The American Men Are Not Natural Athletes

[Tcbtennis]

I've been seriously following tennis for the past 5-6 years and am amazed by the increasing level of athleticism needed to be at the highest level (Top 30). The more and more I watch, the more convinced I am that the top American men are not natural athletes. If you compare the foot speed, agility, and flexibility of the Top players to Fish, Isner and Roddick it's not even close. Ryan Harrison and Donald Young are better athletes but no where near the levels needed to compete with the Djokovics, Nadals, Federers or Murrays. Players like Tsonga, Ferrer, Monfils, Dolgo, Del Potro are just a few of the other top players who are awesome athletes. I don't think that there are any current or up and coming American men who can compete athletically with them.

I know that Isner has been doing well lately but he is truly just a serve and forehand who has to rely on tiebreaks to win. Fish has had his moment in the sun and will not be able to repeat what he did last year. Roddick, God bless him, has gotten the most of his ability through hard work and has had a wonderful career but he would achieved more if he were blessed with natural athleticism.

 

[Cup8489]

I've been seriously following tennis for the past 5-6 years and am amazed by the increasing level of athleticism needed to be at the highest level (Top 30). The more and more I watch, the more convinced I am that the top American men are not natural athletes. If you compare the foot speed, agility, and flexibility of the Top players to Fish, Isner and Roddick it's not even close. Ryan Harrison and Donald Young are better athletes but no where near the levels needed to compete with the Djokovics, Nadals, Federers or Murrays. Players like Tsonga, Ferrer, Monfils, Dolgo, Del Potro are just a few of the other top players who are awesome athletes. I don't think that there are any current or up and coming American men who can compete athletically with them.

I know that Isner has been doing well lately but he is truly just a serve and forehand who has to rely on tiebreaks to win. Fish has had his moment in the sun and will not be able to repeat what he did last year. Roddick, God bless him, has gotten the most of his ability through hard work and has had a wonderful career but he would achieved more if he were blessed with natural athleticism.

Isner just needs to work on his return game to be more effective, or maybe improve his net game to back up that big serve/forehand combo. But he's not done improving yet.. he's already so much better than he was a few years back.

 

[mattennis]

I have thought about this in the past.

I think that almost all European children play soccer since they are very young (3 or 4 years old), whereas American children play basketball, baseball and football.

I would think soccer is really good to your lower body (specially legs, it develops strong and coordinate legs) whereas American sports maybe develop more of the upper body coordination (arms).

Sampras was an amazing athlete, but in kind of basketball sense, whereas Nadal, Ferrer would be amazing athletes in a kind of soccer sense.

It is just a feeling I have sometimes, that maybe some of this is part of the reason.

 

[Tcbtennis]

I have thought about this in the past.

I think that almost all European children play soccer since they are very young (3 or 4 years old), whereas American children play basketball, baseball and football.

I would think soccer is really good to your lower body (specially legs, it develops strong and coordinate legs) whereas American sports maybe develop more of the upper body coordination (arms).

Sampras was an amazing athlete, but in kind of basketball sense, whereas Nadal, Ferrer would be amazing athletes in a kind of soccer sense.

It is just a feeling I have sometimes, that maybe some of this is part of the reason.

I agree with you. Soccer is so ingrained in the European/South American culture that probably a lot of little boys who grow up there want to be soccer players when they grow up. The footwork skills they learn as young soccer players are transferable to tennis. Also, I think that tennis is a more popular sport there so many play both sports. Here in the States, boys play basketball, football and baseball. Tennis is far down on the list. And those standout athletes who play more than one sport generally don't play tennis. It isn't even on their radar.

 

[interjim]

I think there's some truth to this. I mean, you don't need to be a biophsyicalmechanical engineer, or some such thing, to see that our current crop of top pros don't have the athleticism of the players mentioned by the OP. And, Isner... please...

 

[atatu]

I've been seriously following tennis for the past 5-6 years and am amazed by the increasing level of athleticism needed to be at the highest level (Top 30). The more and more I watch, the more convinced I am that the top American men are not natural athletes. If you compare the foot speed, agility, and flexibility of the Top players to Fish, Isner and Roddick it's not even close. Ryan Harrison and Donald Young are better athletes but no where near the levels needed to compete with the Djokovics, Nadals, Federers or Murrays. Players like Tsonga, Ferrer, Monfils, Dolgo, Del Potro are just a few of the other top players who are awesome athletes. I don't think that there are any current or up and coming American men who can compete athletically with them.

