Any tennis rule to stop screamers as Sharapova and Azarenka?

[pepe01]

I dont want to sound in bad way but....today, was anoying to hear that.......

[TennisNinja]

I turned the TV off. While they're both nice to look at, that god awful shrieking was shocking inducing.

[Evan77]

I hate it, but the WTA won't do anything about it. it's such a huge turn off. I thought Sharapova was bad but Azarenaka is 10 times worse. Azarenka seems to be a really nice girl when I watch her interviews but I simply can't stand watching her matches.

My theory is that everything started with Seles. I don't know why she did it, but because she was so successful other trainers (especially Russians) adopted that technique.

So I firmly believe that players like Sharapova and Azarenka were trained to scream after every point and there is nothing they can do about it.

I love Seles, and at that time it didn't bother me too much because she was the only one doing it. Nowadays, it's a joke.

I didn't think that Seles was doing it on purpose. I still remember her match at Wimledon against Graf when she actually wasn't allowed to scream (Graf complained) and Seles lost that match.

[Vcore89]

Rafa and Nole are quite noisy too! Just not shrieking.

[BreakPoint]

Originally Posted by Evan77

I hate it, but the WTA won't do anything about it. it's such a huge turn off. I thought Sharapova was bad but Azarenaka is 10 times worse. Azarenka seems to be a really nice girl when I watch her interviews but I simply can't stand watching her matches.

My theory is that everything started with Seles. I don't know why she did it, but because she was so successful other trainers (especially Russians) adopted that technique.

So I firmly believe that players like Sharapova and Azarenka were trained to scream after every point and there is nothing they can do about it.

I love Seles, and at that time it didn't bother me too much because she was the only one doing it. Nowadays, it's a joke.

I didn't think that Seles was doing it on purpose. I still remember her match at Wimledon against Graf when she actually wasn't allowed to scream (Graf complained if I remember correctly) and she lost that match.

Not completely true because Sharapova doesn't scream at all when she hits the ball in practice, so we know she can keep quiet if she wanted to. Obviously, she doesn't want to during matches.

[Evan77]

Originally Posted by Vcore89

Rafa and Nole are quite noisy too! Just not shrieking.

no, I assume you are j/k. Guys do it from time to time when they get tired after long points etc. They grunt a bit but it's natural.

Ferrer is pretty bad with his 'heeeeeeeee' thing. most of the guys are OK tho.

[USOpenfan]

It just annoys me so much this is my second post on this forum about it tonight. I watched part of this match and had my soundbar turned up to get the full effect of the massive stadium. Then I heard..."ahhhhh" and nearly jumped off the couch. I reallly wish something could be done about this as although it might only be a small percentage of us fans being turned off by it, it might grow into a larger problem for a larger group of fans if nothing is done about it.

[Evan77]

Originally Posted by BreakPoint

Not completely true because Sharapova doesn't scream at all when she hits the ball in practice, so we know she can keep quiet if she wanted to. Obviously, she doesn't want to during matches.

I know, but she doesn't get pressured during the warm up. when they (Masha, Azarenka etc.) start a competitive match they start behaving like cats. the thing is that the WTA simply never addressed this issue.

[boramiNYC]

Azarenka is borderline hindrance. it lasts way past the ball crossing the net

[Tennis_Hands]

Originally Posted by boramiNYC

Azarenka is borderline hindrance. it lasts way past the ball crossing the net

And Sharapova's is not?

Especially knowing, that she doesn't make a sound during warm up?

Actually, a case can be made, that Azarenka's is part of her natural exhaling (since she makes the same sound but slightly quieter during warmup).

[Fedex]

Originally Posted by pepe01

I dont want to sound in bad way but....today, was anoying to hear that.......

You don't sound bad.
You are right. The umpires should clamp down.

[Defcon]

It doesn't matter what we say on forums, people. Unless the press gets some balls and starts asking them about the godawful shrieking in every single press conference, non stop, and keep on harassing them, its not going to change.

Same goes for things like abusing the time limit. Press (what passes for journalists today) are too afraid to ask a single proper question - its all 'what did you feel when you were winning', 'what do you think about the next guy' kind of nonsense.

Make it headline news, confront them, give them bad PR, and I guarantee it stops the next day.

[Sentinel]

I believe the ATC at La Guardia has complained that the noise levels of Aza and Sharapova are disturbing their planes from taking off and landing. Pilots are having a hard time and are threatening a boycott of this airport.

[SystemicAnomaly]

Originally Posted by BreakPoint

Not completely true because Sharapova doesn't scream at all when she hits the ball in practice, so we know she can keep quiet if she wanted to. Obviously, she doesn't want to during matches.

This is a bit naive. Sharapova (and Azarenka) cannot easily just turn it off without adversely affecting their own performance. It has been an integral part of their game for way too long -- since their developmental junior days. They could possibly unlearn the habit but it would probably take them quite a few months, if ever, to suppress it. During that time their game would undoubtedly suffer quite a bit. Maria and quite a few other players usually only do it when they have been on the court for a while and/or when are being challenged. Maria is not feeling much pressure at all when practicing and is usually not exerting herself as much as she does when playing an actual match.

