Modern game serving up new challenges
Tennis is a sport considered to be traditional. It is still played much the same way, with much the same format as it has done since its original design about 150 years ago.
I consider this to be fantastic, as like the great Roger Federer, I am a huge fan of tradition. The etiquette, rules and so forth create a real sense of being a part of something steeped in history.
However, everything changes at some point, it’s an inevitable part of life from which we cannot escape.
Despite the sport of tennis itself remaining fairly constant, the way in which it is played has definitely evolved, with the rackets becoming weapons that dwarf and humble their predecessors.
The strokes used are greatly modified, with much more of the body being used to produce enormous amounts of spin and speed for every contact on the ball.
And then there is the clothing. Well, we have seen some questionable choices in this department over the years. The great Andre Agassi led the charge with fearless if not somewhat rebellious fashion on the tennis court.
Another noticeable difference would become obvious if you were to line up the top 10 male players from the 1950s with the top 10 players of today.
Top tennis players are giants in comparison to those from yesteryear. Modern tennis players are a similar size to some professional basketball players, with strength and speed comparable to a track and field Olympian.
In fact, five years ago, the world’s best decathlete at the time and Olympic gold medalist, Ashton Eaton, was asked what he considered the most athletic sport in the world to be. He said he considered the world’s best tennis players to be among the world’s greatest athletes. Eaton explained that the explosive strength, combined with fitness, required to play at the highest level was unparalleled by any other sport.
If you were to watch a tennis match played 120 years ago, you may not necessarily agree with that statement, but it is a different story now.
Tennis has changed in some small ways, but it does have catching up to do in others.
There is no doubt that at a community level, there is work to be done to make the sport more appealing to the wider population. As widely viewed as tennis is on a global platform, it may be time for a spruce up, so to speak, so this once large participant-based sport can once again achieve the numbers at a grassroots level of 40 years ago.
I know there have been rumours circulating regarding ways to make this happen. Even at grand slam level there has been talk of shortening the five-set matches to a best of three sets.
I guess we need to watch this space, to see whether there are any major changes coming our way. One controversial change that I would make is to reduce the ability to have two serves available per point to just one serve.
The start list for the inaugural Manawatu¯ junior triathlon league is nearly full with athletes from around New Zealand, as excitement builds ahead of the start of the new event.
The under-23-elite start list for the three-day event from December 18 to 20 boasts athletes hopeful of an Olympic berth in Tokyo next year, as well as elite Manawatu¯ athletes looking for a breakout performance.
The event management team, led by director Jessica Pettersson, is working to ensure the event runs smoothly.
‘‘As we’ve confirmed all the larger details for the event – sites, first aid, courses etc – our focus now moves to the finer details, such as ensuring that athletes and their supporters have access to local services like a bike mechanic and local food providers.
‘‘We’ve been very lucky with local business more than willing to provide these services to both local and visiting athletes.’’
Manawatu¯ Triathlon Academy lead coach Tamara Reed said: ‘‘Over the past few months we’ve been working on the skill set the athletes will need for all events of the league.
‘‘We’ve been lucky enough to run test events for all planned events of the [league], which has given the athletes valuable insight into the events and where they can make some gains.’’
She said test events had allowed the team to make tweaks to make the event faster, safer and better for viewing.
Residents of Feilding, Foxton, Palmerston North and Linton can expect to see an influx of athletes on the weekend as the athletes and supporters travel around race sites, from Manfield on Friday to Linton Military Camp on Sunday, for the marquee event, the elite sprint triathlon.