From ‘unbreakable’ racquet frames to a new tennis ‘triples’ format

WATCH: The Break: Nick Kyrgios was fined $35,000 for his conduct at the Miami Open. Maybe he should have used a Pure Unbreakable racquet instead.

Did you hear that Rafael Nadal is taking up golf? Are you ready for this year’s US Open midnight sessions?

Before you start buying tickets… April Fools! Double-check every headline and scrutinize every social media post you see today, because it’s that time of the year again.

Tennis brands are out in full force today playing pranks and teasing unsuspecting fans with hilarious posts and fake announcements. But some of these April Fools “jokes” actually sound… not too bad?

Take Babolat’s cheeky post announcing the fictional Pure Unbreakable racquet, which looks like it would be able to withstand every smash, crack and throw suffered during increasingly common, and sometimes violent, mid-match freakouts.

“Following the loss of many racquets gone too soon, we have finally created the racquet that meets the needs of all the nervous players,” the brand posted on social media. In that case, get these in the hands of Jenson Brooksby and Nick Kyrgios ASAP.

Babolat sponsored players—and noted racquet smashers—Fabio Fognini and Benoit Paire even gave it their stamp of approval.

Singles and doubles? That’s old news. If it’s time for a new tennis format to hit the courts, why not make it triples?

Setting aside the logistics for a second, the USTA has a point here: from increased interest and participation in the sport during the pandemic to tennis stars who regularly spark global conversations, the popularity of tennis has been through the roof in recent years. We think it’s time to capitalize. Mixed triples, anyone?

Who knows, maybe a triples match will be the thing that keeps pickleball from taking over your neighborhood tennis courts!

Already well known for their dramatically late finishes, the US Open has bumped it up a notch with this hilarious social ad for a “midnight session”.

OK, out of all of these, this one might be the most far-fetched idea yet—but again, it’s not unrealistic considering this is tennis that we’re talking about.

After all, it was just a few months ago that one infamously long Acapulco night session finished at almost five in the morning: by the time Alexander Zverev took the court against Brooksby, the clock read 1:35 a.m.

There have been quite a few post-midnight matches at the Slams, too—including the US Open, where locals say the tournament hasn't truly begun until a late match ticks into the wee hours of a New York morning. In one notable Grand Slam example, Garbine Muguruza’s match against Johanna Konta at the 2019 Australian Open began at 12:30 a.m. and finished just after 3 a.m..