Why Are Tennis Balls Yellow or Green in Colour?

Tennis has been one of the oldest sports as the game was first played during the 19th century. However, with time, there have been a number of changes to which players on the circuit have adapted to overtime.

One such interesting topic is the balls that have been used over the years. For nearly a century, tennis balls were either white or black in color. It wasn’t until the year 1972 that the color balls got on the brighter side.

Tennis made a big change in 1972

From 1972 on, the ITF changed the rule that required all tennis balls to have a particular white or yellow color. However, despite the difficulties for TV viewers, Wimbledon did not change the ball color to yellow until 1986.

After a while, a majority of the players were happy with the new change and were not ready to go back to the way the game was played during its inception. 

There has been a lot of debate as to whether the color of the ball is yellow or green. However, it all comes down to each person’s perspective on the matter In the past, Federer has called the balls yellow in color and there has been an instance when Nadal has termed it as green.

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Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal see things differently

Naturally, with the vast fan bases these supreme athletes have, it is but natural that Federer fans would see the ball as yellow in color and the Rafa fans would see them as green. 

Coming to the logical aspect of things, viewers prefer watching tennis matches especially when the broadcast is a preferred choice of color. There would not be many who would enjoy watching these matches in a black and white form. That is to say that the visual appeal of things has certainly had a role to play.

As the game has advanced, there have been many changes with regard to making things easier and more convenient for both the players as well as the audiences. 

There are a number of leading companies and brands, such as Wilson, Dunlop, Slazenger, and a few more that produce tennis balls on a world-class level. At times, players do find faults in the balls with regard to their uneven bounce.

Coming to tennis, the 2021 season is nearly ended. Players are busy representing their nations at the Davis Cup Finals 2021. We wish all athletes the best of luck and may the better team emerge victoriously. 

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