The first three months of men’s tennis have been exhilarating. Novak Djokovic won his first major, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reached his first final, also a major, and Roger Federer lost and then lost some more. It’s the first time in seven years, in fact, that Federer has failed to win a singles title in January, February, and March.
Rafael Nadal is playing well (as of April 10, he had the most wins on tour, with 21) but his game seems to lack the usual sting when he needs it most. But while Rafa hasn’t won a title yet this season, Nicolas Almagro has. And Sam Querrey, Fernando Gonzalez, Dmitry Tursunov, Mikhail Youzhny, and Philippe Kohlschreiber. Andy Murray, Andy Roddick and Djokovic have won two titles. Ditto some dude named Michael Llodra.
Like I said, it’s been a wild ride. But does it portend a return to parity? Let’s hope not.
Recent results have been unexpected, to say the least. No titles for Rafa or Roger? Aren’t these the guys who’ve divvied up all of the major titles for the better part of four years? Such has been their stranglehold on the sport that when the No. 4 player in the world, Nikolay Davydenko, wins the Masters Series in Miami, and the No. 6 player in the world, Roddick, beats the No. 1, Federer, it’s shocking front-page news.
And let’s not forget Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Australia. Talk about a welcomed change of pace. Seeing the high-flying Frenchman against Djokovic, himself playing in only his second Slam final, injected tennis with an energy that had been lacking of late. As inspiring as it can be to watch Federer and Nadal rack up the records and add new chapters to their rivalry, their dominance can get a bit stale.
But while it’s been nice to see some fresh faces, and some familiar ones back in the mix (hello, Andy!), let’s also remember that we were one match away in Miami, the game’s purported “fifth major,” from getting Davydenko vs. Tomas Berdych in the championship round. Can you imagine a bigger snooze fest? CBS may have preempted its telecast for a rerun of CSI.
Parity is all well and good in limited doses, but if we get another three months of unpredictability, particularly at the bigger events, I’m afraid it’ll be too much of a good thing.
Is anyone else getting flashbacks to the bad old days when parity was the rule, not the exception? You only have to go back to BF—Before Federer—to see how men’s tennis can quickly devolve into madness. From the 1998 Australian Open to the 1999 Australian Open, there was an unprecedented 10 different men’s Slam finalists, only one of whom was named Pete Sampras. These were dark times when players like Thomas Enqvist, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Mark Philippoussis, and Alex Corretja shared the spotlight.
Parity, in other words, equates blandness. The big U.S. sports, like football and baseball, inexplicably lust after parity so much that they give the bad teams first crack in the college draft, and then give weaker teams easier schedules. Does it create equal opportunity? Perhaps. More often than not, it’s creating mediocrity.
The world roots for underdogs. But the point of the underdog is that there have to be big dogs, too—the players and teams who rule the roost and only occasionally get their comeuppance.
Obviously, men’s tennis can’t encourage certain outcomes like other sports. Tennis is a meritocracy—you get what you get. And for the last year, with the rise of Djokovic, men’s tennis has struck a good balance. Like the days of Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe, and Jimmy Connors, there’s a trio of engaging champions, Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic, with contrasting styles of play and personality.
It’s also too early to start panicking about parity. Federer and Nadal’s grip on the game has been so tight that it was inevitable a few players would start to catch up with them. They aren’t supermen, after all. Plus, the clay-court season is upon us, and that alone should restore some balance to the tennis galaxy. With dirt under his feet, Rafa remains virtually invincible until proven otherwise. Djokovic has the all-court game and movement to excel on clay. Federer is the big question mark. Will he reestablish himself? Is his mono far more serious than originally thought? Has his confidence quietly been shattered to the point where he’ll struggle to win a single major this season and finish at No. 1? Still, it’s hard to imagine that he’ll fail to regain momentum at some point.
Throw a few upstarts like Tsonga and Murray and you’ve got the ingredients for an engaging clay-court season and beyond. Throw a few too many Jarkko Nieminens and Feliciano Lopezes of this world in the mix and you’ve got the makings for changing the channel.
James Martin is the editor-in-chief of TENNIS magazine.