tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/wimbledon-6234/articlesWimbledon – The Conversation2023-07-18T16:23:38Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2099352023-07-18T16:23:38Z2023-07-18T16:23:38ZCarlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon win explained by a sports psychologist<p>Between 2003 and 2022 there have only been four men’s singles winners of Wimbledon. You need to go back to 2002 when Australian <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQuMtCRKaK0">Lleyton Hewitt</a> won the title to find a name other than the “big four” – Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray or Rafael Nadal. But on Sunday 20-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/66218558">broke that pattern</a> when he beat Djokovic in a five-set thriller to win the title.</p>
<p>It was a surprise win. The dominance of the top four players has led to an expectation that, at Grand Slams, one of them would end up on top. Within forensic psychology there is a cliché – “the best predictor of future behaviour is past behaviour.” Psychological research <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/witness/201301/the-best-predictor-future-behavior-is-past-behavior">backs this phenomenon</a>, whereby we expect the past to repeat itself. </p>
<p>I would argue that this excludes people that are going to do things for the very first time – Alcaraz’s Wimbledon win was his first grass court Grand Slam victory. Carlos Alcaraz was <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/jun/09/novak-djokovic-outlasts-cramping-alcaraz-to-race-into-french-open-final">beaten by Djokovic</a> at the French Open in June. He reported that it was <a href="https://www.tennisworldusa.org/tennis/news/Editors_Thoughts/133784/carlos-alcaraz-overwhelmed-by-the-pressure-in-the-first-real-tough-test-of-his-career/">overwhelming</a> to play against his hero. </p>
<p>However, perhaps that loss was perceived differently by Alcaraz compared to players that are of the same generation as Djokovic. Alcaraz seemed to use the loss as a mechanism to enhance his performance in any rematch, rather than allowing it to set a precedent for future matches. </p>
<p>Alcaraz is 16 years younger than Djokovic. Throughout his career, he has observed the dominance of the “big four” and has presumably learned from them. As a sport psychologist, I think Alcaraz has a <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/01/what-having-a-growth-mindset-actually-means">growth mindset</a> – this is where someone believes that their attainment is influenced by hard work, good strategy and input from others. It’s the opposite of a fixed mindset, whereby someone views the success of others as a threat and feedback as an attack. Such people tend to be risk averse and believe that talent is fixed. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-secret-of-novak-djokovics-record-breaking-tennis-success-is-his-mental-resilience-expert-explains-207872">The secret of Novak Djokovic’s record-breaking tennis success is his mental resilience – expert explains</a>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The moment Alcaraz won Wimbledon.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>Sticking to the plan</h2>
<p>During his Wimbledon match against Djokovic, the game plan within Alcaraz’s camp remained consistent, even when momentum shifted. For example, in the long second set, which followed a one-sided first set, Alcaraz broke serve (he won the game even though Djokovic was serving). </p>
<p>In the book, <a href="http://www.zoneofexcellence.ca/consultant.html">A Consultant’s Guide to Excellence for Sport and Performance Enhancement</a>, a team of sport psychologists discuss the temptation of high-level performers to adjust their tactics away from what has worked in the past and towards something new. Some athletes believe they will get a small performance gain from doing so.</p>
<p>But this is usually an error, as sporting success is <a href="http://www.zoneofexcellence.ca/consultant.html">borne on well-practiced and understood patterns</a> that, when adjusted, can lose – not enhance – effectiveness. </p>
<p>There were a number of moments during the Wimbledon final where Alcaraz could have adjusted what he was doing as a result of unexpected events. Djokovic’s long bathroom break at the end of the third set, for example, could well have put enhanced pressure on him. The loss of the fourth set, too, could have pushed him to try different tactics.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Alcaraz in the post-win press conference.</span></figcaption>
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<p>But sticking to the plan and his belief in its effectiveness to bring about the best possible version of himself meant he was in control. Alcaraz has had the same coach since he was 15 and his player box was filled with his longstanding team and family members, epitomising this approach.</p>
<p>Perhaps his trademark aggressive ground strokes also allowed Alcaraz to release any aggression or anxiety in a productive way. Compare this to the more controlled tactical game played by Novak whereby there is no obvious release for pent up frustration and this could partially explain <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/66226270">a racket violation</a> by Novak in the final set. </p>
<p>Tennis fans will now turn with interest to the US Open, where in just a few weeks’ time these two will be favourites to once again meet in a Grand Slam final. We will see then whether Alcaraz’s Wimbledon win marks a changing of the guard or merely a warning shot to the former champion to raise his game.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Beale does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Alcaraz’s distinctive aggressive forehand style allowed him to release any aggression or anxiety in a productive way.James Beale, Senior Lecturer in Sport Psychology, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2091662023-07-07T10:30:19Z2023-07-07T10:30:19ZTennis and apartheid: how a South African teenager was denied his dream of playing at Wimbledon<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536045/original/file-20230706-30-5qdns0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Some 1971 tour players, from left, Hira Dhiraj, Hoosen Bobat, a Dutch friend, Jasmat Dhiraj, Charmaine Williams and Oscar Woodman. Williams toured at her own expense.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Courtesy the 1971 players/UKZN Press</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Today the <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/atoz/about_aeltc.html">All England Lawn Tennis Club</a>, hosts of the famous <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com">Wimbledon Championships</a>, pledges to be diverse and inclusive. But in 1971 an 18-year-old university student, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/jun/28/how-junior-wimbledon-apartheid-south-africa-blocked-hoosen-bobat-tennis-dream">Hoosen Bobat</a> from Durban, was excluded from achieving his dream of becoming the first black South African to play in the Wimbledon men’s junior tournament. This was due to <a href="https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/history-apartheid-south-africa">apartheid</a>, and the collusion of the all-white tennis union in South Africa and the International Lawn Tennis Federation, with Wimbledon toeing the line. </p>
<p>I tell Bobat’s story in the new book <a href="https://www.ukznpress.co.za/?class=bb_ukzn_books&method=view_books&global%5Bfields%5D%5B_id%5D=598">Tennis, Apartheid and Social Justice</a>. I am a scholar who has published numerous <a href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=saleem+badat&btnG=">books and papers</a> on the histories of <a href="https://jacana.co.za/product/the-forgotten-people-political-banishment-under-apartheid/">black exclusion</a> and organised <a href="https://www.google.co.za/books/edition/Black_Man_You_are_on_Your_Own/DsLYRwAACAAJ?hl=en">black resistance</a> during apartheid, and on social justice and transformation. </p>
<p>My book documents the historic 1971 first international tour by a squad of black South Africans who played tennis under the auspices of the non-racial Southern African Lawn Tennis Union.</p>
<p>In 1973, the union was a founding affiliate of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-south-african-council-on-sport-at-50-the-fight-for-sports-development-is-still-relevant-today-202402">South African Council on Sport</a>, which popularised the slogan</p>
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<p>No normal sport in an abnormal society. </p>
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<p>In the context of apartheid, this must be contrasted with tennis played by white South Africans under the racially exclusively white tennis union.</p>
<p>The 1971 touring players were dubbed the “Dhiraj squad” after tennis champion Jasmat Dhiraj, a school teacher. The other five were Hira Dhiraj, Alwyn Solomon, Oscar Woodman, Cavan Bergman and Bobat.</p>
<p>The union’s goals were for its most promising players to compete in tournaments in Europe irrespective of “race” and nationality, to improve their games and be ambassadors for upholding equity and human dignity in sport.</p>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-south-african-council-on-sport-at-50-the-fight-for-sports-development-is-still-relevant-today-202402">The South African Council on Sport at 50: the fight for sports development is still relevant today</a>
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<p>I wrote the book because I believe important social justice issues arose from the tour. At a minimum, a public apology is due from the international tennis body and Wimbledon to the non-racial sport community, the 1971 tour players and Bobat.</p>
<p>I also thought it was important to tell the story while most of those who lived through it were were still with us. And the book was also an opportunity to focus on “ordinary” people, on unsung heroes, on their tribulations and triumphs. A focus on everyday histories rather than on dramatic events and on elites.</p>
<h2>The issues</h2>
<p>In the book I cover three issues. </p>
<p>Firstly, I place the tour within the political, social and sporting conditions under apartheid. In 1971 South Africa was a racist, segregated and repressive society, based on white supremacy and privilege and black subjugation. Black people were denied proper sports facilities, coaching and opportunities to excel, could not belong to the same clubs as whites or compete in competitions with or against white players. Considered subjects, not citizens, they couldn’t represent South Africa in sport. Sport under apartheid was a killing field of ambitions and dreams.</p>
<p>Secondly, it records the players. The tournaments they participated in, their performances and challenges, the tour’s impact on them, the lessons learnt and their lives and tennis accomplishments after 1971.</p>
<p>Thirdly, the book demonstrates the collusion between the International Lawn Tennis Federation and the white South African tennis body. That collusion, and the action of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, prevented Bobat from becoming the first black South African to play in the junior Wimbledon championships.</p>
<h2>The arguments</h2>
<p>I make five main arguments. </p>
<p>One is that, since democracy in 1994, there has been no fitting recognition, symbolic or material, of outstanding apartheid-era non-racial tennis players. Nor has there been appropriate restitution and reparation of any kind.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=928&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=928&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=928&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1166&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1166&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536123/original/file-20230706-24-7rnte4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1166&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">UKZN Press</span></span>
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<p>A second argument is that apartheid’s legacy continues to profoundly affect and shape tennis today. A walk around the affluent white town of Stellenbosch in the Western Cape province and a black township like KwaMashu near Durban reveals the stark differences in terms of tennis courts, coaching and the like.</p>
<p>Third, probably less tennis is played today in black schools and communities than before democracy. Certainly, there is less self-organisation of the kind that harnessed limited economic and social capital in black communities to ensure non-racial tennis.</p>
<p>Fourth, as in other areas of South African society, there has been much talk about “transformation” but <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10130950.2010.9676325">little substantive transformation</a> in tennis. </p>
<p>Fifth, there should have been a <a href="https://www.justice.gov.za/trc/">Truth and Reconciliation Commission</a> for sport that laid bare apartheid sports crimes, the perpetrators and collaborators, and forged agreement on reparations and transformation.</p>
<p>The collaborators included big business and the media. With the support of the South African sugar industry, the tennis Sugar Circuit <a href="https://www.filepicker.io/api/file/80SLoFsUS9iyZ9PbDBv6">became</a> the “breeding ground for world ranked (white South African) players”. The sugar industry was <a href="https://www.iol.co.za/news/kzns-sugarcane-plantations-fed-off-the-blood-sweat-and-tears-of-indentured-labourers-38db5e28-e88b-4bbd-87a0-5580cd8bfadd">built on</a> the blood and sweat of Indian indentured labour and black labour more generally.</p>
<p>Yet, sugar big business did little to support black players. The commercial media linked to big business were also complicit, devoting print copy and airtime principally to white sports.</p>
<h2>Class, racism and patriarchy</h2>
<p>Opportunities in tennis were profoundly shaped by class, racism, patriarchy and other factors. </p>
<p>The players in the 1971 tour were classified “Coloured” or “Indian”. There were no “Black” South African players chosen because of a debatable notion of “merit” used by the Southern African Lawn Tennis Union.</p>
<p>And the tour was an exclusively male affair even though there were outstanding women tennis players and well-established women’s tournaments. Charmaine Williams joined the tour at her own expense.</p>
<p>In my study I identify how non-racial tennis officials in South Africa exemplified dominant patriarchal attitudes and didn’t take gender inclusion seriously. This would remain an issue in the South African Council on Sport of the 1970s and 1980s.</p>
<p>Jasmat Dhiraj <a href="https://www.ukznpress.co.za/?class=bb_ukzn_books&method=view_books&global%5Bfields%5D%5B_id%5D=598">told me</a> that he had to “overcome inhibitions and complexes” on tour. Bobat states that they </p>
<blockquote>
<p>had to overcome the so-called inferiority complex of playing against white tennis players.</p>
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<h2>Truth and justice</h2>
<p>Former South African president and liberation leader <a href="https://www.nelsonmandela.org/content/page/biography">Nelson Mandela</a> <a href="https://books.google.co.za/books/about/No_One_to_Blame.html?id=nAgAzUwnyN4C&redir_esc=y">commented</a> in 1995:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We can now deal with our past, establish the truth which has so long been denied us, and lay the basis for genuine reconciliation. Only the truth can put the past to rest.</p>
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<p>But, in my view, instead of dealing with our past South Africans are letting it fester, failing to see that genuine reconciliation cannot be achieved by ignoring the injustices and pain of the past.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209166/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Saleem Badat receives funding from the National Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. </span></em></p>A new book delves into the issues faced by a 1971 international tennis tour, and calls for injustice to be recognised.Saleem Badat, Research Professor, UFS History Department, University of the Free StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2056962023-05-22T15:00:35Z2023-05-22T15:00:35ZWhy Wimbledon’s reversal of their ban on Russian players is good for players, fans and the tennis sports industry<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526218/original/file-20230515-13823-schpzf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4053%2C2127&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Wimbledon flags waving in the wind.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/london-uk-april-2022-three-flags-2162243983">rarrarorro/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Can Wimbledon 2023 regain its status as the number one grand slam on the tennis tour? It certainly has the potential to achieve this status with the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s (AELTC) <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/news/articles/2023-03-31/statement_regarding_player_entries_for_the_championships_2023.html">reversing its ban</a> on Russian and Belarusian tennis players. </p>
<p>This action allows these players to now compete as “neutrals” at Wimbledon and ends a year-long stance against their participation. It is a smart strategic and financial move that will be good for tennis in the UK - the players, fans and the tennis sports industry.</p>
<p>The ban on Russian/Belarusian players was first announced <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/news/articles/2022-04-20/statement_regarding_russian_and_belarusian_individuals_at_the_championships_2022.html">April 20 2022</a> by Ian Hewitt, chairman of the All England Club responsible for managing the Wimbledon Championships. This decision was supported by the UK Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) which put in place similar bans for tournaments that lead up to Wimbledon. This was done so that there was a “<a href="https://www.lta.org.uk/news/statement-on-russian-and-belarusian-players-at-our-tournaments/#:%7E:text=The%20LTA%20is%20today%20united%20with%20the%20All,all%20Russian%20and%20Belarusian%20players%20at%20its%20events.">consistent approach</a>” across UK tennis.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527380/original/file-20230521-127128-zcvt5x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Wimbledon, July 2018.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jonathan Skinner</span></span>
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<p>The international Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) immediately criticised the ban as <a href="https://www.atptour.com/en/news/atp-statement-wimbledon-british-grass-swing-april-2022">unfair discrimination</a> against players and stripped Wimbledon of its ability to rank players in the grand slam, effectively reducing it to an exhibition event that some <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/sport/tennis/1769962/Wimbledon-ATP-WTA-ranking-points-Russia-ban-tennis-news">players stayed away from</a>. It subsequently introduced <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/63889447">UK$200,000 (£164,018) fines</a> for each LTA event ATP players were banned from, and was joined by similar sanctions from the Women’s Tennis Association. The threat of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/dec/07/lta-fined-1m-by-atp-for-banning-russian-players-from-tennis-tournaments">LTA expulsion from the international tennis tour</a> also hung over this cloud of multi-million dollar fines should the ban continue into 2023.</p>
<h2>Not detrimental</h2>
<p>Wimbledon’s ban was initially implemented because of <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/tennis/fears-of-putin-propaganda-coup-at-wimbledon-over-kate-awarding-trophy/ar-AA199zh6?li=BBoPRmx">fears of a propaganda coup for Putin</a> should a Russian or Belarusian player such as Daniil Medvedev win and be photographed being awarded a trophy by British royalty or beating British former Wimbledon champion Andy Murray in the process. In one unilateral action, Wimbledon became a highly politicised sporting event, treating players according to their ethno-national background rather than their playing abilities.</p>
<p>Although a Russian/Belarusian victory might still come to pass in July, the anticipated awkward clashes and interactions on and off court between Russian/Belarusian and Ukrainian or Ukrainian-supporting players have been contained without being detrimental to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/may/20/wimbledon-stripped-of-ranking-points-over-banning-of-russian-players-tennis">tennis ecosystem</a>.</p>
<p>In April, Russian player Anastasia Potapova was formally warned for wearing a <a href="https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/russian-tennis-player-speaks-sparking-085146057.html">Spartak Moscow</a> football shirt on court during the BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells) in California. She has not worn it since.</p>
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<p>Animosity was visible between Potapova and Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk in the next tournament she faced - the Miami Open. There, Kostyuk <a href="https://www.upi.com/Sports_News/2023/03/24/tennis-ukraine-russia-animosity/5711679581436/#:%7E:text=MIAMI%20GARDENS%2C%20Fla.%2C%20March%2024%20%28UPI%29%20--%20Animosity,from%20the%20war-torn%20countries%2C%20Russia%2C%20Belarus%20and%20Ukraine.">refused to shake hands</a> with a player from the country her homeland is at war with. The WTA responded by reaffirming its support for Ukraine.</p>
<p>And in January at this year’s first slam in Melbourne, Novak Djokovic was embarrassed by his father’s behaviour and had to ban him from attending his matches after Srdjan Djokovic was seen posing for photos with fans, standing beside one waving a Russian flag with Putin’s face in the middle and with the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/07/why-has-the-letter-z-become-the-symbol-of-war-for-russia">pro-invasion “Z” symbol</a> emblazoned on the fan’s T-shirt.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Novak Djokovic in a red shirt." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526219/original/file-20230515-17082-kb5wcq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Novak Djokovic’s father sparked controversy after posing with a fan wearing a pro-Russian invasion symbol.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/tokyo-japan-july-28-novak-djokovic-2019055337">Asatur Yesayants/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>There was no political fallout from this personal ban imposed, and Djokovic went on to win the Australian Open.</p>
<h2>Courting the tennis ecosystem</h2>
<p>There is pressure on tournaments at every level to modernise and grow. The AELTC itself has controversial <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/aboutwimbledon/estate_master_plan.html">expansion plans</a> and neither the AELTC nor the UK governing tennis body can risk further fines, loss of sponsorship, or loss of status by keeping the player ban in place.</p>
<p>Predictably, the AELTC has been cautious in its route back in line with the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the WTA and the ATP. Wimbledon seeks to avoid the “<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/64422557">disruptions</a> of the ban as well as the tensions between players arising from the Russian-Ukrainian war.</p>
<p>This all compounded to result in the LTA making a loss in the last financial year. Reversing the player ban brings players and rankings back to Wimbledon. It also conveniently <a href="https://www.tennisworldusa.org/tennis/news/Tennis_Stories/131261/british-tennis-officials-ask-atp-to-reduce-their-heavy-fine-/">halved last year’s WTA fine</a> and has given the LTA the initiative to negotiate with the ATP with respect to their 2022 season fine. </p>
<p>While the money from the fines was allocated to Ukrainian relief funds, this is money that the LTA needs to recoup for UK tennis to survive.</p>
<p>Lifting the ban at Wimbledon will add to the players’ challenge by bringing additional top-draw quality to the Wimbledon Championships. It will also add a containable edge to the matches. The fans will be looking to see how a recent <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/tennis/article-12031019/Ukrainian-tennis-player-Tsurenko-REFUSES-shake-hands-Russian-Kasatkina-loss-Madrid.html">friendly wave</a> seen at the Madrid Open between Russian Daria Kasatkina and Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko grows into a more visible peace.</p>
<p>Last year Andy Murray was awarded the <a href="https://www.lta.org.uk/news/andy-murray-receives-2022-arthur-ashe-humanitarian-award-from-atp/">Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Award</a> after donating nearly his entire season’s winnings <a href="https://www.unicef.org.uk/celebrity-supporters/andy-murray/">(£510,000) to Unicef’s programme assisting children</a> affected by the invasion of Ukraine.</p>
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<img alt="Andy Murray playing on the blue court of the 2023 Miami Open." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527010/original/file-20230518-27-eueoq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Andy Murray playing at the 2023 Miami Open.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jonathan Skinner</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>This year, Murray must work hard in the tournaments leading up to Wimbledon to retain his seeded status and avoid playing against the likes of Medvedev early in his campaign. Whether it is in the early rounds or later in the finals, a Murray/Medvedev match will favour the Russian for a win, but the clash is containable and will be to the advantage of the championship, the fans and UK tennis.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205696/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Peter Skinner received funding for a research mobility from the EventRights network (<a href="http://eventrights.net/">http://eventrights.net/</a>), under the Marie Curie Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Staff Exchange Scheme.</span></em></p>Russian players will now compete as neutrals at Wimbledon, ending a yearlong stance against their participation.Jonathan Peter Skinner, Reader in Anthropology of Events, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1852082022-06-24T00:50:38Z2022-06-24T00:50:38ZBoycotts in sport may not advance human rights. But they do harm individual athletes<p>Organisers of Wimbledon, the main draw of which begins on June 27, have found themselves in a quandary over their controversial decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players in protest over the invasion of Ukraine.</p>
<p>The banned players include current men’s world number 1 Daniil Medvedev, number 8 Andrey Rublev, and women’s world number 6 Aryna Sabalenka.</p>
