Once upon a time, grass courts, which used to be the fastest courts used on the pro circuit, were where serve-and-volley players flourished. A typical point by a dominant grass court player used to be a slice serve, followed by a sprint to the net to put away a volley to end the point. This is how players like John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova were so successful on the surface. Recently, however, grass courts have become a entirely new surface, especially at Wimbledon, the most famous grass-court tournament in the world. Due to the changes made to the grass and soil at Wimbledon in the year 2001, grass courts now play like a whole new surface. The ball bounces higher and the courts have become a lot slower. These changes have led to grass courts favoring dominant base-line players like Roger Federer and the Williams sisters. This dramatic change in grass courts have been met with mixed responses. Players like Tim Henman, who was one of the few 21st century serve-and-volley players, did not react favorably to this grass-court transformation, while players like Roger Federer have seen the former haven for serve-and-volley players become their favorite surface.
While we cannot go back and time and undo the changes done to grass courts, we can dwell on what might of been if grass courts were still the fastest courts on the pro circuit. Would players like Venus Williams and Roger Federer, who have owned Wimbledon for the past 7-8 years, have recorded the same successes? Nobody knows. Who would be winning all the grass court titles if this service still played faster than hard court and clay? While it is impossible not to think about what could have been if not for this massive transformation, all we can really do is look forward to the grass court season of 2011, which is sure to bring plenty of drama and memorable moments.
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