I recall watching her at Stanford playing, I believe, in the 2nd round (at the BOW Classic) against a player who was decent but was probably not going to prevail over Maria. Sharapova was relatively quiet for much of the first set. However, as the match wore on, she was breathing harder and started to become more vocal. My the middle of the 2nd set, she was displaying her high-decibel screech almost every time she made contact with the ball.

At another time at Bank of the West, Michelle Larcher de Brito and 3 other WTA players started warming up on the back courts at the Stanford stadium. They hardly made any noise at all when they started warming up. However, within 20-30 minutes, a 4 players became quite loud as they exerted themselves.

Viktoria Azarenka, OTOH, appears to be vocal quite early in her practice sessions. With her, as with some other players, it is obviously part of the rhythm of their strokes. With Viktoria, you hear a 2-part sound. Precisely as the incoming ball bounces, you hear a fairly low-decibel sound (possibly on a inhale). As she makes contact with the ball, you experience a much louder sound/shriek. With many other players, such as Sharapova, it is still a timing thing but you only hear a sound as they forcibly exhale during the contact phase of their stroke.

During Wimbledon 92, a couple of players complained several times about Monica Seles' high-decibel grunting. One of these players was Martina Navritilova. Martina viewed it as a from of cheating as she was unable to hear the sound of the ball coming off of Monica's racquet. Monica forced herself to keep it down for a while in her SF match against Martina every time she was admonished by chair. However, the "quiet" was short-lived. after she prevailed over Martina, she was asked to suppress her grunting for her final against Seffi Graf. The result was unmistakable -- Monica was unable to play without the grunting as she lost in a very lopsided match to Seffi, 6-1, 6-2. Monica vowed that she would never suppress her grunting again in match play.

We would undoubtedly see the same sort of results from Viktoria, Maria, Michelle, Serena and others is they has to suddenly "turn if off". Louise Deeley, a sports psychologist at Roehampton University, believes that grunting is part of the rhythm for tennis players: "The timing of when they actually grunt helps them with the rhythm of how they're hitting and how they're pacing things". She also believes that banning grunting isn't the solution: "They may feel, on the surface, that this is going to be a distraction to their game, that it is part and parcel of what they do."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/20...encequestions1

[Dutch-Guy]

Yesterday I put my tv on mute when VuvuPova and VuvuRenka were playing.

[Warriorroger]

Originally Posted by Evan77

I hate it, but the WTA won't do anything about it. it's such a huge turn off. I thought Sharapova was bad but Azarenaka is 10 times worse. Azarenka seems to be a really nice girl when I watch her interviews but I simply can't stand watching her matches.

My theory is that everything started with Seles. I don't know why she did it, but because she was so successful other trainers (especially Russians) adopted that technique.

So I firmly believe that players like Sharapova and Azarenka were trained to scream after every point and there is nothing they can do about it.

I love Seles, and at that time it didn't bother me too much because she was the only one doing it. Nowadays, it's a joke.
I didn't think that Seles was doing it on purpose. I still remember her match at Wimledon against Graf when she actually wasn't allowed to scream (Graf complained) and Seles lost that match.

Graf never complained about the grunting. It were buddie Martina Navratilova and Natalie Tauziat who did the complaining. The only time Graf said st about the grunting was in the interview after the Navratilova-Tauziat matches vs Seles when the reporter asked if she would also complain and Graf made a tongue-in-cheek comment ''maybe I will'', but she never did. To suggest Seles wasn't allowed to grunt or lost a match because she couldn't grunt is ridiculous and so not Seles like, who was a fighter on the court; she would never allow st like that to lose her a match. Graf was better that match.

[Chillaxer]

Originally Posted by Vcore89

Rafa and Nole are quite noisy too! Just not shrieking.

'Djok- Rrrr-ahhh......Rafa- Ughhhhhh.' Sort of like that.

[Evan77]

Originally Posted by Warriorroger

Graf never complained about the grunting. It were buddie Martina Navratilova and Natalie Tauziat who did the complaining. The only time Graf said st about the grunting was in the interview after the Navratilova-Tauziat matches vs Seles when the reporter asked if she would also complain and Graf made a tongue-in-cheek comment ''maybe I will'', but she never did. To suggest Seles wasn't allowed to grunt or lost a match because she couldn't grunt is ridiculous and so not Seles like, who was a fighter on the court; she would never allow st like that to lose her a match. Graf was better that match.

I guess I forgot who said what exactly (thanks for reminding us), it was a long time ago. I did see the match and Seles was so quiet, she played the worst match of her life.

My point again is that Seles was just that way (she started it), nobody trained her to scream while other players after her were trained to scream including Masha and Azarenka.

[NJ1]

Originally Posted by Dutch-Guy

Yesterday I put my tv on mute when VuvuPova and VuvuRenka were playing.

Vuvu me too!

[Def]

Anyone remember the crazy noises Roddick made to get to Delpo's drop shots?