<p>Both the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) penalised Wimbledon for this ban by <a href="https://www.skysports.com/tennis/news/32498/12617666/wimbledon-has-ranking-points-stripped-by-atp">stripping the tournament of its ranking points</a>. </p>
<p>Because one of the world’s most prestigious tennis tournaments has been relegated to merely a high-profile exhibition event, a growing number of players have <a href="https://talksport.com/sport/tennis/1132543/naomi-osaka-eugenie-bouchard-pull-out-wimbledon-withdraw-ranking-points-injury/">pulled out of the tournament</a>, including Naomi Osaka and Eugenie Bouchard (this shows how a boycotter event can simultaneously be boycotted by participants).</p>
<p>These kinds of boycotts occur regularly in high-profile sport as event organisers and participants use its global reach to highlight human rights violations.</p>
<p>But boycott actions and counter-actions – including those at Wimbledon – often do more to harm individual athletes who happen to be nationals of these countries rather than to the condemned regime or the event sponsors.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-banning-russian-tennis-players-from-wimbledon-the-right-call-179551">Is banning Russian tennis players from Wimbledon the right call?</a>
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<h2>Sport and human rights</h2>
<p>Australian former golfer Greg Norman sparked world-wide condemnation with his <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/weve-all-made-mistakes-greg-normans-gaffe-over-killing-of-saudi-journalist-jamal-khashoggi-p3vv0g88r">statement</a> that “we’ve all made mistakes” when discussing the Saudi-Arabian-backed killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.</p>
<p>It didn’t go unnoticed that Norman is also CEO of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Investments, which launched a PGA-breakaway golf tour for the super-rich. </p>
<p>Norman’s dismissal of a murder and the horrified global reaction to his comment show the power of sport to highlight and simultaneously ignore human rights violations. </p>
<p>Nations accused of violating these rights have found strategic, proactive approaches to counter the punitive, reactive, and short-term approach of economic boycotts. And sport plays an important part in that, such as the example of Qatar using the FIFA World Cup as a confirmation of their credibility and ability to host a globally significant event.</p>
<p>Such investments in “sportswashing” – using sport as a thin veneer to present a sanitised, friendlier version of a political regime or an organisation – are big business. The global influence of sport can become a vehicle for soft diplomacy and pursuing legitimacy.</p>
<p>November’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar remains a topic of a decade-long debate questioning how FIFA could award the world’s biggest sporting event to a country with a <a href="https://www.hrw.org/middle-east/north-africa/qatar">dubious human rights record</a>.</p>
<p>This has now only worsened with evidence of <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2016/03/qatar-world-cup-of-shame/">mass exploitation</a> of the migrant workers constructing the Cup’s stadiums.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Many migrant construction workers queue up for the bus back to their accommodation camp" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470221/original/file-20220622-3398-cirqal.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Migrant construction workers building infrastructure for the Qatar World Cup worked in very harsh conditions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://photos.aap.com.au/search/migrant%20workers%20and%20fifa">STR/EAP/AP</a></span>
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<p>Although arguably less extreme in nature, Australia is not absolved of human rights deficiencies in sport.</p>
<p>Why, for example, do Indigenous Australians remain <a href="https://www.clearinghouseforsport.gov.au/kb/indigenous-australians-and-sport#statistics">under-represented</a> at the elite and community level in most Aussie sports? Why are Australian women missing as leaders in coaching? Why is there currently only one <a href="https://www.teenvogue.com/story/australian-footballer-josh-cavallo-comes-out-as-gay">openly gay male professional soccer player</a> in Australia and <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/the-afl-s-growing-problem-with-invisibility-of-gay-players-20220328-p5a8np.html">no openly gay male AFL players</a>? Why have so many members of Australia’s gymnastics and swim teams reported <a href="https://theconversation.com/sport-integrity-australias-report-represents-a-reckoning-for-west-australian-gymnastics-but-has-justice-really-been-done-181246">abuse and toxic cultures</a> that started when they were children?</p>
<p>We should take to heart that even the practice of sport is a universal human right under the Olympic and <a href="https://www.coe.int/en/web/sport/revision-esc">European Sports Charters</a>, and other internationally ratified declarations and treaties.</p>
<p>However, most nations do not fully recognise and implement this notion in policy and practice, with access to sport participation often marred with complexities and hypocrisy.</p>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-olympics-have-always-been-a-platform-for-protest-banning-hand-gestures-and-kneeling-ignores-their-history-129694">The Olympics have always been a platform for protest. Banning hand gestures and kneeling ignores their history</a>
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<h2>Has Wimbledon’s boycott worked?</h2>
<p>Wimbledon organisers are clearly trying to make a point: invading the sovereign territory of another nation is unacceptable.</p>
<p>Yet even though the tournament can call the world’s attention to its stand, has banning players from invading nations proven to be an effective means to defend and protect human rights?</p>
<p>The answer would be a resounding “no”.</p>
<p>What the ban has achieved is to signal that the Wimbledon organisers take a position against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But taking a stand does not defend nor protect.</p>
<p>In this case, it hurts those who cannot be blamed for the war (the banned tennis players), and the unintended consequences (no ranking points) hurt the wider community of professional tennis players.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/french-open-understanding-why-russian-and-belarusian-tennis-players-are-competing-despite-wimbledon-ban-181823">French Open: understanding why Russian and Belarusian tennis players are competing despite Wimbledon ban</a>
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<p>While sport can indeed be a valuable platform to promote human rights, we must also recognise it doesn’t take much for sport to become exclusive, divisive and controversial.</p>
<p>Crucially, leveraging sport to advance human rights requires that human rights safeguarding by Australia, Russia or Qatar is measured by the same yardstick, recognising that much work must be done to ensure each country’s own sporting environment is inclusive and free of discrimination.</p>
<p>In doing that, we can truly recognise sport as the universal human right that it is, and it can remain true to its core objective of celebrating human potential and achievement.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/185208/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ramon Spaaij receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Health.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hans Westerbeek does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Boycott actions often do more harm to individual athletes than to the condemned regime.Hans Westerbeek, Professor of International Sport Business, Head of Sport Business Insights Group, Victoria UniversityRamon Spaaij, Professor, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1842732022-06-02T18:22:54Z2022-06-02T18:22:54ZUkraine recap: bogged down in the bloody Donbas region<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466659/original/file-20220601-48614-mxke6n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C8%2C5703%2C3608&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA-EFE/stringer</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s now over 14 weeks since Vladimir Putin sent Russia’s military machine into Ukraine expecting a relatively easy victory. It’s fair to say that the “special military operation” is not panning out the way the Russian president or his planners had envisaged. </p>
<p>The main focus of the fighting continues to be in the Donbas region in the country’s east, where Russian territorial gains are being met with a terrible butcher’s bill on both sides. Portsmouth University’s military strategist, Frank Ledgwidge, says Russia has <a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-despite-russias-success-in-donbas-this-is-only-the-end-of-the-beginning-183955">lost more troops</a> killed since February 24 than in ten years of fighting in Afghanistan – implying that well over 40,000 Russian soldiers have been taken out of the game. Ukraine’s casualties, Ledwidge estimates, are also grievous. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-despite-russias-success-in-donbas-this-is-only-the-end-of-the-beginning-183955">Ukraine war: despite Russia's success in Donbas, this is only the end of the beginning</a>
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<p>Ledwidge’s regular analysis has so far proved remarkably prescient: you may remember he predicted on day two of the conflict that Ukraine’s armed forces would put up stiff resistance and rightly that the battle for the Donbas would be protracted and bloody. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1531945411363147776"}"></div></p>
<p>Meanwhile, the first Russian soldier has been convicted in a war crimes trial and sentenced to life imprisonment. Vadim Shishimarin, 21, was sentenced for the killing of a 62-year-old man who was shot in the head in a village in the northeastern Sumy region in the opening days of the war. </p>
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<img alt="Ukraine Recap weekly email newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/449743/original/file-20220303-4351-1xhaozt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>This is our weekly recap of expert analysis of the Ukraine conflict.</em></strong>
<em>The Conversation, a not-for-profit news group, works with a wide range of academics across its global network to produce evidence-based analysis. Get these recaps in your inbox every Thursday. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/ukraine-recap-114?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+Newsletter+Ukraine+Recap+2022+Mar&utm_content=WeeklyRecapTop">Subscribe here</a>.</em></p>
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<p>Legal scholar Robert Goldman of American University in Washington – an expert on the law of war – believes that, while Ukraine is entitled to try the young tank commander for the murder, it may <a href="https://theconversation.com/war-crimes-trial-of-russian-soldier-was-perfectly-legal-but-that-doesnt-make-it-wise-183586">not have been wise to pursue the case</a> while the war still rages and in a civilian court. He also cautions that while Ukraine may well have observed due process of law in presenting the prosecution, not that this precedent has been set, there’s no guaranteeing Russia will be so scrupulous.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/war-crimes-trial-of-russian-soldier-was-perfectly-legal-but-that-doesnt-make-it-wise-183586">War crimes trial of Russian soldier was perfectly legal – but that doesn't make it wise</a>
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<p>Another big item on the news agenda at the moment is the cost of living crisis, and war in Ukraine is exacerbating that considerably. The sharp increase in oil and gas prices, as well as riding food prices and shortage, can all – at least in part – be attributed to Putin’s war. </p>
<p>Birmingham University’s Stefan Wolff and his collaborator Tatyana Malyarenko of the National University of Odesa have taken a detailed look at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-rising-food-prices-are-not-the-only-global-economic-fallout-183577">economic fallout from the conflict</a> and how this is likely to play into global political instability. One largely unforeseen consequence, they write, is the way this is affecting the US relationship with China – which will bear watching in the weeks and months ahead.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-rising-food-prices-are-not-the-only-global-economic-fallout-183577">Ukraine war: rising food prices are not the only global economic fallout</a>
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<h2>The diplomatic front</h2>
<p>One aspect of China-US relations in the news this week has involved the US stance on Taiwan. US president Joe Biden appeared to be rewriting America’s policy of “strategic ambiguity”, when he made a recent pledge to the effect that the US would take military action to defend Taiwan if China launched an invasion. Russia’s invasion has, as you’d expect, focused White House minds on the possibility that this might indeed come to pass. </p>
<p>Christoph Bluth and Owen Greene, international relations experts at the University of Bradford, believe that in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, the US will face a <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-ukraine-war-could-boost-tensions-between-us-and-china-over-future-of-taiwan-183745?notice=Article+has+been+updated.">completely different set of challenges</a> to those posed by Putin’s aggression in Ukraine.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-ukraine-war-could-boost-tensions-between-us-and-china-over-future-of-taiwan-183745">How Ukraine war could boost tensions between US and China over future of Taiwan</a>
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<p>Closer to home, meanwhile, there has been a spate of intense diplomatic activity sparked by Russia’s aggression. The last Ukraine recap focused on the decision of Finland and Sweden to seek membership of Nato, and this week Owen Greene has taken a closer look at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/sweden-a-history-of-neutrality-ends-after-200-years-183583">history of Swedish neutrality</a> since the Napoleonic wars. This stance began to change after Russia annexed the Crimea when the country began to seek closer defence cooperation with its neighbours and, through Nato members Denmark and Norway, with the North Atlantic alliance itself.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sweden-a-history-of-neutrality-ends-after-200-years-183583">Sweden: a history of neutrality ends after 200 years</a>
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<p>Denmark is also examining its defensive alliances and is voting on whether to end its opt-out from the European Union’s defence policy. It’s a significant move, as the EU has been bolstering its own defensive capabilities of late, so a vote in favour of ending the opt-out – according to Imelda Maher of University College Dublin and Dermot Hodson of Birkbeck, University of London – would <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-denmark-is-voting-on-its-defence-relationship-with-the-eu-and-what-it-says-about-democracy-in-europe-182732">accelerate that growth</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-denmark-is-voting-on-its-defence-relationship-with-the-eu-and-what-it-says-about-democracy-in-europe-182732">Why Denmark is voting on its defence relationship with the EU – and what it says about democracy in Europe</a>
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<h2>Collateral damage</h2>
<p>Just a few months ago, the European Space Agency (Esa) was preparing for the launch of the Rosalind Franklin rover on its trip to Mars, part of the ExoMars mission, a collaboration between Europe and Russia. Russia was to have provided several key components of the mission, including a rocket to launch it on its journey and the radioactive heaters to keep the batteries of the rover warm in the cold Martian nights.</p>
<p>Now, says space scientist Andrew Coates of University College London, Esa will need to <a href="https://theconversation.com/our-mars-rover-mission-was-suspended-because-of-the-ukraine-war-heres-what-were-hoping-for-next-183927">find new partners for the mission</a>. If this turns out to be Nasa, as is widely thought, this will further widen Russia’s rift with the west.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/our-mars-rover-mission-was-suspended-because-of-the-ukraine-war-heres-what-were-hoping-for-next-183927">Our Mars rover mission was suspended because of the Ukraine war – here's what we're hoping for next</a>
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<p>And finally, while you will have seen Russian and Belarus tennis stars competing in the French Open this week, you won’t be seeing these top players at Wimbledon, which has banned all competitors from the two countries. The likes of men’s world number two Daniil Medvedev, men’s number eight Andrey Rublev, and Belarusian former women’s world number two Aryna Sabalenka have been allowed to play as individuals rather than representing their respective countries. </p>
<p>As Leon Davis of Teeside University and Mike Duignan of the University of Surrey – both experts in event management – observe here, any of these players who openly express support for the Russian invasion <a href="https://theconversation.com/french-open-understanding-why-russian-and-belarusian-tennis-players-are-competing-despite-wimbledon-ban-181823">will face sanctions</a> and many of them have won plaudits for openly opposing the war. But, caution Davis and Duignan, even those Russian and Belarusian players who don’t actually live in their birth country any more are likely to have families there who could be endangered if they are too outspoken against the invasion.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/french-open-understanding-why-russian-and-belarusian-tennis-players-are-competing-despite-wimbledon-ban-181823">French Open: understanding why Russian and Belarusian tennis players are competing despite Wimbledon ban</a>
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<p><em>Ukraine Recap is available as a weekly email newsletter. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/ukraine-recap-114?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+Newsletter+Ukraine+Recap+2022+Mar&utm_content=WeeklyRecapBottom">Click here to get our recaps directly in your inbox.</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/184273/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
A digest of the week’s coverage of the war against Ukraine.Jonathan Este, Senior International Affairs Editor, Associate EditorLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1795512022-03-25T07:12:58Z2022-03-25T07:12:58ZIs banning Russian tennis players from Wimbledon the right call?<p>Wimbledon, the most iconic tennis grand slam, is considering its position on the participation of Russian nationals.</p>
<p>The British sports minister, Nigel Huddleston, recently suggested that for any Russian to play at Wimbledon, “<a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2022/03/16/tennis/daniil-medvedev-vladimir-putin-wimbledon-spt-intl/index.html">assurances</a>” might be needed about their position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Absolutely nobody flying the flag for Russia should be allowed or enabled. We need some potential assurance that they are not supporters of Putin and we are considering what requirements we may need to try and get some assurances along those lines.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The All England Lawn and Tennis Club is in discussions with the sports minister about the nature of any assurances and whether they would be applied at Wimbledon.</p>
<h2>Umpire’s call</h2>
<p>It now seems likely that Russian players, including the second-ranked male player, Daniil Medvedev and top women like Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, will be expected to divest themselves of symbols and language linking them with the Russian state, and commit to taking part at Wimbledon as “neutrals”.</p>
<p>Medvedev has taken a step in this direction already, removing the Russian flag from his <a href="https://www.tennisworldusa.org/tennis/news/UK_Tennis/110844/russian-players-forced-to-give-up-wimbledon/">social media profiles</a>. He also stated a wish for world peace.</p>
<p>However, the generic statement of hoping for peace isn’t the same as taking a position on a war in which one’s country is the antagonist. Medvedev is himself taking a neutral position on a war the British government opposes.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1499023182291951616"}"></div></p>
<p>Make no mistake: the Wimbledon tournament – hosted by a NATO country – is more than an exhibition of tennis. It’s also a demonstration of what Britain regards as appropriate, which is unlikely to be <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/2333875/olympics-and-sport-anti-diplomacy">diplomacy and accommodation</a>.</p>
<p>Huddleston seems only comfortable with Russian athletes who either oppose the war or do not support it, and thus are prepared to distance themselves from Russian President Vladimir Putin.</p>
<h2>In or out?</h2>
<p>The global angst against Putin has been so profound that sport itself has been compelled to come out behind its customary veil of “neutrality” in political matters. As such, sports organisations around the world have taken positions on the participation of both Russian and Belarusian teams and athletes.</p>
<p>One response has been exclusion, with an expectation that isolating Russian teams from world sport is a necessary affront to the <a href="https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/3436043-president-zelensky-this-is-the-worst-war-in-europe-since-world-war-ii.html">largest military invasion</a> in Europe since the second world war. That’s the position taken by <a href="https://www.bbc.com/sport/60568139">swimming, athletics and soccer</a>.</p>
<p>However, some sports bodies, such as <a href="https://7news.com.au/sport/tennis/russia-tennis-players-continue-as-neutrals-c-5895304">tennis</a> and <a href="https://www.biathlonworld.com/news/ibu-russia-ukraine-war/50crYBiHnYhvDFc57crpgg">biathlon</a>, are allowing Russian and Belarusian individuals to compete under the proviso they do as “neutrals”. Tennis bodies have, however, suspended both Russian and Belarusian players from team-based competitions.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sports-are-political-reaction-and-inaction-to-putins-war-of-aggression-178115">Sports are political: Reaction and inaction to Putin's war of aggression</a>
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<p>Even the staid <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/michellebruton/2020/10/26/ioc-president-thomas-bach-olympics-are-not-about-politics-athletes-should-be-politically-neutral-at-games/?sh=840db4b79d87">International Olympic Committee</a>, which has long refused to take positions on geopolitical matters, implored sporting bodies and event organisers to “<a href="https://olympics.com/ioc/news/ioc-eb-recommends-no-participation-of-russian-and-belarusian-athletes-and-officials">not invite or allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in international competitions</a>”.</p>
<p>Moreover, at the recent Beijing Paralympics, several countries <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Athletes-force-a-change-in-ban-of-Russians-at-16974783.php#content">refused to participate against Russian teams</a>, with the result that organisers were pressured into excluding Russian athletes. </p>
<h2>Spin or substance?</h2>
<p>The All England Lawn and Tennis Club has the capacity to decide entry rules for Wimbledon. It may diplomatically align with the ATP and WTA (the organising bodies of the men’s and women’s tours), or it could ban Russians outright.</p>
<p>All of this is controversial. Some critics have suggested that the <a href="https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/russia-ukraine-crisis/russian-artists-athletes-should-not-be-punished-for-putins-action-mikhail-baryshnikov-articleshow.html">human rights of Russian athletes</a> are being denied, as they aren’t responsible for the military activities in Ukraine.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1498304855747842053"}"></div></p>
<p>However, some Russian sports stars – whether voluntarily or otherwise – have made their position known. Several have made public appearances <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/mar/23/russian-athletes-face-backlash-after-wearing-z-symbol-at-putin-rally">sporting the letter Z</a>, which has become a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/03/09/1085471200/the-letter-z-russia-ukraine">symbol of support</a> for Russia’s attack on Ukraine.</p>
<p>Perhaps the most emphatic pro-Putin advocate is Russian chess champion <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2022/03/22/russian-chess-champion-sergey-karjakin-banned/7125096001/">Sergey Karjakin</a>, who took to Twitter to praise his country’s “special military operation”.</p>
<p>By contrast, some Russian sports stars have voiced their <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-28/russian-athletes-against-war-in-ukraine-fifa-ioc-measures/100866956">disapproval of the war</a>, a perilous stance given this type of dissent is now deemed a crime – with some <a href="https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2022/03/22/more-than-15000-russians-have-been-arrested-in-anti-war-protests">15,000 Russian</a> people already arrested. </p>
<h2>Strings attached</h2>
<p>Countries opposed to Russia’s ongoing demolition of Ukraine have at this point relied on economic sanctions as a principal deterrent. Unfortunately, these measures hurt and harm <a href="https://theconversation.com/economic-sanctions-may-make-russians-lives-worse-without-stopping-putins-assault-on-ukraine-179623">ordinary Russians</a>.</p>
<p>Some critics argue that the West’s sanctions are <a href="https://www.cato.org/commentary/whataboutism-russias-attack-ukraine">hypocritical</a> considering American and allied military interventions in places like Iraq, or Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.</p>
<p>From that perspective, global sanctions ought to have been implemented against the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/07/us-sanctions-against-russia-but-not-israel">United States or Israel</a>, with flow-on <a href="https://www.digitaljournal.com/sports/arabs-denounce-double-standard-of-russia-sports-bans/article">implications for sport</a>. Discussions about Ukraine have, therefore, not only focused squarely on Russian imperialism and Putin’s fascism, but also the turpitude of the Washington-led “<a href="https://bostonreview.net/articles/what-rule-based-international-order/">rules-based order</a>”.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fifas-suspension-of-russia-is-a-rarity-but-one-that-strips-bare-the-idea-that-sport-can-be-apolitical-178131">FIFA's suspension of Russia is a rarity – but one that strips bare the idea that sport can be apolitical</a>
