Rafael Nadal hits out at proposed format change in Tennis

14-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal has slammed the changes being mulled by the tennis governing body, saying the move goes against sport's "values". The tennis authorities have been toying with the idea of shortening length of the matches and are looking to make the games more TV friendly.

Women's tennis head Steve Simon had confirmed last week that the WTA was looking to introduce super tie-breakers and no-ad scoring for single matches. The new format or changes would ensure that matches become shorter and predictable in length, making it easier for broadcasters in the process.

"The kind of matches that stay on in the memory and on the history of our sport are a bit long matches and dramatic matches that become emotional. If you want to change the values of the sport, maybe yes. Tennis has values that we need to follow in my opinion", Nadal said, as quoted by AFP (via Firstpost).

"All the sports need to improve and adapt to the new things. But I am not sure if that's the way to make matches quicker. You need to put everything together to create a great show, to create a show so that the people emotionally feel involved in the match. But I am just a player", the former world number one added.

The Spaniard has been involved in some of tennis's most intense and emotionally charged matches in recent history. He (Nadal) and Roger Federer played out a nearly five-hour match at the Wimbledon Championships in 2008, which led to Nadal winning his first title at SW 19.

The former world number one was also involved in a four-set epic match in the final of the 2013 US Open, beating Novak Djokovic. The 30-year-old is currently in action at China Open and is scheduled to face Italian Paolo Lorenzi in the first round.