A dose of perspective (re: "This player sucks")

[El Dude]

I've been kind of wanting to write this post for awhile now, so bear with a bit of a rant.

It isn't uncommon for people to bag on this or that player, especially those that never win Slams or big titles, but even some of the very best players on tour. I get hyperbolic frustration when a player you like loses, but I wanted to give a does of reality.

• At any given time, there are between 2,000 and 2,200 professional male tennis players that are ranked in either singles and/or doubles
• In addition, there are an estimated 8-10,000 more that player ITF events during a given year
• Then there are thousands more that play club tennis, college, or in some other more-than-casual venue

So let's round that off to 10,000 professional or semi-professional players. What that means is the top 100 represents the top 1% of all pros and semi-pros. Conversely, they are the 99th percentile of players who are actively trying to "make it." The current #100 is Alejandro Tabilo, though he has ranked as high as #19. Some other guys ranked around 100 who have never ranked in the top 50: Elmer Moller, Brandon Holt, Hugo Gaston, Chun Hsin Tseng, Carlos Taberner.

Of the five guys I picked, I had only heard of two of them. But the are still borderline 99th percentile of all pros and semi-pros.

Andrey Rublev is currently #10, though has ranked as high as #5. Frances Tiafoe #11, highest ranking of #10. Tiafoe "sucks," right? Never even won a big title or reached a Slam final. Well, he's 99.9th percentile of all tennis players right now. We could add in a frequent punching bag like Felix Auger-Aliassime. He's really, really good at tennis. Imagine the best player you've ever faced, maybe in college or at a club - Felix would slaughter him. Or to put it another way, we bag on Felix but he's a better tennis player than all but maybe 10-20 guys in the entire world - that means, he's better than about 10,000 guys who are trying to do what he has done pretty successfully.

And then we have our beloved #1s. Four guys on tour have reached #1: Djokovic, Medvedev, Alcaraz, and Sinner. No one will bag on three of those guys, but Medvedev has been accused of sucking. But the guy has been #1 - meaning, for a few weeks at least, he was the best tennis player in the world - the 99.99 percentile - at least as far as past year's years results. That is amazing.

Finally, we have our all-time greats: the 15 or 20 best players of the Open Era (and maybe twice that in all of tennis history). These guys aren't just multi-Slam winners and former #1s, these are players with sustained periods of dominance. Even the "lesser" players among their ranks, the Mats Wilanders, Stefan Edbergs, and Andy Murrays, are better than "mere" #1s. They are the 99.99 percentile (or thereabouts) of all players ever. So when we go on a rant about how this or that all-time great wasn't as good as peak Borg and therefore sucks (ahem), we have lost all perspective. Andy Murray might be the "worst" of the true ATGs, and he was better than all but maybe a bit over a dozen players in the Open Era. The players a bit below him-- names like Ilie Nastase, Arthur Ashe, Jim Courier and Lleyton Hewitt or players I call "near-greats"--are also pretty damn amazing.

I'll end soon, but my point should be obvious. Look, I get being a sports fan. Hyperbole is like mustard on sandwiches: it is just part of the deal (and I love mustard). It can be fun, at times, or at least quasi-cathartic. But let's have a dose of reality as we, mostly folks who talk about but don't play (pro) sports from the comforts of our couches and lazy-boys, bag on guys and gals who are really, really, really good at tennis.

A top 100 player is really good at tennis. A top 10 player is great...no, not an "all-time great," but pretty damn great at hitting that nylon and rubber ball around. Let's have some perspective.

p.s. Just to be clear, I'm sometimes an instant of my own complaint. I try to keep perspective, but sometimes slip.

 

[Moxie]

This is a terrific post. Good to be reminded of perspective. I do try to keep that clear eye about how good all of these guys are, but, you're right, we all slip. Or we fall into a trap of expectations, forgetting how "elite," at least for now, even the top 100 players are.