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<p>Whether the All England Club bans Russian players or accepts them as neutrals, it will have arrived at a decision in concert with the UK’s sports minister, at a time when Britain is supplying arms to Ukraine. </p>
<p>None of this is edifying.</p>
<p>Russian tennis players, if allowed to play, will be under enormous scrutiny both on and off the court. Would a win for Medvedev be a victory for Putin? Would the absence of Medvedev contribute to the anti-war effort?</p>
<p>In the middle of all this are athletes who, like ordinary Russians, may become – perhaps unfairly – the target of sanctions.</p>
<p>But war is the epitome of unfair.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/179551/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daryl Adair does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The global angst against Putin has been so profound that sport has been compelled to come out behind its customary veil of ‘neutrality’ in political matters.Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1798412022-03-23T07:19:43Z2022-03-23T07:19:43ZAsh Barty retires marching to her own beat. What’s next for the multi-talented, restless spirit?<p>Ash Barty has always done things her own way.</p>
<p>The shock retirement of the world number one women’s tennis player at the age of 25 was pure Barty in action.</p>
<p>The razzmatazz of a major media conference with jostling journalists and clicking camera shutters was not for her. When basketball superstar LeBron James switched teams in 2010, a live television special entitled <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2020/07/08/lebron-james-miami-heat-decision-10-years-later">The Decision</a> ran for 75 minutes and extracted as much publicity as possible beforehand.</p>
<p>In contrast, Barty called time on her tennis career in a six-minute <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbbbr7xBX7N/">Instagram video post</a> via a one-on-one conversation with her close friend and former doubles partner Casey Dellacqua. The inevitable big media conference was scheduled for the following day, but Barty made sure she set the agenda and, at least initially, controlled the narrative.</p>
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<h2>A multi-talented athlete and restless spirit</h2>
<p>Her idiosyncratic history in sport has always involved keeping those outside her tight inner circle off balance. In 2014, Barty took a break from the game and played <a href="https://www.cricket.com.au/players/ash-barty/eLjvswVphkW0rMJjPKTwNQ">cricket</a> with some success before returning to tennis two years later.</p>
<p>The unexpected news of her permanent retirement is consistent with the restless spirit of a multi-talented athlete (she is also a very accomplished <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/sep/21/multi-talented-ash-barty-turns-to-golf-unsurprisingly-wins-club-championship#:%7E:text=Not%20content%20with%20being%20queen,in%20the%20match%20play%20final.">golfer</a>) who has always looked far beyond the tennis court’s baseline.</p>
<p>It’s not even been two months since I wrote about Barty riding the crest of a wave after victory in the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-ash-barty-and-special-k-tennis-triumphs-say-about-australia-and-the-buttoned-up-sport-industry-175993">Australian Open</a> women’s singles final.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-ash-barty-and-special-k-tennis-triumphs-say-about-australia-and-the-buttoned-up-sport-industry-175993">What the Ash Barty and 'Special K' tennis triumphs say about Australia and the buttoned-up sport industry</a>
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<p>The other main subject of the article was Nick Kyrgios, who with Thanasi Kokkinakis had won the men’s doubles title.</p>
<p>Both Barty and Kyrgios are far from being cookie-cutter pro tennis players, but they’re vastly different in style. Kyrgios, like Barty, has proclaimed that tennis isn’t his life. But his way of dealing with the world is not to train too hard and to stage a show many people will watch because of his brash unpredictability.</p>
<p>Barty, on the other hand, projects her ordinariness. She drew attention to her play and her team, not her personal image. Barty reached the pinnacle of the sport, including winning three singles Grand Slam titles. Kyrgios, though, who has often foreshadowed his own retirement, has to a degree squandered his extravagant talent.</p>
<p>In public esteem ranking, Kyrgios is a polarising figure, whereas Barty is astonishingly well regarded. Her combination of success and humility means her departure from tennis has made many fans genuinely sad.</p>
<p>Typically, she has suggested a new, though as yet undeclared, game plan that will keep her in the public eye.</p>
<h2>What next for the Barty party?</h2>
<p>In her social media retirement discussion with Dellacqua, Barty said she had given all she could as an elite tennis player, and was “spent”.</p>
<p>But this seemed to be more than simple exhaustion. Having climbed to the summit of the sport at Wimbledon last year, she experienced the familiar feeling of the ultra-successful – that it was somehow not enough. We could almost hear the strains of the famous lament in the 1960s Peggy Lee hit (covered by PJ Harvey and many others), <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2iC4rCI01w">Is That All There Is</a>?</p>
<p>The home win at Melbourne Park seemed to convince Barty she didn’t want just to “keep dancing”, as the song goes. Instead of getting on the plane to the US for Indian Wells and going into intense preparation for the French Open and following tournaments, it was time to enter a new phase of life.</p>
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<p>Tennis has given Barty wealth, influence and a global profile beyond the imagination of most late millennials. She has multiple options that will no doubt soon be exercised. As a Ngaragu woman who is the <a href="https://www.tennis.com.au/news/2018/04/15/ashleigh-barty-named-national-indigenous-tennis-ambassador">national Indigenous tennis ambassador</a> for Tennis Australia, it’s probable she will remain deeply committed to First Nations causes.</p>
<p>There might be the familiar move into media commentary. No doubt many organisations, large and small, will beat a path to her door. Having the face of Barty in the service of a company or campaign would be a highly valuable asset.</p>
<p>But this very singular woman wants to spend more time at home in southeast Queensland, and her recent engagement indicates that at some point there will be a wedding to organise. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-numbers-game-how-ash-barty-became-the-worlds-best-female-tennis-player-119381">The numbers game: how Ash Barty became the world's best female tennis player</a>
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<p>Barty’s self-effacing, open manner gives many a sense they somehow know her personally, and they can “read” her intentions and mind.</p>
<p>This is an attractive illusion. Right to the end of her tennis career, she kept the world at bay with a disarming smile and an engaging disposition.</p>
<p>Will there be another tennis comeback for Barty? Perhaps. There have been few sporting champions as adept at keeping the curious guessing. But we can be sure that any choice will be strictly on her terms.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/179841/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Rowe has received funding from the Australian Research Council for the Discovery Projects 'A Nation of "Good Sports"? Cultural Citizenship and Sport in Contemporary Australia' (DP130104502) and 'Australian Cultural Fields: National and Transnational Dynamics' (DP140101970).</span></em></p>The unexpected news is consistent with the restless spirit of an athlete who has always looked far beyond the tennis court’s baseline.David Rowe, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Research, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1643052021-07-11T09:42:11Z2021-07-11T09:42:11Z‘The stars aligned’: Ash Barty’s Wimbledon win is an historic moment for Indigenous people and women in sport<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410687/original/file-20210711-19-16qjzk5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=179%2C15%2C3189%2C2119&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Neil Hall/EPA/AAP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Over the weekend in London, the stars aligned in the most remarkable way. On the 50th anniversary of Evonne Goolagong Cawley’s first Wimbledon win, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-11/ash-barty-karolina-pliskova-wimbledon-womens-final-wrap/100283404">Ashleigh Barty claimed</a> her first Wimbledon title. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I just hope I made Evonne proud. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>The 25-year old becomes just the second Indigenous women to win Wimbledon and breaks a long drought for Australia at what is widely regarded as the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. </p>
<p>To put it in context, Australia hasn’t won a singles title at the All England Club since 2002, when Lleyton Hewitt became the men’s champion. The last time an Australian woman took out the title was over 40 years ago, when Goolagong Cawley won her second title in 1980 (this time also becoming the <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/sport/tennis/from-the-archives-1980-goolagong-cawley-s-second-wimbledon-crown-this-time-as-a-mum-20210708-p5884j.html">first mother</a> to win Wimbledon in 66 years). </p>
<p>But the win is also an historic moment for First Nations people and for Australian women in sport. It presents an opportunity to both celebrate and learn from this achievement. </p>
<h2>Barty breaks the mould</h2>
<p>Barty’s success is a particularly significant one for First Nations Australians. She is one of only a handful of Indigenous women who are both sporting champions and household names — such as Goolagong Cawley, Cathy Freeman and fellow Olympic medallists Nova Peris and Sam Riley. </p>
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<p>Australia has always seemed to struggle with celebrating Indigenous sporting success, particularly when it happens overseas. Achievements like Patty Mills’ <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-16/mills-scores-17-as-spurs-win-nba-championship/5526698">magic 17 points</a> to help secure the 2014 NBA championship for the San Antonio Spurs, Chad Reed’s <a href="https://www.ma.org.au/the-one-and-only-chad-reed/">legendary status in motocross</a> and Jesse Williams’ 2014 <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-02-03/williams-wins-super-bowl-ring/5235644">Super Bowl ring</a> have largely flown under the radar. </p>
<p>But Barty breaks this mould. She has long cited her Indigenous heritage and <a href="https://www.mamamia.com.au/ash-barty-indigenous/">relationship</a> with Goolagong Cawley as an inspiration. Yes, it is Barty’s tennis success that has made her famous. But it is her grace negotiating Australia’s uneasiness with its past and present relationship with our Indigenous peoples that makes her a true champion. </p>
<p>Her victory also followed by a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/jun/03/french-open-world-no-1-ash-barty-retires-tennis-tournament-with-hip-injury-magda-linette">significant hip injury</a> in June. Although seeded number one for the tournament, even those in Barty’s camp were nervous about her chances. </p>
<p>Barty said, </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The stars aligned for me over the past fortnight. It’s incredible that it happened to fall on the 50th anniversary of Evonne’s [Goolagong Cawley] first title here too.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>As First Nations people would say “the Old People” — her Ancestors — had intervened.</p>
<h2>A NAIDOC week victory</h2>
<p>Apart from the parallels with Goolagong Cawley’s win, the timing is also special as it comes at the end of <a href="https://theconversation.com/although-we-didnt-produce-these-problems-we-suffer-them-3-ways-you-can-help-in-naidocs-call-to-heal-country-163362">NAIDOC week</a>. This year’s theme has been “Heal Country”. As Indigenous people continue to be <a href="https://theconversation.com/included-but-still-marginalised-indigenous-voices-still-missing-in-media-stories-on-indigenous-affairs-163426">marginalised</a> in so many areas of Australian life, Barty’s success is all the more a powerful testament to her strength and talent.</p>
<p>We know there are high barriers to Indigenous women participating in sport and exercise, at both grassroots and elite levels. These include racism and the high costs of participating. A <a href="https://theconversation.com/sport-can-be-an-important-part-of-aboriginal-culture-for-women-but-many-barriers-remain-120418">frequently cited statistic </a>(based on 2012 data) is about 23% of Indigenous women were physically active or played sport in the past 12 months, compared to 67% of non-Indigenous women. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Queensland Firebirds netball player, Jemma Mi Mi" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410688/original/file-20210711-70541-1spgydo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Jemma Mi Mi is the Super Netball league’s only Indigenous player.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Albert Perez/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Even in sports with high Indigenous participation, such as netball (where about <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/sep/29/netball-australia-commits-to-improvements-in-indigenous-space">4% of participants</a> are Indigenous), this still hasn’t flowed through to the professional level. There have only ever been two Indigenous players to represent the national team — and <a href="https://diamonds.netball.com.au/player/sharon-finnan-white-oam">none since 2000</a>.</p>
<p>Last year, Queensland Firebirds midcourter Jemma Mi Mi, a proud Wakka Wakka woman, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/sep/22/super-netball-queensland-firebirds-jemma-mi-mi-indigenous-round">sat on the bench</a> during Super Netball’s Indigenous round. Netball Australia says it is working to improve the culture but <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2020/09/29/criticism-prompts-netball-australia-commit-improvements-indigenous-players">change is slow</a>. </p>
<h2>Sexism and Australian sport</h2>
<p>Sport is a significant part of our <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17430437.2011.603553?casa_token=rCT6-enkoLoAAAAA%3AaA7fDYy2k9_suaSz3BKPSRNDRet46B-zSEDXdv78QHFWmUuglIo-hlt_ZbAyohex0a4RHh-w77s">national identity</a>, and we have a deep love for our sporting heroes. Yet for women in sport, we know the road is harder than for men. It wasn’t that long ago that champion race horse Black Caviar was named Australian <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/sport/racing/pearson-snubbed-as-newspaper-names-horse-as-sportswoman-of-the-year-20121223-2btac.html">sportswoman of the year</a> by the Daily Telegraph.</p>
<p>In my <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1755458620300207">recent research</a> with female AFL players, women talked of their gratitude for being included in the sport at a professional level. This is despite low pay and the high pressures and workloads. As I argued, this attitude is a double-edged sword for professional sportswomen, as it can make them vulnerable to exploitation. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sport-can-be-an-important-part-of-aboriginal-culture-for-women-but-many-barriers-remain-120418">Sport can be an important part of Aboriginal culture for women – but many barriers remain</a>
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<p>Looking at professional elite athletes in Australia, the top earners are predominantly men. For example, in the 2019 AFR <a href="https://www.afr.com/wealth/people/australia-s-top-sports-earners-revealed-20190725-p52as9">sports rich list</a>, Barty ranked eight and was the only woman in the top 20. A top seven rich list <a href="https://www.foxsports.com.au/what-the-fox/australian-sporting-rich-list-tim-cahill-rises-through-the-ranks-with-lucrative-shanghai-deal/news-story/94f28616f48968b2f0a81b6ebdd767f5?device=DESKTOP&editiondata=none&fromakamai=true&pt=none&wpa=BB44D82C3D7223D393F2AE47579FB5EA6791ABE4">compiled by Fox Sports</a> in June 2021 only featured men. </p>
<p>We also know that women in sport also cop <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-toxic-and-dehumanising-culture-how-australian-gymnastics-needs-to-reform-in-wake-of-damning-report-160197">abuse</a>, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17430437.2020.1777101?journalCode=fcss20">sexism</a> and <a href="https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/jcsp/13/2/article-p177.xml">harassment</a> — as well as discrimination in terms of how <a href="https://theconversation.com/sing-when-youre-women-why-its-time-to-take-female-sports-fans-seriously-80915">seriously</a> their involvement is taken. </p>
<h2>Uneven playing field</h2>
<p>So while we celebrate #YesAsh and enjoy the #BartyParty, we must also be honest about the realities for women in sport, and in particular for Indigenous women in sport. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/although-we-didnt-produce-these-problems-we-suffer-them-3-ways-you-can-help-in-naidocs-call-to-heal-country-163362">'Although we didn’t produce these problems, we suffer them': 3 ways you can help in NAIDOC's call to Heal Country</a>
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</p>
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<p>For those of us who have enjoyed the pride and excitement of Barty’s win, let’s pledge to work harder on removing structural barriers to participation at grassroots and elite levels. It is time to acknowledge how uneven Australian sporting fields can be.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164305/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adele Pavlidis receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marcus Woolombi Waters does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As Barty emulates Evonne Goolagong Cawley’s achievement in 1971, it’s an opportunity to celebrate and to learn.Adele Pavlidis, Researcher in Sociology, Griffith UniversityMarcus Woolombi Waters, Lecturer, School of Humanities, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1541852021-02-05T03:09:56Z2021-02-05T03:09:56ZWho is (probably) today’s best male tennis player?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381619/original/file-20210201-23-1wk2nnq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=63%2C0%2C3797%2C2822&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/G Stock Studio</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When you ask that question, three names come to mind: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.</p>
<p>A simple way to compare tennis players is to look at how many grand slam tournaments they have won. That includes victories at the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon in the UK and the US Open. </p>
<p>But this doesn’t take into account how many tournaments they’ve played, which tournaments they’ve played, how far they progressed in each tournament, and who they played against.</p>
<h2>Probably the best player</h2>
<p>My method estimates the <em>probability</em> of a player winning a match in a grand slam tournament. The player with the highest estimated probability of winning a match is then deemed the best player.</p>
<p>Using probability naturally accommodates how many matches and tournaments the player has played, and acknowledges the strong performance of a player who makes a final but doesn’t win the tournament.</p>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/self-entitled-prima-donnas-or-do-they-have-a-point-why-australian-open-tennis-players-find-hard-lockdown-so-tough-153631">Self-entitled prima donnas or do they have a point? Why Australian Open tennis players find hard lockdown so tough</a>
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<p>The method builds a statistical model to estimate winning probabilities for each player from <a href="https://www.ultimatetennisstatistics.com/">grand slam data</a>. </p>
<p>By using a technique called regression modelling, it accounts for the fact the winning probability may depend on the quality of the opposition and the grand slam played. For example, some players have preference for hard courts (used at the Australian and US Opens) over clay (used at Roland Garros, home of the French Open).</p>
<p>The opposition quality is inferred from their ranking, and we consider five groups: the top 10, top 20, top 50, top 100 and outside the top 100. These group choices are consistent with terminology used by commentators and pundits.</p>
<p>Another advantage of using a statistical model is that we can make the most of the available data, which is quite small given there are only four grand slam tournaments per year.</p>
<p>For example, if the data support it, the model can enforce a similar pattern of performance against the quality of opposition across tournaments. This is a form of “borrowing of strength” to increase the accuracy of probability estimates from small datasets.</p>
<h2>Oh, the uncertainty</h2>
<p>Using a statistical approach allows us to quantify the uncertainty in probability estimates. Here we communicate uncertainty as an interval (lower and upper limit), that contains the true winning probability with a 95% chance.</p>
<p>So, for example, if the estimated winning probability for a player is 0.77 with an interval of 0.63 to 0.86, it means that our best guess of the winning probability is 0.77. But there is a 95% chance the actual winning probability is between 0.63 and 0.86. This tells us how much uncertainty there is about our best guess.</p>
<p>The amount of uncertainty depends on the number of matches played and the winning probability. There will naturally be more uncertainty if the actual winning probability is around 0.5, that means an even chance of winning or losing.</p>
<p>The results are shown in the figures (below). Each square represents the best probability estimate for Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, and the vertical line represents the uncertainty interval.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Graph for the Australian Open" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381595/original/file-20210201-15-nonavb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Chris Drovandi</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Graph for the French Open" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381596/original/file-20210201-23-1ioyjd7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Chris Drovandi</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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</figure>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Graph for Wimbledon" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381597/original/file-20210201-23-167z5qb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Chris Drovandi</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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</figure>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Graph for US Open" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381598/original/file-20210201-17-dpi9bp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Chris Drovandi</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>The winner is …</h2>
<p>For the Australian Open, there is evidence to suggest that Djokovic is the top-performing male player.</p>
<p>But given the overlapping uncertainty intervals in the probability estimates with the other players, it is difficult to definitively state this.</p>
<p>It is difficult to separate the three players at the US Open. Wimbledon appears to be the tournament that Federer shines the most relative to the other players, but again there is significant overlap in the intervals.</p>
<p>Although there is some evidence that Nadal is the worst-performing player at the Australian Open and at Wimbledon (which is played on grass courts), he is the undisputed champion at the French Open.</p>
<p>Incredibly, Nadal has an estimated probability around 0.93 to win a game against a top 10 player at this tournament. This clearly shows Nadal’s dominance on clay courts. The French Open is a relative Achilles’ heel for Federer.</p>
<p>The analysis reveals some other interesting results. For example, the results suggest Nadal performs similarly against top 20 and top 50 players, as does Djokovic.</p>
<p>But there is generally a big drop in winning probability against top 10 players.</p>
<p>Apart from some cases (Nadal at the French Open, Djokovic at the Australian Open and Federer at Wimbledon), the chance that one of these champion players beats a top 10 player in a grand slam isn’t much better than a coin toss.</p>
<h2>And the best player is …</h2>
<p>On the women’s side, it’s widely accepted that Serena Williams is the top player in the modern era, and possibly of all time. Williams has won the most grand slams of any current player, male or female.</p>
<hr>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/all-that-slipping-and-sliding-on-tennis-courts-prevents-injuries-a-biomechanics-expert-explains-how-106938">All that slipping and sliding on tennis courts prevents injuries: a biomechanics expert explains how</a>
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<p>For the men it’s less so clear. So in response to the question of who is the best male tennis player of the modern era, the answer is “it depends”.</p>
<p>If pressed for an answer, it’s hard to go past Rafael Nadal. He has dominated a grand slam (French Open) unlike the other players, while remaining competitive in the other three slams.</p>
<p>A more comprehensive analysis would consider data from all tournaments, not just grand slams, and this would help to reduce uncertainty in the winning probability estimates.</p>
