Which commentators do you like/dislike?

gold soundz

gold soundz

Professional
I really like/liked: Johnny Mac, Jim Courier, Kyrgios, Hewitt, John Newcombe, Gilles Muller, Feliciano Lopez, Philippoussis, Robbie Koenig. These would be my favs because they really speak confidently and openly from the heart (to me).. non-formulaic and refreshing. Even when I disagree with stuff they say. Feels like you are just hanging out with them and there's not much filter from them. Wish Newcombe still commentated. Lopez, Muller and Philippoussis are just super chill.

Others I also enjoy to a lesser degree: Wally Masur, Mark Woodforde, Boris Becker, Brad Stein, Darren Cahill, Roger Rasheed.

I DISLIKE: Todd Woodbridge, John Fitzgerald, Mark Petchey. These guys are way too preachy for me, particularly Woodbridge and Fitzgerald.. it seriously feels like dad commentary where it feels like they are constantly subtly lecturing/talking about discipline, and overall it feels so generic and repetitive and boring (same vibe/comments year after year). Does not feel creative/open/refreshing/real. Feels like a chore/drag. And Petchey often states his wild opinions as if they are fact.. and his energy is just not my vibe.

I also really like no commentary and wish this was an option for the slams! (in my country)

What do y'all reckon?
 
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I like Arias, JMG, Querrey, used to like JMac before he got too old to keep up. Martina, Evert. I like Patrick M and Cahill but I feel dirty about it

Never liked PMac too much, can't stand Courier, Pam Shriver, or Mary Carillo.
 
John McEnroe is god awful.

He openly says he doesn't know who a player is. He said it during a Popyrin match the other day, the dude is top 30 and has a Masters title. He literally can't pronounce players surnames even when Todd Woodbridge has just said the name and he'll mispronounce it.

He's woeful.
 
The two GOATs.
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Aussie Darcy said:
John McEnroe is god awful.

He openly says he doesn't know who a player is. He said it during a Popyrin match the other day, the dude is top 30 and has a Masters title. He literally can't pronounce players surnames even when Todd Woodbridge has just said the name and he'll mispronounce it.

He's woeful.
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All the above is part of Mac's charm. He doesn't give a s__t.
 
Like: Koenig, Brad Stine, Lindsay Davenport, Caroline Woz, used to like Cici bellis too but not sure she is doing it anymore.

Meh: Rennae Stubbs, Jimmy Arias, Patrick McEnroe, MJ, Chris Eubanks, courier, coco vandeweghe, Chris Fowler, Roger Rasheed, few others im blanking on atm.

God awful: Alexandra Stevenson, Chris evert, Pam shriver, Mary carillo, Tracy Austin, Chanda Rubin, Martina Navratilova, Mark petchey, John McEnroe, Andrea petkovic, Nick Kyrgios, some British woman on the world feed I don’t know her name but she is the worst!
 
I get why a lot of people find him obnoxious but I like Brad Gilbert. For me, he’s easily the most insightful of the American commentators. I’m genuinely interested in hearing what he has to say about a given match because he doesn’t just regurgitate the same five talking points every single day. He knows the players and he knows the game. It makes it worth suffering through the terrible nicknames lol.

Darren Cahill and James Blake are good too. The McEnroes bring me nothing, and John in particular is just grating.
 
Like- Mary Joe Fernandez, John McEnroe, Caroline Wozniacki, Cliff Drysdale, Brad Gilbert, Jason Goodall, Renae Stubbs
Don’t like- Chris Evert, Nick Kyrgios, Chris Fowler
 
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John Millman has been a revelation in the commentary box recently. He's insightful, fluent and witty. More please.
 
I’ve been really liking Chris Eubanks. He’s doing a great job imo.

No issues with any of the commentators except for the god awful Shriver and Arias. They make any match unwatchable.

Annacone is ok but his voice is taxing on me. His comments are all extremely simple but he sounds them out like trying to explain calculus to a 5 year-old.
 
gold soundz said:
I really like/liked: Johnny Mac, Jim Courier, Kyrgios, Hewitt, John Newcombe, Gilles Muller, Feliciano Lopez, Philippoussis, Robbie Koenig. These would be my favs because they really speak confidently and openly from the heart (to me).. non-formulaic and refreshing. Even when I disagree with stuff they say. Feels like you are just hanging out with them and there's not much filter from them. Wish Newcombe still commentated. Lopez, Muller and Philippoussis are just super chill.

Others I also enjoy to a lesser degree: Wally Masur, Mark Woodforde, Boris Becker, Brad Stein, Darren Cahill, Roger Rasheed.

I DISLIKE: Todd Woodbridge, John Fitzgerald, Mark Petchey. These guys are way too preachy for me, particularly Woodbridge and Fitzgerald.. it seriously feels like dad commentary where it feels like they are constantly subtly lecturing/talking about discipline, and overall it feels so generic and repetitive and boring (same vibe/comments year after year). Does not feel creative/open/refreshing/real. Feels like a chore/drag. And Petchey often states his wild opinions as if they are fact.. and his energy is just not my vibe.