I remember getting a bit of perspective back in the day when Calitennis was around, and a huge champion of David Nalbandian. DN still gets mentioned in terms of great players never to win a Major. He was ranked as high as #3 in the world, and only won 11 titles in his career. Some were very good ones. Including having beaten Novak, Rafa then Roger along the way. (Still the only one to have done that? That would make him the only one, if so.) My point with that is that we'd gotten so inured by the big 3 winning so many titles, that it seemed like the only slightly lesser lights must have had 50 or so. But no. Tiafoe, who you mentioned, has been in the top 10 (at 10,) and he has 3 titles. I'm not bagging on these guys, I'm saying it's hard to win titles, and hard to be consistent, week-in and week-out.

I am completely guilty of bagging on top players for not doing better. We tend to talk about the top players, with the up-and-comers in the mix. It's good to be reminded to keep some perspective as to what they're all doing out there.

 

[El Dude]

Thanks, Moxie. One thing I didn't mention which is a huge element -- and probably my least favorite aspect of tennis -- is the money imbalance, which makes it even more difficult to break in. It is one of the few sports that working hard and a basic level of opportunity isn't enough - from tennis lessons as a kid to having a team to support you.

While tennis has surpassed baseball as my favorite sport to follow, it annoys me that it is such a rich Western sport.

 

[Moxie]

Thanks, Moxie. One thing I didn't mention which is a huge element -- and probably my least favorite aspect of tennis -- is the money imbalance, which makes it even more difficult to break in. It is one of the few sports that working hard and a basic level of opportunity isn't enough - from tennis lessons as a kid to having a team to support you.

While tennis has surpassed baseball as my favorite sport to follow, it annoys me that it is such a rich Western sport.

This is true, but less true than it once was, right? There is an aspect of this that is inherent in the sport. Meaning that, even if you can start out playing in school and on public courts, at some point you start to outgrow the local competition, and have to go further and further afield to compete against players at your level. This is where federations help, if a player lives in a country with a tennis federation that is invested in grooming young talent. The US college route is also an option, and players from abroad have also come through the NCAA. If you get a scholarship, it's a great way to play competitive tennis, with good coaches and support teams, AND get an education.

I don't think I have to name some of the obvious players who came from very little to reach the top of the sport. But an example you might not think of is Ons Jabeur, who also comes from a country without a tennis history or federation. Her mother was a casual player, and her parents sacrificed a lot to her talent.

However, when we're not talking about super-stars, and they get to the big leagues, it's a very expensive sport for the lesser-lights. Perhaps this is you main point? The travel expenses alone might barely be covered by winnings, never mind paying a coach, etc. Top players have a full team, and get treated like Ferraris. That alone creates a gap between top players and those who are more or less scraping by. Efforts have been made to cover the pay gap, but not really enough. One good thing is that the qualifying rounds at Majors pay much better than they used to. (I think there was a time when they paid nothing.) To the point of your original post, you still have to be really good even to be allowed to play in the qualies. But if you look at the pay disparity in the various rounds of big tournaments, it could be equalized even more. It would help make lower-ranked players more competitive. The men and women who win those events, especially the Majors, are exactly the ones that don't need the $2.5M, or whatever, and what they really want is the hardware, and the points. They could re-allocate the money more fairly without changing the point system.

This has got me thinking about that new PTPA, including in the doping discussion thread, (if you care to check my latest post.) I don't think that the ATP and WTA have the players' best interests in mind, since they also run the tournaments. It IS a conflict of interests. This is also one reason I champion equal pay for women. Same as good pay for lower-ranked players. If you want a healthy, competitive game, you have to keep good players in the sport. If good players can't afford to stay in, you'll see more hegemony at the top, which I know you don't care for.

 

[El Dude]

Yeah, I'm mainly talking about the difference between guys on the Challenger and Futures circuits vs. top 10-20 guys. But really the whole process, though I hear your point about federations etc.