<p>It should also be noted that these are retrospective winning probability estimates, and cannot be used to predict outcomes for future tournaments. Predictive statistical models would focus on more recent tennis data.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/154185/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Drovandi is a Professor of Statistics at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), and is a Program Director in the QUT Centre for Data Science. He is an Associate Investigator of the Australian Research Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical Frontiers (ACEMS). He receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>With the Australian Open about to start this year’s grand slam series, a crunch of the data from past performances gives a hint at who is the current best male player, possibly.Christopher Drovandi, Professor of Statistics, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1420032020-07-10T15:05:44Z2020-07-10T15:05:44ZTennis has had a golden generation – but not a golden era<p>It is established wisdom in boxing that “styles make fights”. The best fights involve opponents of contrasting skills and abilities. Classic rivalries such as Muhammad Ali v Joe Frazier and, most recently, Tyson Fury v Deontay Wilder pitted “boxers” (technicians who rely on boxing craft) against “punchers” (street fighters who rely on punching power).</p>
<p>What is true in the boxing ring is also true on the tennis court: many of the greatest tennis rivalries have also comprised players of markedly different styles. Björn Borg v John McEnroe, Chris Evert v Martina Navratilova, and Pete Sampras v Andre Agassi all matched up a serve-and-volleyer against a baseliner. These rivalries ran deeper than the closeness of their contests. They showcased two fundamentally different philosophies of tennis.</p>
<h2>A golden era?</h2>
<p>We are told that this is a <a href="https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-tennis-frenchopen-rivalries/in-golden-era-of-tennis-rivalries-nadal-djokovic-stands-out-says-wilander-idUKKCN1T60YU">golden era for tennis</a>. In many ways, this is readily apparent. Tennis athletes have never been fitter, rivalries have never been more intense, and four players of this era – Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams – have a legitimate claim to be the “greatest of all time”. This has truly been a golden generation of tennis players. But it has not been a golden era for tennis.</p>
<p>The ethics of how sports are allowed to develop and what should count as “progress” are central preoccupations of my academic research in the <a href="https://www.swansea.ac.uk/staff/engineering/devine-j-w/">philosophy of sport</a>. A golden era for a sport should showcase the full spectrum of skills and abilities – of excellences – that the sport makes possible. </p>
<p>By contrast, in this tennis era, the spectrum has narrowed so that all viable playing styles are fundamentally anchored to the baseline. Serve-and-volley tennis has disappeared, and all realistic grand slam title contenders are baseliners of one kind or another. The sport is more uniform in how it is played than at any other point in the professional era. </p>
<p>This narrowing of excellence is a problem because it limits how a player can express themselves. Sports present obstacles for players to overcome using their skill, guile, tenacity, and physical prowess. Constraints created by the rules and by one’s opponent place obstacles in the way of scoring a goal, shooting a basket, or hitting an ace.</p>
<p>The demise of serve-and-volley tennis over the last two decades has shoehorned tennis players into choosing from among a small group of playing styles and it has effectively excluded those whose skill set does not fall within the smaller cluster of excellences that remain relevant in the sport. By narrowing the spectrum of viable strategies, the sport is diminished, not only as an avenue for testing and showcasing a variety of different excellences, but also as an avenue for self-expression.</p>
<h2>Serve-and-volley tennis</h2>
<p>Serve-and-volley tennis is inherently confrontational. It narrows the physical space between opponents as one approaches the net, it quickens the exchange of shots, and it poses a challenge to “hit past me or through me”. The best serve-and-volleyers are relentless – they return to the net point after point, laying down the same challenge anew. </p>
<p>The beauty of this style lies precisely in its lack of surprise. It was entirely predictable that Pete Sampras or Martina Navratilova would attack the net after their serve. Everyone, especially their opponents, knew this. And they knew that their opponent knew this. But they did it anyway. Like a football goalkeeper, they challenged their opponent to defy the odds and find that tiny spot beyond their reach – point after point.</p>
<p>However, net play is now a dying art. No serve-and-volleyer, male or female, has won a grand slam since Sampras’s last <a href="https://www.eurosport.com/tennis/feature-serve-and-volley-tennis-rises-from-the-dust-in-melbourne_sto6029931/story.shtml">US Open victory in 2002</a>. Lighter, more powerful rackets, polyester strings, and the introduction of slower court surfaces and balls have shifted the odds heavily in favour of the baseliner and against the net rusher. </p>
<p>Polyester strings, in particular, have made it easier than ever before for players to generate enormous spin. This spin in turn allows the baseliner both to dip the ball sharply over the net at the volleyer’s feet and to find previously impossible angled passing shots. The sight of Djokovic or Williams straining every sinew to reach the ball and then, at full stretch, hitting a sharp-angled passing shot for a clean winner is perhaps the defining image of modern tennis.</p>
<h2>Achieving a balance of excellences</h2>
<p>Any complex sport must allow different styles of play to flourish. Within the possible arrangements of the rules, there is an ideal balance – an equipoise – that allows a variety of styles a realistic prospect of success. When a sport achieves such a “<a href="https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/45/8/637">balance of excellences</a>”, one style is not favoured to the extent that others are rendered redundant. </p>
<p>However, tennis authorities have allowed the development of equipment to run ahead of reflection on their effects, so that one of the sport’s fundamental playing styles has become an historical curiosity, not the foundation of a serious game plan. Approaching the net is now used as little more than an occasional surprise play. Stewards of the sport have failed in their duty to manage its evolution so that all of the excellences that define the game are preserved. </p>
<p>Serve-and-volley tennis was not a feature of the sport from its inception, and it only came to prominence in the 1950s. However, it presented a genuinely innovative way to explore court geometry. Such innovation should not be consigned to the scrapheap.</p>
<p>This is a golden generation of tennis greats who have brought baseline play to a point of perfection, but this era boasts strikingly little diversity in playing styles. Perhaps we have gone too far for a recalibration, but swimming has banned full body 100% polyurethane suits, and golf has banned the anchored putting technique, so why can’t tennis reconsider rackets, strings, courts and balls so that net rushers once again have a fighting chance?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142003/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John William Devine does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Baseliners are too dominant. A true golden era would see more clashes between different playing styles.John William Devine, Lecturer in Sports Ethics and Integrity, Swansea UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1351402020-04-09T12:06:36Z2020-04-09T12:06:36ZWhy sports still matter – even in a time when you can’t actually watch any<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326233/original/file-20200407-44994-pqgg74.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3544%2C2364&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Baseball fans look through a fence of the stadium following the cancellation of a game in Fort Myers, Florida.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Virus-Outbreak-Baseball/d7dc826345984695a8a2d73f25b5a0e3/6/0">AP Photo/Elise Amendola</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Most of the sports world has ground to a halt over the coronavirus pandemic. The Tokyo Olympic Games, the NBA season, and soccer’s Champions League, along with many other major tournaments, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/sports/euro-2020-postponed.html">have been postponed</a>. Wimbledon has been <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200402-wimbledon-cancelled-for-first-time-since-wwii-over-coronavirus">canceled for the first time</a> since World War II. These cancellations and postponements go all the way down to recreational competitions. </p>
<p>Given the impact that any large gathering could have on the further spread of the pandemic, several sports commentators, <a href="https://sports.nbcsports.com/2020/03/13/sports-crystallized-coronavirus-for-america-now-we-adjust-to-life-without-them/">noted</a> that at this point in time, sports did not matter. The New York Times sports commentator <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/sports/soccer/soccer-coronavirus-premier-league.html">wrote</a>, “Postpone it, cancel it, whatever. There are more important things to think about. It is a sport, after all,” referring to the cancellation of soccer’s Champions League.</p>
<p>The present sentiment is a reminder of a popular phrase typically attributed to former coach and player <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2014/mar/07/joy-of-six-football-quotes">Arrigo Sacchi</a> that soccer was “the most important of the unimportant things in life.” </p>
<p>At a time when the utmost urgency on everyone’s mind is the fragility of life itself, this couldn’t appear to be more true. </p>
<p>At the same time, as <a href="https://rockethics.psu.edu/people/fjl13">philosophers of sport</a>, <a href="https://www.brockport.edu/academics/kinesiology/directory/crtorres.html">we</a> believe that it is important to recognize the role sports play in our lives – even in difficult times. </p>
<h2>The nature of sports</h2>
<p>The point of sports, as philosopher <a href="https://broadviewpress.com/product/the-grasshopper-third-edition/#tab-description">Bernard Suits</a> argues, lies in voluntarily attempting to overcome artificial problems erected by the rules. </p>
<p>Such rules stipulate the use of specialized physical skills to achieve the goal of the game. For instance, the rules of soccer prohibit players to hit the ball with their hands but allow kicking and heading to put the ball into the net. </p>
<p>Sports are activities governed, as Suits explains, by a “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/17511321.2018.1493530">gratuitous logic</a>.” Under this logic, participants attempt to solve an unnecessary problem, such as kicking a ball around a field and into a net, just for the sake of solving the problem.</p>
<h2>The value of sports</h2>
<p>At the same time, there are those who argue that sports fulfill human functions that are far from gratuitous. For instance, sports provide an arena for honing different kinds of capacities and fostering character development. </p>
<p>Philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/gasset/">José Ortega y Gasset</a> <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/On_Love.html?id=K1tyMgEACAAJ&source=kp_book_description">argues</a> that the gratuitous character of sports is a model for living well – for a life with plenty of vitality. </p>
<p>He <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=YVnitNA-cwEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=ortega+what+is+philosophy&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjhx_u438LoAhW8l3IEHSQPA7YQ6AEwAHoECAAQAg#v=onepage&q=ortega%20what%20is%20philosophy&f=false">recommends</a> individuals approach their lives with the “same spirit that leads them to engage in sport.” That is, individuals should fill their lives with challenging activities that are not necessary but voluntary. </p>
<p>Similarly, philosopher <a href="https://philosophy.utoronto.ca/directory/thomas-hurka/">Thomas Hurka</a> <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-best-things-in-life-9780195331424?cc=us&lang=en&">includes</a> sports among some of the challenging activities that require dedication, planning and precision. </p>
<p>Hurka highlights that these activities are valuable because of the effort required by the experience of trying to achieve. In his words, “We don’t call crossing your fingers an achievement because it’s too easy. Achievements have to be challenging, and the more challenging the better.”</p>
<h2>Sports and perfection</h2>
<p>The attempt to achieve difficult goals requires a certain dedication. In this sense, engagement in sport represents a perfectionist way of life. </p>
<p>As philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/rawls/">John Rawls</a> <a href="https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674000780&content=toc">proposes</a> in his discussion on justice and the good life, perfectionism requires the utmost dedication to achieve human excellence; in this case, we argue, of the athletic variety.</p>
<p>In this regard, moral philosopher <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/1/3/14148208/derek-parfit-rip-obit">Derek Parfit</a>, a colleague of Rawls, <a href="http://www.stafforini.com/docs/parfit_-_overpopulation_and_the_quality_of_life.pdf">maintains</a> that perfectionism involves the achievement or realization of “the best things in life.” </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326237/original/file-20200407-18916-1wgh8zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">To win, individuals have to commit wholeheartedly to the sport. Romania’s Simona Halep, winner of the 2019 Wimbledon Tennis Championships.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Romania-Wimbledon-Tennis-Halep/c3d453e357ed47268100950ebb220f48/81/0">AP Photo/Alexandru Dobre</a></span>
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<p>From a perfectionist standpoint then, living well requires individuals to commit themselves wholeheartedly to an enterprise. </p>
<p>Sports are equipped to provide such zeal. That is, through their commitment to a particular sport, individuals build passion for their practice and <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Fair_Play.html?id=ulUZAwAAQBAJ">develop the zeal</a> to pursue perfection. </p>
<h2>Sports and the community</h2>
<p>Sports also connect people. Drawing on anthropologist Clifford Geertz’s <a href="https://www.ias.edu/clifford-geertz-work-and-legacy">work</a> on Balinese cockfighting, <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520289017/the-anthropology-of-sport">sport scholars</a> point out that <a href="https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=acls;idno=heb01005">sports help</a> human communities tell stories about themselves. In other words, sports allow humans to generate a common identity. </p>
<p>In addition to understanding themselves as individuals through their sporting activities, people also understand themselves as members of communities by engaging in sports. No contemporary nation with an established soccer culture can be fully understood without analyzing their passion for soccer. </p>
<p>For example, the Spanish national soccer teams have long been known for displaying a combative and team-based play style referred to as “<a href="https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/La-Roja/Jimmy-Burns/9780857206558">La Furia Roja</a>,” or the red fury. When Spaniards face adversity and have to come together and collectively overcome challenging situations, they refer to themselves as people who embody the red fury, mirroring their national teams’ play style.</p>
<p>Another example that sport historian <a href="https://hhd.psu.edu/contact/mark-dyreson-phd">Mark Dyreson</a> <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=j7jdxzd3sxMC&printsec=frontcover&dq=making+the+american+team+dyreson&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjs9cuzps3oAhWhj3IEHYiJDbMQ6AEwAHoECAEQAg#v=onepage&q=making%20the%20american%20team%20dyreson&f=false">puts forth</a> is that America’s long-standing involvement in international sports has fostered discussions and struggles over equity, power and fairness. </p>
<p>Consider Tommie Smith and John Carlos raising their fists in a Black Power salute during the medal ceremony for the 200-meter dash at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, which was meant to call attention to <a href="https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9780875806969/before-the-eyes-of-the-world/#bookTabs=1">racism in America</a>. </p>
<p>All this is not at all to say that we want governments to loosen restrictions and resume sports competitions. Rather this is a reminder of why sports are valuable and also <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/19/sports/missing-sports-heres-how-you-can-watch-nba-nfl-nhl-free/">sorely missed</a> by many people around the world.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>All major sports events have been canceled at this time. Two sports philosophers remind people how sports help us bond as a community and why we miss them.Francisco Javier López Frías, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology, Penn StateCesar R. Torres, Professor, Department of Kinesiology, Sport Studies and Physical Education, The College at Brockport, State University of New YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1201962019-07-11T10:45:31Z2019-07-11T10:45:31ZWimbledon: Johanna Konta interview and the problems with viewing sports stars as public figures<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/283654/original/file-20190711-173370-10uvigb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C796%2C445&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Still from video of Johanna Konta press conference, July 2019.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2019/07/judging-player-one-liner-ordeal-press-conferences/83388/">Wimbledon.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>After her loss to Barbora Strycova in the Wimbledon quarter finals, British tennis player Johanna Konta reacted somewhat angrily to a line of questioning from a journalist that appeared to hold her to account for her loss. The <a href="http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2019/07/judging-player-one-liner-ordeal-press-conferences/83388/">fallout and public reaction</a> to this press conference, while predominantly in support of the athlete, raises questions about the wider context of sports journalism. </p>
<p>Discussion centred on whether Konta had been right to be angry at the line of questioning by Matthew Dunn of the Daily Express after her quarter final loss or whether he had overstepped the line. The episode led to public discussion as to whether modern athletes are overly sensitive and whether they should be prepared to held personally accountable for their losses. </p>
<p>Linguists like to unpack cases like these. They are an opportunity to reflect on what issues lie beneath a conflict between two people. The service that linguists offer can help us to pin down the often taken for granted norms of human communication and the ideologies and beliefs that underlie the institutions, such as journalism, that communicators represent. So, what does this case say about the expectations that govern sports journalism encounters? </p>
<h2>A linguistic lens</h2>
<p>Around three and a half minutes into <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgnUMSk-TT4">her press conference</a>, Dunn asked Konta a question. Up to this point Konta had put the loss down to a difficult opponent, a move that could be interpreted as magnanimity on her part – positioning herself as the humble loser. But Dunn appeared to signal that the athlete was using this to deflect attention from her own performance.</p>
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<p>Dunn began by listing the athlete’s shortcomings: 33 unforced errors, a missed smash at the net and a double fault, which already put Konta on the defensive in the press conference. But he then used this to challenge Konta’s assertion that it was Strycova’s performance that had caused her to lose. He suggested that Konta’s failure to convert a number of key points was a more suitable explanation for her loss. He bundled all this up and presented it to the interviewee for confirmation. </p>
<p>Dunn’s use of the phrase “it’s all very well” is particularly marked here. It implies that the journalist feels that the assessment he has put forward is – arguably – a more relevant reason that perhaps better explains the loss and that Konta should reconsider her position. The list of failings is used strategically to strengthen Dunn’s position and support his evaluation. In the process it puts Konta in the somewhat uncomfortable position of needing to agree with him. </p>
<p>These are fairly standard journalistic practices that we see every day in media interview language and out of context there is nothing inherently wrong with these strategies. But are such practices suitable in the context of sports journalism? They would be right at home in a political interview where it is the journalist’s role to make politicians – and others who hold public office – squirm as they test the veracity of their policies, claims or decisions on behalf of the tax-paying public. </p>
<p>These accountability interviews perform a very important purpose in democratic societies. But are there different norms and expectations in play in sports interviews that perhaps require adaptations to interviewing strategies? </p>
<h2>Athletes and accountability</h2>
<p>The question of whether an accountability style of interview can or should be used in sports journalism will probably depend on your beliefs about the status of professional athletes in society and whether you feel they are accountable to the press in a similar way that politicians are. Generally speaking, there are crucial differences between politicians and professional athletes that suggest a different tact is needed – particularly if pursuing a critical line of questioning.</p>
<p>First, are athletes accountable public figures? They do represent their publics, typically compete under national flags and have huge numbers of followers and fans. But they are not elected into public office and do not make decisions that affect the livelihoods of people. They may in some cases get public funding to support their development – but does this mean that journalists should act as a tribune of the people and hold them to account? </p>
<p>Konta clearly does not think so. She <a href="https://tennishead.net/jo-konta-accuses-journalist-of-being-disrespectful-patronising-and-picking-on-her-in-emotional-press-conference-after-wimbledon-loss/">accused Dunn</a> of being “disrespectful, patronising and picking on her” – and she is probably not alone. But, perhaps more interestingly, <a href="http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/75207/">my research suggests</a> that the patterns and strategies we see in the bulk of sports interviews also indicate that many interviewers are aware of this tension and shape their interviewing practices accordingly.</p>
<p>Sports interviewers tend to heavily modify any critical remarks, often in ways that offer the interviewee a clear path of escape (for example, saying: “… or do you see it differently” after a critical evaluation). They often try to avoid directly calling into question an athlete’s account and – if they are going to criticise – they typically assign the criticism to those who have expert power, like pundits or ex-players. So you might hear a journalist say something like: “John McEnroe called your performance terrible, do you agree with that assessment?”. Such strategies help journalists to do accountability, but to do it more carefully. </p>
<p>The use of such strategies rarely result in the confrontation-as-entertainment interview we see so often in the political realm. But their prevalence in interviews with sportspeople is perhaps an indirect acknowledgement that such a style is an uncomfortable fit in sports journalism. </p>
<p>Athletes are public figures but they are not accountable to the public. They are more often than not willing interviewees that do address critical questions. But they are also elite level, gifted human beings that have risen to the top of their profession through hard work and determination. Their skill set is valued and respected by the public and they have amassed admirers that are willing to support them in good times and bad. Journalists that are able to show they understand this context and balance it with their own identity as a journalist, are more likely to get an interviewee to open up.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120196/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kieran File consults for Reactive Sports Media. </span></em></p>Should sports journalists be able to hold athletes to account?Kieran File, Assistant Professor , Centre for Applied Linguistics, University of WarwickLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1200202019-07-08T13:38:44Z2019-07-08T13:38:44ZWimbledon: Nick Kyrgios may be the bad boy of tennis, but he’s playing by the rules<p>Wimbledon loves its heroes and villains – and the Centre Court third round <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/48853690">grudge match</a> between the much celebrated Rafa Nadal and the much maligned Nick Kyrgios appeared to pit both ends of spectrum against each other. </p>
<p>Two incidents in particular have proved controversial. In the first, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/04/rafael-nadal-nick-kyrgios-underarm-ace-wimbledon">Kyrgios admitted</a> to trying to hit Nadal with the ball during a point. In the second, he twice served underarm. In neither case did Kyrgios break any rule. So, why the controversy?</p>
<p>Standards of ethical conduct in sport are a mixture of rules, values, and conventions. The <a href="https://www.itftennis.com/media/298557/298557.pdf">rulebook</a> does not capture fully what conduct should be expected of athletes during competition. For example, nowhere in the rules of football does it prescribe either that players must kick the ball out of play when an opponent is injured or that players must shake hands with members of the opposing team at the end of a match. These norms are matters of “convention” – standards that have been tacitly agreed within that sport but not included in the rulebook.</p>
<p>Both criticisms of Kyrgios rest on the claim that, even though he broke no rules, he violated “unwritten rules”. But he was right to challenge these conventions, as both are bad conventions for professional sport.</p>
<h2>The body shot</h2>
<p>The first incident concerned a point where Nadal approached the net and, from the baseline, Kyrgios struck a forehand directly at him. The forehand was hit with such venom that all Nadal could do was to stop the ball with his racket. Nadal aimed a long, disapproving glare at Kyrgios following the incident, but Kyrgios made no apology. In the post-match press conference, Kyrgios insisted that he <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/48877052">had no reason to apologise</a>: “Why would I apologise? I won the point.”</p>
