European Grand Slams
View(s):The Roland Garros courts in Paris is the venue of the French Open event, it sustains sand court popularity in tennis. It will begin in the last week of May. In preparation, professional player’s calendar has a series of sand court events in Europe. It began with the Monte Carlo in April. The French Open event is for the French national title.
Right now, sand court series is into its third week. The Madrid, event is for the Spanish national title. Sand court will test the resilience of players’ mental strength, physical endurance and stomach for long tactical manoeuvers. To be grilled-on-sand frightened the top guns in tennis. Some of the biggest names of the game never won the Paris title. If I am right, Pete Sampras and John McEnroe are among them.
What awaits a player?
Three things can happens to players in the European tennis. A newcomer surface to impress, elites live up to their reputation and the past player will take the curtain call for their contribution. It happened to Rafael Nadal in Madrid this year. Europe, for many sports, is a make-or-break venue in the professional realm. For tennis, the European sand and the English grass courts are the original two playing surfaces.
Body, not a machine
Right now, players are into fifteenth week of the 2024 professional tennis circuit. Good players are vulnerable to physical break down. Top players conserve their energy, rationing their participation to avoid unwanted loss and injury during this time. In Europe, players cannot mess or miss events. It will affect their ranking, popularity and reputation.
WTA and ATP ranking events are not only prestigious but also income generating. In a player’s career run, their first target is to be in the Top 100 subsequently they eye the Top 10 of the ranking. Achieving these are physically and mentally taxing. It is a mega business to have a million dollars before 21 years of age. Many young players after registering their presence before their 20th birthday slip into the second and third tier of the ranking to spend a good decade there.
Possible winners in Europe
The leading women are Iga Swiatek, even with injury spells she is holding her No.1 position with Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka at her heels. The youngest player in Top 10 is Qin Wen Zheng of China. She is 21 and in line to achieve, Li Na did, winning a Grand Slam title. The oldest is Jessika Pegula of USA, she is 30, always bounces back, using her grid and ability to withstand physical punishment.
In men’s, it is a close. Novak Djokovic, absent in Madrid and beaten in Monte Carlo. Janick Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev of Russia, Taylor Fritz of USA, Carlos Alcaraz returning from injury spell, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece are in good form. Men’s tennis at present is very open. No one has consolidated it to be dominant.
Player development
Tennis is ever changing and it happens in player development. In the past, playing at net once considered for the few with special attributes. Today all players play from base line, mid court and net. Mid court was once considered a trap. Today players in both gender are well equipped with half volleys, drive volleys, drop volleys, volleys and overheads to play at net, mid court and around the base line.
Dedicated academies use hand-feeding methods in coaching. Hitters and bucket feeding in player development is enabling all court players to emerge. The requisites are expensive. It requires a court for four hours for two players, up to 500 tennis balls with trained eye of a good coach and an assistant in attendance. Taking time availability away from opponents is effective in tactics, all court players can do that.
Madrid Open 2024
In the Top 25 of the WTA ranking, there are only two from Western Europe — Caroline Garcia of France and Danielle Collins of Italy. USA has five with ever bouncing forth and back Danielle Collins and Madison Keys. Both not being young anymore, are using their own formula to sustain their position in the WTA ranking.
Manalo Santana
Madrid Open is been played at late Manalo Santana Stadium in Madrid. A tribute to the Wimbledon champion of 1965 from Spain. The event and the stadium is an effort of Ion Tiriac of Romania. The most successful sports entrepreneur of Europe. It came to being in the lines of Indian Wells venue in California, USA. Madrid, in the professional calendar, is a top end event with 128 players and 1000 ranking points to the winner.
Global boost
The time of European sand and grass court events is the biggest boost to global tennis. To date these events have shaped the 150 years of tennis history.
--George Paldano, European and Asian competition player; Coach German Tennis Federation; National coach Brunei and Sri Lanka;
Davis Cup, Federation Cup coach, coached ATP, WTA and ITF ranked players in Europe and Asia; WhatsApp +94775448880–