Chapter 119 : International Women's Tennis Tournament

I enter the concrete colosseum with my daughter Christine.       

We are to watch two women players from Europe ranked amongst the best players in the world play a singles match.

We know nothing about either player and don’t instinctively support either. They both are very similar. Physically fit and strong. Tall, muscular and sun tanned. Hair unfashionable and under control. Hair band or sun visor. They move athletically. Confident in their bodies.  They are much better at playing tennis than most of us watching. I enjoy watching these players because they are physically aware, strong, powerful and skillful. They show us what we are capable of.

One serves to begin the match and immediately differences emerge. One is unreliable with hard, powerful shots and a weak backhand.  The other one is more consistent. Hitting not as powerfully but her serve and ground shots are more reliable.

I say to Christine, “With a weak backhand you can still win. You try and avoid your weaknesses and take advantage of the things you are good at.  It’s like life.”

Christine then states the obvious, “Her back hand may be her weakness but it’s much better than yours.”

Along with their techniques their personalities begin to surface. The one with the unreliable technique also tends to have a more erratic personality. Her frustration begins to manifest itself to us and more importantly to her opponent.

I say to Christine, “One player is having trouble concentrating. When I can’t concentrate I think of one point at a time. I think next point I must get the ball back into the court.”Christine says, “Better tell her not to throw the racquet the way you do. Tell her it doesn’t help.”

I then say, “I would agree. It doesn’t help you win.”

Christine then says, “I’m confused now. Are you telling me what to do or what you do?”

We then watch the tennis without speaking. The ball bounces from end to end.  The thump thump sound coming from a tennis match is a beautiful, relaxing noise. No sport ever sounded so good.

We wander to the outside courts. I want to get close enough to smell, feel and hear the players. I want to sense their humanity.  There are no matches on outside courts so we go back to the center court and a new match.

Another two players new to us. We watch them hit up.

Who will win will depend on so many factors.

Where did they sleep last night? Was there bed comfortable and the room quiet? What happened before retiring? Did they eat or drink anything which will affect them today?

Where is their home town? Is it hot, dry and dusty or cold, wet and prone to snow?

Who are their coaches? Do the coaches have many other players in their squad? What is the relationship between coach and player like?

What is their relationship with family and friends like? Have they spoken on the phone to anybody immediately prior to the match? What did they say on the phone?

What color socks are they wearing? The tennis world is full of people with lucky socks or lucky charms.

What is their tennis experience?  How long have they been playing? Who have they played against? What type of competition have they had? What is their ranking?

You can do everything right yourself but the result also goes depends on your opponent. You can play to your potential. Achieve perfection and still lose if your opponent is a better tennis player.

I start talking to Christine about the opposing techniques and how they match up against each other and who I think will win and Christine raises her eyebrows and plays with her phone.

Christine then hands me her phone and shows me a message which says, “You are not at home watching TV. You are surrounded by people who don’t want to listen to your comments.”

I think I am surrounded by people who feel the same as me about tennis. I love tennis because it’s more than just a game. It’s a battle between two people. With different personalities, cardiovascular fitness, techniques, emotional status and knowledge.

And it’s a game you can both watch and play.