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<p>In singles tennis (though not in doubles), there is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/sports/tennis/shots-fired-to-the-body-often-engender-shrugs-instead-of-spats.html">a convention against “body shots”</a> – shots aimed at one’s opponent with the intention of hitting them. The rationale is both a concern for the welfare of the player at whom the ball is directed and the belief that aiming a ball at one’s opponent is inherently disrespectful to them.</p>
<p>With regard to welfare, one suspects there is more chance of Nadal being injured by <a href="https://theconversation.com/wimbledon-lawns-look-lovely-but-time-to-keep-off-the-grass-119945">slipping on Wimbledon’s grass</a> than being injured by Kyrgios’ forehand from 40 feet away. If a player does not wish to be hit by the ball, they can simply turn their back to their opponent and stop contesting the point. But Nadal faced Kyrgios at the net and sought to contest the point while benefiting from a convention that ruled out one of his opponent’s best options – the body shot. This is the stuff of Saturday morning social tennis, not the pinnacle of professional sport.</p>
<p>An important dimension of sporting excellence is discerning which risks are those worth taking – and in tennis one of those decisions is whether to approach the net if my opponent can strike the ball so hard that it might hit me. If I don’t want to have my reactions tested in this way, I could elect not to come to the net or to concede the point when I think that the risk of being hit has become too high.</p>
<p>But there are circumstances, even at the professional level, in which it would be disrespectful to hit the ball at one’s opponent. Namely, when the opponent has conceded the point and has clearly indicated this, or when they are no longer able to contest the point due to injury or accident (falling over, for example). </p>
<p>So, the convention should be reformulated as: “Do not hit the ball at your opponent when they have ceased to contest the point or are no longer capable of contesting the point.” As long as the opponent chooses to contest the point and is capable of doing so, they should be considered a legitimate target for body shots. Players refer to it as “<a href="https://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/aiming-at-the-body-whos-right-whos-wrong.585973/">tagging</a>” an opponent, although it would be considered unethical to deliberately set out to injure them.</p>
<h2>The underarm serve</h2>
<p>Kyrgios has also been criticised for <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/48875642">hitting underarm serves</a> during the match. This is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2019/mar/27/nick-kyrgios-underarm-serving-miami-suzanne-lenglen-tennis">not the first time</a> that Kyrgios has been criticised for this. The first underarm serve was an ace, because it bounced twice before Nadal could reach it. This was applauded by the crowd. His second underarm serve also won him a point when Nadal hit his return into the net. But this was met with boos from the crowd.</p>
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<p>Again, the accusation is that Kyrgios broke one of the sport’s “unwritten rules”. The underarm serve is thought to express disrespect for one’s opponent, because such serving is assumed to convey that the opponent does not deserve the respect of being served to “properly” with an overarm serve.</p>
<p>But Kyrgios serves underarm when his opponent has retreated far behind the baseline, leaving a large section of the front court unprotected. The opponent has sought an advantage by moving behind the baseline, but this leaves them vulnerable to shots that land short. Kyrgios merely exploits a vulnerability that is an inevitable byproduct of the opponent’s tactical decision to stand further back. </p>
<p>The underarm serve is a move within a game of “cat and mouse” – and this tactical contest is the very essence of tennis. No tactic is without some weakness – and part of what makes tennis so engrossing is following how each player attempts to identify and exploit the shortcomings of their opponent’s tactics.</p>
<p>But if one were winning a match comfortably and began serving underarm, that could communicate disrespect to the receiver, because it might suggest that the server believes they can win without trying their best. So, the convention needs to be revised to: “Do not serve underarm when there is no good tactical reason for doing so.” </p>
<p>Kyrgios has been criticised for violating conventions which, in their present form, are unjustified. Both are confused and need reformulation so they apply to a much narrower range of cases. Underarm serves and body shots should be recognised as legitimate tactics in professional tennis. With these two conventions, tennis needs to catch up with Kyrgios – the “villain” has shown us the way forward.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120020/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John William Devine does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia’s aggressive tennis star has been unfairly maligned in this instance.John William Devine, Lecturer in Sports Ethics and Integrity, Swansea UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1199452019-07-08T08:36:00Z2019-07-08T08:36:00ZWimbledon: lawns look lovely, but time to keep off the grass<p>The 133rd Wimbledon tennis championships are in full swing and, in time-honoured British tradition, the nation is fixated on seedings, scorelines, and strawberries and cream. While The Championships have been modernised with the introduction of Hawk-eye line-calling technology and the installation of retractable roofs on Centre Court and No. 1 Court, they remain firmly traditional with the grass playing surface.</p>
<p>Perhaps this is unsurprising, for the sport that we know as “tennis” was historically called “lawn tennis” to distinguish it from the older sport of “real tennis” which was played indoors. So it seems natural for Wimbledon – the premier event in lawn tennis – to be played on lawn courts. </p>
<p>As fitting as this sounds, the arrangement is anomalous – lawn tennis is no longer a lawn sport. Grass courts constitute only a tiny proportion of the world’s tennis courts, as the sport is now played on clay and synthetic surfaces. With grass courts nearly extinct beyond SW19, should Wimbledon still be played on grass?</p>
<h2>The appeal of grass</h2>
<p>Dating back to 1877, Wimbledon is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and the organising committee makes great efforts to honour and respect the sport’s <a href="https://www.essentiallysports.com/10-wimbledon-traditions-you-should-know/">history and traditions</a>. Reverence for the past is evident in the all-white player dress code, the absence of sponsor hoardings on the court, and – most significantly – the <a href="https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/atoz/grass_courts.html">retention of grass courts</a>.</p>
<p>Aside from tradition, the lawns contribute to a unique garden party aesthetic (particularly around the outside courts). The players’ brilliant white attire contrasts with the lush green grass to provide one of the iconic images of the British summer – and, indeed, of the sporting world.</p>
<p>But are tradition and aesthetics enough? I do not suggest that grass is inappropriate for tennis <em>per se</em> – but it is inappropriate for the sport’s flagship event. Surface selection should be based on three principal considerations: the welfare of players, continuity with the global tennis community, and the showcasing of tennis at its best. Grass courts fall short on each.</p>
<p><strong>1. Player welfare</strong></p>
<p>Court surfaces should not pose an unnecessary risk to the well-being of players. But grass courts carry an inherent danger of <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tennis/2017/07/06/kristina-mladenovic-blasts-wimbledon-condition-slippy-courts/">slips</a> and <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/10144906/Wimbledons-grass-courts-dangerous-as-seven-injured.html">falls</a>. As a natural surface, grass is not uniform. There are hard and soft patches, wet and dry patches and, as a result, slippery and non-slippery patches. In shaded parts of the court and in areas away from the baseline and sidelines, footing tends to be especially precarious and, as the evening draws in, the whole court can become dewy. </p>
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<p>So the prospect of losing one’s footing, turning one’s ankle, or falling flat on one’s face is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/30/sports/tennis/wimbledon-grass-courts-green-brown.html">ever present</a>. This is a needless risk.</p>
<p><strong>2. Level playing fields</strong></p>
<p>While the International Tennis Federation (ITF) does not yet have data on how many grass courts exist, grass courts of an acceptable standard are rare indeed. <a href="https://www.itftennis.com/technical/courts/overview.aspx">Grass has become a niche surface</a>, because it requires year-round maintenance and deteriorates to the point of being unplayable after only four months of intensive use. As grass courts can be used only during late spring and summer due to the vagaries of the British climate, land devoted to grass courts is unusable for eight months a year. While this might be financially viable for the All England Club, the same is not true for the average tennis club or public park.</p>
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<p>In the design of any sport, there should also be a high degree of continuity between the basic playing conditions at the elite and recreational levels. The size of the playing area, the equipment used, and the surface on which the sport is played should not differ markedly across different levels of the game. Fans should be able to recognise in elite competition something of what they experience in the sport – but the vast majority of tennis players will never have the opportunity to play on a grass court.</p>
<p>One might object that, because Wimbledon is the premier tournament in the sport, its organisers should be free to use whatever surface they wish. But it’s precisely because this is the most important tournament that it should not be played on grass. The sport’s leading event should represent how the sport is played – not how it used to be played.</p>
<p><strong>3. Showcasing tennis at its best</strong></p>
<p>Grass courts do not show modern tennis at its best. Wimbledon is contested in conditions in which players do not typically train or compete. There are <a href="https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments">only eight grass court tournaments</a> on the men’s ATP Tour and <a href="http://wtafiles.wtatennis.com/pdf/calendar/WTA_Calendar_2019.pdf">only six</a> on the women’s WTA Tour. Players compete usually in a maximum of two warm up tournaments prior to Wimbledon. </p>
<p>Once Wimbledon has concluded, the North American hard court season begins and most players will not set foot on a grass court until the following June. With the <a href="https://www.lta.org.uk/about-us/tennis-news/news-and-opinion/general-news/2019/april/grass-court-season-a-guide-to-britains-biggest-summer-tournaments/">grass court season being so short</a>, most players have to modify their normal game to play on grass.</p>
<p>Grass also inhibits the display of the modern player’s athleticism. Tennis has evolved from a sport that placed a premium on racket skills to one where <a href="https://qz.com/1379932/the-2018-us-open-makes-it-clear-tennis-has-evolved-and-the-30s-are-the-new-20s/">athletic prowess predominates</a>. The explosive speed and agility of modern players are obscured on a surface where any sudden change of direction poses a risk. As a result, players must be conservative in their movement.</p>
<p>Finally, while on day one, the lawns of SW19 are the envy of horticulturalists everywhere, the courts begin to deteriorate as soon as the first match has commenced. As the surface deteriorates, the bounce becomes <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/sport/tennis/985458/Simona-Halep-Wimbledon-conditions-grass-Hsieh-Su-Wei">less predictable</a> and luck enters the frame ever more.</p>
<p>Wimbledon should showcase tennis at its best. But what we see in Wimbledon are not players at their best, but players making the best of an unfamiliar and unpredictable surface.</p>
<h2>Time to move on</h2>
<p>A sport should honour its history, but it should not be hamstrung by it. Grass court tennis is an anachronism – a sentimental nod to the past but not a choice surface for the sport’s flagship event. The use of this surface is needlessly risky, it is out of step with the modern tennis world, and it does not showcase the modern tennis athlete. </p>
<p>It would be extraordinary if Wimbledon still insisted on players using wooden rackets, because racket technology has moved on and the sport is better for it. In this respect, what is true of rackets is also true of courts.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/119945/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John William Devine does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Tradition is all very well, but the number one tennis tournament should be played on the best surface – and that’s not grass.John William Devine, Lecturer in Sports Ethics and Integrity, Swansea UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1199102019-07-05T13:01:11Z2019-07-05T13:01:11ZCori Gauff: the support network behind 15-year-old who beat Venus Williams at Wimbledon<p>Until recently, it seems likely that only dedicated tennis fans had heard of Cori Gauff: the second youngest winner of the <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/sport/tennis/1147708/cori-gauff-wimbledon-2019-who-is-15-year-old-cori-gauff-age">Junior French Open in 2018</a>, she was one to watch – but it’s unlikely anyone predicted just how fast her star would rise. Yet the youngest player in the professional era to qualify for the main draw at Wimbledon somehow did the unthinkable. She knocked out her tennis hero in the first round: none other than Venus Williams, who has seven Grand Slams, 45 titles and 670 overall wins and a <a href="https://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/10/venus-williams-debut-20-years-1994">20 year career</a> to her name. </p>
<p>At 15 years old, Cori Gauff is undoubtedly the new kid on the court. <a href="https://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/328560/title/Cori-Gauff">Born in Atlanta, Georgia</a>, Gauff came to tennis relatively late and didn’t start to play until she was seven years old, unlike many young players who start as early as three. And while tennis experts observed her lethal serve and hooked topspin, what’s perhaps most impressive when watching the youngster is her maturity and the composure with which she carries herself. </p>
<p>She plays with experience and intelligence and appears to be very grounded in her approach to the game. She’s been <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/48846713">cited as saying</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I just literally don’t play with any pressure. I just tell myself whatever happens happens. I mean, my motto is just, like, wing it. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>And perhaps it’s easy to not feel pressure when you are only 15 years old and ranked outside of the top 300 in the game, with nothing to lose. Yet it’s not uncommon for young athletes to feel so much pressure they succumb to <a href="http://assets.usta.com/assets/1/USTA_Import/dps/usta_master/sitecore_usta/USTA/Document%20Assets/PlayerDevelopment/SportsScience/Gould_1993_Burnout%20in%20Competitive%20Junior%20Tennis%20Players.pdf">burnout and withdraw from sport</a>. Gauff’s parents seem aware of this risk, and by making efforts to provide her with the right support, they are consciously protecting her from burning out.</p>
<h2>Strength through support</h2>
<p>Having a robust support network can have an overwhelmingly positive impact on all aspects of an athlete’s development and performance. Studies <a href="https://www.stir.ac.uk/research/hub/publication/590400">now recognise</a> that, for a young athlete to be successful, parents, coaches and team-mates all have a vital role to play. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282852/original/file-20190705-51284-1dwhrxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">It’s got to be fun.</span>
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<p>Researchers suggest that it’s fundamental for this support network to be established early on in the athlete’s career, since social support in particular has a powerful influence on young people’s experiences of sport, especially in connection to <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1750984X.2014.931999">motivation, participation and athletic development</a>. Young athletes are <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1750984X.2014.931999">often unaware or naïve</a> about the challenges they may face in a professional sports setting, for example a sports injury. </p>
<p>That said, support comes in many different guises. Earlier research <a href="https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/43094174.pdf">has concluded</a> that that there are four broad dimensions of social support: emotional (feeling cared for by others), esteem (bolstering their sense of competence), informational (solutions to problems) and tangible (concrete assistance). Each of these dimensions tend to be filled by different people in an athlete’s support network. </p>
<h2>Parent power</h2>
<p>A good example of this is how parents often play the largest role in this support network when athletes are still relatively young, and are likely to give a combination of emotional and tangible support. This emotional support is illustrated perfectly by Cori’s mother, Candi Gauff, <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tennis/2019/07/02/cori-gauff-teenage-prodigy-beat-venus-williams-reminded/">who has said</a> she is focused on Cori being healthy and happy: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>When I look at her, I am looking for her emotions, her facial expression, to see if she is a happy individual… I want to raise children who are happy and appreciative.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Gauff’s coach <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/tennis/48857711">Patrick Mouratoglon</a> a key figure in her support network and her predominant source of informational support has recognised the commitment of her parents, noting how even early in her career they did all they could for her. This dedication – combined with <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/tennis/48857711">their desire</a> to ensure her upbringing is as normal as possible – could be credited with keeping Gauff grounded. She has a core group of people, mostly made up of extended family, who surround her, protect her and reiterate how important it is for her to remain humble and grateful. </p>
<p>It’s an approach that clearly works: since her victory over Williams, Gauff has maintained her composure even under the media spotlight.</p>
<p>Gauff appears to be on the path to greatness. She is being allowed to grow in a balanced environment where she is still made to tidy her room and do her homework and, most importantly, be a child. This healthy environment, together with a committed support network with her parents at the heart, suggest we are may be seeing a future Wimbledon champion in the making.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/119910/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Candice Lingam-Willgoss does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A young athlete’s support network is key to their development and performance, according to sports psychologists.Candice Lingam-Willgoss, Lecturer in Sport & Fitness, The Open UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1097612019-01-14T10:14:44Z2019-01-14T10:14:44ZAndy Murray aced the media and became a global role model – but here’s why tennis players sometimes seem a little grumpy<p>Andy Murray’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/11/the-guardian-view-on-andy-murray-great-scot-great-guy-great-backhand">impending retirement from tennis</a> is devastating for so many people. From the young players who want to be him, to the spectators who love to watch him, to those for whom his steadfast support for issues such as equal prize money for female players is a reason to admire him, Murray stepping away from the professional game will be a monumental loss. But tennis fans – not least in England – haven’t always felt this way about him.</p>
<p>In 2011, an article in the Daily Telegraph described the Scot’s default manner on court as “<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/andymurray/8589956/Sarah-Crompton-grumpy-Scot-Andy-Murray-is-still-the-main-man-at-Wimbledon-for-his-fans-from-middle-England.html">a stomping grumpiness</a>”. “His tennis raises the heart, but his manners sink the spirits”, ran the argument. Of course, his assertion in 2006 that he would be supporting “anyone but England” in the football World Cup hadn’t won him any hearts and minds south of the Scottish border, but Murray himself admits that early in his career his perceived grumpiness might have been down to him being <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/andy-murray-says-he-s-not-as-grumpy-as-the-world-thinks-i-was-just-defensive-9513389.html">quite defensive</a> around the media.</p>
<p>But by the summer of 2013, after he had added a Wimbledon championship to his gold medal in the 2012 London olympics, headlines about the Scot had changed: “<a href="http://www.ianstaffordmedia.com/2016/09/23/its-official-andy-murray-is-a-national-treasure-now-make-him-a-knight/">It’s official, Andy Murray is a national treasure</a>” is just one sample from 2015. </p>
<p>Murray is not the first tennis player to be first labelled “moody”, only to become a huge crowd favourite – tennis greats John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors experienced similar transitions from petulant youths to crowd favourites over the years. </p>
<h2>It’s a tennis thing</h2>
<p>The individual nature of tennis means that the match court can feel like an incredibly lonely place, particularly if you’re losing. As a former player myself, I [Anna Fitzpatrick] understand only too well just how frustrating it is to put your blood, sweat and tears into a game, only to be “robbed” on a crucial point by a incorrect line call from the umpire. Similarly, I’ve battled countless times for more than three hours, often in 35+ degree heat, digging deep, trying every tactic I can think of to attempt to outsmart my opponent, looking desperately at my coach for an inspirational idea of how to turn the match around. Then, the realisation dawns on you that nobody can help, you’re entirely alone out there. You use “self-talk” for motivation, to pick yourself up, and remind yourself of your key points of focus. </p>
<p>You know you should be telling yourself that you can do it, to keep trying because you will get an opportunity to regain momentum. But instead, negative self talk can creep in: “Nothing is working, I can’t turn this around, I’m not good enough today, I don’t know what else to try.”</p>
<p>It’s easy to see how, to the watching fan, a player constantly muttering to themselves might come across as a little moody, when in fact, it often serves an important function for performance. In a sport where any single point could be the crucial one that swings momentum from one player to the other, arguing with umpires and lines judges might also seem like petulance to some, but can actually just be a reflection of players fighting tooth and nail for every point to maintain or win back momentum. And Murray is by no means the only player to have argued the point with the umpire, nor the most aggressive by any means.</p>
<p>Tennis players depend on winning to get paid, so when they compete they are fighting not just for world ranking points and trophies, but for their livelihoods – and they must do it with the eyes of the world upon them, with crowds cheering their opponent and even applauding when they make a mistake. You can forgive a player for appearing a little tetchy at times.</p>
<h2>Turning point</h2>
<p>In July 2012, immediately after losing the Wimbledon final to Roger Federer, Murray was asked to explain what happened in the match. He responded, lip quivering and voice breaking: “I’ll try, but it won’t be easy” – before congratulating his victorious opponent in a show of sportsmanship that drew applause from all sides. Perhaps that was the moment the tide began to turn.</p>
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<p>Just three weeks before claiming his 2012 Olympic Gold medal, Murray <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/07/06/andy-murray-dour-faced-scot_n_1653806.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer_us=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_cs=PAcm3G7794Mme2xyIONHBA">was described by the Huffington Post</a> as a “dour-faced Scot, living up to his peevish reputation, giving mono-syllabic responses to reporters and throwing his toys out the pram at the slightest hint of criticism”. </p>
<p>But, the London Olympics it seems, had a surprise in store for us, providing a wonderful opportunity for tennis and non-tennis fans to see the grit, determination and fierce passion of Murray. He left little doubt in anyone’s mind just how much it mean for him to compete – and win – for his country. With equally impressive efforts to claim the following year’s US Open and Wimbledon titles, by the time he led Great Britain to Davis Cup success in 2015, Murray had become a true British sporting legend.</p>
<h2>Playing the media game</h2>
<p>In terms of how he was portrayed in the media, it takes two to tango. If, early in his career, Murray appeared unwilling to open up to the media, it has to be said that the media weren’t particularly kind to him. </p>
<p>Research suggests that for young athletes striving for success, the relationship with the media – constant attention, critical comments and the rest – can be a significant <a href="https://nam05.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fonlinelibrary.wiley.com%2Fdoi%2Ffull%2F10.1111%2Fj.1600-0838.2010.01242.x&amp;data=02%7C01%7C%7Cee7517937c724c09463008d677dec79d%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636828196055245214&amp;sdata=IJzyUOenc14Vs0BL6A9X3EUoGVCmHm%2FG7bv8TM%2FnurI%3D&amp;reserved=0">source of stress</a>. So it’s unsurprising that athletes who are suddenly thrust into the limelight after experiencing success, might occasionally come across as a bit grumpy or rude, especially after losing an important match. </p>
