Tennis Rivalry, from Clay to Grass

Transitioning from clay courts to grass courts presents a difficult challenge, if not the most challenging one, in professional tennis competition.

After participating in the clay court tournament since April, with the French Open Grand Slam from May 25 to June 8 as the highlight, professional tennis players are moving to another country in Europe, particularly England. They have a maximum preparation time of three weeks to adjust before competing at Wimbledon, from June 30 to July 13.

In the first week following the conclusion of the 2025 French Open, which crowned Cori "Cori" Gauff as the women's singles champion and Carlos Alcaraz as the men's singles champion, grass court tournaments on the ATP/WTA Tour calendar were immediately held. Four tournaments at the ATP/WTA 250 and WTA 500 levels took place in the Netherlands, Germany, and England, from June 9 to June 15.

Not many top ten ranked tennis players are participating. In the women's category, only the fifth-ranked player, Zheng Qing Wen, and Madison Keys (8) are competing in the WTA 500 London. Meanwhile, in the men's singles, the third-ranked player, Alexander Zverev, and Taylor Fritz (7) are the top two seeds in the ATP 250 Stuttgart tournament.

Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and most of the top female tennis players will utilize the tournament from June 16 to 22 as preparation for Wimbledon 2025. Alcaraz will compete in the ATP 500 London, an event known as the Queen’s Club tournament. The Spanish player was the champion at Queen’s Club in 2023 but was eliminated in the second round in 2024.

Sinner chose to compete in Germany at the ATP 500 Halle tournament to compete against Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and the 17-year-old tennis player from Brazil, Joao Fonseca.

The stars of women's tennis, such as Coco, Aryna Sabalenka, and Mirra Andreeva, will compete in the WTA 500 Berlin. Except for Iga Swiatek, nine out of the ten best women's singles players will be playing in Berlin.

With only a three-week gap between the French Open and Wimbledon, tennis players have no time to rest between the two Grand Slams. The time to prepare for Wimbledon is also very limited.

Tennis players must be able to maintain focus in often short exchanges of shots. A moment of lapse in concentration can turn the tables. - Judy Murray -

However, there is no choice for them but to continue competing even though the French Open has drained their physical and mental strength over the past two weeks. Three weeks is the shortest break between two Grand Slams compared to the Australian Open and the French Open (four months) as well as Wimbledon and the US Open (six weeks).

Moreover, the French Open and Wimbledon are held on courts with extreme differences, with the French Open taking place on clay courts while Wimbledon is held on grass courts.

Both are natural courts. The court at Roland Garros in Paris is covered with terracotta bricks on top, while the court at the All England Club in London is covered with ryegrass cut to a height of eight millimeters.

However, the two types of courts have contrasting characteristics. Clay courts reflect the ball high and slow compared to hard courts, which are the most common type. In contrast, grass courts reflect the ball quickly and low. The bounce of the ball on grass courts is even the fastest.

The extreme difference with such a short break poses a significant challenge for tennis players. In 2014 and prior years, the gap between the French Open and Wimbledon was even just two weeks. Therefore, players who were eliminated early in the French Open did not waste much time in quickly moving to the country hosting the grass court tournament.

German tennis player, Jan Lennard Struff, immediately moved to Stuttgart, Germany, after being eliminated in the first round of the French Open. "I always prepare early for grass court tournaments because I have to make many adjustments," said Struff, who lost to Jiri Lehecka in the second round in Stuttgart, Thursday (12/6/2025).

With an uneven surface and a tendency to be damp when first used, the grass field reflects the ball in unpredictable directions. The ball's bounce sometimes does not head forward but rather rebounds backward or to the side. This factor, according to Struff, must be anticipated with immediate adjustments.

"My movement is different from that on clay courts, which allow players to slide. Additionally, the competition for every point is fast-paced. Therefore, concentrating here is different from other types of courts," said the player ranked 103rd in the world.

French tennis player Gael Monfils stated that it has never been easy for him to adjust to grass courts from clay, even though he has been competing in the professional tennis arena for 21 years.

Judy Murray, the mother of Andy Murray who also serves as a coach at the Lawn Tennis Association, stated that there is no greater challenge than transitioning from clay courts to grass in a short period of time. Judy identified three main factors as challenges when playing on grass courts: the ball bounces very low, the courts are slippery, and the ball's bounce is very poor.

"A slippery field requires some adjustment in positioning oneself. You may need to lower your center of gravity by bending your knees due to the low bounce of the ball," said Judy, in BBC, offering some tips.

In addition to being low, the ball's bounce is very fast, causing point exchanges to typically occur quickly. On average, only four strokes happen during each point exchange. Brad Gilbert, former coach of Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, Murray, and Coco, stated that serves and service returns become very important shots on grass courts.

"Tennis players must be able to maintain focus during rallies that are often brief. Just a second of lost concentration can turn the situation into a negative one," said Judy.

With its very fast bounce, grass tends to be better suited to big servers. Goran Ivanisevic won Wimbledon in 2001 with a total of 213 aces during the tournament. Ivanisevic is second only to John Isner who hit 214 aces at Wimbledon in 2018. However, Isner lost in the semifinals.

To that end, American female tennis player Jessica Pegula believes that powerful strokes are a very important factor when playing at Wimbledon. The 2022 Wimbledon champion, Elena Rybakina, holds a different opinion, even though she is known as a player with a strong serve.

Based on her experience playing since the junior category, Rybakina believes that powerful shots alone are not sufficient to play comfortably on grass courts. According to her, quick footwork and the ability to bend the knees as low as possible are crucial factors.

