Why are players given 3 balls to play?
1 is always thrown to to ball person so why not give them 2?
They like to choose which ones they are going to serve with. Sometimes they'll take more, if more are available. There are i think 6 balls in circulation at any time.
I don't know what they look for, mind.
Tis the magic number.
Simply to give the player serving an opportunity to choose what they see as the best 2 balls.
They will usually give them a quick check for damage or marks that may affect the balls flight. This is also why they regularly change the balls.
I imagine a lot of the players will also do it as part of a routine to help with focus. You will also notice that some players do the same by asking for a towel, either as a brief pause to re-focus or a tactic to delay the opponent.
I worked with an ex-pro player. His take on it was, the more a ball gets hit the softer it becomes, the slower it travels. They try to choose the freshest balls to serve with.
^^^^^As above really.
cause everyone likes to play with balls...
IGMC
There's far too much pissing about between points these days. What with looking at every ball and having a little towel down after each rally over 5 shots. Back when I were playing you'd **** the first ball with another in ya pocket. First serve in then request another.
when I were playing
Championship level, was it?
Its so they can pick the freshest ball for the first serve. The less the surface is roughed up the faster it will travel. TBH I can't see it making much difference give they get new balls every seven games.
It does make a noticeable difference when you don't get new balls that often - when I played I used to pick a newer ball for fast flat first serve and then and older scuffier one for second serve which I put a lot of spin on.
I agree - way too much fannying about between points. And can someone please get Rapha some shorts that fit - he's forever pulling them out of his crack.