It is no secret that U.S. pro tennis is in decline over the past 20 years. Historically the U.S. has always had great champs and Grand Slam winners who dominated the world rankings -- Arthur Ashe, Stan Smith, Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. These names ruled the tennis world and kept the U.S. in its place as the best in the world.
But the constant supply of phenomenal champions has thinned in the past 2 decades, leaving the U.S. with only 1 player in the top 10 -- Andy Rodick -- and a few more players such as James Blake,Mardy Fish and Robby Ginepri, who are in and out of the top 20 but not real contenders in Grand Slam events.
It looks like we are all waiting for the next Sampras or Agassi to emerge, but is anything being done about it? Many reasons have contributed to the decline of U.S. tennis. Some are legitimate reasons, such as the improvement of training methods in the rest of the world, namely Europe and South America. The growth of the game around the world made it more popular and therefore presented more competition to U.S. players.
Ironically, the size of the U.S. is hurting its chances of turning top talents into top pros. In smaller countries such as Belgium, Switzerland and even Spain or France, it is much easier to monitor the young players and put together a national junior program that will give the kids the quality coaching and the conditions to fullfill their potencial. In the U.S. the talent is spread out all over the country and many times it is too hard logistically to get the top kids together for training camps with top coaches, which is generally how players are made.
Another factor that comes in is the level of coaching in the early ages. In the U.S., unlike Europe, there is almost no emphasis on technique and game development in the early junior years(12s, 14s); it's mostly about ranking, competitions, varsity tennis etc. As a coach it is hard for me to develop a kid's game if there is a competition almost every week. The kids (and parents) are chasing the points in order to get into the varsity team and later on to college. It's not constructive for their game.
The increase in prize money on the ATP Tour has tempted many players to turn pro at an early age, which makes the competition tougher for Americans who are more likely to finish high school and go to college before turning pro This is what I call the catch-22 of US tennis.
In Europe and South America it is common that a good junior player gives up everything, including his education, for his tennis.They practice 5-6 hours a day and travel around the world almost like real pros starting at age 15 or 16. By the time they are 18 or 19 they are practically veterans. In the U.S. it is very different; education is more important to most parents and most kids are staying in high school full time and many are also going to college before trying the pro tour. This hurts their chances on the tour and puts them in an inferior position when they do decide to turn pro.
I can't really blame the parents. They realize that the odds of making the pro tour are very slim and make the calculated decision of education first. After all it not such a bad option to go to college on a full scholarship, get a degree and come out with multiple job oportunities. It is certainly better than giving up school and going on tour to become a mediocre player ranked 200-300.
When I grew up in Israel back in the '80s I faced the same dilemma -- I was a top ranked junior and wanted to be a pro more than anything in the world but had a jewish mother that was not going to let me quit school. I did turn pro but had a special deal with my school that allowed me to study on the road. I certainly compromised my grades but managed to graduate. It turned out to be a good decision for me to turn pro early. I got my butt kikced the first 2 years but by the time I was 18 I was ready and had a decent career, played Davis Cup for 11 years and played 2 in Olympic Games.
After playing professional for 13 years I went to college at age 29, which is an option that some top American juniors who have aspirations should consider if they want to compete against the top players in the world. Leyton Hewitt won his first ATP event at 16, and Rafael Nadal won the French Open men's title at 17. Everything is happening early these days and U.S. tennis will have to do something about it.
Posted by Gilad Bloom at 03:25 PM | Permalink
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