<p>In fairness, it’s hard to blame someone like Murray for feeling that mandatory media commitments <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ucxCDQAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Organizational+Psychology+of+Sport:+Key+Issues+and+Practical+Applications&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjkyci5zebfAhXMy6QKHZplA7kQ6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=The%20Organizational%20Psychology%20of%20Sport%3A%20Key%20Issues%20and%20Practical%20Applications&f=false">are irritating distractions</a> that steal their valuable time and prevent them from working towards their goal.</p>
<p>But as Murray’s career progressed, we have observed his relationship with the media develop. Rather than being portrayed as an abrasive brat, in the last few years, he has been praised for his dedication. Rather than being cast as abrasive and sarcastic, he’s won fans with <a href="https://www.news.com.au/sport/tennis/andy-murray-universally-regarded-as-the-worlds-grumpiest-tennis-player-actually-has-a-sense-of-humour/news-story/1f1aa319c5b285776b8f3ef2c7818b74">what’s now seen as a dry wit</a>.</p>
<p>There is evidence to suggest that as athletes progress through their careers they develop <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/8678844_Psychological_skills_of_Greek_badminton_athletes">better strategies for coping</a> with adversity – especially if they receive training, (such as that provided by Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association), as so many sportspeople do these days. His effective and humorous use of social media has further strengthened his brand – he recently offered an Instagram follower <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/46832169">a free ticket</a> to his Australian Open match to apologise for his poor performance in a practice match with Novak Djokovic.</p>
<h2>Local hero</h2>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1083783131939983360"}"></div></p>
<p>In recent years Murray appears to have embraced – and learned to capitalise on – his relationship with the media. He has used his sporting status to speak out on several social issues, including equality and “casual sexism”, often <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-40589164/andy-murray-corrects-journalist-s-casual-sexism">correcting inaccurate comments during press conferences</a> and online.</p>
<p>He has been bold and direct when expressing his support for equal prize money for women. The way he eloquently approached, and ultimately dismissed, criticism of his employing a female coach was refreshing and inspiring for many. Upon hearing that Murray would be coached by former women’s world no.1, Amelie Mauresmo, another former female player <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/jun/29/andy-murray-women-coaches-olga-morozova-amelie-mauresmo">pointed out</a> that “nobody else was letting women in”. </p>
<p>The way he has led debate on these important issues has enabled him to show us Andy Murray, the incredibly well-rounded person – rather than just Andy Murray, the super-competitive athlete. His awareness of wider issues and his willingness to actively support them has been endearing and empowering. Accordingly, he <a href="https://www.theweek.co.uk/tennis/88445/is-andy-murray-the-unexpected-champion-of-women-s-sport">has been hailed as</a> “the unexpected champion of women’s sport” and a fantastic role model for people in all walks of life.</p>
<p>Tennis will be poorer without him – indeed it is all the richer for his brilliant career.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/109761/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>He was seen as ‘moody’ and ‘petulant’, but Murray was just a single-minded champion who deserves the success he has enjoyed.Anna Fitzpatrick, Tennis Specialist and Lecturer in Sports Science, Sheffield Hallam UniversityPeter Olusoga, Senior Lecturer in Sport & Exercise Psychology, Sheffield Hallam UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/994762018-07-10T12:20:09Z2018-07-10T12:20:09ZWimbledon: why Federer is the greatest on grass and Rafa Nadal is the king of clay<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226910/original/file-20180710-70063-wxv59q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/soft-focus-tennis-ball-on-grass-665507068?src=L7pENQJffRHsufjkpcNmCQ-1-36">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Tennis fans could be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu. For the first time since 2012, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer <a href="https://www.atpworldtour.com/en/rankings/singles">sit atop the world rankings</a>, confounding their critics and continuing to defy age and injury. In a season apparently taken from the late 2000s, Nadal has just steamrollered his way to an 11th French Open title, while Federer is breezing through the early rounds of his Wimbledon title defence.</p>
<p>Anyone who has watched these two careers down the years will know that Nadal is king of clay, and Federer is a titan on the turf. But how many know exactly why? And how is it that these particular players can so outclass their opposition when playing on their favourite surfaces?</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226911/original/file-20180710-70072-1yzjul1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Federer and Nadal went head to head on a specially designed court in Mallorca in 2007. Nadal triumphed in three sets.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/hahatango/490847463">Aaron </a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is extremely difficult for one player to dominate across all the courts, and thus, all the slams. Each surface presents different challenges, and on the professional tour, players have limited time to adapt their movement and playing style for different parts of the programme. A <a href="https://www.atpworldtour.com/en/tournaments">tennis season</a> begins with acrylic hard courts, transfers to clay, has a brief encounter with grass, and then goes back to hard to see out the year. There are just four weeks between the clay court season ending and the start of Wimbledon.</p>
<p>Tennis courts are deceptively complex structures. Formed of <a href="https://www.itftennis.com/technical/courts/other/construction.aspx">multiple layers of material</a> that determine the qualities of the court, a surface can determine <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11217009">a player’s performance</a> as well as their <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3135565">injury risk</a>. Different surfaces elicit different reactions from the ball – bounce, spin, speed and direction – and from the player, so professionals have to adapt their play effectively.</p>
<h2>Grass: fast serves and an all-court game</h2>
<p>Grass courts are now the least utilised surface, but Wimbledon will always lend “lawn tennis” a certain prestige. While clay courts are classified as “slow” by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), grass courts produce very little friction with the ball, meaning that shots shoot off the turf with high speed and low bounce. This means that players have less time to return the ball than they might on clay or hard, resulting in shorter rallies, and the possibility of ending a point quickly from the net. Federer’s finesse and ability to use the speed of the ball against his opponent, makes him ideally suited to quick, technical grass court play.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226618/original/file-20180708-122250-1kyvt73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">There’s a reason Roger Federer has eight Wimbledon titles but only one French Open.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/24748668.2018.1467995">A recent study</a> found that players had significantly faster first and second serves at Wimbledon compared with the other grand slams. This has made the Wimbledon grass a natural home for the “serve and volley” tactic – a favourite of past greats such as John McEnroe, Pete Sampras and Goren Ivanesevic. At other grand slams, players vary their serves, using slower, spin serves to try to make it difficult for their opponents to prepare. At Wimbledon, most opt for power.</p>
<h2>Clay: the athlete’s choice</h2>
<p>It’s not just the faster courts that favour certain types of player. On clay, balls travel slower and bounce higher, eliciting longer rallies, more points played from the baseline, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11217009">and a great deal more running</a>. Heavy topspin can give the already high bounce an extra kick, pushing a returning player back in the court and making it hard for them to attack. </p>
<p>Nadal’s topsin forehand is revered and reviled by his fellow players, while his athleticism and staying power help him dominate a surface that puts a premium on fitness. Players must <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17681984">spend more energy</a> on the clay court to achieve the same distance they would on grass or hard, mostly through the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27692798">prominence of sliding</a>.</p>
<p>When stretching for shots or changing direction on low friction clay, sliding is an essential weapon in the arsenal. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2577483/">Sliding when slowing down</a> reduces the time taken to turn on <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877705814006730">the slippery clay surface</a>. The loading distribution required to ensure a successful slide, though, increases pressure on the knee and requires intense muscular control that can be extremely fatiguing. Nadal doesn’t just have better ball-striking than many of his rivals, his game has vastly superior physicality.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/226572/original/file-20180707-122247-14778b2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Nadal is popularly called the great clay court player of all time.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/paris-france-may-26-2015fourteen-times-415706740?src=yQJvk32fM55sJb_XRZJaEA-1-71">shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Jack of all trades</h2>
<p>Hard courts – the newest but perhaps most popular to play on – are in many ways the middle child of the tennis court world. Rated as medium pace, the US and Australian Opens see <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/24748668.2018.1467995">similar serve speeds</a> to the French. Rally length and percentage baseline play clock in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11217009">somewhere between grass and clay</a>, and although Novak Djokovic slides on hard surfaces, the high friction levels make this rare and extremely difficult. Many sorts of players can succeed on hard courts – naturally including Federer and Nadal.</p>
<p><a href="https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2018/02/21/bjsports-2017-098625">Recent research</a> suggests that your chances of injury are similar across the surfaces. But regularly playing on different surfaces and transitioning between them can increase a player’s injury risk substantially, particularly if there is not sufficient time to fully adapt. </p>
<p>Different ball speed, bounce height and sliding characteristics are large disparities in a game as technical and precise as professional tennis, so players must carefully manage their training and playing schedules if they are to perform at the highest level. This is extremely physically demanding, and is probably why so few players have been able to dominate across the different courts. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, despite being the wrong side of 30, the king of clay and the greatest on grass just keep on winning.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/99476/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chelsea Starbuck does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Unpacking the sporting science behind the humble tennis court.Chelsea Starbuck, Research Fellow in Health Sciences, University of SalfordLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/917312018-06-13T10:38:01Z2018-06-13T10:38:01ZHow to choose a World Cup team when the US isn’t contending<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/222885/original/file-20180612-112627-1x12a1a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Fans hold banners and cheer, as the U.S. team takes the field for a World Cup qualifying soccer match against Panama, Oct. 6, 2017, in Orlando, Fla.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/John Raoux</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>After the U.S. men’s soccer team failed to qualify for the <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-mens-soccer-team-fails-to-qualify-for-world-cup-for-first-time-since-1986/">2018 World Cup</a>, the question about which team to root for has become commonplace <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/who-should-americans-root-for-in-world-cup-2018_us_59e0fc9fe4b09e31db97588f">among American soccer fans</a>. To help them make such a transcendental decision, Fox Sports, the TV channel televising the World Cup, and 23andMe, a genomics and biotechnology company, launched an ingenious commercial. In it, soccer fans are enticed to take a DNA test to discover their ancestral roots and select the national team that best represents them. <a href="http://adage.com/article/media/fox-sports-23andme/313008/">As the commercial puts it</a>, </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“You may not speak the language or have visited the country, you may not know their heroes, but we’re all connected to a World Cup nation through our DNA.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>From my perspective <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17511321.2012.741612">as a philosopher</a>, the commercial raises the following questions: Why do we watch sports? And, what are the consequences of our reasons for supporting one team or another? </p>
<h2>Nature of sports spectators</h2>
<p>The commercial’s suggestion of selecting a team based on one’s ancestral roots is certainly in line with one of the main reasons why people choose to root for a specific sports team or athlete. </p>
<p>To shed light on this issue, sports philosophers such as <a href="https://www.alma.edu/live/profiles/98-nicholas-dixon">Nicholas Dixon</a> and <a href="https://www.dur.ac.uk/philosophy/staff/?id=15317">Stephen Mumford</a>, who have long dealt with questions about the nature of sports spectatorship, draw on the <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Watching-Sport-Aesthetics-Ethics-and-Emotion/Mumford/p/book/9780415857994">distinction</a> between “purist” and “partisan” spectators. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222884/original/file-20180612-112631-bq0fjq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=489&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">U.S. fans arrive at the stadium to attend a 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between the U.S. and Honduras in 2017.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As these scholars explain, purist spectators follow sports for the love of the game, in particular, for the physical skills and virtuous character that teams and athletes display. Purists are attracted to good plays and excellent performances. Because the primary interest of purists is the game, they do not have strong allegiances with any participant or team. Instead, their allegiance varies depending on who exhibits the best style of play. </p>
<p>Consider the fascination with teams such as the 2014 Spain men’s soccer team, FC Barcelona, and the English team Arsenal FC. Sports commentators have linked this fascination to a play style often referred to as “<a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/shaj-mathew/spain-soccer-national-team_b_3593298.html">tiki taka</a>,” used by both these teams. For purists this play style embodies excellence related to skillful ball kicking and teamwork. Soccer coach, Johan Cruyff, who is often regarded as the father of the tiki-taka style, <a href="https://www.overlookpress.com/brilliant-orange.html">once famously said</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“As a coach, my teams might have won more games if we’d played in a less adventurous way. Maybe I’d have earned a little more and the bonuses would have been bigger, but … For the good of football, we need a team of invention, attacking ideas and style to emerge. Even if it doesn’t win, it will inspire footballers of all ages everywhere. That is the greatest reward.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>On the other hand, partisans come to share a strong emotional connection with a team or individual athlete. Through such a connection, partisans regard sports as a proxy for both self-affirmation and collective pride. </p>
<p>Sports is valuable to partisans because they consider the achievements of the player or team they root for as pertaining to them and their community. This is precisely where the Fox Sports and 23andMe commercial makes an emotional appeal. </p>
<h2>Skills or emotions?</h2>
<p>Do the fans affect the game and if so how? </p>
<p>One of things scholars Nicholas Dixon and Stephen Mumford argue is that sports fans affect the game and different types of fans have different effect.</p>
<p>Purists’ constant search for excellence raises the standards by which fans measure soccer teams’ performance. Not every victory counts, only good victories do. This has a positive impact on the quality of the game because arguably teams would try to develop a better style of play. A good illustration of this attitude is that of sports writer <a href="https://thesefootballtimes.co/author/stuart-horsfield/">Stuart Horsfield</a>. He <a href="https://thesefootballtimes.co/2018/05/29/why-i-never-supported-a-team-just-the-greatest-mavericks-in-history/">argues</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“My ability to watch the game without the restriction of parochial or nationalistic blinkers has allowed me to embrace the football in all its glory. I have been able to appreciate prodigious talent even when it comes at the expense of my own country’s progression. I don’t belong to a team or an institution.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>A good example of the positive effect of playing “more beautifully” is the transformation Arsenal FC went through when Arsene Wenger <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/arsenal-news-deloitte-football-money-league-arsene-wenger-effect-cemented-european-world-financial-a7534306.html">became manager of the team</a>. The club went from being one of the most boring ones in the English Premier League to becoming a team that most spectators praised and wanted to watch <a href="http://www.espn.com/soccer/club/arsenal/359/blog/post/2959355/five-ways-arsenals-arsene-wenger-changed-english-football-forever">because of their style of play</a>. Indeed, as many football specialists, sports commentators and academics argue, Wenger <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-arsene-wenger-changed-the-premier-league-and-then-dropped-the-ball-74288">changed the Premier League</a> by imposing <a href="https://www.theperspective.com/debates/sports/arsenal-fire-arsene-wenger/">his “purist” approach</a>.</p>
<p>With regard to partisan supporters, their positive influence on soccer comes from the fact that their unconditional support provides sports teams with long-term stability. The most powerful teams in soccer are those <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1785620-power-ranking-each-english-premier-league-teams-fan-base#slide0">with a solid and wide spectator base</a>. Having spectators that maintain their allegiance to the team regardless of its performance is crucial to keep such a base. </p>
<p>A good example of the nature and positive influence of partisan supporters is that of the English team Wimbledon FC, or the “Dons.” Formed in 1889, Wimbledon has had a solid fan base. However, in 2003, the team was relocated from South London, 56 miles north, <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/3010002/Wimbledon-on-move-to-Milton-Keynes.html">to Milton Keynes and “renamed Milton Keynes Dons.”</a> After the relocation, the team lost a substantial part of its fan base, who created their own local club, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2003/jan/11/clubsincrisis.sport">AFC Wimbledon.</a> </p>
<p>Last season, attendance at the AFC Wimbledon stadium, in Kingsmeadow, was high, whereas that at the Milton Keynes Dons stadium, Stadium MK, <a href="https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/milton-keynes-dons/attendances">was low</a>. Indeed, despite joining the English competitive football system six tiers below the Milton Keynes Dons, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/oct/09/afc-wimbledon-above-mk-dons-league-one">Wimbledon have already escalated to a division higher than theirs</a>. </p>
<p>On the negative side, because social identity and reputation are at stake for partisan fans, they often develop a “win-at-all-cost” mentality, which lowers the standards by which their teams’ performance is evaluated. </p>
<p>Partisans, in other words, prefer victory over good play; what matters to them is winning and proving one’s superiority over the opponent. This attitude is illustrated in best-selling author <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/318694/fever-pitch-by-nick-hornby/9781573226882/">Nick Hornby’s book “Fever Pitch.”</a> He said: “The way our team plays is beside the point for most of us.” As Eric Simons, author of “The Secret Lives of Sports Fans: The Science of Sports Obsession,” argues, by drawing on <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/record/1977-10287-001">psychological studies</a> on sport supporters’ behavior, “A sports team is an expression of a fan’s sense of self … (it) is an expansion of a fan’s sense of self.” Thus, victories and defeats of one’s team are regarded as personal successes and failures.</p>
<h2>Who will you root for?</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/222886/original/file-20180612-112614-wb4wpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Which team will you cheer for this World Cup?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Stacy Thacker, File</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>So, coming back to what teams American soccer fans should support in the 2018 World Cup, I would say they have two possibilities. Either they pick the team that best represents their ancestral roots, or they pick the team that best embodies the excellence of soccer. </p>
<p>My question to fans is this: Given that the attitude of both types can affect the game, which would be most beneficial to the development of American soccer?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/91731/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Francisco Javier López Frías does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Sports fans are of two types: purists and partisans. The attitudes of both can affect the game. An expert explains which one you are and what that means.Francisco Javier López Frías, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/802412017-07-04T10:45:18Z2017-07-04T10:45:18ZWant to know who will win at Wimbledon? Listen carefully to the players’ grunts<p>It’s that time of year again. British hopes and dreams weigh once again on one shy Scotsman’s shoulders. Expectant tennis fans will throng together on Murray Mound to eat strawberries and cream and talk up their hero’s chances. Can he do it again? Is he mentally prepared for the challenge? </p>
<p>New <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347217301975">research</a> into the noises that Andy Murray and so many of his fellow players make during matches could take out some of the guesswork about how they feel they are performing.</p>
<p>Grunting is now an established – if controversial – part of Wimbledon. So much so that <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/11730027/Prime-Minister-weighs-into-Wimbledon-grunting-row.html">David Cameron</a>, when the UK prime minister, joked that spectators should bring earplugs. In fact, since its popular emergence three decades ago, grunting has consistently divided opinion in the tennis world.</p>
<p>An early prominent vocal culprit was Monica Seles, who consistently drew fire for her shrieks. Since then, the phenomenon has become commonplace on both the men’s and women’s tours, but not without resistance. The volume of Maria Sharapova’s and Michelle Larcher de Brito’s grunts has been compared to that of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2013/jun/26/wimbledon-battle-grunters-maria-sharapova">a chainsaw or a lion’s roar</a> and, in the aftermath of one particular outbreak of grunting controversy, Martina Navratilova labelled it “cheating pure and simple”.</p>
<p>Her <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/martina-navratilova-the-grunting-has-to-stop-3s6b8j09g5r">gripe</a> was that grunts drown out the sound of the ball hitting the racquet, which hinders players in assessing the speed, spin, and cleanness of the incoming shot. She has a point too – research shows that silencing Sharapova’s grunt improves the perception of the <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.2466/30.PMS.120v20x2">speed of her serve</a> and that white noise might impair an opponent’s perception of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20957210">shot direction</a>.</p>
<h2>Roaring success</h2>
<p>Others in and around the game defend the guttural groans. Many players are <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/33436549">unperturbed</a> by the noises, while others question why complaints focus almost exclusively on female players in a sport full of fairly vocal young bucks. Sport psychologists argue that grunts <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2014/09/04/grunting-leads-to-better-tennis-says-science/">improve psychological focus</a>, motivating players to exert maximum effort and allowing them to perform in a more relaxed, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/10919656/Wimbledon-2014-Why-do-women-players-grunt.html">subconscious state</a>. </p>
<p>It’s worth remembering that after the <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/1992-07-03/sports/sp-1393_1_monica-seles">criticism</a> Seles received in her quarter and semi-finals at Wimbledon 1992, she lost heavily in the final, having made a vow of silence she later strongly regretted.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="450" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/5499586&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true"></iframe>
<p>In her silence, Seles may have suffered not only psychologically, but physically too. A number of recent studies demonstrate that grunting allows players to hit the ball <a href="http://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Abstract/2016/02000/The_Effects_of_Forced_Exhalation_and_Inhalation,.18.aspx">significantly harder</a>, without increasing their heart rate or <a href="https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&q=Grunting+in+tennis+increases+ball+velocity+but+not+oxygen+cost&btnG=&as_sdt=1%2C5&as_sdtp=">oxygen consumption</a>. In a sport where a point here and there can be the difference between winning and losing, this extra oomph is vital.</p>