I know that Isner has been doing well lately but he is truly just a serve and forehand who has to rely on tiebreaks to win. Fish has had his moment in the sun and will not be able to repeat what he did last year. Roddick, God bless him, has gotten the most of his ability through hard work and has had a wonderful career but he would achieved more if he were blessed with natural athleticism.

Monfils is a great athlete, no doubt, but it hasn't translated into a lot of titles. I don't really see Murray as being such a superior athlete, maybe I'm missing something.

 

[SLD76]

Eh, american tennis is just in a bad patch right now. But it is alarming that each generation we seem to get less and less competitive.

I think its a combination of the expense of the sport, and losing athletes to more popular sports.

 

[813wilson]

I've been seriously following tennis for the past 5-6 years and am amazed by the increasing level of athleticism needed to be at the highest level (Top 30). The more and more I watch, the more convinced I am that the top American men are not natural athletes. If you compare the foot speed, agility, and flexibility of the Top players to Fish, Isner and Roddick it's not even close. Ryan Harrison and Donald Young are better athletes but no where near the levels needed to compete with the Djokovics, Nadals, Federers or Murrays. Players like Tsonga, Ferrer, Monfils, Dolgo, Del Potro are just a few of the other top players who are awesome athletes. I don't think that there are any current or up and coming American men who can compete athletically with them.

I know that Isner has been doing well lately but he is truly just a serve and forehand who has to rely on tiebreaks to win. Fish has had his moment in the sun and will not be able to repeat what he did last year. Roddick, God bless him, has gotten the most of his ability through hard work and has had a wonderful career but he would achieved more if he were blessed with natural athleticism.

Wow. Very insightful writings here.

Ummm - you mention the Top 30 as your criteria? Each American man you call out is in the Top 30.

And, really? You're putting Juan Martin Del Potro in the same sentence with Tsonga, Ferrer, Monfils, and Dolgo as a "natural athlete"?

I don't know who your supplier is but you're getting some high quality stuff.....

 

[FlamEnemY]

^ I don't think expense of the sport really should be the problem, considering we have top players from Serbia and Argentina.

 

[Tcbtennis]

Eh, american tennis is just in a bad patch right now. But it is alarming that each generation we seem to get less and less competitive.

I think its a combination of the expense of the sport, and losing athletes to more popular sports.

Of the 3 most popular sports in the U.S., basketball probably has the footwork skills most comparable to tennis. The boys who excel in basketball, for the most part, will never step on a tennis court in their lives. The cost to become a world class tennis player is astronomical. You can't learn proper technique for groundstrokes, serves, volleys unless you are taught. So you need to take multiple lessons ($). You need to buy the proper equipment like racquets, tennis shoes ($). And then you need access to courts. Depending where you live $$$.

 

[nereis]

America has plenty of natural athletes. It is the difference in training focus that has produced a nation of one-two hitters.

What Lendl taught the rest of the world was that superior movement and solid groundstrokes could beat top tier talent. The American academies however saw the one-two punch aspect of his game rather than the fundamentals.

The choice to train juniors on hard courts instead of clay, which forces them to develop a complete game, compounds the difficulty of raising good movers inhouse.

Now, if most the tour was still played on slick carpets and 90s grass you'd see a lot of American success. But the academies did not realise that a paradigm shift was taking place and as a result American tennis has fallen behind relative to its standing in the 90s.

 

[JRstriker12]

Define "natural" athlete?

All these guys are incredibly athletic, you have to be to even be in the top 100 in the ATP. If you are saying that these guys aren't in the upper end of the very elite athletes that become stars in other American sports, then I could agree.

While that is a factor, tennis requires more than just athletic talent. You also have to look at how the American style of tennis and tennis training has lagged behind the rest of the world and the rest of the world has caught up and surpassed us.

