Wool in tennis balls from hill country farms will be served up at the US Open

RNZ News

14 hours ago

Fleece from New Zealand's Romney crossbred sheep will be under the spotlight at the US Open tennis Grand Slam.
Photo:
Photosport
New Zealand wool will be bouncing around the courts of the 2025 US Open tennis tournament when the final Grand Slam of the year takes centre stage in New York.
Tennis balls made with wool sourced from farms throughout the country will be served up by the world's top-ranked players when they play at Flushing Meadows as the two-week long tournament gets underway this weekend.
New Zealand's largest scourer WoolWorks is supplier to a specialist textiles manufacturer in Thailand, a key cog in the global tennis ball supply chain.
The company TTI Sports weaves the eye-catching yellow felt for the maker of the official Wilson match tennis ball.
New Zealand Wool Services trading manager Nathan Watt said it's one of the more unusual uses of New Zealand wool beamed into living rooms in nearly every continent.
He said it's unfortunate there's no branding for the country's farmers but he joked it's nice to imagine a small Kiwi printed on each ball.
"TTI is the biggest tennis ball felt manufacturer in the world with a long history. They make 80 percent of the world's superior tennis ball felt," Watt said.
Romney sheep grow versatile fleece used in wool carpet, upholstery, blankets and tennis balls.
Photo:
RNZ/Susan Murray
He rattled off a list of the big brands TTI supplies such as Wilson, Head, Penn and Slazenger. Over the next fortnight the US Open will go through roughly 100,000 Wilson balls.
To make each ball the crossbred wool is blended with synthetic thread wrapped around a rubber core. Wool predominantly off the back of the Romneys of 32 to 36 microns is the perfect tool in the fiercest of rallies.
Rosstan Mazey, chief executive of WoolWorks Ventures, said last year around 3000 tonnes of the country's wool was exported for tennis ball felt.
His enthusiasm for the country's woollen fibre is just as high when he's hitting balls across the net at his local Karori United Club in the Wellington suburb.
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz is a five-time major champion. He last won the US Open in 2022.
Photo:
AFP / Getty Images
"The New Zealand wool is very white and clean and so when it comes to dying the felt fluorescent yellow and green it works really well," Rosstan Mazey said.
"It doesn't come up with any colour issues through that process."
This year's $5 million (NZ$8.4m) cheque for the men's and women's singles US Open champions represents a 39 percent hike from last year's $3.6 million.
Players on a path to Grand Slam glory are defending champion Jannik Sinner who remains in a late fitness race, and Spanish 2022 winner Carlos Alcaraz who will also play in the mixed doubles alongside Britain's Emma Raducanu.
In the women's singles, defending champion Aryna Sabalenka has not won a Grand Slam since last year's US Open. The American tennis superstar Coco Gauff showed the spirit of a warrior as she battled to beat Sabalenka at Roland Garros in June for the French Open trophy. Poland's Iga Swiatek comes in to the New York tournament after winning the most recent Grand Slam on grass at Wimbledon.
Alongside the 190kph serves and grunts that reverberate across the stadium, the US Open is also known for its celebrity sightings.
The main draw runs for two weeks through to 7 September with night session matches played into the early hours of the morning.
And in the women's doubles, Kiwi Erin Routliffe is at the top of her game. She and Canadian partner Gaby Dabrowski won the 2023 US Open women's doubles title. In a profitable warm up event they won this week's Cincinnati Open doubles crown.
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