 

[lomaha]

Yeah, I'm mainly talking about the difference between guys on the Challenger and Futures circuits vs. top 10-20 guys. But really the whole process, though I hear your point about federations etc.

Even if she is a wta player Wozniacki is a good example of this. When she startet playing tennis no one wanted to support her and the danish tennis federation didn't have any money to help her. So she and her father visited several brands and asked them for sponsorships by them selves. And they had no money to get a proper trainer/coach, so her father became her coach and manager. It wasn't until she won a couple of tournaments in 2008 she could affort af fysical trainer.

And the same goes for Holger. His parents paid for his travel expenses to the junior tournaments and when he started out on the tour. He was coached by a local former player, Lars Christensen, at the local tennis club, because we don't have a tennis Academy in Denmark. And Lars had a job as a teacher at a local school at the same time. So he couldn't travel a long all the time. Holger's parents sold their summer cottage to pay for Lars' travel expenses. It wasn't untill he won Paris Masters that he got some great sponsorships and was able to pay his own way ( and bougth a new summer cottage for his parents).

 

[don_fabio]

Tennis is a cruel sport. There are tons of talented players that give up by the age of 18 due to expenses and lack of support from national tennis federation. US has a good system with great competition in college and you get the eduacation too. Players at that stage really need to be pushed and train a lot to reach pro level.

Mostly what diferentiates the top 3-4 guys, top 20 guys and the rest is what's between the ears. We expect a lot from the players, but when they fail it's mostly mental. They can all hit great shots, but crumble under pressure. Maybe that's why is sometimes frustrating for us to watch them, because we know what they are capable of.

Anyone who ever touched a tennis racket and watched any pro live will know how hard it is and how much effort was done to reach those levels. It's a full day job and beyond to be where they are. I would like to see more people get equal opportunities in tennis, but this sport is too damn expensive. Even for a club player if you play every day, you'll spend a good amount of money, but for the up and coming players money is draining faster than in Las Vegas. Plus you have an opponent across the net who is probably hungry as you and is looking to break out from the ITF to Challengers and then to ATP. Even if you succeed for a while and you get to top 100, you have to sustain it to build up your balance sheet. You have only one injury that separates you from the lower level again. It's tough.

 

[Kieran]

Novak rose up out of the ashes of a war zone, so he's an encouraging example of a player who came from nowhere to reach the top, but yeah, growing up in a working class area in Dublin, and teaching kids there for years, we were only a few miles from the posh clubs with indoor facilities etc, and yet we might as well have been on another planet. But.

Tennis has thrown up greats from poor countries and from working class homes and they've turned their disadvantages into W's, as well as using that gigantic chip on their shoulder (Novak) to cry like Sally Field when the audience grudgingly applauds. I love to compare Novak to Sally Field and I'll do it til I DIE!!!

As for the OP, I totally agree with everything though I DO think it's the prerogative of fans to hurl abuse, mockery and ridicule towards the tennis elite. And the sporting elite in general. Tennis and sports are luxurious absurdities, distractions, meaningless in the long haul of life, when compared to the death of a dog or the missing a bus for a Very Important Appointment. As Sonny says in Bronx Tale, will Mickey Mantle pay your rent? Gladiators made love to beautiful women, but they also suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fat blokes in tight mini dresses, chomping on free bread in the cheap seats.

What? The only reaction to the most extraordinary plays of tennis gods is to appreciate them? John McEnroe made my younger days miserable. Federer and Djokovic almost sent me to the morgue, and unlamented at that. I detested these people. No way I'm ever gonna sit back and yawn, fair play, best man won, what a wonderful performance. Just before the 2008 Wimbledon final I watched all the preamble, then soon as the ump screamed PLAY, I grabbed the hoover and starts shaking it at the floor.

Watching tennis is a horrible misery. for the most part, and the bastard who caused the misery is still a rotten bastard to me, regardless of how great they are. That's the only way I can handle it..

