WHITHER SPORTING SILENCE AND BEHAVIOR? GONE LIKE TYPEWRITERS?

Where are the noise police? Who will protect our eardrums? Is the women’s game, normally a fine shooting match, degenerating into a shouting match? Has sportsmanship gone the way of the typewriter?

These were some of the questions raised Friday as the multitude of 15,000 booed and whistled their disapproval of a new kid on the block named Michelle Larcher de Brito. The French are first-class whistlers, and when they chirp it can be cutting. So sharp that it brought tears to Michelle’s 16-year-old face. The locals didn’t care for her shrieking throughout a 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, loss to France’s Aravane Rezai. Or the kid’s brushing off the traditional congratulatory handclasp with a passing-by touch of the victor’s outstretched hand.

Larcher de Brito, a Portuguese who has trained at Nick Bollettieri’s renowned boot camp in Bradenton, Fla., and looks like a genuine prospect, has been outstanding as far as playing the game. She broke through to three wins in the qualifying tournament, and two more in the big show, her first major.

One of my favorite things in Paris, the small sailboats in the pond in the Tuileries Garden

Rezai complained to the umpire about Larcher de Brito’s wailing that extended beyond her striking the ball and into her foe’s concentration and swinging zone. Her holding pitch longer and more bothersome to the opponent is something new in the history of female vocalizing. Some would consider the too-much-sound a hindrance. Umpires are empowered to hand an offender a “warning” for the first offense and point penalties thereafter.

The kid was called to the umpire’s chair during the match, but not told to shut up. Why? Because, shrewdly Michelle asked why Maria [Sharapova] was never penalized.

Is any umpire going to hand out point penalties to the leading howling offenders: Sharapova, the Williams Sisters, Victoria Azarenka? It’s probably too late to call for law and vocal order. But why not? Did Steffi Graf or Martina Navratilova sound off as they played? Or Justine Henin?

Proprietor and customer of the wonderful little boats in the Tuileries

Monica Seles was the mother of grunting in the 1990s, but she was pianissimo compared with the current crowd. But I’ve seen Serena and Venus play well without sound affects. Sharapova, too. But does screaming give them an edge?

I believe the WTA (Women’s Tennis Assn) should give serious consideration to applying the hindrance rule. Naturally it won’t happen, but maybe they could issue pacifiers to the shouters. And I hope the estimable Nick Bollettieri will give sportsmanship lessons to such of his charges as Larcher de Brito.

Screeching and boorishness detract from the occasion.

How do you feel, kind reader?

Tags: de Brito, Noise, Sportsmanship

May 30 2009 04:31 pm | French Open

11 Responses to “WHITHER SPORTING SILENCE AND BEHAVIOR? GONE LIKE TYPEWRITERS?”

Dick Berr on 31 May 2009 at 9:18 am #

Bud, All I have to say on this is a big AMEN!!! I would also like to see them go back to all whites on the court, which will never happen.
Tom on 31 May 2009 at 11:23 am #

I agree with the fans when it come to any outlandish noises, such as grunting, groaning, screaching, screaming. BOOOOOO! HISSSSSS! The tennis court is no place for such goings on.
bud on 31 May 2009 at 12:19 pm #

Hi Fellows!
Glad to hear from you, thank you for writing.
We are fighting a losing battle I am afraid, but let’s keep fighting….! I would like to see coaches of young players cut it off at the pass and return to sportsmanship and fair play on the courts. The noise has really gotten out of hand interfering with the opponent and the fans.
Cheers, Bud
Diane on 31 May 2009 at 6:51 pm #

Obviously, the screaming and shouting has gone too far, but it may be difficult to draw the line between “acceptable” screaming and screaming that is a hindrance.

Also, it cuts both ways: Those in the crowd who yell when a player is serving or who yell during a point need to be removed from their seats.
Bud Collins on 01 Jun 2009 at 9:04 am #

Hi Diane,
The umpires do a pretty good job of keeping the crowd under control. The problem now is these young players coming along who are using their voices to hinder their opponents and bother everybody.
Cheers, Bud
Annette on 01 Jun 2009 at 10:06 pm #

Jane Voight wrote a post from the FO commenting on the noise some of the WTA players were making, and then brought up the noise many ATP players make. I said, “Bully for you, Jane!” I am so offended by the noise Nadal makes, I mute the TV when he’s playing. I think more people comment on the women’s noise because it’s at a higher pitch. I find both irritating when done to excess, and hate missing out on the commentary while a match is in progress. Players on both sides are guilty.
andrea on 01 Jun 2009 at 11:13 pm #

Yes, yes, I love you for this Bud. I can’t help it, this is one of about a dozen issues I would fix immediately if I was in charge of the WTA. I can’t accept that nothing can be done. We write complex rules and regulations on every topic under the sun. There’s no reason the same thing can’t be done with a noise rule. The Supreme Court once said of obscenity – we know it when we see it. Yep. The same is true in tennis. We all know the difference between a noise of true exertion (or exhilaration, or exhaustion, or extreme disgust). Let’s put the professional back in Women’s Professional Tennis.

(See http://passingshots.wordpress.com/2009/06/02/i-love-you-bud-collins-for-being-vocal-about-vocalizers/)
Claude Conyers on 02 Jun 2009 at 3:53 pm #

The two most unattractive things about women’s tennis these days are (1) the grunting, shrieking, screaming of some players and (2) the mispronunciation of Russian surnames by commentators. The former is unsportsmanlike; the latter is just willful ignorance. Most Americans aware of Russian culture know that feminine forms of family surnames are formed by the addition of a final syllable “a,” which does not affect the pronunciation of the surname. Mr. ShaRApov’s daughter is Miss ShaRApova, not SharaPOva. Tennis is the only sport or art in which commentators consistently demonstrate ignorance of proper pronunciation. Most annoying.
bud on 04 Jun 2009 at 4:28 am #

Claude – thank you for yours. Will continue to decry screaming, and I think I’m usually right with Russian names because I ask the players themselves. Not many commentators do. When Sharapova was a kid she told me the correct way, but has given in (probably advice from agents who think the POVA usage is easier for Americans).
happy wishes,
Bud
Wilson on 02 Jul 2009 at 2:38 pm #

Bud,

I just listened to your coment about Federer not being the “Greatest’ of all time given the current equipment and what not. you said he is “one” of the greatest players of all time, i disagree. i think if you take fred lee and some of those other guys and put them in the currernt times, they would get crushed by Fed!
Jerry D Finley on 22 Jun 2011 at 1:18 pm #

Geezz. have to agree with the others here..Love tennis.. have for 30 years, but I can’t watch many of the new players like Sherapova or the Williams sisters play because of the incessant screaming at every strike of the ball.. It’s painful. Please tell me some sanctioning board is looking at this phenomenon. Tennis is a mental sport.. like Golf…. You’ll never see a golfer screaming while striking the ball.. One only has to look at a Federer .. or Borg…or Lendl.. or Sampras to know that this grunting or screaming is unnecessary for success.. What do other players think? Surely not all are on board with this…As you’re a figurehead in the industry.. How about making a stand for we the powerless masses? start an industry-wide petition? If not you? who? You are respected the the community.. How about making this your #1 contribution to future generations of tennis lovers..Please