Tennis sports fan might sometimes inquire what pros are doing when they stop toinspecta young ball before position it into dramatic play . Are they dilly-dally to mull strategy ? Checking the manufacturer ? Paranoid about sabotage ?
None of the above . They ’re staring intently at the bull .
Unlike basketballs , footballs , and soccer ball , tennis ballscome ornament with a fuzzed exterior . These tufts do — no pun think — a crucial purpose , one that player are aware of when a game or even a career is on the line of work .
rigorously speaking , the fuzz on lawn tennis balls is n’t relate to as fuzz . It’sknownas thenap , a software bring to a pressurized rubber ball during the fabrication process . ( The nap actually comes in two slice , giving the nut its familiar seam . ) Made of wool , nylon , cotton , or a blend of all of them , the Napoleon increases the flowing retarding force on the open of the ball , slowing its travel down substantially . A serve , for example , might start with the ball moving at 150 mph . By the time it meet the opponent ’s racket , the increased retarding force has reduce it to as minuscule as 50 mph .
Fuzz also creates a backwash of air behind the testicle that increases its backspin or topspin , making it less predictable and forcing players to react calculate on how their antagonist has struck the ball . The stuff also helps tennis rackets make secure surface liaison , give the thespian more mastery and accuracy .
Fuzz therefore makes the game of lawn tennis potential . A bare safety formal would be travel too fast for musician to be responsive to it . It would also likely be moving too quickly for looker to well track the egg with their eye . And calculate on the serve , a fuzz - less ball could evendoubleas a missile , injuring the player seek to return the ball . While fighting tennis would probably find an audience , it ’s not exactly what Wimbledon is up to .
If all lawn tennis glob have a nap , why do players bother looking at them ? It comes down to how that fuzz is book up . Brand - new balls have liquid , flat sleep that will make the bollock travel faster . Some player like that , particularly on a serve ; others may prefer a more or less aged chunk with fuzz that ’s fluffier to retain more control over the ballock .
In the 1800s , tennis ball were covered in flannel { PDF } . Today , manufacturing technique can vary . Wilson , one of the biggest names in tennis , uses a feltcoveringmade of two - third wool and one - third nylon . ( Wool is well equipped to observe its flesh . ) Heat cure the adhesive ; a laundry returns the fuzz to full heaviness , which may have been damp down during fabrication . The ballock is now ready for the courtroom — and for masses toarguewhether it ’s yellow-bellied or green .
Get Answers to More Big Questions:
Have you got a Big motion you ’d wish us to answer ? If so , let us recognise by e-mail us atbigquestions@mentalfloss.com .
