Fast-forward a few years later and I’m out of luck for any coverage of Masters Series events unless I have the Tennis Channel. That is, as long as I am willing to lose a few hours of sleep in order to catch a highlights package at 2:30 in the morning.
These days, beggars can't be choosers. That said, there was never a time when I could just run down to my favorite sports bar like your average baseball fan and catch Federer and Nadal battling it out in a fifth-set tiebreaker. Tennis is not the sort of sport that inspires people to call into sports radio shows to offer their take on Vince Spadea’s epic tome. When I attend the U.S. Open, I see another reminder that tennis has an image problem –- ads with our favorite players dressed in formal wear rather than their match gear.
This sort of advertising begs the question: Is tennis a sport or not? At the local park where I go to play, I fight for court time against a couple of octogenarians who squat on the courts for more than three hours. They bring folding chairs with them to lounge in when they’re in need of a break. An endearing image, to be sure, but not one that suggests that tennis is a demanding sport which appeals to the masses.
It’s not as though the powers that be aren’t willing to tinker with their product. This year at the USO, we were introduced to the challenge system. This new idea appealed to fans, even though sometimes the players looked like they were just using challenges as a novelty. Next year, a round-robin format will be used in early rounds rather than traditional single elimination. Despite the outcry when Michael Joyce took a star turn as Maria Sharapova’s nutritionist during a match, on-court coaching is another experiment in spicing the game up.
Still, your average tennis fanatic can’t help but feel a bit.. useless. What can we do to take a more active role in promoting the sport? Well, one thing I have learned over the years is that enthusiasm breeds enthusiasm.
While I sometimes wonder whether I’m boring people to tears with my incessant tennis talk, I often find that they are impressed that I have a passion for the sport. Eventually, they call and ask if I would be willing to teach them how to play. A few hours of fun pays well; another devoted fan of the game is born.
Effort on the part of the fans, networks, and tennis organizations needs to be be made in order to harness the love of the game clearly shown by contributors to forums such as TennisWorld. But how?
Perhaps one way is to increase the visibility of tennis fans. Last year, I enjoyed watching the show Ultimate Road Trip on the YES network. The concept of the show is that four lucky fans are picked to travel to Yankees games for an entire season. What about adapting this concept and having the ATP and WTA tours select fans from around the world to follow the respective tours?
The fans could chronicle their adventures as they sit courtside at tournaments, see the top pros sweating it out on the practice courts, take in the beautiful scenery that each new location offers, meet with fan-friendly players, and attend special events like the swearing-in ceremony at the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
In a spirit of cooperation, efforts could be made to tie into other tennis products like Davis Cup, World Team Tennis, and the Senior Tour. Of course, this is but one idea and hardly the only solution, intended to reward the long-suffering fans willing to engage in scoreboard watching to know the latest results of their favorite players half a world away. Can you think of any others?
--talladega
