Medvedev's brilliant play and Opelka's wit make it harder for me to maintain my shrill opposition to the heightification of men's tennis. But maintain it I do. I think it is a danger for the sport. Perhaps there are enough Medvedev's ato keep the servebots at bay and keep the sport from suffering a fatal deskilling, but it's foolish to assume it will work out that way. We almost got an Isner-Opelka master's 1000 final and we will likely see a grand slam final of similar ilk in the future. The Anderson-Isner Wimbledon final was a warning that has been ignored. Well-run sports, like the NFL, adjust their rules to maintain the quality of the sport's play. Tennis should make appropriate rule changes. I'm open to different options. My radical solution is to move back the service line for every inch a player exceeds, say, six foot two inches. I'll leave it to Jeff Sackman to determine the exact amount needed to even things out.
This is essentially Novak too altho less noticed because not as tall. Also, is meta yr fav word and what does it actually mean here? Character? Type? ;))
How great would it have been to see Opelka, he of the monster serve, throw in a Bublik underhand? Silly? Maybe, but at some point I think you have to not let the other player do what they want when it stymies you again and again.
I doubt the data exists, but it would be interesting to see all the serve/return data you've shared aligned with the change in average square footage of space outside of the ATP tour's courts. (Less so on the WTA side, but maybe even then.) Some time ago I came across this youtube of Becker/Edberg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2qfGlf5g94) and was reminded of what was normal (sic) when players moved forwards relentlessly. Today's pros simply couldn't manage with the lines judges so close (Rafa would be standing behind them) and so little room left and right to chase wide balls. I'm not saying better, or worse, but clearly different. (Could not post a screenshot, but the relative tiny-ness of the playing area is obvious right off the bat in the vid.)
Such an awesome analysis, thank you Mr. Willis!!
Medvedev's brilliant play and Opelka's wit make it harder for me to maintain my shrill opposition to the heightification of men's tennis. But maintain it I do. I think it is a danger for the sport. Perhaps there are enough Medvedev's ato keep the servebots at bay and keep the sport from suffering a fatal deskilling, but it's foolish to assume it will work out that way. We almost got an Isner-Opelka master's 1000 final and we will likely see a grand slam final of similar ilk in the future. The Anderson-Isner Wimbledon final was a warning that has been ignored. Well-run sports, like the NFL, adjust their rules to maintain the quality of the sport's play. Tennis should make appropriate rule changes. I'm open to different options. My radical solution is to move back the service line for every inch a player exceeds, say, six foot two inches. I'll leave it to Jeff Sackman to determine the exact amount needed to even things out.
This is essentially Novak too altho less noticed because not as tall. Also, is meta yr fav word and what does it actually mean here? Character? Type? ;))
How great would it have been to see Opelka, he of the monster serve, throw in a Bublik underhand? Silly? Maybe, but at some point I think you have to not let the other player do what they want when it stymies you again and again.
I doubt the data exists, but it would be interesting to see all the serve/return data you've shared aligned with the change in average square footage of space outside of the ATP tour's courts. (Less so on the WTA side, but maybe even then.) Some time ago I came across this youtube of Becker/Edberg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2qfGlf5g94) and was reminded of what was normal (sic) when players moved forwards relentlessly. Today's pros simply couldn't manage with the lines judges so close (Rafa would be standing behind them) and so little room left and right to chase wide balls. I'm not saying better, or worse, but clearly different. (Could not post a screenshot, but the relative tiny-ness of the playing area is obvious right off the bat in the vid.)
Thanks for the post.