Grunting - Wozniacki speaks

The world No1 Caroline Wozniacki has risked the wrath of her fellow players by effectively accusing some of them of cheating by grunting too loudly. The Dane claimed that "some players do it on purpose" and said the worst offenders have an unfair advantage on those who do not scream when they hit the ball.

The shrieks and wails of some of the sport's top female players have long been a bone of contention among fans and television companies, and Wozniacki feels that some players go too far. "I think there are some players who do it on purpose," she said. "They don't do it in practice and then they come into the match and they grunt. I think they [officials] could definitely cut it."

Though Wozniacki did not use the word "cheat", she made it perfectly clear that the serial offenders had an unfair advantage over the rest. "If you grunt really loudly your opponent cannot hear how you hit the ball," she said. "Because the grunt is so loud, you think the ball is coming fast and suddenly the ball just goes slowly. In tight moments, maybe the grunt helps them with getting less nervous."

Wozniacki's words are unlikely to sit well with Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka, two of her title rivals here at the WTA Championships this week. The shrieks of the 2004 Wimbledon champion have been compared to a pneumatic drill and have been measured at more than 100 decibels. Azarenka's grunts are longer and higher-pitched, and were described by one Wimbledon watcher this year as "like Mickey Mouse in distress".

Stacey Allaster, the chairman and chief executive of the WTA, admitted that it is time something was done. "The guys are grunting as well, it's not unique to women's tennis," she said. "But our female DNA transmits it in a different way. I'm very focused on the fans and I have seen a slight increase in the fan comments that we're receiving. So I do think on that basis that we should look at it. And if we're going to make any changes, it needs to [start] with the junior players."

Allaster said the WTA will start by visiting the academy of the US-based coach Nick Bollettieri in the off-season. "Our team will meet with coaches and young players, those who are on the eve of becoming WTA rookies," she said. "It just comes down to education. They have to determine how they want their brand to be."

sirfredperry wrote:Have posted on another site on this. Suffice to say that the quiet opponent should shriek as loudly as the noisy one until she shuts up. Failing that, the crowd should start shrieking. Failing that, the umpire should start shrieking. (Tournament referee after that?, guests in the royal box?). More seriously, the shrieking has to stop. They don't do it in practice, so it's becoming mere gamesmanship.

sirfredperry wrote:Have posted on another site on this. Suffice to say that the quiet opponent should shriek as loudly as the noisy one until she shuts up. Failing that, the crowd should start shrieking. Failing that, the umpire should start shrieking. (Tournament referee after that?, guests in the royal box?). More seriously, the shrieking has to stop. They don't do it in practice, so it's becoming mere gamesmanship.

laverfan wrote:Does anyone recall the USO 2011 Stosur-Williams incident (Eva Asderaki is the chair umpire)?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RRABbdDilY

dummy_half wrote:It shouldn't be that difficult to define - simply any noise that the umpire considers unnecessary and intended to distract the opponent.

Tenez wrote:They can't even define 20 seconds.

I bet if a male player started yelling like Azarenka or Shriekapova, they'd just be ridiculed by their opponent and indeed the entire locker room.

dummy_half wrote:It's a crazy situation that the crowd will be warned for making noises during a rally, but a player won't be even if they are doing so repeatedly.

dummy_half wrote:I think most match officials have two listening devices - one on each side of their head. I don't think there's a need to make a subjective rule that a grunt above (say) 80dB should be penalised, simply that any voluntary noise audible from the chair and to the other player can be penalised.

dummy_half wrote:I did like the suggestion made earlier in the year that perhaps Sharapova's oppontent should require the tournament referee to provide ear defenders - under COSHH regulations, she's loud enough that hearing protection should be mandatory.

Marcus wrote:I'd rather listen to Sharapova & Azarenka grunt, than watch Wozniacki play.

Marcus wrote:I'd rather listen to Sharapova & Azarenka grunt, than watch Wozniacki play.

Stosur pleaded indifference, and certainly did not offer it up as an excuse for defeat. Nor, for that matter, did she blame the strange scheduling decision to put her first match on when she had played late into the evening on Tuesday.

'I think when you hear it every single time you become unaware of it. I guess it’s one of those things, some players feel the need to do it,' she said.

She did, though, identify with the armchair fan when it comes to watching the yelpers play on television: 'Horrible,' was how she described it. 'I don’t like hearing it when I’m watching on TV but when I’m out there I don’t really notice it.

'If it’s deliberate, I guess you’d have to ask those players, but I’m pretty sure nobody is going to say they’re deliberately doing it. I make a noise when I hit the ball but it’s not so screechy so nobody says anything about it.'

Azarenka was defiant, perhaps buoyed by a performance that seemed to justify her status as pre-tournament favourite.

'Caroline never spoke to me about that,” she said. “It’s the way I play since eight years old and it’s part of my movement, part of my game. So I can’t change it and I’m not going to.

It’s not about the rule. You cannot stop people from doing what they do on the court. I mean it’s not like you’re trying to distract anybody, it’s just normal.

'For me I do it during practice, during matches. If some people do it only during the matches to distract maybe it’s bothering. It’s just a part of me, a part of who I am.'

And what if an opponent complained (as they are entitled to do to the umpire): “I’d say mind your own business I guess, I hope you can beat me,” she smiled, angelically.

Nore Staat wrote:I think I have found a possible solution to the grunting issue. We could build a double "glazed" transparent shell structure over the tennis courts for the ladies. In between the two layers we could pump out the air thus creating an impenetrable sound barrier.

barrystar wrote:It's just as well that they don't grunt on the ladies' golf tour
http://cheezburger.com/02xfal/lolz/View/2590617600

newballs wrote:SDB from memory didn't competitions required that you kiaied to get maximum points for the strike/blow?

If they applied the same rules to tennis then I guess that de Brito (or Brillo or something similar) would win with honorable mentions for Sharpova (decibels) and Azarenka (length).

Tenez wrote:

Nore Staat wrote:I think I have found a possible solution to the grunting issue. We could build a double "glazed" transparent shell structure over the tennis courts for the ladies. In between the two layers we could pump out the air thus creating an impenetrable sound barrier.

Fine by me as long as we can project movies on these screens for the spectators.