ESPN Coverage of Women's Final

neversaydienadalfan

neversaydienadalfan

Rookie
Was it just me, but was the opening coverage and talk of the women's final by ESPN all about Serena? Don't get me wrong, Serena is the greatest female player of all time, but it seemed like they were handing her the trophy before the match even started. Kerber, who is absolutely no slouch and who has beaten Serena in a grand slam final before (Australian 2016), should've been given a little more acknowledgement. She's a fighter and an incredible player. I would say nobody redirects the ball better than her. I'm sure Serena will get to #24 and then #25 grand slams, probably at the Australian Open next year after winning the 2018 US Open, but Kerber is a legitimate contender that has now won 3 out of the 4 grand slams besides the French. Well done, Kerber! Also, well done to Serena for getting to the final, but ESPN needs to step up their game a bit. It should never be a victory lap. The coverage was totally biased.
 
You may feel sure that Serena will win both the next two slams, but you are wrong to do so. She might. She probably won’t. Winning one of the two is definitely fairly likely though.
 
I agree. Kerber was playing clean, outstanding, tennis, but Crissie Evert kept on babbling about how much of a fighter SW is and how the comeback is going to happen any minute now.
At one point SW roared out after a solid winner and Evert got all gushy, “uh oh. I know that sound, Kerber better watch out. The champion is ready.” I mean, come on. That’s a complete lack of respect to the person on the other side of the net, not named Serena Williams.
 
It wasn't just ESPN. Channel 7's coverage here in Australia was mostly about Serena with a little bit about Kerber beating her at the 2016 Australian Open final.

It was all a bit annoying but it's not Serena's fault, it's the media and everyone who fawn over her likes she's incapable of losing which we know isn't true.

It annoyed me when Dokic and the male commentator were like 'who saw that loss coming from Serena' and I just sat there saying "I did? Anyone who properly watched this tournament did??".
 
There's literally no player ESPN likes more than Serena. Not even Fed.

She brings in ratings with the casual fan in America like no one else on the women's side can, so they squeeze every drop of coverage they can out of her.
 
MeatTornado said:
There's literally no player ESPN likes more than Serena. Not even Fed.

She brings in ratings with the casual fan in America like no one else on the women's side can, so they squeeze every drop of coverage they can out of her.
Click to expand...
I really didn’t know it worked that way.
I thought Serena divided fans a lot. Either loved, or hated.
 
neversaydienadalfan said:
Was it just me, but was the opening coverage and talk of the women's final by ESPN all about Serena? Don't get me wrong, Serena is the greatest female player of all time, but it seemed like they were handing her the trophy before the match even started. Kerber, who is absolutely no slouch and who has beaten Serena in a grand slam final before (Australian 2016), should've been given a little more acknowledgement. She's a fighter and an incredible player. I would say nobody redirects the ball better than her. I'm sure Serena will get to #24 and then #25 grand slams, probably at the Australian Open next year after winning the 2018 US Open, but Kerber is a legitimate contender that has now won 3 out of the 4 grand slams besides the French. Well done, Kerber! Also, well done to Serena for getting to the final, but ESPN needs to step up their game a bit. It should never be a victory lap. The coverage was totally biased.
Click to expand...
Even after Kerber had won, the commies were focusing on what went wrong for Serena instead of acknowledging Kerber. Oh, and did you know she just had a child? :rolleyes:

Everything was about Serena. Disgusting bias
 
jm1980 said:
Even after Kerber had won, the commies were focusing on what went wrong for Serena instead of acknowledging Kerber. Oh, and did you know she just had a child? :rolleyes:

Everything was about Serena. Disgusting bias
Click to expand...

And then some people on this forum try to equate dislike if Serena with racism and sexism. It’s almost like there are other reasons why people don’t like her :rolleyes:
 
cluckcluck said:
She was ranked way outside of the top 25 entering the tournament. She wasn’t a top player.
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giphy.gif
 
Many of the WTA fans here picked Kerber. In fact, the match thread poll gave a slight edge to Kerber.
 
As for countries about which jokes are not permitted, Israel and America would have to head the list.

And countries about which jokes are obligatory, well, there are too many to mention really.

Sudacafan said:
Things about which jokes are not permitted:
Race
Religion
Politics
Gender
Sexual orientation
Who is the GOAT
Click to expand...
 
