Wimbledon – Should we restrict the number of times any one player can win the Championship ?

 For many of us at this time of the summer our thoughts turn to tennis….

The trigger for this is of course the annual spectacle of Wimbledon, renowned the world over as one of the premier tournament venues for World Class tennis. 

I suspect I may not be alone, however, in feeling that this 2-week ‘tennis-fest’ is becoming a little less interesting each year, with the same top players winning year after year, particularly in the singles tournaments.

This isn’t a new phenomenon, of course - Djokovich and Nadal have monopolised the limelight for some years now in the mens’ tournament and the Williams sisters have managed between them to engineer a virtual 'closed shop' in the womens’ version for over a decade. Inevitably their collective advancing ages and accumulated bodily wear and tear will eventually put a stop to their monopolies, but this could take a few years yet.

Why is this a concern ? As for any sport, ‘new blood’ is key to its advancement, and talented would-be champions must invest vast amounts of time, and considerable cash, if they are to stand any chance of making it to the big-time. Although, fortunately, we do still see plenty of young hopefuls taking part in the early rounds of Wimbledon, few of them make it beyond that point, since the later rounds are ‘clogged up’ by a small number of top players. It is becoming more and more expensive and difficult to break into top-flight tennis as a result.

Tournaments in top-flight sport are by their nature competitive, and of course there’s nothing wrong with that. They provide excellent entertainment for those interested in high quality competitive sport, and generate plenty of cash for the winners….and even more for the broadcasters and sponsors (therein lies part of the problem as we will discuss later.) 

The current rules however do allow top players to ‘hog’ the top spots year after year, and I think it would be fairer to up-and-coming players to reverse this trend by restricting the number of times any individual player can win the Championship. A limit of 3 wins in total would seem reasonable, and similar rules to those governing the US presidency, which restricts any one individual to 2 consecutive terms, could also be applied.

The tennis governing bodies and the sponsors alike would probably rail against any such restriction on grounds that it would be likely deter top flight stars from entering. 

Would it really deter them from competing, though ? – I would argue probably not, given the kudos associated with Wimbledon and the likelihood that any 1- or 2-time Championship winner will already have plenty of sponsorship deals in place likely to benefit from another appearance. The real cause of sponsor objections would be that the sport needs the clashes between championship-grade stars that inevitably push up broadcast ratings which in turn provide more advertising revenue and more lucrative sponsorship deals. Restricting access to the 'stars' would mean the loss of these contests and the financial support to tournaments that they generate. Big money professionalism triumphs again, despite the fact that Wimbledon was always billed as an amateur event....

A limit on ‘top-spot hogging’ would allow younger players a better chance of making it big, and reduce the disincentive for them to invest time, effort and resources in the long road to the top. Young hopefuls would still have the prospect of the financial and personal rewards available to single or even multiple Championship winners if they made it to the top. 

For those actually making it to the top spot, it would also reduce the chances of physical and mental ‘burnout’ of the sort we are seeing in many of the current low-seeded perennials, and allow the top players to focus on planning the transition to the ‘rest of their lives’ much earlier. This would allow them to spend more time passing on the benefits of their talents and experience to younger players, assuming they wanted to continue their involvement in the game.

The only thing that would be lost is the annual competition for the record number of Championship wins ‘notched up’ by an individual – I would submit this is no great price to pay for opening up the top flight of the tournament to newcomers. Does it really matter to anyone (apart from the players themselves and their backers) whether Djokovich managed to equal or beat Nadal’s record of 20+ Grand Slam wins this year…..?

Better to limit the number of possible wins to 3, and avoid the same players going on and on until the ravages of old age and a worn-out musculo-skeletal system catches up with them and results in a painful enforced exit from the ratings….and, unfortunately for some, a lifelong physical disability into the bargain.

Viv

Version Date: 23.7.22

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Solar Panels: Are They Right For Me ?

I first published the text of this post on my website. As  a consumer interested in installing solar panels in UK,  I wanted to see what detailed advice was available on how to go about it, but didn't really find anything suitable. I decided to share my experience, as far as it went, in the hope that it would make life a bit easier for anyone else in the same boat.   There is plenty of advice out there on the web, but it seems to be mostly from installers, who will naturally want to extol the benefits of their product, and won't necessarily want to highlight the pitfalls. I've tried to do just that by taking the reader through what is likely to happen if you embark on a quest for solar panels yourself.  I hope it's useful in helping you answer the question in the title...... --------------------------------   Solar Panels: Are They Right For Me ? Despite the relatively slow uptake of domestic micro-generation technology over the past decade, m any of us are now looking
Read more

Labour Declares War On Pensioners by Abolishing Universal Winter Fuel Payments – What's Next ?

  Those of us who were suspicious of Labour’s motives before the election will not have been surprised at Rachel Reeve’s first salvo in Labour’s ‘war on pensioners’ in August. The only thing that was a little unexpected was the belligerence of her delivery…and the readiness with which she was prepared to ‘let the cat out of the bag’ this early in her tenure. The pronounced ‘gasp’ from all sides of the Commons when she announced the move suggested that even her own colleagues were a tad surprised. Subsequent analysis has shown very little evidence of contrition on her part, although Starmer's 'happy band' of new MPs are getting it in the neck via their mailboxes. It was a virtual certainty that benefits would come under attack following the Tories election defeat. Labour, having successfully hemmed themselves in by their manifesto promise of no increases in NI, VAT or income tax rates, and with inflation-busting increases in public sector pay already agreed, with many mo
Read more

Pneumonia in Young Children: Is the Chinese epidemic spreading ?

  The short answer to this question is…yes, it already has. First, some background…. World Health Organization (WHO) has been monitoring data from Chinese surveillance systems that have been showing an increase in respiratory illness in children in northern China this autumn. In mid-November, China’s National Health Commission reported a nationwide increase in the incidence of respiratory diseases, predominantly affecting children. They attributed this seasonal increase primarily to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and known circulating pathogens such as influenza,  Mycoplasma pneumoniae , respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Also relevant was the continued prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in the Chinese population. Both  Mycoplasma pneumonia  and RSV are known to affect children more than adults. To follow up their report, WHO made an official request to China to provide additional epidemiologic and clinical information, as well as laboratory results from the reported cases and data
Read more