During last year’s Wimbledon tournament, I wrote an article about the heinous grunting in tennis after Caroline Wozniaki, one of the top women on tour, criticized a fellow player’s incessant noise making.
“I think there are some players who do it on purpose,” Wozniaki told The Guardian during Wimbledon in 2011. “They don’t do it in practice and then they come into the match and they grunt. I think they [officials] could definitely cut it.
“If you grunt really loudly your opponent cannot hear how you hit the ball. Because the grunt is so loud, you think the ball is coming fast and suddenly the ball just goes slowly. In tight moments, maybe the grunt helps them with getting less nervous.”
The Women’s Tennis Association heard the complaints of Wozniaki and the fans loud and clear, as a new plan to curb excessive grunting and shrieking is now in the works. WTA chairman and CEO Stacey Allaster addressed the situation at Wimbledon last year saying the matter deserved attention and she followed through big time, unveiling a few measures to be taken in the future.
According to USA Today:
The umbrella scenario, unanimously green-lighted this month at Roland Garros in Paris by representatives of the four majors, the International Tennis Federation and the WTA players’ council, would include:
• The development of a handheld device — a kind of Hawk-Eye for noise — for umpires to objectively measure on-court grunting levels.
• A new rule setting acceptable and non-acceptable noise levels based on acoustical data gathering and analysis.
• Education at large tennis academies, national development programs and at all levels of junior and lower-tier professional events.
The new measures are designed not to punish or affect current players, instead aiming to start at the youth level in hopes of curbing unnecessary noise before it ever becomes a habit.
If you’ve never noticed just how nasty the vocal emissions can get on a tennis court, well, you’ve probably never watched a match and therefor likely wouldn’t be reading this blog post. But just in case, here’s a reminder, care of last year’s The Guardian article:
“The shrieks of the 2004 Wimbledon champion [Maria Sharapova] have been compared to a pneumatic drill and have been measured at more than 100 decibels. [Victoria] Azarenka’s grunts are longer and higher-pitched, and were described by one Wimbledon watcher this year as “like Mickey Mouse in distress.”
Umm, I’d say that’s a fair assessment. I’ve watched many a match on mute because the grunting drives me nuts. I’m all for the this new, seemingly diplomatic larynx legislation, especially considering the WTA consulted current and former players, as well as sports science and psychology experts.
But what about the guys? According to the USA Today article, ATP spokesperson Kate Gordon expressed that “the issue is not perceived to be a problem on the ATP World Tour and has not been raised.”
Hey ATP, I just watched the men’s doubles final at Wimbledon, complete with a +3 hour-long soundtrack of low groans and grunts. Sure, the boys aren’t typically murdering our ears with high-pitch squeals made famously annoying by the girls, but their sounds are bothersome all the same.
The ladies are often guilty of disturbing the peace, but so are the gentleman. The same rules should apply to both tours. The WTA does not yet have an implementation schedule for this new plan, but I’m looking forward to the day when I won’t have to even think about muting my TV during a match.
Ever find yourself watching a major tennis tournament on mute because you can no longer handle the obnoxious, over-the-top and sometimes inappropriate noises being purged from the players’ mouths?
The top dog in women’s tennis, world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki is speaking out about the grunting she wishes her competitors would hold in.
Before being bounced from the WTA Championships in Turkey by Petra Kvitova on Thursday, Wozniacki bemoaned the moaning that she says opponents use strategically to gain an edge in competition.
21-year-old Wozniacki told Simon Chambers of The Guardian, “I think there are some players who do it on purpose. They don’t do it in practice and then they come into the match and they grunt. I think they [officials] could definitely cut it.”
What advantage can shrieking like a wild animal in heat possibly provide, aside from annoying your opponent (and everyone else within earshot)?
According to Wozniacki, “if you grunt really loudly your opponent cannot hear how you hit the ball. Because the grunt is so loud, you think the ball is coming fast and suddenly the ball just goes slowly. In tight moments, maybe the grunt helps them with getting less nervous.”
Who knew? The article also quotes WTA Chairman & CEO Stacey Allaster admitting to the annoyance of the tour’s lady grunters, even saying there has been an increase in fan complaints as of late. Allaster said the matter deserves a look and that changes could come at the junior level.
My Dad always yells at the TV when the female players grunt and shriek, often imitating them in the process which is, um, uncomfortable. As the young feminist that I am, I always rebut with the fact that, “Dad, the guys do it too. It’s not just the women.” It’s beyond annoying regardless of gender, but the ladies do seem to pack an extra punch.
According to The Guardian, “the shrieks of the 2004 Wimbledon champion [Maria Sharapova] have been compared to a pneumatic drill and have been measured at more than 100 decibels. [Victoria] Azarenka’s grunts are longer and higher-pitched, and were described by one Wimbledon watcher this year as “like Mickey Mouse in distress.”
I’m all for Wozniacki sounding off on the subject. I like how she criticized the action, which is really just subtly (or not) taking shots at some of the sport’s most popular women. Finishing a second consecutive season ranked No.1, Wozniacki has recently opened up and shown a lot more personality.
Back in January, she pranked the Australian Open press after media reports called her “boring.” In September, Wozniacki imitated Rafael Nadal’s awkward press conference (where he moaned and fidgeted while suffering cramps) at her own post-match media session at the U.S. Open.
It’s interesting that the world’s top women’s player two years running has yet to win a Grand Slam title, but I think Wozniacki will change that next season. I like her because you never know what she’ll do next. With the aging Williams sisters likely looking at their best days in the rear view mirror, women’s tennis needs the play and personality of Caroline Wozniacki.
Watch Caroline prank the media here: http://www.casttv.com/video/5fb15jq/caroline-wozniacki-funny-press-conference-video
Watch Caroline do her best “Cramping Nadal” impression here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/06/caroline-wozniacki-nadal-cramps-press-conference_n_950490.html
