Tennis Forum banner

US Men Drought = More WTA coverage (ESPN)

4K views 42 replies 26 participants last post by  BillFromRichmond 
#1 ·
For a second I was taken aback by how much women's coverage they've shown on ESPN, but then I remembered that there are no seeded American men in the draw besides Query. All those long boring Marty Fish, Isner, Roddick matches, not to mention the D-List American men hopefuls who left virtually no airtime for the likes of Kerber, Radwanska, and Stosur. If ESPN had more options we wouldn't have seen even the small amount we did get to see. Maybe it sucks for American men tennis fans, but for those of us who enjoy seeing a top tenner on either side over a lowly ranked American nobody, its good news.

Now the only obstacle left are the Australian men in the draw...:lol:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sam L
#2 ·
I noticed this too when ESPN switched to Shriver and Mary Joe watching the Bartoli-Medina Garrigues match :lol:

Maybe some much needed coverage of other matches. I'm certainly not complaining :yeah:
 
#3 ·
I have heard American men's tennis is serious trouble for the first time in 40 years NO USA man is seeded in the top 16 at a grand slam event LOL! American men's tennis is in such a drought that ESPN really doesn't have much to root for at the Australian Open. Isner, and Fish are veterans and they are never going to win slams.
 
#4 ·
Hmmm maybe I spoke too soon, I would have figured they would've shown more Madison Keys before the start of Leyton's match ( which I'm really looking forward to).

So far the coverage has been real good and balanced, hope it continues like this.
 
#8 ·
I know Pat McEnroe is sick because he LOVED Roddick is not able to salivate over him now. This is a complex issue, though. Many Americans on this board hate Serena and Venus, but after they've retired, the prospects for American women are maybe just as dim for the women as they are for the men. Once Venus and Serena retire, the advertising dollars will dry up.
 
#10 ·
I hate it when people quote a post and simply say "this". It smacks of intellectual laziness to me.:shrug:

However in this case, this! :D
 
#9 ·
All the courts with cameras are available on ESPN3 anyway.
 
#16 ·
:lol: ...sad, but so true.
 
#14 ·
only see limited matches available for replay (match 1 and 2 on all outer courts), hope they're still editing and adding the rest, otherwise, it would be pretty disappointing since i'm not able watch all their broadcast over night and really wish to watch the replay in the morning :(
 
#20 ·
I agree. They were still practicing American homerism. There was extensive coverage of the Ryan Harrison and Steve Johnson ( who are these guys???Oh...they are the next American hopes...) matches.

And on the women's side, all they talked about were the Williams sisters and the so called up and coming "Young Americans".
 
#23 ·
The American women contingent in Australia has more players with chances at a deep run than the men's side. Just like the last 30+ majors since the USO 2003 when Roddick won the last slam the Americans will see for a long time on the men's side.

There are some decent prospects on the men's side but none of them will likely go deep into the 2nd week. If Queery doesnt get there there likely will be no Americans in the 4th round of this slam on the men's side. If this does happen I will be very curious to see which matches they show in place of the typical spot left for American players.
 
#27 ·
The American women contingent in Australia has more players with chances at a deep run than the men's side. Just like the last 30+ majors since the USO 2003 when Roddick won the last slam the Americans will see for a long time on the men's side.

There are some decent prospects on the men's side but none of them will likely go deep into the 2nd week. If Queery doesnt get there there likely will be no Americans in the 4th round of this slam on the men's side. If this does happen I will be very curious to see which matches they show in place of the typical spot left for American players.
I will believe when I see it.
We have been heart broken so many times, thanks to Pam Shriver who sees the future of American tennis whenever she sees one American woman shine at a tournament. Comes to mind
 
#32 ·
^^Yes! I like Rafa, but damn would they show every minute of Federer and Nadal. They don't even show all of Murray or Djokovic's matches at majors, but they will force you to watch every minute of a Roger or Rafa romp on ESPN.
 