 

[SLD76]

Of the 3 most popular sports in the U.S., basketball probably has the footwork skills most comparable to tennis. The boys who excel in basketball, for the most part, will never step on a tennis court in their lives. The cost to become a world class tennis player is astronomical. You can't learn proper technique for groundstrokes, serves, volleys unless you are taught. So you need to take multiple lessons ($). You need to buy the proper equipment like racquets, tennis shoes ($). And then you need access to courts. Depending where you live $$$.

exactly. Heck, thats the story of my life. Loads of people to tell me I have talent, but I never had money for coaches, rackets, court time, not to mention my mother worked and didnt have time to ferry me around from court to court.

And god help you if your local courts have no tennis wall and everyone that goes there is a scrub.

compare that to the numerous basketball courts, baseball fields and soccer parks where all u need to play is a ball, a bat, a glove and 2 human beings.

 

[Juan Ma Del Pony]

On the contrary, I feel like these days you need some hardship in your life to "motivate" you to do well on Tour. Look at lazy, complacent Gulbis, with all his riches and access to training, etc...what has he accomplished? As opposed to the Williams' Compton "rags to riches" story, Maria Sharapova's "$10 in my pocket" story, even the Serbs' "swimming pool story"....

I agree that middle class kids probably have the best advantage here, in terms of access to training/$$/parental support, but I don't think that upper class kids are really going to succeed on tour anymore...there's no motivation/hunger driving them there, which is a key for any competitive sport/pursuit.

 

[SLD76]

On the contrary, I feel like these days you need some hardship in your life to "motivate" you to do well on Tour. Look at lazy, complacent Gulbis, with all his riches and access to training, etc...what has he accomplished? As opposed to the Williams' Compton "rags to riches" story, Maria Sharapova's "$10 in my pocket" story, even the Serbs' "swimming pool story"....

I agree that middle class kids probably have the best advantage here, in terms of access to training/$$/parental support, but I don't think that upper class kids are really going to succeed on tour anymore...there's no motivation/hunger driving them there, which is a key for any competitive sport/pursuit.

honestly..thats dumb

maria got taken in early by the bolliteri academy and IMG that spent tons of money on her.\

Most of the current champs on the men's tour came from money so honestly, no disrespect but, what you said just makes no sense.

Federer- wealthy parents
Djokovic-parents owned restaurants
Nadal-wealthy family


The WS are an extreme anomaly.

It takes money to play tennis, period. Be it your parents or someone else's money.

 

[Juan Ma Del Pony]

honestly..thats dumb

maria got taken in early by the bolliteri academy and IMG that spent tons of money on her.

The WS are an extreme anomaly.

It takes money to play tennis, period. Be it your parents or someone else's money.

Why is it dumb? I am arguing that it's not necessarily your parents' money that you need. In fact, I'm arguing that sometimes it's harder to succeed when Mommy and Daddy have so much money that you don't need to worry about basic necessities, let alone $$ for tennis equipment/training.

In order to reform American tennis, maybe we need to start looking at kids in the inner city who are showing potential in other sports like basketball and baseball and support them instead of richie-rich's like Gulbis, etc. JMO....

 

[mattennis]

For the baseline game of today, "athletes" in the sense of Nadal, Federer, Djokovic, Murray, Monfils, players that know how to move in the baseline, how to run, quick movers, they are fast as well, a type of "movement-coordination-lower body" ability totally different than that of other style like Rafter.

Rafter was an inmense athlete, but in a totally different sense. He was quick in the sense of reflexes at the net, upper-body quickness and coordination in the volleys.

That is what I meant in my previous post, that american sports (that children start playing since they are 3 or 4 y.o.) maybe are good for the style of game like Sampras or Rafter,...upper body quickness and coordination, to be explosive moving to the net and have incredible reflexes at the net, and jumping abilities (a bit similar to some basketball movement).

While soccer (from youth) may have helped in lower body movement and coordination that now is very important in tennis because of the way tennis is played nowadays.

But at the end of the day, genetics is there, and sometimes an incredible mover in general appears like James Blake, who was quick, fast, explosive, smooth, he was great in almost every movement department, he could run from the baseline like the best one, or move/jump very well at the net like the best ones (in movement, coordination, there). His problems were more of the head (mentality, not knowing what was best for his game, control), just like Monfils.

Chang as well was one of the best baseline movers of all time, and he was American.

