THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE IN RALLY LENGTHS BETWEEN CLAY AND HARD
COURTS IN THE PAST - BUT NOT ANY MORE
RALLY LENGTHS AT 2018 ROLAND GARROS AND US OPEN
Rally length
RG 2018
US Open 2018
0-4 shots
68.2 per cent
68.2 per cent
5-8 shots
21.5 per cent
21.1 per cent
9+ shots
10.3 per cent
10.7 per cent
It’s night and day really. In 2018, Roland Garros and the US Open looked basically identical - either even or within half a percentage point of each other in all three rally lengths. As shocking as 2017 is, this is equally so if you saw this data first. This flies in the face of traditional clay-court thinking. The old mantra says there is a massive difference in rally length between clay courts and hard courts. Nope. Maybe at some stage in the past, but not any more.
THREE YEARS COMBINED: RALLY LENGTHS AT ROLAND GARROS AND US OPEN
Rally length
RG 2016/17/18
US Open 2016/17/18
0-4 shots
68.6 per cent
68 per cent
5-8 shots
20.7 per cent
21.2 per cent
9+ shots
10.7 per cent
10.8 per cent
When you combine 2016, 2017 and 2018 into one spreadsheet, you get an even clearer picture of the behaviour of clay and hard-court tennis.
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