Rafael Nadal’s early departure, added to the absences of Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka et al, shows just how stiff the price for qualifying is – but it means so muchWhen Rafael Nadal signed off early from the ATP World Tour Finals this week with a hearty: “Thank you, and merry Christmas everyone,” it was tempting to shout out after the Spaniard as he limped home to the warmth and comfort of the Spanish sunshine: “And thanks for coming.”It was the sixth time in 14 qualifications for this event that Nadal’s body has given up on him – the previous five of those before a ball was hit – and few players are more committed to the cause than...
Few expect revolution as grand slam committees meet in London, but world No2 accepts his sport must start considering theories of evolution if it is to survive beyond modern eraTennis has been drifting inexorably towards a crossroads for at least five years, and rarely has that been more clearly underlined than in events 700 miles apart this weekend. In Milan, the conclusion of the inaugural Next Gen tournament, packed with innovations such as the shot clock and shortened points, celebrated the arrival of the best of the young prospects in the game, while in London those left standing among the established elite dragged their tired bones to the white line for their final showdown of the season.There is a decent...
The inaugural Next Gen ATP finals will showcase the talents of Andrey Rublev and his like but will not paint a definitive picture of the future of men’s tennisWhen Andy Murray threw the US Open into mild disarray by pulling out injured two days before the start of the tournament, the hype surrounding Alex Zverez inevitably went up a notch. Much as the resurgence of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal had captured the imagination, challengers to their retro dominance looked alarmingly thin on the ground after Murray joined Novak Djokovic, Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic and Stan Wawrinka on the list of absentees. Men’s tennis needed a jolt from a tyro like Zverev.It felt as if the exciting young German’s time...
Simona Halep, Maria Sharapova and others seem set to ensure when the winner of 23 grand slams rejoins the WTA Tour it will be anything but dullWhen Serena Williams returns to tennis as expected in the new year, with a baby daughter, Alexis, in her entourage and a spring in her 36-year-old step, the remarkable American will find the game in a state of pleasing but predictable flux.There is still plenty to play for, not least the prospect of her surpassing Margaret Court as the most decorated player in the history of her sport – men’s or women’s, as Andy Murray might remind us – and, if Melbourne comes too soon for Williams to pull alongside the Australian’s tally of...
Maria Sharapova is back and her drug ban is receding into memory in a sport where the anti-doping procedure barely scratches the surface of a problem that is unlikely to be non-existentIn tennis, cleanliness is next to wealthiness. Announcing record levels of sponsorship deals back in 2015, the ATP chairman Chris Kermode explained: “People see [tennis] as a clean sport, it’s a great product with great athletes and I think tennis is in the best place it’s ever been.”Why do people see tennis as a clean sport? The simple answer is that very few players ever test positive for banned substances. Except in faintly glamorous ways, like when Richard Gasquet ingested cocaine from kissing a lady all night in a...