Tennis reaches Royal Albert Hall
Global Tennis left a blazing trail in 2014. From the well known sports arenas it went into the cultural bastian of Europe, the Royal Albert Hall. In the twelve months of this year, Tennis events left moments of ever-lasting memories. International Tennis this year literally rolled the carpet to match or at times surpass the entertainment industry. So much so, Bollywood’s mega star Dipika Padukone stood with Roger Federer on the court in Delhi and Sir Elton John with Andy Roddick & co in the Royal Albert Hall Tennis court, London.
It is the passion, pursuit and spectacle that make sport appealing to the people. Thousands of women and men from all walks of life in the global Tennis scene sought perfection and used the annual events of 2014 to exhibit their skills in the most appealing manner. Marathon matches; epic 
Tennis, ‘athletism’ and the strength of personalities soared and left the enthusiasts hungry for more good Tennis. One must not forget their contribution to the game and sport in general however unassuming they may be, for they fulfilled the purpose of Sport, best.
New vistas
In this year’s rankings, seasoned campaigners in both genders raised the bar of the game to stave off the strong challenges from young and talented players. Players used mechanics which were not known in Tennis’s hundred over year history, on and off the court. On court the game really became ‘very open’ as it was in the sixties and seventies. The major difference between then and now is the SPEED. It is “fast and furious” now. So much so, only the slow motion replay permits to see the skills and ‘athletism’ of the players in full force.
Off the court, the use of past players as coaches and a team to manage their physical well being has caught on even up to the top fifty of world rankings. Today, most of the super athletes are managed by professional outfits. This was so in Tennis too but now it looks like it is almost mandatory to survive. The appearance of Professional promotional and controlling bodies like the WTA and ATP are now in its fourth decade of existence and their impact now is phenomenal. In many ways, this has made a difference to the game.
WTA and ATP have effectively over-ridden the old controlling bodies when it comes to events. So much so in many countries it very difficult to figure out in which area of the game the old institutions are still effective. Old controlling bodies which are a composition of voluntary amateurs from social bases have not changed since the time of late Queen Victoria of England. Time is catching up on them very fast to become redundant.
Stream of new talent
The four Grand-Slams in the annual calendar have been the best show-pieces of the game for many decades. The pre-quarters of these four usually show as to who is knocking on the door and the final shows the top of the pack. The margin between good players was always very thin. Most of the time, the outcome of matches between good players depends on two aspects. How good their playing-form is on the match day and the strength of their personalities.
In the women’s side, Asia’s 33 year old Li-Na started off with a ‘bang’ winning the Australian-Open but had to walk away from the game for good due to physical breakdown. The most prominent new talents are Romania’s Simona Halep, Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard and Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic.
Two of the men’s Grand-Slam titles in 2014 went to first time winners. Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka won the 2014 Australian-Open almost with the same command as his countryman Roger Federer has been doing it for years. Croatian Marin Cilic won the US-Open in a plucky performance walking past some of the well known players on his way. In the US-Open Japan’s Kei Nishikori proved himself to be Grand-Slam metal and became one of the top five of the world by reaching the finals. These players like many others broke through the hard ice layer that had formed above them to succeed. They will be the most watched players of 2015.
The Queens and Kings of 2014
WTA and ATP rankings are a solid gauge when it comes to ‘who-is-who’ in today’s Tennis. In women’s Tennis two players have marked their era with strong personalities and with two different game plans over which they hold an iron grip. They are USA’s Serena Williams and Russia’s Maria Sharapova. They dithered a bit in 2014 but managed to collect 12 titles between them. This gave Williams the top slot and Sharapova the 2nd in the ranking, I would add, very deservingly. The emerging talent of this year was Simona Halep. Her high end performance in the three grand slams and two titles has given her the number 3 ranking.
Two known names reappeared in the top ten this year. They are Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic. Their comeback will have a big impact in ladies Tennis in 2015. Wozniacki also became the ‘marathon woman’ this year running the New York marathon in 3 hours and 30 seconds.
In men’s Tennis, three names enjoy the privilege of being household names today. Taking the last decade, Roger Federer is the legend. Spain’s Rafael Nadal will go as the dominator and the current number one, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic has been the survivor. Djokovic maintained his ranking as number one amidst very fierce challenge from the other two and the new emerging talents. The passion with which he plays motivates him to overcome most difficult situations. He won seven titles including the Wimbledon and collected $14 million dollars as prize money.
Exhibitions and Sir Elton John
The trend up to now has been sports personalities to be seen on the entertainment stages. Tennis reversed it this year. It happened in the post season Tennis which is now coming out as ‘show biz exhibitions’. It has become a platform which is permitting many good past players to reappear. What is this? Many would ask this question as I did.
Sir Elton John and Dipika Padukone are not Tennis players so it needs a short explanation. ‘City-Team’ is a Foot-Ball idea. What we see is the Tennis version of it. The Tennis they play cannot be good for the obvious reasons. The mega pop singer and Bollywood stars are probably there to attract non Tennis playing fans and enjoy Tennis. Why not?
Time squeeze is another reason for these exhibition Tennis matches. There are no more time slots available for real Tennis in the annual Tennis calendar. So some easy Tennis for season ending entertainment could be an explanation to it. At present it is not very strong and it is anybody’s guess as to how it will go in the future.
Meanwhile the 2015 real Tennis season begins tomorrow ‘down under’. It will have the passion, pursuit for perfection and the appeal Tennis is known for. Good Tennis is sure to be there.
-–SEASON’S GREETINGS and ALL THE BEST FOR 2015—
-George Paldano, former international player; Accredited Coach of Germany, ITF and USPTR; National, Davis Cup and Federation Cup Coach–gptennis.ceylon@gmail.com-