So at the end, soccer versus American sports maybe has a role in all this, but when a specimen has the right genetics (Blake), it shows sooner or later (no matter what sports he played when really young).

 

[Juan Ma Del Pony]

Don't forget Andy Murray, who was raised in a very ordinary background by a single mother (albeit one who was trained in tennis herself).

Lack of money is not the only factor here. It's more that the USTA is not properly "scouting" for talent and shaping those talents, instead supporting those whose parents are already well-off, for the most part, and who turn out to be relative duds on the professional circuit.

 

[Breaker]

Yeah Murray's mum was such a pauper that she could afford to send him to an expensive Spanish academy for several years..

 

[SLD76]

Why is it dumb? I am arguing that it's not necessarily your parents' money that you need. In fact, I'm arguing that sometimes it's harder to succeed when Mommy and Daddy have so much money that you don't need to worry about basic necessities, let alone $$ for tennis equipment/training.

In order to reform American tennis, maybe we need to start looking at kids in the inner city who are showing potential in other sports like basketball and baseball and support them instead of richie-rich's like Gulbis, etc. JMO....

Ive participated in inner city tennis programs....its basically day camp, not serious tennis academies.

Bottom line, it takes money. Period. And all this nonsense about 'poor kids want it more' is rubbish.

It takes talent and hard work. I maintain the hard work is easier to do when the player in question has access to funding. And this is why kids with not as much access go to other sports that are easier and more accessible. i.e. baseball, basketball, football.

Also, its easy to make a living with those sports. The 100th ranked baseball player in the US probably makes 5 mil a year compared to the 100th ranked tennis players.

 

[SLD76]

Yeah Murray's mum was such a pauper that she could afford to send him to an expensive Spanish academy for several years..

thank you.

nobody who has gotten to the heights of tennis did it on a shoestring budget.

they had access to money, one way or another.

 

[Biscuitmcgriddleson]

Eh, american tennis is just in a bad patch right now. But it is alarming that each generation we seem to get less and less competitive.

I think its a combination of the expense of the sport, and losing athletes to more popular sports.

That's exactly what it comes down to. Cost versus Reward. Most tennis players won't approach the earnings throughout a career that a decent MLB or NBA player will. Not to mention that players in those sports don't have to pay their way to each game etc. Most people I have come across also view tennis as an elite sport and deem it to be too easy for them. I think John McEnroe came from a rather affluent family and tennis is a rather expensive sport that requires coaching to develop.

 

[SLD76]

America has plenty of natural athletes. It is the difference in training focus that has produced a nation of one-two hitters.

What Lendl taught the rest of the world was that superior movement and solid groundstrokes could beat top tier talent. The American academies however saw the one-two punch aspect of his game rather than the fundamentals.

The choice to train juniors on hard courts instead of clay, which forces them to develop a complete game, compounds the difficulty of raising good movers inhouse.

Now, if most the tour was still played on slick carpets and 90s grass you'd see a lot of American success. But the academies did not realise that a paradigm shift was taking place and as a result American tennis has fallen behind relative to its standing in the 90s.

this plus the money barrier, and the lesser popularity of the game is what hurts american tennis.


Tennis is still expensive in europe, but far more popular.

 

[Power Player]

I find Donald Young to be very very fast and athletic, but his mentality is what is killing him.

If you could combine Dyoung's speed, Jack Sock's serve and Harrison's strokes, then you have a player.

 

[nereis]

That's exactly what it comes down to. Cost versus Reward. Most tennis players won't approach the earnings throughout a career that a decent MLB or NBA player will. Not to mention that players in those sports don't have to pay their way to each game etc. Most people I have come across also view tennis as an elite sport and deem it to be too easy for them. I think John McEnroe came from a rather affluent family and tennis is a rather expensive sport that requires coaching to develop.

There is the aspect that team sports are highly valued in educational institutions and have a certain amount of social cache.

Coaches will actively seek out prospective players among their student population, making the discovery process more passive for the child in question at least initially. It is only at the varsity level that it becomes more competitive.

All a talented child has to do is not be scrawny, display good hand-eye coordination and the ability to run fast and they'll get drafted into their high school JV football team. Do well there and it's a pipeline to college ball which in turn will become a measure for potential recruitability at the professional level.

