"I demand ATP to pay; This is inhumane!" - Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz's sentiment on frequent ball changes causing injuries echoed by Gastao Elias

Gastao Elias recently joined the likes of Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas, among some other big names, in claiming how the ATP's use of different tennis balls in different tournaments may be contributing to more injuries among players.

The discourse surrounding the constant ball changes was first kickstarted by Daniil Medvedev in late February. The Russian had asserted back then that he suffered a wrist injury due to the balls that were used at the 2023 Australian Open, while also imploring the ATP to look into the issue.

"I want to talk a little bit more about it because in Australia. I felt like these balls were not good for hard courts. Before the match with Korda, I had a very big pain in my wrist... I think this should be reconsidered because I feel like if I don't do enough job on my wrist every day, it's gonna just, you know, be very painful," he told the media earlier in 2023.

Elias, who competes mainly on the ATP Challenger tour, agrees with the former World No. 1's assertions. The 32-year-old took to his X (formerly Twitter) handle and sarcastically asked the men's governing body to pay for treatment for potential injuries to the players.

The Portuguese also denounced them for their "inhumane" rule of employing different balls in different tournaments. He wrote:

"I demand @atptour to pay for all the physiotherapy I will need after playing with these balls they are making us play with. I’ve been on tour for many years and I’ve never seen anything like this. THIS IS INHUMANE!"

In the same thread, Elias also opined that he found the balls that were used before the COVID-19 pandemic to be of the best quality.

"Pre covid balls!" the 32-year-old wrote in reply to a fan asking him which type of balls he preferred.

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Apart from Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas also admittedly sustained injuries due to the type of balls used on the ATP tour

Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas in action at the 2022 Australian Open

Daniil Medvedev and Gastao Elias are not the only players to have denounced the ATP for their constant ball changes. Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas also voiced their concerns over the subject.

Taylor Fritz disclosed earlier this month that he had been dealing with persistent wrist niggles after playing with three different balls during the North American summer hard court season.

"Have been dealing with wrist issues since the beginning of USO series cause of ball changes, we went 3 different balls in 3 weeks," the American wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Stefanos Tsitsipas also previously suggested that the ATP should employ only one type of ball. He claimed that the shoulder injury that he had picked up earlier this year was probably caused by the quality of the balls.

"Balls need to stay the same in most tournaments and especially on hard surfaces. This benefits us all and protects players from injury. I have had comments from other players about the balls at the beginning of the year and that they had a significant impact on the shoulders, wrists, and arm in general. I think that’s where my injury comes from," the World No. 6 said to SDNA in March.

Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas have recently exited the 2023 Shanghai Masters. While the Russian lost convincingly to Sebastian Korda, the American and the Greek lost close three-setters to Diego Schwartzman and Ugo Humbert, respectively.