I also really like no commentary and wish this was an option for the slams! (in my country)

What do y'all reckon?
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Frew Mcmillan Dan maskill were the gold standard.
American commentators are hopeless, dont know when to shut up. Petchey is good. Andrew castle is a danger to my TV's safety!
 
For me, the dulcet voice and polished, clipped enunciation of John Barrett from the 80s was tennis. His pronouncements seemed to my young ears like they were coming straight from the mouth of God. When he retired in 2006, I was stricken.
 
Candide said:
For me, the dulcet voice and polished, clipped enunciation of John Barrett from the 80s was tennis. His pronouncements seemed to my young ears like they were coming straight from the mouth of God. When he retired in 2006, I was stricken.
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Classic
 
Shaolin said:
I’ve been really liking Chris Eubanks. He’s doing a great job imo.

No issues with any of the commentators except for the god awful Shriver and Arias. They make any match unwatchable.

Annacone is ok but his voice is taxing on me. His comments are all extremely simple but he sounds them out like trying to explain calculus to a 5 year-old.
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Agree that Chris Eubanks isn't half bad - sometimes he may have one or two too many ideas to share, but he seems to be generally spot on with his insight and also his energy level.

Very much agree that those two (Shriver and Arias) make matches unwatchable, but that's only the case for me if I have the volume up on the TV. Sad to say that I routinely have matches going on the tube with no sound.

Silent match viewing gives me relief from the institutionalized hindrance from the Sabalenkas out there. Yes some of the guys do it, too, but I learned to resort to muting the sound back when Serena and Maria were getting away with it.

Annacone? You're not crazy. For at least a couple of years my nickname for him has been The Sandman. The dude generally sounds like he accidentally took the night-time cold medicine before the match instead of the non-drowsy formula and he's just barely hangin' on in the booth!!

What's worse for me with Annacone - along with some of his broadcasting peers - is that he forgets that he has the option to not speak in moments where there really isn't anything there to add. If the best you can do as a so-called commentator is tell me what I just saw and nothing more, you're useless in that role... and you're also insulting the intelligence of your audience. Better to literally say nothing than to, well, say nothing.
 
I like Koenig, Goodall, lester, Herman, durie, wade, macmillan, millman, even Murray that time. Bartoli, pierce.
john inverdale and castle are too much. They are always selling the game. Petchey is knowledgeable but too domineering. McEnroe, Carrillo, etc, whatever, they just gabble.
 
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fuzz nation said:
Agree that Chris Eubanks isn't half bad - sometimes he may have one or two too many ideas to share, but he seems to be generally spot on with his insight and also his energy level.

Very much agree that those two (Shriver and Arias) make matches unwatchable, but that's only the case for me if I have the volume up on the TV. Sad to say that I routinely have matches going on the tube with no sound.

Silent match viewing gives me relief from the institutionalized hindrance from the Sabalenkas out there. Yes some of the guys do it, too, but I learned to resort to muting the sound back when Serena and Maria were getting away with it.

Annacone? You're not crazy. For at least a couple of years my nickname for him has been The Sandman. The dude generally sounds like he accidentally took the night-time cold medicine before the match instead of the non-drowsy formula and he's just barely hangin' on in the booth!!

What's worse for me with Annacone - along with some of his broadcasting peers - is that he forgets that he has the option to not speak in moments where there really isn't anything there to add. If the best you can do as a so-called commentator is tell me what I just saw and nothing more, you're useless in that role... and you're also insulting the intelligence of your audience. Better to literally say nothing than to, well, say nothing.
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It's a tradeoff for me because I like to hear the sound of the ball and the ambient noise but sometimes the commentators just ruin it. Ive become desensitized to many of the grunters but some are too much. It was impossible for me to watch Sharapova for instance.

Good name for Annacone. Dude is half asleep. It's like he just took a bunch of NyQuil and muscle relaxers. He is literally this guy....

 
Shaolin said:
It's a tradeoff for me because I like to hear the sound of the ball and the ambient noise but sometimes the commentators just ruin it. Ive become desensitized to many of the grunters but some are too much. It was impossible for me to watch Sharapova for instance.

Good name for Annacone. Dude is half asleep. It's like he just took a bunch of NyQuil and muscle relaxers. He is literally this guy....

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Sharapova is yuck. Made me stop watching wta many times.
 
nolefam_2024 said:
Sharapova is yuck. Made me stop watching wta many times.
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Fun fact: A good friend of mine was coach at IMG when she trained there. He said that she never grunted/screeched in practice at all, totally quiet.

All of her grunting was just to terrorize her opponent (+ spectators, the universe, etc).
 
Shaolin said:
Fun fact: A good friend of mine was coach at IMG when she trained there. He said that she never grunted/screeched in practice at all, totally quiet.

All of her grunting was just to terrorize her opponent (+ spectators, the universe, etc).
Click to expand...
Mission accomplished.
 
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