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Novak rose up out of the ashes of a war zone, so he's an encouraging example of a player who came from nowhere to reach the top, but yeah, growing up in a working class area in Dublin, and teaching kids there for years, we were only a few miles from the posh clubs with indoor facilities etc, and yet we might as well have been on another planet. But.

Tennis has thrown up greats from poor countries and from working class homes and they've turned their disadvantages into W's, as well as using that gigantic chip on their shoulder (Novak) to cry like Sally Field when the audience grudgingly applauds. I love to compare Novak to Sally Field and I'll do it til I DIE!!!

As for the OP, I totally agree with everything though I DO think it's the prerogative of fans to hurl abuse, mockery and ridicule towards the tennis elite. And the sporting elite in general. Tennis and sports are luxurious absurdities, distractions, meaningless in the long haul of life, when compared to the death of a dog or the missing a bus for a Very Important Appointment. As Sonny says in Bronx Tale, will Mickey Mantle pay your rent? Gladiators made love to beautiful women, but they also suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fat blokes in tight mini dresses, chomping on free bread in the cheap seats.

What? The only reaction to the most extraordinary plays of tennis gods is to appreciate them? John McEnroe made my younger days miserable. Federer and Djokovic almost sent me to the morgue, and unlamented at that. I detested these people. No way I'm ever gonna sit back and yawn, fair play, best man won, what a wonderful performance. Just before the 2008 Wimbledon final I watched all the preamble, then soon as the ump screamed PLAY, I grabbed the hoover and starts shaking it at the floor.

Watching tennis is a horrible misery. for the most part, and the bastard who caused the misery is still a rotten bastard to me, regardless of how great they are. That's the only way I can handle it..

" I grabbed the hoover and starts shaking it at the floor" what a way trying to have coping mechanisms in the 2008 Wimbledon final
Thank goodness I have a wide huge hallway which I treaded up and down till the carpet lay bare my daughter yelled at me 'Mum you have totally lost it"

 

[atttomole]

Novak rose up out of the ashes of a war zone, so he's an encouraging example of a player who came from nowhere to reach the top, but yeah, growing up in a working class area in Dublin, and teaching kids there for years, we were only a few miles from the posh clubs with indoor facilities etc, and yet we might as well have been on another planet. But.

Tennis has thrown up greats from poor countries and from working class homes and they've turned their disadvantages into W's, as well as using that gigantic chip on their shoulder (Novak) to cry like Sally Field when the audience grudgingly applauds. I love to compare Novak to Sally Field and I'll do it til I DIE!!!

As for the OP, I totally agree with everything though I DO think it's the prerogative of fans to hurl abuse, mockery and ridicule towards the tennis elite. And the sporting elite in general. Tennis and sports are luxurious absurdities, distractions, meaningless in the long haul of life, when compared to the death of a dog or the missing a bus for a Very Important Appointment. As Sonny says in Bronx Tale, will Mickey Mantle pay your rent? Gladiators made love to beautiful women, but they also suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fat blokes in tight mini dresses, chomping on free bread in the cheap seats.

What? The only reaction to the most extraordinary plays of tennis gods is to appreciate them? John McEnroe made my younger days miserable. Federer and Djokovic almost sent me to the morgue, and unlamented at that. I detested these people. No way I'm ever gonna sit back and yawn, fair play, best man won, what a wonderful performance. Just before the 2008 Wimbledon final I watched all the preamble, then soon as the ump screamed PLAY, I grabbed the hoover and starts shaking it at the floor.

Watching tennis is a horrible misery. for the most part, and the bastard who caused the misery is still a rotten bastard to me, regardless of how great they are. That's the only way I can handle it..

Serbia is poorer than western countries, but it doesn’t mean everyone there is destitute. Djokovic succeeded because he is talented and he worked hard. There is a good number of players from Serbia of his generation, so it’s not like playing tennis in Serbia is very rare.