<h2>Winning and losing</h2>
<p>Now, our latest research shows that grunting may confer advantages not only to the vocaliser, but to the opponent too. Analysing 50 matches featuring some of the world’s top 30 tennis players, we found that players produced grunts that were higher in pitch during matches they lost than during those they won.</p>
<p>Moreover, while the pitch of players’ grunts increased as matches progressed, the difference in pitch between losses and wins was apparent from the early stages of matches, and didn’t change in size as matches wore on. Therefore, it seems that the shift in pitch when winning versus losing is not due to players feeling the progressive effects of scoreboard pressure, or revelling in racking up set after set. </p>
<p>Instead, this difference may reflect longer-term physiological or psychological factors that may manifest even before matches begin. For example, the results of previous encounters, form, world ranking, fatigue and injuries could all influence stress and perceived dominance ahead of matches, which are both known to affect the pitch of our voices.</p>
<p>Most importantly, we found that when competitive tennis players were played short clips of professional players’ grunts (with no access to visual cues), they could identify which of two grunt sequences produced by the same player came from a match that the player lost. Our research therefore suggests that tennis grunts may provide opponents with a valuable window into the other player’s mindset during a match.</p>
<p>Listeners’ accuracy was only 10% above chance levels, likely because players’ grunt pitch varies substantially across and within matches, so this is by no means a fool proof way to systematically predict the outcome of a match. But, with prior knowledge of a player’s “usual” grunt pitch, it’s certainly something that viewers, opposing players and even broadcasters might consider paying more attention to. Players who have faced each other multiple times may already consciously or subconsciously pick up on these cues. If so, such information is likely to influence their confidence, as is the case with basketball players responding to <a href="http://journals.humankinetics.com/doi/abs/10.1123/jsep.2013-0199">visual changes</a> in nonverbal behaviour.</p>
<h2>Dog, deer or Djokovic?</h2>
<p>From a broader perspective, this research firmly places human nonverbal vocalisations in continuity with the calls of other mammals. Numerous studies have shown that nonhuman mammals use information contained within vocalisations as key influences on behaviour and decision-making in numerous contexts. For example, male <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/272/1566/941.short">red deer</a> use the roars of competing males to assess their size, and therefore who is likely to emerge from conflict victorious.</p>
<p>Humans are no exception. Like red deer, when we produce vocalisations in a competitive setting, we broadcast information about our internal state, which listeners can use to inform how likely we are to win. Because anatomy and physiology affect the vocal apparatus – the larynx and vocal tract – of all mammals in the same way, vocalisations broadcast information about vocalisers’ physical attributes and internal state, whether dog, deer, or Novak Djokovic.</p>
<p>Should we then be paying more heed to other primitive sounds like these? While our conscious attention is focused on the words that we speak, nonverbal vocalisations pepper our daily interactions; from grunts, laughs and sighs, to moans, roars and cries. Many of these noises are <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364661316000206">highly similar</a> to calls produced by other mammals, and likely communicate a wealth of information that has surprisingly been barely investigated by scientists so far.</p>
<p>Perhaps we know so little about human vocalisations because we feel embarrassed to acknowledge our animal self. In my view, they’re certainly nothing to be ashamed of – so the next time you hear a tennis grunt, embrace it as part of our nature. But remember, that noise might be revealing more than you think. I wouldn’t go placing any bets on Wimbledon while blindfolded though.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80241/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jordan Raine does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond the academic appointment above.</span></em></p>You can tell quite a lot about whether your favourite player might win or lose from the primal noises they make.Jordan Raine, PhD Researcher, Nature and Function of Human Nonverbal Vocalisations, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/705072016-12-19T17:35:16Z2016-12-19T17:35:16ZHow Andy Murray and his coaching team served up a winning 2016<p>Andy Murray has a had a pretty good year, both on and off the tennis court. Aside from <a href="http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/andy-murray-tells-loose-women-how-baby-daughter-sophia-helped-him-win-wimbledon-2016-1570028">becoming a father</a> and the first <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/sports-personality/38320930">three-time winner</a> of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, he finishes 2016 as the ATP world number one, having retained his <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/37080784">Olympic gold in Rio</a> and a <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/36758518">second Wimbledon title</a>. </p>
<p>The Scot’s arrival at the very top of his game comes at the end of an 11-year trajectory that has seen a number of significant twists and turns. But one key ingredient behind such a tremendous sporting year is Murray’s history of relationships with coaches and sports science professionals. Over the years, his support staff have played different but vital roles in his development – technically, tactically, physically and mentally. And throughout his career, Murray has changed his coaching personnel in a continuing process of identifying and meeting specific needs as his world ranking climbed.</p>
<p>The idea of an optimally functioning athlete benefiting socially, emotionally, and motivationally from the relationship with their coach is a good explanation of Murray’s upwards career trajectory. After the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/tennis/article-1050200/Murray-argumentative-obsessed-playing-video-games-says-ex-coach-Gilbert.html">well publicised tumultuous relationship</a> and split with the highly respected Brad Gilbert in November 2007, many were surprised by the appointment of his good friend (but considered by some to be inexperienced) <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/andymurray/7913446/Andy-Murray-sacks-coach-Miles-Maclagan-after-Alex-Corretja-concerns.html">Miles Maclagan</a> as coach. He stayed until 2010. However, this was the beginning of “Team Murray”. The player was surrounding himself with a team of experts – but importantly, experts whose company he enjoyed during the long months on tour. </p>
<p>The complex social bonds that lie at the heart of coach-athlete relationships are established from a young age. Murray’s tennis career blossomed under the guidance of his mother Judy, a tennis coach who instilled the fundamentals of his game and who has remained a crucial presence within his inner circle. His subsequent strong relationships in tennis have all developed from this initial powerful and positive parental relationship. </p>
<p>Athletes with an enduringly positive view of their relationship with their coach also perceive their support during negative episodes or disagreement, and are more likely to experience feelings of satisfaction. In Murray’s case, this negativity came at the expense of the complex and often misunderstood relationship with Judy. <a href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/andy-murray-im-no-mummys-135138">Branded a “mummy’s boy”</a>, her proximity was once cited by former champion Boris Becker as the reason Murray would never win a Grand Slam. But after winning Grand Slams, Olympic golds, and the world number one position, his mother remains a motivational presence.</p>
<p>An elite athlete’s life is fraught with hardships and failures, and the importance of a solid relationship and mutual understanding with a coach is vital. Many top level players employ family members or close friends as coaches, and Murray, now working with former tennis-pro Jamie Delgado since February 2016, is no exception. </p>
<p>Murray’s previous appointment of a female coach in 2014, former women’s World No.1 Amelie Mauresmo was seen as novel because of the lack of women working in elite men’s tennis. But there was clearly much common ground in their tennis histories. Both had dealt with the burden of national expectation, and were perceived as not fulfilling their potential. The partnership did not last, ending in 2016, but during this time Murray bounced back from back surgery and regained his world number two ranking.</p>
<p>When conflicts do arise, athletes must be able to use them as motivation to achieve a higher standard. Unresolved interpersonal conflict with coaches might lead to performance slumps or lost motivation. Clashes with Gilbert were <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/2636825/Brad-Gilbert-admits-poor-relationship-with-Andy-Murray-but-backs-Scot-for-success.html">well-publicised</a>, but Murray’s continued physical development is testament to Gilbert’s legacy – intensified training with the goal of adding bulk enabled him to increase his serve speed. Nine years after sacking Gilbert, Murray is 15kg heavier and recorded his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcRLm8JnhQM">fastest serve this year at 141mph</a> (7mph greater than it was in 2007). </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/c628aFHtPa0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p>But of all various the coaches in Team Murray, it is Ivan Lendl who has been the focus of most discussion. The former World number one and winner of eight Grand Slams was Murray’s main coach from the end of 2011 until early 2014. He rejoined the team in 2016, and while the pair clearly get on well, that is not Lendl’s main role. He is there to share with Murray a single-minded pursuit of silverware. When he first sought Lendl’s input, Murray was the world’s fourth best player, and was yet to win a Grand Slam. </p>
<h2>Lendl the ace</h2>
<p>Lendl’s unwavering commitment to winning will not have been sugar coated, and there may have been difficulties between him and Murray. However these did not impact negatively on his performance – they spurred him on to win Grand Slams. Murray found a shared passion for winning titles, and it is no surprise that the rekindled 2016 relationship has been fruitful too, with another Wimbledon title, a second consecutive Olympic Gold, and the world number one crown.</p>
<p>It appears then, that unconditional positive regard – despite difficulties – between athlete and coach lays an unshakeable foundation on which to build performance. Trust and honesty are vital when difficulties arise, enabling conflict to be channelled positively. Clear focus on the evolving needs of the athlete (and person) are also powerful variables in the formula for success. And single-mindedness and conflict are only productive when the athlete is ready for them. </p>
<p>As Murray enjoys his place at the summit of men’s tennis, and the prospect of further dominance in 2017, his complex relationships with his coaches will no doubt continue, with further twists and turns yet to be played out – in domains well beyond the elements of performance witnessed in public. </p>
<p>These relationships are key to his current success - and should be studied in detail by future hopeful contenders for Sports Personality of the Year. Managed well, they have the potential to deliver yet more British sports stars to the top of their chosen fields.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70507/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The world number one has made some interesting appointments to help Team Murray to the top.Andy Preston, Programme Leader, Sports Coaching, University of East LondonJo Ward, Former professional tennis player and current PhD student in psychology, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/617252016-06-28T15:49:58Z2016-06-28T15:49:58ZPlay stops rain: could ‘cloud seeding’ deliver perfect Wimbledon weather?<p>Wimbledon, 2026. Bright blue skies and a wonderful late afternoon sun lights up the lush green grass of centre court. Out strides the British number one and four-time winner, Andy Henman, to the cheers of the excitable, partisan crowd. </p>
<p>Somewhere nearby, at the headquarters of WeatherMod Inc, a group of technicians are busily checking data, confident that their efforts have worked. They have been in contact with two pilots who have just completed their spray sorties and are returning to land at Heathrow’s new third runway. Thanks to the delivery of 4kg of, in its pure form, a yellowish powder known as Silver Iodide (AgI) into clouds upwind of London, it is now raining over the Salisbury Plain, 100 miles away, and the rain predicted for later in SW19 is now 92% less likely.</p>
<p>This scenario probably sounds a little far-fetched, and not least the bit about the repeatedly successful home-grown tennis player. However, weather modification occurs more often than most people are aware. For example, as I wrote that first paragraph I genuinely didn’t realise that a Weather Modification Incorporated actually <a href="http://www.weathermodification.com/">already exists</a> in Fargo, North Dakota. They, and other companies like them have sprung up over the past few years promising to manage water for crops, clear fog and even <a href="http://www.oliverstravels.com/blog/guarantee-perfect-wedding-weather-olivers-travels/">protect wedding days</a> from ill-timed hail. </p>
<p>But two questions need further investigation to consider the likelihood of the above scenario at Wimbledon: can we do it (that is, does it work) and should we do it? Neither, it turns out, are particularly easy to answer.</p>
<h2>Changing the weather</h2>
<p>In order to make rain several processes need to occur. First, small particles known as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) are required onto which water can condense. Then these droplets need to grow to a size where they precipitate out of the cloud, finally falling where and when required. </p>
<p>In our hypothetical scenario we would therefore need to be able to either control or at least predict accurately the concentration of CCN, the rate at which droplets form, and the evaporation rates within the clouds. We’d also also need to have some handle on the rate and direction in which rain would fall.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128535/original/image-20160628-7854-cp4o16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Silver iodine dumped into a cloud attracts water, which turns into rain.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Smcnab386 / wiki</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In reality, cloud seeding with AgI – the current default option – only really tackles the first of these processes, forming the condensation nuclei. Even if clouds are seeded, it is still a matter of debate as to whether they actually create much additional rain. While companies <a href="http://www.weathermodification.com/cloud-seeding.php">claim success</a>, some scientists <a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cloud-seeding-china-snow/">are more wary</a>. Although other seeding agents (and methodologies) exist, it is worth noting that, in the case of AgI, the nature of the clouds into which the particles are injected will govern the outcome.</p>
<p>Seeding works best in clouds which have a pre-existing mixture of water droplets and ice, as this type of nucleation <a href="http://glossary.ametsoc.org/wiki/Bergeron-findeisen_process">requires ice-crystals</a> to form. Following the production of CCN we’d then need to be able to predict, through computer modelling, how small droplets will form into rain and eventually fall. </p>
<p>One of the major drawbacks of cloud seeding is a lack of proof that it works: given weather forecasting remains imperfect, how would you know what would have happened without intervention? The second part of the question is arguably even harder to approach. What are the ethics of removing water from one part of the world, even on a small scale, and moving it somewhere else? Is this “messing with nature” or “playing God”? Water is, after all, the most precious commodity on Earth.</p>
<p>Let’s assume for now that it is possible to alter local weather patterns and to prevent or cause rain. This could be used for both good and evil, and the potential for abuse is worth considering. While manipulating the weather as a weapon is now explicitly outlawed by the UN’s <a href="http://www.un-documents.net/enmod.htm">ENMOD treaty</a>, there have been efforts to alter the outcome of conflict <a href="https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1964-68v28/d274">using cloud seeding</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/128539/original/image-20160628-7840-dauwwz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Operation Popeye’: the US used cloud-seeding to extend the monsoon season during the Vietnam war, causing delays on the waterlogged Ho Chi Minh Trail.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/13476480@N07/15747466870/">manhhai</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Deliberate and accidental effects from commercial activity also seem possible. That dreamy, rain-free wedding ordered up by an anxious billionaire could easily ruin a school sports day in a nearby town.</p>
<p>The question of attribution is possibly the most challenging. Without any alternative outcomes to analyse, how can you really know what are the impacts from your actions. Some even say, quite incorrectly, that cloud seeding experiments caused floods, such as those that killed 35 people in the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/aug/30/sillyseason.physicalsciences">English village of Lynmouth</a> in 1952. Expert opinion leans <a href="http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/reports/philip-eden/Lynmouth-Flood-man-made.htm">strongly against</a> that idea being correct. Nonetheless, conspiracy theories persist. If, in our hypothetical Wimbledon scenario, bits of Wiltshire flooded, who would foot the bill?</p>
<p>It’s certainly possible in theory to prevent rain in one place by using cloud seeding to induce it in another, upwind. But there are huge challenges and the jury is still out about whether such efforts really work.</p>
<p>There are some very good causes, such as inducing rainfall in Sub-Saharan Africa during drought, where I would sanction intervention. For something as frivolous as a sporting event I feel differently. Just last weekend I played cricket for four hours in unrelenting drizzle (thanks Skip). While not a massively enjoyable experience it was at least familiar, and is part of the essence of both cricket and tennis. There’s some comfort in that.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61725/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Watson works for the University of Bristol. He receives funding from the UK Research Council, including work to look at climate engineering. </span></em></p>We have the technology to temporarily shift wet weather elsewhere.Matthew Watson, Reader in Natural Hazards, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/533882016-01-24T19:36:42Z2016-01-24T19:36:42ZWhen tennis marathons become too much of a good thing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108928/original/image-20160122-9743-1ccup4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The cluster of marathon men's matches in the opening rounds of this year's Australian Open attests to a broader trend.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Joe Castro</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Extreme match durations are more common today than at any other time in the modern tennis era. This poses a threat to the sport’s standard of excellence.</p>
<p>Ten men’s matches in the first round of this year’s <a href="http://www.ausopen.com/index.html">Australian Open</a> went the distance to five sets. There were two four-set matches that had a tiebreak in every set. All but one of these matches lasted more than three hours. Three lasted more than four-and-a-half hours. </p>
<p>At the Australian Open in 2001, by contrast, no match in the entire tournament – let alone the first round – lasted four-and-a-half hours.</p>
<h2>A broader trend</h2>
<p>The cluster of prolonged matches in the opening rounds of the 2016 Australian Open attests to a <a href="http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/jqas.2014.10.issue-2/jqas-2013-0091/jqas-2013-0091.xml?format=INT">broader trend</a> of increasing time on court at Grand Slams. </p>
<p>Between 2000 and 2012, the total hours of matchplay for men’s singles at the hard court majors (the Australian and US opens) increased by 44 hours.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1006&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1006&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108979/original/image-20160122-447-17g0pj8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1006&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Because the number of scheduled matches has remained fixed at 127 throughout this period, these trends mean that players in 2012 had to play 20 more minutes per match on average than a decade earlier.</p>
<p>From 2000 to 2012, match lengths also rose considerably at Wimbledon, the one Grand Slam played on grass. Total matchplay hit all-time highs of more than 310 hours in 2010 and 2012.</p>
<p>During the same period, only match lengths at Roland Garros – the single clay court Grand Slam and the tournament where each year match lengths have typically been the longest – were largely unchanged.</p>
<h2>Why are matches getting longer?</h2>
<p>Modern tennis is played on three major surfaces – hard, clay and grass courts. The type of surface has a huge influence on the <a href="http://www.itftennis.com/technical/facilities/facilities-guide/surface-descriptions.aspx">pace of the ball</a>: clay results in the slowest ball speeds and grass the fastest. </p>
<p>Today, tennis is a more homogeneous sport than at any time in the recent past. Play on all surfaces looks more like the slow grind that was traditionally associated with clay courts.</p>
<p>The major shift in tennis in the recent era has been <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/06/serve-and-volley-the-classic-tennis-strategy-you-wont-see-at-wimbledon/240706/">the transition</a> from the fast-paced serve-and-volley play of the 1980s and 1990s to baseline play, where rallies are longer and fewer points are played at the net.</p>
<p>No single factor can explain this shift. But new racquet and string technology have been major contributors. </p>
<p>The wide adoption of bigger racquet heads and polyester strings has given elite tennis players the ability to hit with extraordinary power and control from every position on court. This makes net approaches risky.</p>
<h2>What effect is it having?</h2>
<p>An increase in the length of professional tennis matches has implications for every aspect of the sport. Accommodating two additional days of play into the same two-week tournament schedule can be a challenge under normal conditions and a logistical nightmare if weather delays arise.</p>
<p>After several years in which the US Open’s schedule was tested by weather delays, the tournament <a href="http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2012/12/us-open-mens-final-moved-monday-2013/45691/#.VqGWVxh96DU">moved the men’s final</a> from Sunday to Monday. By moving the main event, the tournament risked the loss of millions of dollars in revenue and a major dip in TV viewership.</p>
<p>The duration of matches also affects fan enjoyment of the game. While the most avid tennis fans will always want more tennis, if the sport is going to grow its fan base around the world it has to be concerned about marathon matches becoming a regular occurrence. Tennis could risk losing some of its core supporter base if being a fan becomes an endurance sport.</p>
<p>Of all the consequences of longer match lengths, the most serious are the potential harms to player performance and health. The game should be a challenge at the elite level but not at the risk of a player being unable to play to his or her full potential. </p>
<p>Although an indirect link, the coincidental rise in the rates of retirements at the very Grand Slams that have also had the most significant increases in match duration – specifically the US Open – raises the prospect that increasing match lengths could be harming players’ competitive potential and contributing to increases in injuries.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=802&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108982/original/image-20160122-441-xk3rcd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1008&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s being done?</h2>
<p>Three Grand Slam men’s singles matches in 2012 lasted nearly six hours. This made the John Isner-Nicolas Mahut <a href="http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/news/articles/2015-06-24/the_longest_match_in_history.html">11-hour marathon</a> at Wimbledon in 2010 look less like an outlier and more a sign of things to come.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2W3bB7-adxM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">John Isner defeats Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the fifth set.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At the end of 2012, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the governing body of the men’s world tour, made <a href="http://straightsets.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/12/atp-adopts-rules-changes-to-address-pace-of-play/?_r=0">policy changes</a> to try to curb the trends in match length. The most significant of these was a change in the time violation policy that would encourage greater enforcement of the 25-second limit between one point ending and another starting.</p>
<p>Although the ATP policy had no direct effect on Grand Slam events (these are governed by the International Tennis Federation, which has a 20-second time violation), all of the majors have experienced a dip in match lengths since 2013. This suggests that the ATP policy change has helped create a global downturn in the lengths of men’s matches.</p>
<p>Match lengths are still much longer today than they were ten years ago. Increased adherence to the time violation rule will reduce the downtime of a match but might do little to help players stay in healthy form. In fact, reducing recovery time between points while keeping the intensity of points the same could actually make matters worse.</p>
