There was an article on ESPN’s website about the US Open being televised by ESPN. It got me thinking about how tennis seems to have really dropped in popularity. Aside from the Williams sisters, I can’t name any pro tennis players. I used to know Borg, Connors, Agassi, King, and others. They used to be in the newspaper and sports magazines.
Then I got to thinking, I don’t even know anyone who plays tennis any longer.
Aside from a few moments of Wimbledon, I haven’t watched any tennis coverage in many years.
Why did pro tennis drop so much in popularity? I’m thinking the rise in golf eclipsed tennis.
One reason for the drop I think is the lack of rivalries- the various ones between Borg/McEnroe/Lendl/Connors, etc., and haven’t had a good one since Agassi/Sampras a few years back. Federer/Nadal isn’t really a rivalry as Nadal always wins on clay and Federer on all other surfaces, but since Roger’s all but done now (he maybe has one or two Wimbledons left in him), maybe Nadal/Djokic will become a good one? Also, Federer and Nadal are pretty quiet guys, not characters, but Djokic seems to be quite the joker, so that could help.
The guy loses two or three early-season tournaments and people go nuts. He’s 26, and in January he made the semis in Australia while fighting food poisoning and mono.
Anyway, this has been a conversation within tennis for a long time. Tennis went through a boom in U.S. during the late 70s or early 80s, as I understand it, and that’s long since faded. Internationally the game is doing well - for example, it’s getting bigger in Asia - but in the U.S. it’s not so great. The USTA seems to be managed stupidly, which is a problem, but it’s also true that we just saw a terrific generation of U.S. players pass from the scene, and that’s hard to duplicate.
I am not a tennis nut. I am a VERY casual fan of the game. I never watch more than a few minutes of a match on TV at any time.
But for you to say that you don’t know anyone other than the Williams sisters indicates that you simply do not read the sports page, or watch Sportscenter, at all. Do you follow other sports? Just reading the sports page, I am familiar with Federer vs. Nadal, the recent comeback of Martina Hingis, and, of course, Maria Sharapova. Djokovic’s recent surge, the betting scandal with Davydenko… No, I don’t know details of all these peoples’ careers, but Tennis is still a top-7 or-8 sport in news coverage.
It’s entirely possible, with use of the mouse and the remote control, to read the sports page and watch Sportscenter, and not absorb any tennis information. Almost true of hockey, too (and here, that may be because the Sharks are generally good).
Well, RC Cola is #3 in cola sales, but that doesn’t mean you or any of your friends necessarily keeps a 12-pack in the fridge.
I think a big part of it is demographics. It’s no co-incidence that as the baby boomers age the popularity of tennis has decreased and golf has increased. Of course, I’m referring to actually playing these sports, but people tend to be more interested in watching sports they play themselves.
I’ve been a tennis fan since the 70s. I’ve noticed the trend that the OP suggests over the past 10 years or so, I call it the “Pete Sampras Effect” of homogenizing the style of player and the type of talent that can be successful.
Essentially, the men’s game has gradually evolved from a more interesting slow game that allowed for many play styles and tactics, to a flattened game of power tactics that have squeezed out (IMO) the more interesting play stylists like Connors, Borg, etc.
Agassi has been the lone holdout of the “oldschool” game of tactically working the baseline and agressive net play. Players of today are essentially using sniper rifles every play–fast and deadly, but boring for the fans. You’ll no longer see players be able to successfully change tactics and adapt gameplay during play, that struggle seems absent now. Either a player’s power game is ‘on’ or ‘off’ and that decides the match.
The women’s game is the only one of interest now, from a tactical tennis enjoyment perspective. Even they are starting to suffer under the raw power players, but there is still room for scrappiness and “thinking” players to do well there.
If he were losing to great players, it would be a little better, but he’s never lost this many tournaments in years. Since he’s been medically cleared after Australia, he’s lost to not only Roddick but the likes of Radek Stepanek, Andy Murray and Marty Fish, players he would never lose a set to in previous years, and barely beaten guys like Ruben Ramirez Hildago- you don’t think that’s cause for concern?
While I agree in general with your criticism (why they don’t tone the rackets down some is beyond me), I wouldn’t blame Pete for that because he likely will go down as the last of the great serve-and-volleyers, and indeed was more than capable of altering his game on the fly (no one-note booming server was he). On the women’s side the last dedicated serve-and-volleyer of any note was Yana Novotna, so in that sense things are even worse over there (Williams sisters have solid volleying games but don’t spend a lot of time up there). You simply can’t approach the net (a significant % of the time) because the big springy rackets will pass you more often than not.
I’m assuming you meant Sampras here. Let’s not forget that throughout his career, people also called him boring because he wasn’t much of a personality. There’s really no pleasing some people.
There are boring and uncreative players out there, to be sure, but both Federer and Djokovic are good with tactics and they play aesthetically compelling styles. It could be worse - a few years ago, Lleyton Hewitt was number one!
“Starting to suffer?” Most of the women’s matches I see are error-fests. With a few exceptions, they all try to hit too big. I’m curious which players you have in mind here: I’d exempt Henin, the Williamses, Mauresmo (who seems to have lost her edge entirely, alas) and maybe some lesser players like Schiavone.
It’s true. But the reality is that even the top players lose matches to nobodies once in a while. The fact that Federer has pretty much avoided that over the last four years is the really amazing thing. He’s dropped a few of those matches lately and is only just playing his way back into form. I think he should be playing more and should look into changing his tactics more. But he should have a couple of good years ahead of him still.
Granted, I was trying to be generous to the women’s game by saying they are “starting to suffer”, but I agree. The current women’s game is an overhitting slopfest. My heart belongs to Chris Evert, though, so I admit a bit of bias
Yeah, but the number of people who have 12-packs of each of the top 3 (Coke, Pepsi, and RC) in their fridge is likely close to zero. The number of people who follow baseball, basketball, and football is very large. I have a working knowledge (casual or better) of most sports covered in the US, and I’m not a fanatic for any sport.
I don’t know if you’ve ever had mono, but I have and I wasn’t right again for a solid year (and was near bed-ridden for a month). I had to skip Wimbledon, and rule my self out of selection for England at cricket and football; it was terrible. It keeps coming back periodically too, well after you think it’s gone. He may have been “medically cleared”, but I’d be amazed if he wasn’t still feeling the effects from time to time (which would explain his erratic performances). As far as I’m concerned anything he achieves at all this season is something of a feat.
Incidentally, Murray beat Federer in 2006 as well; in fact he’s got a 2-1 record against him.
Looks like I jinxed her, because Henin is preparing to announce that she is retiring, effective immediately at age 25. In an age of Sharapovas and wannabe-Williamses, Henin stood maybe 5’5" and won with incredible guts, fitness and a great backhand. She won seven majors and retires as the number one player in the world, although she wasn’t playing well lately. She was probably the best player on the WTA tour over the last four years or so.
Before the larger racket heads and more powerful composite materials came into being in the 80’s and beyond, there was a vastly greater variety and individuality in style as well as shot-making.
What we have now is a fast homogenized game consisting of top-spin shots hit pretty much the same way by all the guys on the circuit, because with the rackets now out there there’s nothing else to do that makes sense. For those who grew up playing in the 70’s, it’s a real downer.
If you think Federer and Nadal play the same style, I have to wonder how much of a tennis fan you are. On the other hand, this thread is so old that Henin has unretired.