 

[Moxie]

Novak rose up out of the ashes of a war zone, so he's an encouraging example of a player who came from nowhere to reach the top, but yeah, growing up in a working class area in Dublin, and teaching kids there for years, we were only a few miles from the posh clubs with indoor facilities etc, and yet we might as well have been on another planet. But.

Tennis has thrown up greats from poor countries and from working class homes and they've turned their disadvantages into W's, as well as using that gigantic chip on their shoulder (Novak) to cry like Sally Field when the audience grudgingly applauds. I love to compare Novak to Sally Field and I'll do it til I DIE!!!

As for the OP, I totally agree with everything though I DO think it's the prerogative of fans to hurl abuse, mockery and ridicule towards the tennis elite. And the sporting elite in general. Tennis and sports are luxurious absurdities, distractions, meaningless in the long haul of life, when compared to the death of a dog or the missing a bus for a Very Important Appointment. As Sonny says in Bronx Tale, will Mickey Mantle pay your rent? Gladiators made love to beautiful women, but they also suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fat blokes in tight mini dresses, chomping on free bread in the cheap seats.

What? The only reaction to the most extraordinary plays of tennis gods is to appreciate them? John McEnroe made my younger days miserable. Federer and Djokovic almost sent me to the morgue, and unlamented at that. I detested these people. No way I'm ever gonna sit back and yawn, fair play, best man won, what a wonderful performance. Just before the 2008 Wimbledon final I watched all the preamble, then soon as the ump screamed PLAY, I grabbed the hoover and starts shaking it at the floor.

Watching tennis is a horrible misery. for the most part, and the bastard who caused the misery is still a rotten bastard to me, regardless of how great they are. That's the only way I can handle it..

Fantastic rant! Uncle Toni used to say that losing a tennis match is not a tragedy, as you mention about perspective. Though, sometimes it feels like one, to us fans.

How DID we all survive that 2008 Wimbledon final?! And I mean fans on both sides of the net. We suffered the same, until right at the end.

 

[Kieran]

Fantastic rant! Uncle Toni used to say that losing a tennis match is not a tragedy, as you mention about perspective. Though, sometimes it feels like one, to us fans.

How DID we all survive that 2008 Wimbledon final?! And I mean fans on both sides of the net. We suffered the same, until right at the end.

The late great Bill Shankley, the man who made Liverpool FC into a great club, once said, “football isn’t a matter of life and death. It’s more important than that!”

I know (and I’m sure he knew) that great tragedies put it all in perspective, but watching football is a gentle stroll in the park compared to watching tennis. It’s easy. But tennis makes demands of us that are too great a burden. Five and a half hours FO final. The 2008 Wimbledon final started in the day and finished at night. It’s murderous. It ages us. Even the rush of adrenaline after the W is dangerous. I feel like my arms will fly off. I feel like that hardworking rabbit in my chest will explode. I feel like my face will be mistaken for a traffic light. Of course I’m gonna hate the bastard who did this to me. I’ll hate him so much I’ll hate my own mother for loving Federer, the traitor. And she hated me at the same time. Tennis isn’t lifelong allegiance to a football club. It’s bigger than that. Who we chose as our champion reveals something of our inner life. There’s an aesthetic to it, a principle. There isn’t something hereditary, like membership of a club your old lad or big brother supports. We choose the player because they represent some value we cherish. Whether it’s the gentleman player who remains unflappable in the face of a constant barrage, or the brat whose cause is much greater than a simple match. We file in behind them because what they do means something.

Even if it is only tennis! All other players must get crushed the the stampede. There’s no other way…

 

[mrzz]

I hate all posts but @Kieran 's two just above

 

[Kieran]

I hate all posts but @Kieran 's two just above

You’ve got to feel the hate, don’t ya? You can’t love tennis properly until you also feel a disproportionate amount of hatred at the same time…