By News18,Siddarth Sriram

Copyright news18

Roger Federer, long admired for his diplomacy, surprised the tennis world this weekend with blunt and unusually direct comments about the modern game.
Speaking on Serve with Andy Roddick during his visit to San Francisco for the 2025 Laver Cup celebrations, the 20-time Grand Slam champion argued that today’s courts are too slow and too uniform, eroding stylistic diversity and disproportionately benefiting certain players.
“We not only need faster courts,” Federer said, “but we should also want to see Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner adjust to ultra-fast conditions, and then compare that to how they play on a super-slow court. Right now, the ball speed and court speed are essentially the same every week. That’s why you can win the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open playing almost the same way.”
His remarks came against the backdrop of Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominance.
At just 22, Alcaraz has already amassed six Grand Slam titles across all surfaces: the US Open in 2022 and 2025, Wimbledon in 2023 and 2024, and Roland Garros in 2024 and 2025. His explosive power and improvisational flair have marked him as a generational talent.
Sinner, by contrast, boasts a perfect record in Slam finals, lifting four titles: the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025, the US Open in 2024, and Wimbledon in 2025, where he dethroned Alcaraz. His calm precision and relentless baseline game have made him almost unshakable. Together, the pair have split the past two seasons, their rivalry defining a new golden age for tennis.
Federer went further, suggesting tournament directors slow courts deliberately to set up marquee showdowns.
“Of course, I understand they play it safe. On slower surfaces, weaker players need to come up with extra spectacular shots just to challenge Sinner. But on a fast surface, a few well-timed winners could be enough. So, directors think: let’s slow it down, it increases the chances of an Alcaraz–Sinner final. And that’s good for business.”