Ruud is nothing if not honest. The Norwegian has been outspoken about several divisive topics in recent weeks. He rubbished the idea that there was any “discrimination” in Jannik Sinner’s doping case just because the Italian is the world No. 1.
He’s also addressed Saudi Arabian sportswashing, admitting he turned down offers to play in the kingdom. And the 25-year-old recently spoke out about the contentious issue of differing tennis balls on tour.
Multiple players have voiced concerns over different tournaments using different brands of balls each week, explaining that the quick changes could cause injuries. But Ruud didn’t understand why some would only complain halfway through a tournament when they’d had time to adjust.
“You see players complain about the balls all the time. I’m getting so tired of like it. Come on. Just play,” he told the Nothing Major podcast.
“For me what’s funny is some players come like five days in advance to practice. They string like 28 rackets to get the right tension. Then they come to the fourth round and start complaining about the balls.
“But it’s been the same balls for the past nine days. What’s the point of bringing it up now to the umpire? Like what is he gonna change? What’s the point? Just to make drama out of nothing.”
Ruud’s comments caused a stir online, especially given how many of his rivals and colleagues had spoken out about the balls. Djokovic previously said there needed to be a “discussion” because of increased injuries.
Raducanu, who had surgeries on both of her wrists in 2023, said it was “really bad” to switch balls every week. Three-time Major winner Stan Wawrinka also asked when tournaments would start listening to players.
But Ruud now appears to have backtracked, admitting he’d learned his lesson about speaking out.
“I think that as you have become either a sportsperson or a famous person and the world you live in today, you kind of have a voice if you want to use it, and for almost anything. It can be for the good or the worse,” he told We Are Tennis.
“You shouldn’t use your voice for things you don’t know too many things about, let’s say, but you can, because it’s very easy. You can just go on the social media or an app or have an interview and I could say anything I would like, and it would be a headline, kind of.”
The 12-time title winner still wants to use his voice but he knows that any opinion could be blown out of proportion. He added: “So that’s come with, and you have to be a little careful sometimes in what you say, which is not something tough to get used to, but I realise that if you say something that is a little bit out of the ordinary or if I have an opinion on something outside of sport, it quickly becomes a headline.
“So yeah, I realise that I have a voice, but you should be a bit careful what you use it for.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk