Double trouble for doubles tennis at the Grand Slams
The doubles events in Grand Slams and on Tours continue to be ignored by the ITF, ATP and WTA as true fans look for some revival of the discipline.
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The Woodies, Bryan Twins, Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi
Any mention of the Australian Open is bound to rake up the result achieved by Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis in men’s doubles in 2022. As the season’s first Grand Slam begins in Melbourne on Monday (January 16), the focus is on the big guns in singles in men’s and women’s sections.
Sadly, doubles has become a sideshow at the Grand Slams, something which has been talked about often in the past. Today, the fans will know Kyrgios and Kokkinakis won the title in January 2022, and could be gunning for a repeat in the coming fortnight. Rewind to the past, doubles was pure and pristine, where the best in the business were part of the game.
The comparison between doubles of yesteryear and today is sad. The doubles played today are almost like an apology. Sample some of the best combinations which charmed the world over decades. Some names will spring to mind instantly, Rod Laver and Roy Emerson, John McEnroe and Peter Fleming, John Newcombe and Tony Roche.
That was the oldest generation. Then followed more charismatic pairs, like the Woodies, again from Australia — Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde. It was an Indian pair — Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi — which dared to upstage the Woodies as well, which seemed impossible.
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The fascination for Doubles increased during Grand Slams
The way the “Indian Express” as Lee and Hesh was referred to, was sensational. They began from Challengers and then stepped up to ATP Tour events. The ultimate glory in the Grand Slams with Wimbledon 1999 became the icing on the cake. Doubles cannot be assessed by sheer titles won. There is chemistry in it, great understanding. mutual respect and trust. Above all, the two players on the court have to share time on and off the court.
When Leander and Mahesh stormed the Tour in 1997 and 1998, they were sharing the court plus time away from it, eating in the same restaurant. Coaches were also shared as costs had to be split. After all, doubles never brought in great earnings. If you go back to the era before, McEnroe and Fleming, and the genial Aussie combos, they played singles and doubles.
That’s what made it so special, wherein top singles players took to doubles. For those uninitiated, doubles involves strategy, understanding each other, and combining play, as in baseline, mid-court, and most important, the net. It took years of practice for the Woodies, Bryan twins Mike and Bob, and Leander and Mahesh to get to the highs.
There were other pairs as well like the Dutch combination of Paul Haarhuis and Jacco Eltingh. They spoke of getting bored of each other as well. The Woodies and Bryan twins also mentioned boredom but that was after achieving incredible success at the Grand Slams. The same pattern was there in women’s doubles as well, where Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver, Venus and Serena Williams, and Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis were big draws.
Doubles was and is beautiful to watch. It brings into focus nuances, skills and uncanny anticipation. Sadly, the custodians of tennis started messing around with doubles tennis. They started cutting the number of events and reduced the prize money. At the Grand Slams, from best of five sets were reduced to best of three, for men. That robbed the sheen of doubles. The present concept of a super tie-breaker is like a Russian Roulette, more like a lottery.
Anyone who has watched the classic doubles matches of pairs mentioned above will vouch how doubles have faced a kind of degeneration. Doubles was great fun for fans to watch, above all, if a top player lost in singles at a Grand Slam, he or she would still hang around and put in his best efforts in doubles. For the sheer volume of titles won by these illustrious pairs, doubles was an addiction for many fans.
Obviously, those who play only doubles today hardly make money. Yet, at the Majors and the Olympics, winning a doubles title is still a big deal. Those guilty of the slow demise of doubles in tennis include the International Tennis Federation, the four Grand Slams, and the ATP and WTA Tours. That is the saddest part, reducing doubles to something like a sideshow.
If at all the high priests of tennis want to revive doubles as an art and craft, they need to think. Even on television, slice and dice, quick net play, deep approach shots, dinks and overhead smash catch the eye. Last but not the least, Kyrgios and his partner do have a fan following as doubles specialists as well.
For the record, the Bryans twins won 119 doubles tournaments, which includes the Majors. Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver won 21 doubles Grand Slam titles, and McEnroe and Fleming won 57 doubles titles. The Williams sisters won 22 Grand Slam doubles titles plus so many in singles, while the Woodies captured 61 titles! Had it not been for constant bickering, Lee and Hesh could have won many more titles as well.
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S Kannan
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