American tennis star
Ben Shelton has joined the growing list of ATP stars who have voiced their concerns about using different tennis balls on tour.
Following his early-round loss at the Vienna Open, Shelton lost in his opening round match at the ongoing
Paris Masters. The World No.16 opened up about the alterations made to the tennis balls, revealing he had developed "arm issues" due to the adjustments.
Shelton speaks out against new tennis balls, several counterparts chime in
"Usually don't have an arm issues, but fifth tournament in a row playing with a different ball, I'm definitely feeling it this week," Ben Shelton said on his Instagram account.
Fellow ATP stars
Stan Wawrinka and
Novak Djokovic also voiced their frustrations on using different tennis balls at each tournament, with Wawrinka imploring tournament organizers to listen to the players.
"4 weeks, 4 different balls 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️. When are the tournaments going to listen to players?? Can’t believe in 2023 it’s still happening! @atptour," tweeted Wawrinka.
"Actually, [Sebastian] Korda, the player that I practiced with today, told me that this is fifth tournament now in a row that he's been playing with different balls," said Djokovic during a press conference at the 2023 Paris Masters "Yeah, this inconsistency is an issue, and that's what most of the players, and also of course including myself, we complain about.
"You know, I think there needs to be a bit more consistency with the balls so that we avoid any kind of issues with wrists and elbows and shoulders."