"It’s a very bad change" - Taylor Fritz makes frustrations clear with 'incredibly slow' court conditions at Shanghai Masters

Taylor Fritz has expressed frustration with the court speed at the 2025 Shanghai Masters, stating that the slower surface has made the tournament significantly more challenging.

The American is aiming to win his third title of the season at the ATP Masters 1000 event. After a bye in the first round, Fritz claimed a 2-6, 7-6(4), 7-6(1) win over Fabian Marozsan.

Following the victory, the World No. 4 discussed the court conditions for this year's event. The American detailed the changes in the conditions from last year and explained that the combination of the slow balls and the humidity made for a very tough on-court experience.

"It is incredibly slow," Fritz said. "If I’m being honest, it’s a very bad change here. Last year, the courts were obviously fast on the speed index, but the balls were very slow, so I actually thought the tournament here was played on the slightly slower side, but it was alright. It wasn’t like insanely slow. Now they slowed the courts down. The balls are maybe not quite as slow, but they’re still pretty slow.

"You play three balls into the ball change, and they’re massive, and you can’t do anything with the ball. Not to mention the humidity as well. It slows it down as well. It feels like the ball’s not going anywhere," he added.

Taylor Fritz is not alone in his complaints. Roger Federer previously said that he disapproves of tournament organizers homogenizing court conditions across the tour. The 20-time Grand Slam champion claimed that it may have been done to ensure more finals between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

"It’s an incredibly tough turnaround" - Taylor Fritz on competing at Shanghai Masters after sustaining injury

Taylor Fritz - Source: Getty

In the same post-match interview, Taylor Fritz shed light on his "incredibly tough" turnaround at the Shanghai Masters after suffering an injury during his loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Japan Open final.

Although the American was relieved to feel mostly fit during his tournament opener, he said that he didn't get enough time to practice at the ATP Masters 1000 event and get accustomed to the slow court conditions.

"I injured myself in that Tokyo final, and I’m still feeling that a bit on the leg. I’m very lucky, actually. I felt way better than I expected to for this match, so that’s a huge positive as far as the injury goes. But it’s an incredibly tough turnaround," Fritz said.

"The conditions are really different. I just couldn’t get a feel for how the ball was going to bounce on this court. It’s really slow. You just have to have to play very differently, and it would have been nice to get some practice sets in, and I just didn’t have the time for that," he added.

Taylor Fritz will square off against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the third round of the Shanghai Masters. The duo have only met in one previous tour-level encounter, with Fritz winning 6-7(6), 6-7(8), 6-4, 7-6(6), 6-4 at this year's Wimbledon Championships.