Laver Cup’s exhibition: Is it Player Pension scheme?
View(s):As amateurs, there was no money in the tennis for them. Their popularity matched Pete Sampras, Ivan Lendl, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal in skill and performance of present. Since the formation of ATP and WTA, player income improved and some post career issues addressed. An equivalent to pension scheme has surfaced.
Laver Cup
Laver Cup exhibition this year was in Berlin. Still many will not know who Laver is. Fair question, considering his time was in the 1950s and 1960s of the last century. Why his name and only him? Easy question to answer, he is the last player to win the Grand Slam of four majors in one calendar year. In men’s, it has been an elusive feat since he achieved in 1969, well over 50 years.
A good few years ago, Mahesh Boopathy of India, initiated a series of exhibition matches. I remember Roger Federer was one of the players. It was jet-set city tour. Bombay, Tokyo, Singapore, Dubai and a few more in a string of few weeks. Have not heard about it anymore. They are not easy to sustain. I believe they are profit sharing ventures. Often irksome, brand owners and players harmony are difficult to sustain.
What is this to the world?
Tennis audience expected to be attentive, appreciative and not take a partisan attitude. Provide pin drop silence for players to indulge in tactical play. Umpire duties sees to it. Exhibition format are the opposite of it. Of recent, this is changing the original European norm. Players and organisers are trying hard, but partisan attitude in audience support is fast backtracking, making a tennis match a replica of WWE Wrestle Mania scenario.
The stadium court control of umpires cannot prevail in all 30 courts of a major tournament venue. This makes players have to live through four gruelling early rounds with Wrestle Mania audience ambiance, even before arriving into a stadium court. This is so in even in little events of our city of Colombo, suburbs and in school tennis. When tennis is secondary, the game loses its lustre.
Tennis umpires, even in major events, are trying to bring back the pin drop silence, meant to enable player concentration. Progressively becoming hard to achieve. Most players now provoke and often demand audience cheering to intimidate opponents in WTA and ATP events. These copied down the line globally. Cameras focusing on audience is another unattractive feature. These diminish the sporting event. There will be a price to pay for these in the future.
WWE, football and now cricket too
For the audience in US Open tennis, side change break is equal to audience show time. Spectator presence and their action on the screen is the camera focus. Often makes the next service game a difficult task to players. Every distraction places inconveniences to the players’ concentration.
New trend
The changeover is devoted to the audience and their interaction. Cheering squad, cheerleaders and paid attendance are order of the day in mega tennis. There is nothing in the book of rules against their presence in a match. It might last a while.
In golf and in some matches, I have seen spectators shown to the gates for the violation of silence. Silence provides the player with operational space, mental and physical. It is an attraction in tennis. Up and until now, the game standing provides plenty of excitement, expectation and action to the spectators. Well, what happened to this salient factor is a good guess.
Past player prominence
In this year’s US Open, there were shouts enough to be heard ‘Federer go home’. Deleted later. Federer lost his sponsorship with his old associates. Now with a different one, what more, he cannot play full fledge games. While speaking to former German No.1, Wimbledon finalist, Wilhelm Bungert, he aired this happens to all good player. Indicating he too was such a case. Occupational hazard.
Approaching 40s if a person left without any option of sustainable income, it is a desperate situation. The team leaders of the Laver Cup tie in Berlin this year were Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe and his brother seen on court. All of them except McEnroe had financial issues. Federer has the event ownership and projects to be its CEO. How many past players are in financial dilemma? One will never know.
Teenage parade gone
ATP and WTA had a wonderful year in 2024. This gave the present set of players a good time, popularity and income. The parade has passed and the teenagers are now facing the reality. In the WTA events many teenagers appear. Even Iga Swiatek has turned out to be different and sliding.
Continual competition is stressful. Of all the challenges a sports person faces, this is the toughest. Stress stays with the player, Monday to Sunday, from January to December relentless, disturbing and demanding. Many breakdown, it affects the stability of daily life.
–George Paldano, European and Asian competition player; Coach German Tennis Federation; National coach Brunei and
Sri Lanka; Davis Cup, Federation Cup coach, coached ATP, WTA and ITF ranked players in Europe and Asia; WhatsApp +94775448880–