss, etc. Tennis pros are experts at the game and very adaptable, but they are also very sensitive to slight changes. Therefore, it's always a tricky balance between adjusting too much or too little.
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