VCO: The clay court transition
The Volvo Car Open may be the last stop on the North American tour for WTA players, but it’s the first of the more physically and mentally challenging clay court tournaments that tennis pros will tackle in the weeks ahead on Europe’s demanding red clay courts, notably the French Open.
“A clay court game is a very physical game, with lots of movement,” points out Jeff Wilson, CEO of MWTennis Academy at Daniel Island’s Family Circle Tennis Center. “Playing on a clay court is like running through your kitchen in socks - you basically slide through it.”
As a former tennis coach, who used to accompany WTA players on global tours, Wilson knows his way around the courts - whether they’re hard (cement), clay or grass. He explains that clay courts require a different set of movements than hard courts because the ball itself moves differently. While hard courts yield a faster bounce that tends to arc closer to the ground, clay delivers a slower ball with a vertically higher bounce. The slower ball on the clay court provides a player’s opponent more time to successfully reach the ball - and volley it back over the net. As a result, rallies tend to be longer. And players need lots of stamina and patience to win a point.
The clay courts at the Family Circle Tennis Center, where the Volvo Car Open is taking place this week, are made of Har-Tru, an artificial green clay with a loose granular surface. The green clay courts make an excellent transition to Europe’s softer red clay courts. Players must do a lot of running and sliding to hit the ball.
The relatively slower speed of a ball on a clay court can itself be slightly modified by the level of humidity. Weather conditions during a clay tournament can add challenge to a match; wet clay after a rain shower can slow a ball even more, while sun and wind quickly drying the courts can make the ball move faster. Wilson points out that occasionally a few different weather conditions over the course of one long match can make the game both challenging and exciting.
“Clay court matches require unbelievable exertion on the part of the players,” observes Wilson. To be successful, he notes, players have to be physically and mentally fit, often taking on multiple three hour matches across four days. With so much movement required to play on a clay court, lower body strength is critical. You need a strong base to keep running, sliding and changing direction. “Overall, it’s a running game,” he says.
And players must go into every clay court game with a more patient mindset, notes Wilson, as they navigate the changing conditions.
“Players who lose their patience don’t win matches,” he says.
And then there’s strategy. “Knowing what you’re doing is key when you’re looking for a five percent advantage over your opponent,” adds Wilson.
WTA pro Aleksandra Wozniak of Canada agrees. “You have to prepare carefully with your coach before you go out on court,” she says. “ You have to analyze your opponent’s style before you go in, and even during the match, continue to adjust your game to your opponent’s strategy.”
Sometimes, the right move boils down to a player’s intuition. “You just need to know when to step up,” she says.
“Clay courts are definitely more challenging than the hard courts I practice on in Canada,” adds Wozniak. “Clay courts do require a lot of patience and hard work not to mention lots of agility practice, like ladder drills and shuffling between cones. And there’s the cold water baths we have to take to flush out the tired achiness at the end of the day. But we really don’t mind it - it all helps make us better players. And, all in all, I have to say that clay is my favorite surface.”
“There’s a lot that goes into playing well on clay,” sums up Jeff Wilson. ”But it’s not complicated. Basically, you can see who put the work in and who didn’t.”
Indeed, over the next couple of days, much of that pre-match effort will be revealed. As all players surely know - practice, patience and some solid strategic preparation can go a long way towards winning that six-figure Volvo Car Open top prize.