<p>So, although the sport’s governing bodies have recently undertaken policy interventions to address the problem, it is unknown whether their effects have been cosmetic and more significant actions are still needed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/53388/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephanie Kovalchik is affiliated with Tennis Australia, the governing body of tennis in Australia. </span></em></p>Extreme match durations are more common today than at any other time in the modern tennis era. This poses a threat to the sport’s standard of excellence.Stephanie Kovalchik, Research Fellow, Tennis Australia and Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/533942016-01-20T11:39:24Z2016-01-20T11:39:24ZCan you spot a match fix by looking at the numbers?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108577/original/image-20160119-29777-9rpkp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Aces high.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tennis by Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Match fixing is unthinkable for most sports professionals whose very persons, careers and reputations are built on a single-minded focus on winning. However, allegations over a number of years, across a range of sports, have suggested that for some the ability to lose convincingly gains the greatest income. </p>
<p>First there were the match fixing bans given to some cricketers <a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/654219.html">in the early 2000s</a>, and <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-15160226">again in 2011</a>. Now <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/35319202">there are allegations</a> that officials ignored red flags on as many as 16 tennis players ranked in the top 50 who may have thrown matches – including at Wimbledon – accusations they deny.</p>
<p>Throughout most jurisdictions match fixing is a criminal offence, or at least a very serious professional offence which undermines any value a game, or sport, may have. After all, who wants to play against someone who is trying to lose the game. The problem for both police and the sporting bodies is how compelling the evidence is. </p>
<h2>Losing is part of the game</h2>
<p>Evidence can come from several quarters: confessions and <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/sportvideo/cricketvideo/8865557/Mazhar-Majeed-I-have-been-fixing-cricket-matches-constantly.html">recordings of conversations</a>, as in the 2010-2011 set of cricketing scandals, and suspicious betting patterns around particular matches, as is alleged in the tennis case. Most contentious, however, is evidence from the actual sporting outcomes themselves and whether these can be used to verify an accusation. Is a world-class player losing to another who isn’t considered that good really proof that the former is losing deliberately? </p>
<p>If there was no uncertainty in the outcomes of sporting events then it wouldn’t be much of a game. A certain amount of upset is integral to any sport. Just last year <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/sep/19/south-africa-japan-rugby-world-cup-2015-match-report">South Africa suffered a shock defeat to Japan</a> in the Rugby World Cup, <a href="http://www.mmafighting.com/2015/11/16/9747010/holly-holm-posts-first-statement-since-defeating-ronda-rousey-ufc-mma-ufc193">Holly Holm defeated Ronda Rousey</a> in the Ultimate Fighting Championship 193, and Dustin Brown, ranked 102, <a href="http://www.skysports.com/tennis/wimbledon/news/32498/9901949/who-is-dustin-brown-and-how-did-he-beat-rafa-nadal-at-wimbledon">beat two-time former champion</a> Rafael Nadal in the second round at Wimbledon. Examples further back include the US ice-hockey team beating the Soviet Union’s Red Army in the 1980 Winter Olympics. All were classic events – and there is, of course, no suggestion that any of them were fixed.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8gfD134ED54?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>So, how can we go about using the evidence of unexpected losses of games as evidence that those games were in some way deliberately fixed?</p>
<h2>Crunching the numbers</h2>
<p>This area of statistical evidence has close structural similarities to what could be called “the nurse problem”. This is where a medical professional has been suspected of harming those in their charge, and the only evidence is a series of adverse outcomes in the patients. This may seem more serious than match fixing but as a problem it has exactly the same features, and exactly the same reasons as to why as yet we have no fully satisfactory solution to it.</p>
<p>It isn’t possible to directly calculate probabilities for hypotheses or propositions. However, many think that it is possible, which can muddle understanding. For instance, we cannot calculate the probability that a nurse has harmed a patient, or, that a tennis player has deliberately lost a game. What we can do is calculate the probability of seeing a given outcome were it true that the loss of the match was entirely accidental – and that is what statistics are quite good at.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108582/original/image-20160119-29777-1k1w54k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">When calculating probabilities isn’t that simple.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-252327457/stock-photo-probability-exam-study-set-hand-writing-notes-glasses-pencil-and-calculator.html?src=AXrGDjfDh4_Ejsi5ow0qeA-1-20">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We can look at the probabilities concerning two competing propositions: that a match or game was deliberately lost; and that it was lost entirely by accident. We then consider the ratio of the two probabilities calculated under the two propositions. This ratio, sometimes termed a likelihood ratio, is a number which represents the force of the evidence to influence us one way or another. </p>
<p>As an example: one tennis player might, when playing another specific tennis player, have played four matches, only winning one of these, and we are sure none of those matches was fixed. Then, let us say that our more able tennis player goes on to lose a match against the lesser player. Were it true that the loss was purely involuntary, then an estimate of the probability of that particular outcome <em>might</em> be one in four.</p>
<p>If the better of the two players is very good, and were it considered inevitable that they would lose the match if they tried to do so, then the probability of a lost match given they were trying to lose might be one. In this case the value of the evidence that the match has been unexpectedly lost might be one, divided by one in four; which is four. This means that a lost match is four times more likely were match fixing going on, than if no match fixing is taking place. This, by itself, is not a very compelling figure in favour of match fixing.</p>
<p>The real problem here is the value of the probability of seeing a lost match were the better player actually trying to lose. In the example above we assumed a value of one, but there is no justification – neither theoretical or historical – for this value. This is the drawback with this sort of evidential problem, either in the context of sporting events or with medical and caring professions. </p>
<p>There can usually be an appeal to past data for an estimate of the probability of the unexpected adverse outcome were it true that no wrongdoing had taken place. In tennis most players have played most other players many times, and in a medical context hospitals keep meticulous records of serious incidents. Both these sources can provide perfectly legitimate estimates for probabilities. There is however no such data on which to base estimates for the probabilities of an adverse outcome in a hospital were any of the medical staff actually trying to harm the patients. It is an experiment which cannot be run. One cannot simply let a known murderer loose among the high dependency units to see how many patients are harmed. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108585/original/image-20160119-29783-135xymi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Follow the betting …</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-299107145/stock-photo-businessman-using-smartphone-against-gambling-app-screen.html?src=cdIe96Wn-FLTG_PBvpvHvw-1-0">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the 2010 Pakistan cricket case, which involved spot betting on step-over no-balls we can make some estimates as some players later confessed to deliberately stepping over the crease, and as their entire playing history is known, and they weren’t trying to fix games for most of it, decent estimates of the probabilities can be made. Mostly though, there is very little data for deliberately thrown games.</p>
<p>It is disappointing that statisticians have no foolproof way of evaluating these two disparate sounding, but structurally similar types of evidence. As statisticians we must continue to work on nurse and carer problems, but if people are concerned that their sports and games are being corrupted by deliberate fixing, then lessening the reliance upon betting, or somehow changing the nature of betting, may offer some way forward as all match fixing appears related to it and the vast sums of money linked to it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/53394/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Lucy is a Fellow of the RSS, and member of the Forensic Science Society</span></em></p>You might think statisticians could work out if a player has been cheating – it’s not that simple.David Lucy, Lecturer in Statistics, Lancaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/445272015-07-10T11:30:02Z2015-07-10T11:30:02ZIs Serena Williams the greatest female tennis player of all time?<p>Serena Williams has added to her grand slam singles tally at Wimbledon. Claiming the Venus Rosewater Dish for the sixth time on the famous centre court is her 21st major singles title and arguably makes her the greatest female player of all time.</p>
<p>Comparing great champions from different eras is fraught with problems but still a conversation people love to have. The quality and depth of the competition, pressures and distractions off the court, advances in equipment and training techniques are among a long list of contributing factors that shape a player’s career. </p>
<p>So, who is the greatest of all time? When the debate about “the best” occurs, four names are commonly discussed; Margaret Court, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf and Williams.</p>
<h2>Margaret Court</h2>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=705&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=885&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=885&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/88054/original/image-20150710-17456-1xe7m57.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=885&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Margaret Court in action.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Court_career_statistics#/media/File:Margaret_Court_July_1970a.jpg">Bert Verhoeff</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Margaret Court’s <a href="http://www.tennis.com.au/player-profiles/margaret-smith-court">career stats</a> are unrivalled. Court dominated women’s tennis in the 1960s, boasting the highest-ever percentage career wins at 91.7%, winning 24 grand slam singles titles and 38 grand slam doubles titles. Court won most of her grand slam titles before the open era and at a time when not all of the best players competed at the Australian Open where she won 11 titles. It is frequently argued that, during her reign at the top, the competition did not have the depth or quality of the open era. </p>
<h2>Martina Navratilova</h2>
<p>Martina Navratilova’s professional career spanned 34 years, she amassed <a href="http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/scores/draws/archive/players/7118c1f6-9078-4d07-affb-a79b70776caf/index.html">59 grand slam titles</a> including a record nine Wimbledon singles titles. She won an unprecedented 1,177 singles matches, a winning percentage of 86.8%. Martina has won more singles titles than any other player of the open era an amazing 167 titles. </p>
<p>Her great rivalry with <a href="http://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/2188">Chris Evert</a> spanned most the of 70s and 80s with Navratilova coming out on top by 43 wins to 37. The contrast in their game styles, their different on-court demeanours and the fact that they played each other an incredible 80 times resulted in one of the greatest sporting rivalries of all time. </p>
<h2>Steffi Graf</h2>
<p>Steffi Graf won an incredible <a href="http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/gr/steffi-graf-1.html">22 grand slam singles titles</a> in the open era. In 1988 she became the only player in history to win a calendar “<a href="http://www.today-in-history.de/index.php?what=thmanu&manu_id=1575&tag=10&monat=9&year=2011&dayisset=1&lang=en">golden slam</a>” winning all four grand slam events and the Seoul Olympic gold. Graf holds the record for the total number of weeks at number one in the world of any player, male or female with an unprecedented 377 weeks – 187 weeks were consecutive, another record. </p>
<p>Graf’s game style and athleticism resulted in an unrivalled versatility across all playing surfaces, winning each of the four majors at least four times. Graf is widely considered the <a href="http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml">greatest tennis player of all time</a> and with those stats it is difficult to argue against it. </p>
<p>The only question mark that can be raised about Graf’s record-breaking career was the impact of <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/30/newsid_2499000/2499161.stm">Monica Seles’ horrific stabbing</a> that kept her out of the sport for two years. Seles had won eight of the 11 grand slam singles she had played before that day and had been world number one between 1991 and 1993. Graf had only won 11 of her major titles before the attack and went on to win six of the next ten slams that Seles missed while recovering from her injuries. Some may argue that as a result, a rivalry to match Evert-Navratilova was stolen from the game – and Graf went on to dominate women’s tennis. </p>
<h2>Serena Williams</h2>
<p>Serena Williams has taken women’s tennis to the next level. Like the greats that have come before her, she has raised the bar with the athleticism and power she brings to the game, her serve is arguably the greatest weapon the women’s game has seen. Her career so far has seen her win <a href="http://espn.go.com/tennis/player/_/id/394/serena-williams">38 grand slam titles</a>, top the world rankings for a total of 247 weeks and win a career golden slam. </p>
<p>Williams is continuing to dominate in her mid 30s and shows no signs of slowing down. In the open era her 21 grand slam singles titles is only surpassed by Graf, however, Serena’s career singles titles tally at 95 is considerably short of Navratilova’s 177 and Graf’s 107. </p>
<p>Although she still has a way to go to match some the other great player’s stats, her dominance over her current rivals is unarguable. Challengers such as Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Kim Clijsters, Martina Hingis and her own sister Venus Williams have all been well beaten over her career. </p>
<p>Probably Serena Williams’ main rival, <a href="https://matchstat.com/tennis/player/Justine%20Henin-Hardenne">Justine Henin</a>, retired from the game in 2008 still ranked as world number one. After two years Justine returned to the game before her second retirement due to an elbow injury in 2011, leaving a 4-3 career winning record against Williams in grand slam events. Since Henin’s retirement, no other female player has looked to truly challenge Serena’s reign and maybe a great rivalry will be the only thing missing from her career. </p>
<h2>The road to greatness</h2>
<p>To compare these greats is problematic. It is not Margaret Court’s fault not all her competitors travelled to the Australian Open, it does not seem right to diminish Graf’s records due to Monica Seles’ forced absence from the game or to penalise Serena for a lack of a true rival – a player can only beat who is in front of them to make their mark in history.</p>
<p>Can Serena continue to dominate and surpass all records? Even if she does not, can she be considered the best? It is likely we will not have to debate these issues for much longer, if she stays healthy, is clever with her scheduling and continues to be hungry for success there will be no stopping her, and the question of who is the greatest will be answered emphatically.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/44527/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Williams is on track to eclipse Court, Navratilova and Graf … but she’s not there yet.Ellen Jones, Lecturer in Performance Sport (Tennis), Performance Director of Tennis, Cardiff Metropolitan UniversityRobert Meyers, Senior Lecturer in Strength and Conditioning, Cardiff Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/444092015-07-08T00:15:56Z2015-07-08T00:15:56ZDouble fault: Nick Kyrgios, Dawn Fraser and reputations under the spotlight<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87691/original/image-20150708-31569-eewlsw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Gerry Penny</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>At Wimbledon 2015 there have been widely published, powerful criticisms about Nick Kyrgios’ conduct, both on court and in press conferences. Much of that advice is well intended, with the hope that a behaviourally erratic 20-year-old will find cause to modify some of his excesses, learning how to be impressive with both racquet and vocal chords. Yet from a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1441352313000296">personal branding perspective</a>, it seems that Kyrgios has chosen – and been encouraged – to cultivate a reputation for indignation and remonstration.</p>
<p>For some observers this is welcome. Tennis legend John McEnroe, no stranger to controversy when he was playing, <a href="http://creativity-online.com/work/beats-by-dr-dre-nick-kyrgios/42538">suggested</a> to a BBC audience that Kyrgios represented a welcome return to “characters” for the tennis world.</p>
<p>Yet others, even though complimentary about Kyrgios’ athleticism and shot-making, have lamented what might be politely described as episodes of poor character amid the razzle dazzle. Wimbledon, the most historic of the majors, is where tennis players are afforded global profile. How athletes deal with that spotlight is crucial to their <a href="http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/55743/1/__lse.ac.uk_storage_LIBRARY_Secondary_libfile_shared_repository_Content_Driessens,%20O_Driessens_Celebrity_%20Capital_%20Redefining_2013_Driessens_Celebrity_%20Capital_%20Redefining_2013.pdf">reputational cachet</a>, both as athletes and celebrities.</p>
<p>In the lead-up to Wimbledon 2015, Kyrgios signed a lucrative endorsement deal with <a href="http://au.beatsbydre.com/home">Dr Dre</a>, a well-known manufacturer of the “Beats” range of advanced headphones, earphones and mobile speakers. This company, owned by Apple Corporation, targets a youth market that consumes downloadable or streamed music. Dr Dre had previously used <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qraNrqA2pw">LeBron James</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UH8a6w8GQrw">Serena Williams</a> to showcase its products; from this perspective outstanding physical activity is “inspired” by emotionally charged music.</p>
<p>Kyrgios, though hardly a tried and true sport champion like James and Williams, epitomises what Dr Dre is looking for in a product champion – excitement, flamboyance, individualism and excellence. In Kyrgios’ case, there is the added spice of non-conformity: the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/wimbledon/wimbledon-2015-nick-kyrgios-is-a-tennis-player-with-a-basketballers-attitude-20150630-gi13gh.html">swagger of an NBA player</a>, a <a href="http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/meet-the-hairdresser-behind-nick-kyrgios-daring-hairdo/story-fni0fit3-1227197558016">“hip” haircut and earrings</a>, and a love of <a href="http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/tennis/young-aussie-tennis-star-nick-kyrgios-makes-fashion-splash-i-saw-black-tie-and-instantly-i-thought-purple-suit/story-fnii0pkt-1227134147363">purple suits</a>.</p>
<p>There has been widespread commentary about Kyrgios’ often confrontational on-court conduct at Wimbledon 2015. It is almost as if he is acting out the Dr Dre advertisement in which he features – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rMrkyMn-sY">“Play Your Own Rules”</a> – summarised thus:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The rules of tennis tell you how should act, how you should play, how you should dress and overall, how you should be. What they don’t tell you is, how to play at your best. For that, you have to “Play Your Own Rules”.</p>
<p>Powerbeats2 Wireless gives Nick Kyrgios the freedom to train as hard as he can and the Beats Solo2 allows him to focus his mind before each match. Hardcore training and maximum focus are needed to perform at his highest level.</p>
</blockquote>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-rMrkyMn-sY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p>It is somewhat surprising, though, that the Dr Dre campaign, in which Kyrgios embodies someone who flouts the rules, does not appear to have attracted much in the way of critical scrutiny. The conventional attributes of reputable conduct in lawn tennis are, it seems, rather old-fashioned and irrelevant elements of the game that the “Beats” video suggests Kyrgios “should” play. </p>
<p>While it must be admitted that this commercial is a dramatic representation, it is uncanny that much of it came to resemble how Kyrgios acted at Wimbledon 2015. Life imitated art.</p>
<p>The Kyrgios saga has since taken a twist, with the young man and his family bearing the brunt of an outburst from a 20th-century Australian sporting icon, swimmer Dawn Fraser. Interviewed on a breakfast television show, Fraser – who was understandably incensed at some of Kyrgios’ conduct at Wimbledon – <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/from-olympic-bans-to-one-nation-dawn-fraser-no-stranger-to-controversy-20150707-gi6sgw.html">argued</a> that he “should be setting a better example for the younger generation” of Australians. </p>
<p>Fair call, many would say. But she followed this by asserting that if Kyrgios – and his troubled compatriot <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/wimbledon-2015-bernard-tomic-unleashes-extraordinary-attack-on-pat-rafter-and-tennis-australia-20150704-gi50ee">Bernard Tomic</a> – did not appreciate what conduct was required to represent Australia, they should “go back to where their fathers or parents came from” for:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… we don’t need them here in this country if they act like that.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Kyrgios’ father was born in Greece; his mother in Malaysia. Tomic’s father is from Croatia; his mother from Bosnia.</p>
<p>Fraser was roundly criticised for these comments. Kyrgios slammed her as <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tennis/nick-kyrgios-calls-dawn-fraser-a-blatant-racist-after-she-tells-australian-wimbledon-stars-to-go-back-where-their-parents-came-from-10370638.html">“blatantly racist”</a>, while his mother deemed Fraser’s comments – with obvious irony – as <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/07/07/fraser-apologises-racist-comments">“un-Australian”</a>. </p>
<p>Fraser’s attack has unwittingly shifted the spotlight from Kyrgios’s behaviour to her own. Facing a public backlash, she initially <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/wimbledon-2015-dawn-fraser-defends-comments-on-nick-kyrgios-as-not-racist-20150707-gi6pi6.html">stonewalled</a>. Later, she delivered an “unreserved apology”, explaining – with curious logic – that her remarks were made <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/sport/fraser-apologises-unreservedly-for-kyrios-comments-20150707-gi70up.html">“on a purely sporting level”</a> and:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… not meant as an attack on Nick’s ethnicity. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>At this point, Fraser <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/07/07/fraser-apologises-racist-comments">acknowledged</a> the contribution to Australian sport “of individuals from a variety of different countries of origin”. </p>
<p>It might be construed that Fraser, in an off-guard moment, had simply lost perspective. She is a passionate supporter of Australians in sport, and zealous about their performances. Ironically, she is no stranger to controversy as an athlete – infamously being suspended after allegedly stealing a flag at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. </p>
<p>However, to suggest that Fraser’s comments were spur of the moment or taken out of context would be naïve. She has been an avid supporter of Pauline Hanson and the anti-immigration One Nation party, and once <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/from-olympic-bans-to-one-nation-dawn-fraser-no-stranger-to-controversy-20150707-gi6sgw.html">told the ABC</a> that she was:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… sick and tired of the immigrants that are coming into my country. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Now, it seems, one solution is to send migrants back to where they came from. Unless they are well behaved, like Fraser.</p>
<p>Kyrgios has been evaluated as <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/wimbledon-2015-nick-kyrgios-is-the-most-marketable-athlete-in-australia-20150628-ghz8tx.html">“the most marketable athlete in Australia”</a>. His reputation has been forged, at least in part, by bucking convention and being highly passionate. These attributes are sometimes used to deflect criticisms that aspects of his behaviour are disagreeable and regrettable. </p>
<p>In her own way, Fraser also bucked convention as an athlete, and she is highly passionate about Australian performances in sport. To some people, Fraser has the best of intentions, even if – as she <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/07/07/fraser-apologises-racist-comments">put it</a> herself – her message is not “delivered as articulately as it could have been”. </p>
<p>For both Kyrgios and Fraser, passion is a strength and a weakness, but no excuse for repeated indiscretions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/44409/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
At Wimbledon 2015 there have been widely published, powerful criticisms about Nick Kyrgios’ conduct, both on court and in press conferences. Much of that advice is well intended, with the hope that a behaviourally…Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.