Tennis Forever

[JamesDap]

Well, that's what people thought when Sampras was on the decline. I know people who say with not a little pride that they stopped watching tennis after Sampras hung up his boots. It was even worse, popularity wise, given Agassi's tendency to blow hot and blow cold. ATP was virtually a one horse race. At least Nadal and Djoko have their share of rabid fanboys, who, annoying though they can be (well, just like rabid Fed fanboys), point to more depth in the game's popularity. The fact that Fed still wins the polls may be down to the fact that the US is completely sold on him. Given their liking for first strike tennis, maybe they find the Djoko-Nadal, Djoko-Murray matches rather reminiscent of the Lendl-Wilander epics...in other words, not their cuppa.

I am more concerned about the collective vacuum the Big Four will leave behind. They are all getting on gradually. In a couple of years, Djoko and Murray will also be past their best. All four have been just great athletes AND so technically accomplished. It's going to be very difficult to find a fresh lot to replace them. And in comparing the new players to the Big Four, people are going to feel disappointed even if the new ones play very well. Unlike how things have panned out in WTA, the Big Four actually used the power of modern equipment to take the baseline game to unthinkable heights and push tennis to the absolute limits. The post-Big Four phase is going to be very much like how WTA is now or, worse, how WTA will be after Serena retires.