I've read a lot of stuff about how our teams are traditionally better outdoors. I was just wondering how much of a difference there really is between playing indoors and outdoors besides the obvious sun and wind.

The sun and wind are about the two biggest factors obviously. In my opinion I think the ball travels much quicker indoors then it does outdoors. From my experience playing teams from the north outside, its very clear if they havent had a chance to practice outdoors. We played Michigan State when they were 51 two years ago as an unranked team and had the first sets in almost every match. The guys were lost for the doubles and the better part of most of the singles. They couldnt adjust to the wind or the slow speed of the ball in humid Louisiana air and very slow courts. We ended up losing 5-2, but you could see the guys were just lost b/c it was there first match outdoors of the season and it was normal for us.

Thanks Agboy.

I will also add that some indoor courts are quicker than others.

Some are not too big of a difference from outdoors and others are like playing on grass.

Can be a huge adjustment.

Besides the obvious sun and wind factors, theree certainly is the court speed. This can be controlled during contruction by the amount of acrylic top is put on. The amount of sand in it and the swirling of the surface change how the ball "bites" into the court. A smoother surface will enable a ball to skid, or pick up speed once it hits and stay lower. A slower court, the ball bites into the surface and sits up for the hitter.

Of course an outdoor court can be done the same, one way or the other, but the indoor courts tend to be smoother and thus play faster. The surface is also not replaced anywhere near as often as an outdoor court.

Besides all of that, there are other things that are real factors. The height of the ceiling and the ceiling material, color of the ceiling and the type of reflective lighting. This is the second biggest issue for an outdoor player when playing indoors - lighting. But it may actually be the biggest factor since it is key to adjusting to the court speed.

At CS the indoor arena there have offwhite, almost a gray ceiling tile that absorbs light, so the court area is darker, making it difficult to see the ball like you can outdoors. So when an outdoor team has to play indoors, this is also a big factor that has to be overcome quickly.

Personally I do not like playing indoors because of the lighting and the courts are harder and hurt my knees. This is a result of less topping on the court and not being young anymore. The best surface is clay.