This applies to basketball and baseball too.

Individual sports simply do not have that sort of support network in place.

 

[SLD76]

^ I don't think expense of the sport really should be the problem, considering we have top players from Serbia and Argentina.

ok but as I said..its expensive in europe too, but is far more popular.

And futhermore...Im pretty sure Djoker and Nalbandians families are well off....

I remember reading that Nalbandians grandfather built him in a tennis court at the family home. Yes, poor David..struggling with poverty, rofl.

 

[Juan Ma Del Pony]

I still find tennis to be more accessible to lower class kids than golf, though...talk about an exclusive sport!!

 

[SLD76]

There is the aspect that team sports are highly valued in educational institutions and have a certain amount of social cache.

Coaches will actively seek out prospective players among their student population, making the discovery process more passive for the child in question at least initially. It is only at the varsity level that it becomes more competitive.

All a talented child has to do is not be scrawny, display good hand-eye coordination and the ability to run fast and they'll get drafted into their high school JV football team. Do well there and it's a pipeline to college ball which in turn will become a measure for potential recruitability at the professional level.

This applies to basketball and baseball too.

Individual sports simply do not have that sort of support network in place.

this..unless u have money, or happen to be spotted early by someone in a position to help you progress....its nearly impossible to get to the pro level.

 

[SLD76]

I still find tennis to be more accessible to lower class kids than golf, though...talk about an exclusive sport!!

more accessible, yes in terms of recreation.

but when talking about serious training/competition they can be equally unattainable for those without money or access to it.

 

[purge]

it often seems that in the US if youre a top athlete you play basketball or american football. if youre not but still want to do sports tennis and baseball are for you.

in the rest of the world football is so omnipotent that you can at some point get tired of it during childhood. and from time to time a top athlete will end up in other sports that way

 

[Tcbtennis]

Define "natural" athlete?

All these guys are incredibly athletic, you have to be to even be in the top 100 in the ATP. If you are saying that these guys aren't in the upper end of the very elite athletes that become stars in other American sports, then I could agree.

This is what I mean. Of course, the Americans that I mentioned are great athletes. They aren't incredible athletes that will win multiple Slams or become #1 player in the world.

Roddick has been the most successful of the current crop of active American men. I have never ever been "wowed" by his physical gifts (not including his serve). How many times have you watched the top guys play and been marveled by what they are able to do on the tennis court. It all comes from their lower body strength and incredible foot speed. That quick first step that allows them to get to the ball and be in position to strike the ball perfectly. How many times have I watch Roddick take a step towards a ball and then stop because he had decided that it was out of reach. Too many times. In fact, when Roddick reached the finals of Wimbledon (2009?) I was struck by how he was running for every ball.

 

[JRstriker12]

it often seems that in the US if youre a top athlete you play basketball or american football. if youre not but still want to do sports tennis and baseball are for you.

in the rest of the world football is so omnipotent that you can at some point get tired of it during childhood. and from time to time a top athlete will end up in other sports that way

I wouldn't group baseball in with tennis. It's not as popular as basketball and football, but those players still get massive salaries and still attract some very athletic guys. On top of that, much like football and basketball, there's a fairly large support network through schools, colleges and minor league teams.

 

[purge]

I wouldn't group baseball in with tennis. It's not as popular as basketball and football, but those players still get massive salaries and still attract some very athletic guys. On top of that, much like football and basketball, there's a fairly large support network through schools, colleges and minor league teams.

yeah i know its rather a "big 3" over there with baseball included but i just never saw its appeal. and it doesnt quite seem like a sport where athleticism is most important. alot of the players seem to either be rather regular dudes or total steroid mosnters. neither hits my definition of athleticism

 

[Tammo]

Isner alreday ranked 11, doesn't that show you anything?

 

[Larrysümmers]

yeah i know its rather a "big 3" over there with baseball included but i just never saw its appeal. and it doesnt quite seem like a sport where athleticism is most important. alot of the players seem to either be rather regular dudes or total steroid mosnters. neither hits my definition of athleticism

even if they dont appear to be, baseball players are usually jacked. not many are tone compared to the number of toned basketball or certain football positions, but thats because you dont really need to be agile.

