Frances Tiafoe’s injury puts ‘diabolically slippery’ Queen’s courts under the microscope

The court conditions at the Queen’s Club are under the microscope after the likes of Frances Tiafoe and Holger Rune slipped over on the opening day of action on Monday.

World No 28 Tiafoe was particularly hampered during his match out on Court 1 on Monday, with the American suffering a nasty fall during his match against Rinky Hijikata.

In the second game of the deciding set, Tiafoe slipped mid-point and was in obvious pain, ultimately retiring from the contest with a right hip issue.

The American did not do press after his contest, but there will now be doubts about whether he will be able to play at Wimbledon at the start of next month.

Tiafoe’s fall was not the only such incident on the opening day of the ATP 500 event, with Holger Rune falling multiple times during his three-set loss to Jordan Thompson on Centre Court.

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“I t was quite slippery, to be honest. I mean, I think I slipped maybe three times. One time quite important,” said Rune.

Tiafoe’s injury brought a strong response online, particularly from compatriot and former top-10 star John Isner.

The former Wimbledon semi-finalist described the courts as “diabolically slippery ” in a post on X.

He wrote: “ Queens is undoubtedly one of the best events of year, but the courts are diabolically slippery, especially on Monday and Tuesday. Just ask DelPo. Sucks for Frances, hope he can recover for SW19.”

Isner brought reference to an incident involving Juan Martin del Potro at the tournament five years ago, where the Argentine suffered a knee injury that required four separate surgeries.

Grass courts always have an element of danger to them, with players often struggling to move correctly on tennis’ fastest – and at times most unpredictable – surface.

The tournament will hope that Tiafoe’s unfortunate injury is the last such incident, as the courts get more and more worn throughout the week.

However, as Rune pointed out, that can bring another level of danger.

He added: “I t helps for the movement when it’s played a little bit, but then when it’s played a lot on it gets slippery again. Then it gets kind of dirt behind the baseline.”

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