"It's all about movement. You have to stand as low as possible while maintaining a bent knee. You also need to move towards the ball because the ball does not come to you with a short bounce," said Rybakina.

With the extreme differences in court characteristics, not many tennis players can master both clay courts and grass courts. The indicators commonly used to assess a player's ability on these two types of courts are the titles of the French Open and Wimbledon.

Those who can win championships in the same year are considered more exceptional than others. There are not many tennis players who can achieve this. Since the Open Era (1968), only seven female singles players have managed to win the French Open and Wimbledon consecutively.

Steffi Graf is the one who has done it most frequently, specifically in 1988, 1993, 1995, and 1996. Meanwhile, Serena Williams is the last tennis player to win both Grand Slams in the same year, which was in 2015.

The men's singles category has fewer tennis players who have achieved this feat, with only five. The maestro, Roger Federer, was even unable to accomplish it as he struggled at the French Open. Out of 20 Grand Slam titles, Federer only won the French Open in 2019.

The special tennis players won the French Open and Wimbledon consecutively not by coincidence. They adapted their playing style to meet the demands of playing on different types of courts.

Martina Navratilova, a female tennis player active from 1974 to 2006, learned to play tennis on the clay courts that are abundant in her home country, the Czech Republic. She actually did not like these courts because they did not suit her physical and aggressive playing style, which involved approaching the net frequently. Nevertheless, there was no other way but to strive to adapt until she was able to win the French Open in 1982 and 1984.

Navratilova's athletic playing style is more suited to grass courts. She won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 1978. Twenty-five years later, she secured her 20th title at Wimbledon, this time in the mixed doubles category alongside Leander Paes (India).

Although there are more clay courts in the Czech Republic, Navratilova was able to play well on grass courts thanks to the training she did on wooden courts during the winter. As mentioned in her story published on the official WTA website in 2022, the ball bounce on that court is similar to that on grass courts.

"The ball bounces in unpredictable directions and often has short rebounds. Therefore, I cannot just wait for the ball to come to me. I have to move a lot from the back to the net. That is why it is easier for me to play on grass courts," said Navratilova, who has nine women's singles titles at Wimbledon.

Unlike Navratilova, Rafael Nadal must adjust his abilities and playing style on clay courts to perform comfortably on grass courts. "Raised" on clay courts in Spain, Nadal has a passive-aggressive playing style that is well-suited to that type of surface.

It is not surprising that the first title from the Grand Slam arena was obtained at the 2005 French Open at the age of 19. Nadal then became a legend at Roland Garros, winning the championship 14 times until his retirement in 2024.

Nadal won the French Open consecutively from 2005 to 2008, eventually claiming a title outside of Roland Garros when he triumphed at Wimbledon in 2008. Nadal secured the championship by defeating Federer in an epic final, avenging his losses in the finals of 2006 and 2007 against the same opponent. Nadal became the first Spanish player to win Wimbledon since Manolo Santana in 1966.

“Many years ago, people asked if Nadal could make the transition from clay-court champion to grass-court champion. This year, he proved it. He improved in every aspect, his serve, his position on the court, his backhand, his forehand,” former world number one John McEnroe told ESPN after Nadal won Wimbledon in 2008.

Nadal has the ability and style of play that makes him comfortable on clay, especially at Roland Garros. Playing on slow courts, he usually positions himself far behind the baseline. His weapon is the lasso shot that makes the ball bounce with a fast spin. A ball like this plus a high bounce makes it difficult for opponents to return it.

The stroke that causes the ball to spin rapidly is indeed suitable for application on the grass courts of the All England Club with slight adjustments, namely a flatter stroke direction. Murray, the Wimbledon champion of 2013 and 2016, experienced the difficulty of returning such a shot from Nadal.

He has always lost in three encounters with Nadal at Wimbledon, namely in the quarter-finals of 2008, the semi-finals of 2010, and the semi-finals of 2011. Nadal's journey in 2008 and 2010 ended with championship titles.

"When you look at Federer, you see him playing like he's effortless and without a lot of power. Nadal is different. He hits it with a lasso style like on clay, but with a quicker racquet action. His forehand is the hardest to return," Murray said.

Murray's comments are supported by statistics from the International Tennis Federation (ITF). Generally, the ball rotation from all tennis players' groundstrokes is 2,500 times, while the rotation effect of Nadal's strokes is at 4,000 - 5,000 times!

Other adjustments include standing closer to the baseline to take the ball early and playing aggressively from the first shot. “I’ve never seen Nadal play like that before,” Murray said after his loss at Wimbledon in 2008.

After Nadal won the Wimbledon trophy that year, Toni Nadal, who is his coach and uncle, stated that positioning oneself correctly is a crucial factor. The person who has coached Nadal since he was four years old also mentioned that Nadal adapted to various aspects in order to become a champion on grass courts, despite being dubbed the "King of Clay."

FRENCH OPEN AND WIMBLEDON CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE SAME YEAR

SON

Rod Laver 1969

Bjon Borg 1978, 1979, 1980

Rafael Nadal 2008, 2010

Novak Djokovic 2021

Carlos Alcaraz 2024

PRINCESS

Margaret Court 1970

Evonne Goolagong Cowley 1971

Billie Jean King 1972

Chris Evert 1974

Martina Navratilova 1982, 1984

Steffi Graf 1988, 1993, 1995, 1996

Serena Williams 2002, 2015