#34 ·
^i don't have a problem with them showing full coverage of the top 3 players on either tour, that actually makes some sense especially cuz at the end if the day it's a business and people generally tune in for the big names.

My issue is when you have Ryan Harrison playing a nobody on one court and someone like Kerber playing Radwanska on another court and they opt to show the American. I would even be okay if they showed both, start off w.the women and its likely when that match is over the men will still be playing.

I do agree with u that if Nadal/Fed/Djoko is playing an early round and its not the least bit competitive then it's not necessary to show the entire match.

ESPN used to be really bad, but through the years they've gotten a little better...and it seems that the women finally are getting equal coverage, or at least more than they used to get.


Tennis channel is kind of worse, right now they are showing Janowicz-Devvarman :tape:
I noticed that too! It's like that flipped and reversed roles...lol

I was shocked at the amount of WTA tennis that was shown in the USA for an early round 1 tournament. Maybe we just caught a lucky break. I hope its more than that. ESPN and the Tennis Channel wouldn't put the WTA on TV, if they weren't drawing viewers. Judging by the TV coverage yesterday, nobody had a problem with play quality or storylines on the women's side of the draw.

I thought the the Serena injury really added a lot to the drama for what was going to be a blowout round 1 match. It was great TV. Credit Serena for milking the injury for all that it was worth.

That's why I like Serena. She is the GOAT, and she understands the important value of getting a good TV rating!:lol:
I think it's my original theory about the lack of American men in the draw.
 
#35 ·
^i don't have a problem with them showing full coverage of the top 3 players on either tour, that actually makes some sense especially cuz at the end if the day it's a business and people generally tune in for the big names.

My issue is when you have Ryan Harrison playing a nobody on one court and someone like Kerber playing Radwanska on another court and they opt to show the American. I would even be okay if they showed both, start off w.the women and its likely when that match is over the men will still be playing.

I do agree with u that if Nadal/Fed/Djoko is playing an early round and its not the least bit competitive then it's not necessary to show the entire match.

ESPN used to be really bad, but through the years they've gotten a little better...and it seems that the women finally are getting equal coverage, or at least more than they used to get.




I noticed that too! It's like that flipped and reversed roles...lol


I think it's my original theory about the lack of American men in the draw.
Its still bad. There is open rooting for the American players and tonight, after 2 hours of coverage, with the exception of Li Na, you'd never know there was anyone except an American who has played all day.

They just spent 20 minutes showing some nobody American male whose name begins with an S who no one has never heard of, who after losing the first set 6-0 to Ferrer wins a couple of games in the second set and all of the sudden deserves prime time coverage. And who gives a flying f*** about Brian Baker?
 
#36 ·
after the Madison match they've been showing Stosur vs. Jie Zheng. In years past I'm not sure we would have seen this match until someone had match point. Their coverage isnt perfect but like others have said I have noticed a difference.
 
#40 ·
It's a bit ironic that there are so many threads popping up about the quality and excitement of women's tennis while ESPN seems to be, for the first time ever, heavily favoring covering the women. I think ESPN has got it's finger on the pulse and in these early rounds all the major 'story lines' are all on the women's side. I'm sure the second week we will be back to normal- but I'm kind of enjoying this to be honest (especially w. no Nadal).

This the least I've ever seen of Patric McEnroe...loli
 
#41 ·
:yeah: to all of this. Not having to hear McEnroe fawn over Roddick has been the higlight of the event. :lol: No Carrilo, no John McEnroe, very little Patrick McEnroe, no dirty old man Enberg has made the first few days lovely. :hearts: If only every Venus match didn't have to be Shrivers excuse to dissect and criticize her game..... to death. :tape: Fifteen years of this shit from her. :banghead: It's startling and disappointing to have to listen to the stream audio of this match to hear something other than whining bemoaning commentary. :tape:
 
#42 ·
I felt like this year the coverage was perfect. A nice mix of the top women and too men just as it should be.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top