CARRY ON GRUNTING

Groans and moans here to stay, says tour chief

THE head of the WTA Tour has risked angering purists by shelving plans to curtail grunting while pressing to abolish rules restricting coaching.

Steve Simon, the tour’s chief executive, is relaxed about the repeat yelping of players, which will become more prevalent this year with the expected return of Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka.

He also wants to challenge the age-old idea in tennis that coaches are not allowed to issue instructions from the stands. This can currently incur a $5,000 fine and official warnings from umpires.

While not exclusively a female issue, last Sunday’s final in Indian Wells featured constant highpitched screams from eventual winner, Elena Vesnina (above).

Investigations of decibel levels set in motion by former WTA supremo Stacey Allaster have been abandoned, although there is advisory education on the topic for younger players. ‘I don’t plan on pursuing anything to eliminate grunting,’ said Simon. ‘ We do have rules in place that if we feel it becomes a hindrance then obviously there are rules that address that.’

Highly contentious in terms of the sport’s fabric is his attitude towards coaching.

At present players are allowed one visit per set at regular tour events from a coach, usually a man. It has already eroded the principle of tennis being a sport in which players have to figure out tactics for themselves.

Coaching visits can at least be entertaining. Last night in Miami Garbine Muguruza’s coach Sam Sumyk went on and told her: ‘Don’t tell me to shut the f*** up ever again.’

Simon sees the potential in it. ‘I think coaching is something that the sport needs to embrace,’ he said. ‘ There are great personalities among the coaches.’ The men’s game does not allow inmatch coaching, but there are instances of secret communication between player and box.

‘The fact is that there is coaching,’ asserted Simon.

‘They all have coaches, there’s been the question for years — are they coaching from the box or aren’t they?

‘Is the banana going left or is it going right? Let’s call a spade a spade here: I scratch my head, my hat was on backwards, now it’s on forwards. Come on!

‘If you’re going to allow coaching, fine. If not, let’s go mano a

mano and put the coaches in a suite where the player can’t find them. We need to be realistic.’

But allowing a free-for-all from the stands would disadvantage the self-reliant, smarter tactical players. Agnieszka Radwanska is an example of that in the women’s game, while Andy Murray is a case in point among the men.

After a bye at the Miami Open into the second round, Jo Konta was last night due to play her opening match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.