EXTRA - Tennis 20220121

setting a standard?

<Topics>Tennis, COVID, Leadership

The Australian Open is the inaugural event of the calendar Grand Slam of tennis. It is played in January and February in the Melbourne summer. The main stadium is named after Rod Laver, a famous Australian who is always in attendance at the key matches. He remains the only male player to win the Grand Slam twice and it has not been done by any male player since (all four Grand Slams in the same calendar year). Steffi Graf is the only female player in the Open Era to win the calendar Grand Slam and she added the Olympic gold medal in the process.

Author Note

No more time notes at the front THANKS TO ADVICE from a reader. I will only note if the post is longer than normal.

The Inspiration

This is an UNSCHEDULED post. Frequent readers know of my enjoyment of tennis. One of my four favorite events has begun, the first of the calendar Grand Slam events of tennis, the Australian Open (AO). There is so much I enjoy about tennis. I like that it is an event for men AND women. Save for the Olympics, it seems to be the only sporting event that has adapted and supported special combined events. It is one of the things that adds to my enjoyment. When this brief topic swirled in my head, it was easy for me to settle my thoughts. I turned to John Wertheim of Sports Illustrated (SI) who wrote about today’s topic (it’s been turning up like a bad penny for years) last summer. Read this after the post and I think you will agree.

The Setup

Controversy arrived at the AO courtesy of the number one male player in the world, Novak Djokovic of Serbia. One of the things that makes the tennis Grand Slam events (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open) is their international nature and DEFERENCE to the traditions of each country that hosts the events. In Australia’s case, as a sovereign nation, they have established their COVID policies. Their policies have been strict throughout the pandemic. Regardless of individual opinion, it would seem that the average citizen of Australia must feel empowered when special treatment does not extend to the few. In the same way that etiquette and the rules are bigger than the stars (Novak was DQ’d at the US Open for hitting a lineswoman in the throat with a ball in the past), Australia has deported the defending champion and the show must go on. The main draw of 128 men and 128 women has begun and champions will be crowned next weekend.

The Details

I hope that during the tournament there is an acknowledgment of the ongoing saga of Peng Shuai who I have posted about previously in posts “Tennis is Love” and “Peng Shuai”. By all appearances, she appears to be still under some sort of house arrest in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Similar to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) aka North Korea, I am amazed by the audacity of some nations in how they choose their names while avoiding irony.

There are already reports that the French Open, held in Paris in the spring at Roland Garros is readying its COVID policies. I believe there is much the rest of the sports world could learn from tennis institutions. The costs, both financial and in prestige are not inconsequential to have principles.

By the way, tennis remains the only professional sport that maintains events of the style of the Grand Slams. Prize money is equalized for men and women. I think there is much to be learned by other sports from professional tennis and how its structures have evolved with the times.

While the situation is fluid and reporting is scant, there are reports that Novak Djokovic is readying a lawsuit against Australia. How dare they behave as a sovereign nation? Novak is at or near the top of the all-time greats of the sport. He emerged amongst two other all-time greats and relentlessly improved amidst the very best competition. He is a wonderful player to watch when his demons are held at bay.

He further tarnished his reputation last year at the Olympics. After losing a chance for a Gold medal that had eluded him, he had a tantrum in the bronze medal match. He threw one racquet into the stands and the other he unceremoniously smashed in anger. After the loss, he withdrew from the mixed doubles with his long-time friend and partner. The Olympics are undoubtedly a special experience and a dream for many including his friend. When I think of tennis and the host nation, Japan, my mind turns to Naomi Osaka. Her demeanor, focus, and skill epitomize what the host nation likely VALUES in a tennis experience. I doubt there is much endearment for smashing your racquet on a net post or tossing another into the stands.

For a fan of tennis, there is more than the perfect slide to the ball, endurance and focus for five-plus hours, and precision muscle control. For me, sports can sometimes personify life. One of the greatest baseball players in history, Pete Rose was troubled when not between the lines. His competitive Uber spirit and singular focus contributed to his greatness as a baseball player. Those very same behaviors seemed to become his demons and he was by many measures a horrible human being in the 95% of his life off of the diamond. This brings to mind the expression ‘sport imitates life’.

Editor’s Note (extra 1:10)

I write these posts ahead of time and try to stay on a schedule for the effort to explore writing. This leads to new stuff happening since I wrote it in some cases. The men’s draw at the AO will be down to 16 players by the end of the day. The morning of this post I watched a recap of the highlights of results at the AO. In an unusual story of different outcomes, the relatively unknown player Miomir Kecmanovic who was slated to play the almost unbeatable Djokovic in the first round has now made it through to the 4th round ($237000)! In another example of how tennis is ‘done differently’ than other sports, the players reformed the prize money system during the pandemic. Imagine your favorite basketball or football star agreeing to that sort of reform! This last meant reductions in prize money for winners, through quarterfinalists in the Grand Slams with LARGE increases in distribution of prize money for even making the draw. The goal was to support the players struggling to remain on the Tours with the reduced scheduling and travel during COVID. The overall method of funding this effort week to week was to suspend the special distributions to the top 12 players in the world at the end of a season. Consider your favorite sport and imagine the ‘Top 12’ doing that? It is striking to me that in ‘team sports’ this does not happen but instead in an individual sport built on community. Seems like the makings of a post.