I think what Serena has done coming back from pregnancy and an extremely difficult delivery, especially in so short of time, is absolutely incredible, but it is only her 4th tourney back, and she got a pretty good draw. The good draw may have hurt her in the end, since she had not been properly tested by a top player before the final. Only test was Giorgi, but her game plays into Williams' hands since she just blasts for Plan A and then blasts harder for Plan B. Kerber definitely has some variety and creativity to her game, which troubled Serena. Not to mention, Kerber zoned and Serena was off.
 
neversaydienadalfan said:
I think what Serena has done coming back from pregnancy and an extremely difficult delivery, especially in so short of time, is absolutely incredible, but it is only her 4th tourney back, and she got a pretty good draw. The good draw may have hurt her in the end, since she had not been properly tested by a top player before the final. Only test was Giorgi, but her game plays into Williams' hands since she just blasts for Plan A and then blasts harder for Plan B. Kerber definitely has some variety and creativity to her game, which troubled Serena. Not to mention, Kerber zoned and Serena was off.
Click to expand...
Women Slams of these days don’t provide enough test players before finals.
 
Bartelby said:
As for countries about which jokes are not permitted, Israel and America would have to head the list.

And countries about which jokes are obligatory, well, there are too many to mention really.
Click to expand...

LOLLLL seriously? Israel and America?

Funny how you fail to mention any communist or Islamic countries. People are literally killed for being “enemies of the state” or simply drawing a cartoon of Mohammad.
 
I can only hope they stop 'milking' Serena's maternal status.

But everyone is required to have a back story, so she just got a new one.
 
neversaydienadalfan said:
Was it just me, but was the opening coverage and talk of the women's final by ESPN all about Serena? Don't get me wrong, Serena is the greatest female player of all time, but it seemed like they were handing her the trophy before the match even started. Kerber, who is absolutely no slouch and who has beaten Serena in a grand slam final before (Australian 2016), should've been given a little more acknowledgement. She's a fighter and an incredible player. I would say nobody redirects the ball better than her. I'm sure Serena will get to #24 and then #25 grand slams, probably at the Australian Open next year after winning the 2018 US Open, but Kerber is a legitimate contender that has now won 3 out of the 4 grand slams besides the French. Well done, Kerber! Also, well done to Serena for getting to the final, but ESPN needs to step up their game a bit. It should never be a victory lap. The coverage was totally biased.
Click to expand...

Maybe the word here is bandwagoning. One lot leads, the others join the chorus since their job is to fill in the airtime with their chitchat.

I keep saying : they are not attesting as tennis experts, but as talk show hosts talking about tennis. Those are talk shows whose main topic just happens to be tennis.
 
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Bartelby said:
I mentioned both of those types of country under the rubric of countries about which jokes are obligatory.

Julien Assange is currently being subject to death and other threats by American political leaders for publishing 'news'.
Click to expand...

Oh yes I’m aware of that. But it isn’t widespread like the others I mentioned. I hope Trump has some sense and frees Assange but he’s got multiple countries after him unfortunately.
 
There's only Britain and America left, and we know those are in a highly special relationship.

VaporDude95 said:
Oh yes I’m aware of that. But it isn’t widespread like the others I mentioned. I hope Trump has some sense and frees Assange but he’s got multiple countries after him unfortunately.
Click to expand...
 
jm1980 said:
"They"? Serena herself is milking this for all it's worth

I LOLed when she said in the post-match interview that she was playing for all the moms out there
Click to expand...

I have nothing against Serena but she should stop trying to appear as if she is doing something incredibly special for all mothers(it is special but not incredibly)

Almost all the mothers are ready to die for their baby.

Have personally seen a friend's mum go through worst possible emotional and mental state, Have seen her work all night for her daughter's education.
That is 1000 times more special and ten times the inspirational example of motherhood's power than hitting a ball over the net.
 
Also completely OT but I've been spending the last 25mins trying to install a new TV here and you'd think it would be a piece of cake but I'm completely out to sea at the moment on how to make the HDMI ARC (audio return channel) play ball with the soundbar

Like, I'm by no means tech illiterate or anything, but damn. It's plugged in, it's on. What am I missing?
I've given it away now to have lunch. Any suggestions?
 
Firstservingman said:
Also completely OT but I've been spending the last 25mins trying to install a new TV here and you'd think it would be a piece of cake but I'm completely out to sea at the moment on how to make the HDMI ARC (audio return channel) play ball with the soundbar

Like, I'm by no means tech illiterate or anything, but damn. It's plugged in, it's on. What am I missing?
I've given it away now to have lunch. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Check your TV's manual. You might have to fiddle with the settings
 
Firstservingman said:
Also completely OT but I've been spending the last 25mins trying to install a new TV here and you'd think it would be a piece of cake but I'm completely out to sea at the moment on how to make the HDMI ARC (audio return channel) play ball with the soundbar

Like, I'm by no means tech illiterate or anything, but damn. It's plugged in, it's on. What am I missing?
I've given it away now to have lunch. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
It’s 1 AM here and I have been been spending the last 90 minutes trying to sleep, if it makes you feel better.
I am beginning to believe that TTW and my iPad are the culprits of my sleep disorder.
 