 

[TERRASTAR18]

^ I don't think expense of the sport really should be the problem, considering we have top players from Serbia and Argentina.

del porto and djoker come from middle class families.

 

[pmerk34]

Of the 3 most popular sports in the U.S., basketball probably has the footwork skills most comparable to tennis. The boys who excel in basketball, for the most part, will never step on a tennis court in their lives. The cost to become a world class tennis player is astronomical. You can't learn proper technique for groundstrokes, serves, volleys unless you are taught. So you need to take multiple lessons ($). You need to buy the proper equipment like racquets, tennis shoes ($). And then you need access to courts. Depending where you live $$$.

The cost of tennis shoes? Really that's a factor? The rest if your post makes sense but that has little to do with why America is in a rough spot in tennis.

 

[Biscuitmcgriddleson]

There is the aspect that team sports are highly valued in educational institutions and have a certain amount of social cache.

Coaches will actively seek out prospective players among their student population, making the discovery process more passive for the child in question at least initially. It is only at the varsity level that it becomes more competitive.

All a talented child has to do is not be scrawny, display good hand-eye coordination and the ability to run fast and they'll get drafted into their high school JV football team. Do well there and it's a pipeline to college ball which in turn will become a measure for potential recruitability at the professional level.

This applies to basketball and baseball too.

Individual sports simply do not have that sort of support network in place.

You can go out and shoot hoops yourself of you can practice making cuts at a local park. You can go pitch by yourself. With tennis you need a coach to become successful. That plus equipment would be extremely expensive for the typical family. Also, unless you do amazingly well at the HS level, you won't get a sniff from a D1 school. The same is true at the collegiate level about the ability to make it to the pros.

I do agree about teamwork being valued by our educational system, but don't agree with your statement about coaches seeking players out. While this does happen time to time, it is the minority of cases. As for the quality of the coaching, most prime physical specimens appear to get coaching either through a variety of minicamps they are invited to or by attending a prep school.

 

[devila]

the rich parent admits to not knowing what junior tennis was, not to mention good clay tennis and mandatory athleticism/talent.
then the parent tells the son to use his fame to give back to the community,
even though the guilt-ridden son is confused by tennis and the reasons for
his severe struggles to play and enjoy tennis.
the son loses respect for himself, respectable opponents, tennis fans and tourney employees.

sounds familiar? these non-athletes shouldn't be allowed to replace
good athletes in the draws.

 

[Tcbtennis]

The cost of tennis shoes? Really that's a factor? The rest if your post makes sense but that has little to do with why America is in a rough spot in tennis.

My kids play tennis. My son wears through the soles every 4-6 weeks training on hard courts. So, absolutely the cost of tennis shoes is a big expense.

 

[Tcbtennis]

Isner alreday ranked 11, doesn't that show you anything?

In my opinion, it only shows that he has a really great serve. He also can use his forehand to punish the weak ball he gets from his really great serve. He certainly does not have the athletic gifts that the other top players have. His return of serve is below average for a Top 20 player. Too often he needs to get to a tiebreak in order to win a set.

 

[Sreeram]

Isner just needs to work on his return game to be more effective, or maybe improve his net game to back up that big serve/forehand combo. But he's not done improving yet.. he's already so much better than he was a few years back.

I agree that Isner is ever improving and he has improved a lot. I always thought he was a guy who can only serve, he has improved his game a lot. But I will still believe that he will never become a mover like the top 4 today. For his height he cannot move quick. Cannot.

 

[Sreeram]

I have thought about this in the past.

I think that almost all European children play soccer since they are very young (3 or 4 years old), whereas American children play basketball, baseball and football.

I would think soccer is really good to your lower body (specially legs, it develops strong and coordinate legs) whereas American sports maybe develop more of the upper body coordination (arms).

Sampras was an amazing athlete, but in kind of basketball sense, whereas Nadal, Ferrer would be amazing athletes in a kind of soccer sense.

It is just a feeling I have sometimes, that maybe some of this is part of the reason.

I agree too. I think american football and baseball look so dumb, not sure how many fall for such game. More than the sport, I hate to see these fat people who are playing this sport at professional level only for their power. They give a wrong picture of athletes to American kids. I agree that they may be very good players in their sport, but you need to have a certain body condition to call yourself a professional sports person.

