Tennis in Rio and Davis Cup update
The Greek Olympics, thought to have begun about 3,000 years ago, went into dormancy over a period of time. Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin formed the International Olympic Committee in 1894 and the first of the ‘Modern Olympics’ as it is now known, was in 1896. It is this idea that revived Sports in the modern world. Until very recently, there was nothing to match the winning of an Olympic medal as the ultimate achievement for a Sportsperson. In status, it put the medal winners on a pedestal for decades. This has changed….
At present, unlike the ‘Olympic Games’ which is only once in 4 years, Athletics and many prominent Sports have a series of annual mega events, which match the Olympics with their own world rankings. What's more, they are professional events affording a good life after the short career. These annual events are not only very challenging to Sportspersons, but also take away the charm of Sports, with its overdose. Tennis came into the Olympics very recently. Its own annual calendar for men and women is impressive, keenly contested, well paid and followed by large numbers. What happens in Rio de Janeiro in Tennis will be a replica of WTA and ATP events.
Olympic Games too, in it’s over-enthusiasm, now permits the host country’s image boosting pro- grammes to be staged in too big a scale. In the last 50 years, the opening and closing ceremonies stood out more than the sporting performances. It has become showpieces of the host country's culture and extremely entertainment oriented. This certainly underplays the sporting achievements. London Olympics reduced this element. The Games are now getting literally crucified with doping revelations which are nothing but cheating by Athletes. What I find to be most threatening is the fact that along with the Athletes, even nations are accused of accommodating and shielding cheating.
We certainly cannot let the Olympics fail. Olympics has made Sports a very vital ingredient in our social structure and as such, remains to be the most effective interactive mechanism which overrides all socio-economic differences among the people of the world. The Olympic movement, in its effort to propagate Sports in less developed countries, has a fund that gives grants to nations in selected areas. It could be considered an effective mechanics which sustains Sport in such countries.
Brazil has many issues at present, which could make this August Games in Rio de Janeiro unattractive. The two critical ones are the ZIKA virus and WADA’s doping suspensions. If there is a third, it would be security, but security is in question in most countries. The deadly virus has created such panic that 2 well known players have already announced their withdrawal from the Olympics – Romanian Simona Halep and Canada’s Milos Raonic. They have implied ZIKA as the reason, and I suspect a few more will follow citing the same.
World anti-doping body WADA has decided to take a strong stand at this Olympics. Russia has said that it is an ‘individual responsibility’ and as a nation, it too wants to clean up Sports. That subjects the Russian Tennis players to the mercy of WADA’s decision. Some leading players have been suspended.
The biggest shock of the 2nd Round of the Davis Cup was USA's loss to Croatia in Portland, Oregon, USA. Another feature that cannot be ignored is the absence of the world's top 10 players in their national teams. It seems now that this competition remains largely of interest to lower-end Tennis countries. The ladder system is well established with sub divisions and in zones that permits a promotion when a country wins the Group in which they play.
Sri Lanka has been maintaining a place in Group 2 of our zone for a while. Unfortunately, we failed this year and will be relegated to Group 3 next year. We lost to Indonesia in the relegation rounds. Harshana Godamanne who is our best player also lost his match. He has taken up a coaching position in the USA and that will not give him time to train. To be successful in Group 2, our players will have to participate in international tournaments to mature in physical reaction to accommodate speed, tactics and personality. Our local Tennis lacks these components to succeed, and is the salient reason for our failure in international Tennis.
The tight European tour is still on and the clay court events have resumed with the German Open in Hamburg, the Swedish Open in Gstaad, and the Women’s Romanian Open in Bucharest and a few more. The hard court season of North America also has a crowded programme and will end with the last of the Grand Slams for this year- the US Open in New York. North America, which was the home of big Tennis, has, in recent years, lost its grip on the game. The USA, after Pete Sampras in men and the Williams sisters, has not come up with top 10 players. Canada’s Milos Raonic is the best prospect the continent has to win the US Open this year.