11th in the world, the Russian tennis player Daria Kasatkina is adamantly against the revival of blue clay courts, stating that only people who have never played on blue clay courts can believe they are superior to conventional red clay courts.
Ion Tiriac, the Madrid Masters’ owner at the time, thought of the concept of blue clay courts for the 2012 Madrid edition because he wanted to try something new. At the time, Tiriac justified his choice by stating that TV viewers would find it much simpler to watch matches and that ball visibility would improve as a result.
However, Tiriac’s experiment went terribly wrong since Madrid’s blue clay courts were the subject of intense criticism and opposition the entire time. Among the most vocal opponents were Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who both threatened to boycott the 2013 tournament if the surface was not changed back to the customary red clay.
The ATP declared a month after the 2012 Madrid Masters that blue clay courts will not be permitted in 2013. No more attempts have been made to use a blue clay court since that time.
Is it now appropriate for me to state that, in my opinion, the blue clay tennis courts were more attractive than the red clay ones, and that I would be in favor of any effort to bring them back?” On X, Scott Barclay wrote.
Kasatkina commented on the post, saying, “Only after you try to play on it.”
Only after you try to play on it
— Daria Kasatkina (@DKasatkina) March 21, 2024
The now 26-year-old Kasatkina did not participate in the blue clay courts competition in Madrid. However, the players’ outcry and criticism was so intense that year that tennis doesn’t take much to realize that playing on blue clay courts was incredibly challenging and problematic for most players.
It was extremely difficult for Rafael Nadal, who is regarded as the best clay-court player in tennis history, to adjust to blue clay courts. Nadal prevailed in his first encounter of that year, but Fernando Verdasco defeated him in the 2012 Madrid round of 16.