European season begins in March
Global sports interest at present is fuelled by internet and print media. February activities offered comparatively little tennis news to them. Davis Cup and Fed Cup filled the gap. Cancellation of events in the East and players avoiding travel due to the virus, had an impact on events conducted. Qatar and Dubai sustained their events. Halep, Sabalenka, Djokovic, Andrey Rublev won the singles.
Diva bids good-bye
The big story is Maria Sharapova, ranked 365 now, has decided ‘retire’ and not give up tennis. Two factors led her to this decision. Repeated shoulder injury and surgery curtailed her serving ability on which she relied a lot to win. The second was the difficult passage she had returning from suspension.
Sharapova experienced every possible success a professional athlete could dream of. She won Grand Slam events, stayed in the game with ups and down, gave very memorable moments to the world, ranked world number one for a good amount of time, detected positive to drug abuse, took the suspension in good grace and confessed it happened, honourable admission made her sponsor to stay with her even in suspension.
A road to Eastern European talent
Sharapova had talent, physical build and fight from early years. Good enough to attract promoters from USA to invest time and money on her. As memories, her crowd appeal with physical self, talent, emotion and style creating dramatic moments on the tennis court will live on. Her rivalry with mega stars Venus and Serena Williams, Justin Henine, Caroline Wozniacki and a few more fuelled the global interest in tennis to a fever pitch. With a competitive span of over 15 years, it is a story of a nowhere child born in Siberia in Russia to a world renowned superstar in sports. She in her interview has said, ‘I gave everything to tennis and tennis gave me everything I have.’ A dream of a girl came true. All the history Sharapova created will echo in time.
Sharapova also laid the firm foundation for the string of Russian and eastern European flow of tennis players. Romance is another reason for Sharapova to retire. Thirty-two-year-old Sharapova has announced her engagement to British business magnate Alexander Gilkes.
European season
March is the opening month of the European season. Performance here will influence player’s status in the year ending world ranking.
Appearance of talent and the vanishing act, is the evolving scenario in the top end of women’s tennis. Last year’s French Open winner Ashleigh Barty also is subjected to this. The first of which was seen in Naomi Osaka winning the US Open title beating none other than Serena Williams in 2018, then went to win Australian Open in 2019. Since then what was expected of her has not materialised. Last year Bianca Andreescu, won a Grand Slam, only to fade away. Sofia Kenin also an emerging player with Russian ancestry won the 2020 Australian Open, we will have to wait and see how she handles name and fame.
In the men’s side emerging player Stefanos Tisitsipas is an exception. He shows down to earth attitude and is in the right direction when it comes to progress. Others such as Borna Coric, Dennis Shapolav are sliding. Alexander Zverev of Germany is holding top ten comfortably. In a tight match Zverev is running out of tactical options and speaks to his team in the player box repeatedly. Players must evolve tactically all the time. Tactics is the basis of a player’s shot selection. Without this lead stroke-making ability, it will be of little use when it comes to winning.
Federer takes time off
Adding to this down side, the virus threat, Roger Federer announced his absence from any competition till the French Open in late May. His knee has taken another surgery. If the count is right it could be the fifth. It is the price every athlete pays getting into professional sport. Some do not return. In this case he will return to exhibit last of his tennis, the grace and competition venom. However, it could be his last spell in the top twenty. Men’s tennis is physically taxing.
This European season could be Federer, Djokovic and Nadal trio’s final run. They are nursing injuries and the world is waiting for another super player. In search of talent, ATP is conducting an event known as New-Gen in Milan, Italy for the last two years. The winners have not sustained their surge upwards too well to have an impact in the ATP open ranking.
Life of a lonely warriors
As a sport tennis, players do not get much company, encouragement and comradeship support as in team sport. This is so in training and in competition. Training for top end events and playing them is a life of a lonely warrior. Tennis demands mental maturity, skill, tactical play, physical and brutal discipline. A taxing formula to achieve.
Players in the top hundred have a financial reward. Maria Sharapova’s prize money alone topped 38 million dollars. Federer, Nadal and Djokovic prize money passed the 100 million mark. Sponsorship earnings come on top these, even after the career as goodwill. If players sustain top thirty of the ranking for five years, they could earn more than that of a good job in a lifespan. This year surpasses half a billion dollars.
—George Paldano, Int. competition player; Accredited Coach of German Tennis Federation; National coach Brunei, Sri Lanka; Davis-Cup, Federation-Cup. geodano2015@gmail.com