 

[sureshs]

What about US women's soccer which is of quite a high standard? Why hasn't it resulted in US tennis players with great footwork?

And what about the world's best athlete - Michael Phelps?

 

[pmerk34]

My kids play tennis. My son wears through the soles every 4-6 weeks training on hard courts. So, absolutely the cost of tennis shoes is a big expense.

I doubt most kids need new shoes as quick as your's and even so it's not a big deal. And it depends on the shoe you buy. If my kids were killing shoes at the rate yours do I would not buy them 120.00 Barricades. I remember my old tennis coach in high school telling us don't buy the best tennis shoes these courts will tear them up anyway. Half the kids in high school these days have 7 pairs of sneakers at 165.00 a pop anyway,, again small potatoes in the grand scheme.

The main expenses with trying to develop a pro player is stringing and the cost of coaches, academies and travel. I Think Rick Macci's place in FL was $3,000 a month or so in 1990!

 

[pmerk34]

In my opinion, it only shows that he has a really great serve. He also can use his forehand to punish the weak ball he gets from his really great serve. He certainly does not have the athletic gifts that the other top players have. His return of serve is below average for a Top 20 player. Too often he needs to get to a tiebreak in order to win a set.

Plus his sleepy hang dog demeanor makes him looks like he doesn't care

 

[Tcbtennis]

What about US women's soccer which is of quite a high standard? Why hasn't it resulted in US tennis players with great footwork?

And what about the world's best athlete - Michael Phelps?

First of all, this is totally my unscientific, anecdotal opinion but it is my belief that there are far fewer female athletes who are naturally gifted athletes. I'm referring to all womens sports. The ones who are the best athletes stand out. In tennis, the true athletes that immediately come to mind are Clijsters, Serena, Venus, Schiavone and Kuznetsova (forget that she is such a head case). I don't think that many female athletes cross train so women playing US soccer does not mean that they are playing tennis.

As for Michael Phelps being the World's Greatest Athlete, I hope you are being facetious.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Define "natural" athlete?

All these guys are incredibly athletic, you have to be to even be in the top 100 in the ATP. If you are saying that these guys aren't in the upper end of the very elite athletes that become stars in other American sports, then I could agree...

The OP's use of the term "natural athlete" bothers me. I'd go even further and say that most of the players at a 6.0 level are natural athletes. One could argue that the term could even apply to most players at a 4.5 or 5.0 level.

 

[SLD76]

I agree too. I think american football and baseball look so dumb, not sure how many fall for such game. More than the sport, I hate to see these fat people who are playing this sport at professional level only for their power. They give a wrong picture of athletes to American kids. I agree that they may be very good players in their sport, but you need to have a certain body condition to call yourself a professional sports person.

I get it that you think that Futbol is superior uber alles but dont demean pro football or basketball as doubtless you watch neither. I doubt you could understand the most basic offensive or defensive scheme, not to mention analyzing a defense in .02 seconds and delivering a ball with pinpoint precision and in time with the receiver. All sports require brains as well as athletic ability.

I mean, how would it be if I said cricket was a dumb silly sport. Granted, I have no experience of it or understand it because I dont play it and am not exposed to it.

Most pro football players and nearly all basketball players are extremely fit.
Even the so called 'fat' offensive and defensive lineman, while they are large, are strong and suprisingly quick.

Virtually no basketball players are fat. There are exceptions are like charles barkley, shaq etc..but most pro basketball players barely have any fat on them.

 

[JRstriker12]

I agree too. I think american football and baseball look so dumb, not sure how many fall for such game. More than the sport, I hate to see these fat people who are playing this sport at professional level only for their power. They give a wrong picture of athletes to American kids. I agree that they may be very good players in their sport, but you need to have a certain body condition to call yourself a professional sports person.

IMHO - no need to throw shade on other sports because you like tennis. I've heard similar, disparaging comments about soccer or tennis from people who are not that familiar about the sport.

Outside of defensive and offensive linemen, football players are incredibly fit and fast. Same for certain positions in baseball. You can be a lumbering hulk and play first base, but you have to be a great athlete to play short stop or some of the outfield positions on defense. I'm not a huge fan of either but I can respect the players for what they do.