neversaydienadalfan said:
Was it just me, but was the opening coverage and talk of the women's final by ESPN all about Serena? Don't get me wrong, Serena is the greatest female player of all time, but it seemed like they were handing her the trophy before the match even started. Kerber, who is absolutely no slouch and who has beaten Serena in a grand slam final before (Australian 2016), should've been given a little more acknowledgement. She's a fighter and an incredible player. I would say nobody redirects the ball better than her. I'm sure Serena will get to #24 and then #25 grand slams, probably at the Australian Open next year after winning the 2018 US Open, but Kerber is a legitimate contender that has now won 3 out of the 4 grand slams besides the French. Well done, Kerber! Also, well done to Serena for getting to the final, but ESPN needs to step up their game a bit. It should never be a victory lap. The coverage was totally biased.
Click to expand...
Ratings. Serena's the only story in women's tennis that non-tennis fans care about. Obvious personal interest story, the pregnancy, the complications, the comeback, motherhood, these are going to lead the pre-match punditry. She's the only household name in women's tennis--OK Sharapova, but she was long gone out of tourney. I didn't listen to all the analysis, but were they actually calling the win for Serena? Guessing not, in fact I'll bet they were mostly circumspect about her actual chances, but rather hyping what it would mean IF she did win.

Agree it gets annoying, as a fan of the sport, that Kerber, a top pro, is basically ignored, and it's all about Serena rather than the actual tennis...but as with the Olympics (and world cup for American fans), when people in general don't know a thing about the actual sport (until it shows up on TV as a "must see" event) people relate the most to the personal interest stories and the biggest names.
 
Sudacafan said:
It’s 1 AM here and I have been been spending the last 90 minutes trying to sleep, if it makes you feel better.
I am beginning to believe that TTW and my iPad are the culprits of my sleep disorder.
Click to expand...
Yeah screens definitely mess with sleep. I try my best (usually fail :D ) to not use my phone before bed.
 
Sudacafan said:
I can’t understand why watching TV makes you sleep and a smartphone or a tablet prevents it.
Click to expand...
TV requires a lot less active thinking, kind of lulls you to sleep. It's passive.
Smartphones and tablets require interaction. If you just watched a movie on a tablet it would be the same as a TV.
 
Aussie Darcy said:
It wasn't just ESPN. Channel 7's coverage here in Australia was mostly about Serena with a little bit about Kerber beating her at the 2016 Australian Open final.

It was all a bit annoying but it's not Serena's fault, it's the media and everyone who fawn over her likes she's incapable of losing which we know isn't true.

It annoyed me when Dokic and the male commentator were like 'who saw that loss coming from Serena' and I just sat there saying "I did? Anyone who properly watched this tournament did??".
Click to expand...
Exactly, Serena will struggle against two types of players; hitters and retrievers. If Ostapenko or Kvitova or Garbine are on, its lights out for Serena. If Wozniacki, Radwanska, Halep and obviously Kerber are on its lights out for Serena too. She has horrible mobility and unless she hits a(n) (immediate) winner or is gifted an error she can't win most of the points played. Thats a lot of points as evidenced by the Wimbledon final. Is Kerber that much better two years later or is Serena that much out of shape two years and a baby later?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
neversaydienadalfan said:
Was it just me, but was the opening coverage and talk of the women's final by ESPN all about Serena? Don't get me wrong, Serena is the greatest female player of all time, but it seemed like they were handing her the trophy before the match even started. Kerber, who is absolutely no slouch and who has beaten Serena in a grand slam final before (Australian 2016), should've been given a little more acknowledgement. She's a fighter and an incredible player. I would say nobody redirects the ball better than her. I'm sure Serena will get to #24 and then #25 grand slams, probably at the Australian Open next year after winning the 2018 US Open, but Kerber is a legitimate contender that has now won 3 out of the 4 grand slams besides the French. Well done, Kerber! Also, well done to Serena for getting to the final, but ESPN needs to step up their game a bit. It should never be a victory lap. The coverage was totally biased.
Click to expand...

This isn't new where Serena is concerned. It's just more noticeable now that she's a mother. ESPN wanted the fairy tale storyline about her coming back to win Wimbledon. Good thing Kerber didn't read the script.
 
Greatgatsby said:
Exactly, Serena will struggle against two types of players; hitters and retrievers. If Ostapenko or Kvitova or Garbine are on, its lights out for Serena. If Wozniacki, Radwanska, Halep and obviously Kerber are on its lights out for Serena too. She has horrible mobility and unless she hits a winner or is gifted an error she can't win most of the points played. Thats a lot of points as evidenced by the Wimbledon final. Is Kerber that much better two years later or is Serena that much out of shape two years and a baby later?
Click to expand...
Look for her draws to avoid all of them till quarters moving forward.
 
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