Why are Old People So Good At Tennis?

-


Why are Old People So Good At Tennis?
Andre Agassi (left) With Young Roger Federer (right)

Tennis used to be dominated by youngsters, but the big three ( Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic) have changed that. Great tennis players of the last generation like Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, and John McEnroe all retired at earlier ages than the tennis players that are playing right now.

The past twelve of sixteen ATP finals have been won by one of the big three. Roger Federer won his first title in 2003, and Nadal has been world number one in three different decades. New players these days don’t even have a chance. 

Roger Federer                 Rafael Nadal Novack Djokovic           



Why is this happening? How are these old players still winning slams while competing with opponents fifteen years younger than them?

This was the same case with the 2019 Wimbledon. Younger kids should have been playing in the finals, but instead, the match was an all-out war between two of the tennis gods, Djokovic and Federer. Is it because the next generation of top tennis players are bad at tennis, or is it because players like Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal are just too good to beat? 

Wimbledon Finals, 2019
It seems to be just the case. They really are too good to beat. This all boils down to two things: physical fitness and mental toughness.

Roger Federer has been playing professional tennis since 1998 and has been dominating ever since ‘03. One reason why he has maintained this epic streak is because of his consistent physical condition. Federer trains year-round in Dubai. Tennis players like Roger Federer train in Dubai because of the intense heat. If he can play for hours in Dubai than he can play anywhere in the world. 

Next comes mental toughness. This creates the difference between good tennis players and great ones. Take Djokovic for example. In the 2019 Wimbledon, he had a match with Federer that lasted for five hours. In the end, Djokovic won by a very close margin with the score being 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 13-12. 

Federer, Djokovic Wimbledon Finals 
To succeed in this type of battle you need your physical and mental side working together in unison. This skill comes with years of experience which is the one aspect of tennis that the younger players don’t have, but the older better players do have. 

But there is still a chance for these younger players to compete. The best of the best of the new generation are raising their rackets to take one these mighty foes. One such man is Stefanos Tsitipas. Him, Dominic Theim, Alexander Zverev, Matteo Berrettini, and Daniil Medvedev are all players under the age of 27 that are rising up to the challenge. 

Left to Right: Stefanos Tsitipas, Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev


This cycle isn't just limited to men’s tennis. There is a new generation of women’s tennis players too. One of them is an American high schooler. Her name is Coco Gauff, a fifteen-year-old, who is coming back to defend the capital of her home country in the City Open in August. In 2019 there wasn’t a single open seat in her qualifying matches and in the main draw when she played. 
Coco Gauff
With these new, sensational, upcoming players fighting their battles with the support of their country and fans, there is no way they cannot succeed. Even with the odds stacked against them, they can rise up and face the challenge just like their predecessors did. 

Comments

  1. AnonymousMarch 2, 2020 at 4:15 PM

    I think you did a good job explaining about these great tennis players and how they are unmatched. I also like how you explained about women's tennis. The pictures you used in my opinion were very good.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousMarch 6, 2020 at 2:50 PM

    It was interesting for me to think about experience and age. When you think of any sport it usually seems like the person who is more fit would win, but really it is about experience. As you said the older tennis players are winner because they are both fit and have experience, the perfect combo. The more experience and practice you have, the better you are at anything you do. I also liked how you talked about both Women's and Mens tennis and how it appears in both of them.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Broadway is Closing Due to the Coronavirus

-
Image
The show must go on. This has been the motto of Broadway since the day the first show opened. But now, the bright lights of the marquee’s are going dark as all Broadway shows have been closed until further notice. Governor Andrew Cuomo has recently decided that all gatherings of 500 people or greater have been banned in New York State in an attempt to flatten out the curve of the Coronavirus. But what does this mean for the thousands of actors, musicians, stagehands, ushers, and other people who will be out of work for at least a month? How will this affect the future of these shows?  Important note: I'm not in any way saying that this wasn’t the right choice for Cuomo to make. We absolutely need to prioritize actors, theater employee’s, and theater-goers' health. There are so many ways that this will immediately affect theater employees. First of all, it has been estimated that Broadway will lose over $100 million from ticket sales. With this much money lost, ther...
Read more
-
Image
Ski Racing: the Inside Scoop ^me, during my last race at states^ Everyone has their thing . Their interest, their hobby, their passion. Skiing is My Thing. It's my thing that I live for. Most people know about the pros, like Mikaela Shiffrin, Lindsey Vonn, Marcel Hersher. They see them racing down the hill, sometimes going over 80mph depending on the event. However, that doesn't come naturally. There is so much that goes into the final result.  Training Every weekend, and every day for some, out there on the snow running gates. Just out there running courses, all day, every day. It starts with you at the start gate. “Julia in the gate” is what I say into the walkie talkie that is positioned at the top tied to a pole, so my coach knows who’s at the start, because they are halfway down the course ready to video you so you can watch later and see what you could improve on. While you wait for the clear, you think about everything you're working on: level shoulders. ...
Read more

The Horrifying Truth of the Meat Industry

-
Image
The meat industry is horrifying. And not just because they are killing millions of innocent animals every day, billions if you count fish. It’s the way these animals get to your plate that is simply terrifying. From the second these animals are born they are abused. Right after birth, calves are traumatically separated from their mothers. Then they are dehorned, branded, and tagged. These baby cows are brought to feedlots where they are confined to pens so small that they don’t have space to turn around, lie down comfortably, or even stretch their limbs. Since factories bring in money based on the weight of animals, they are constantly stuffed with “food”, if you can even call it that. By-products that are commonly mixed with cow feed include stale junk food, gum with wrappers, heat treated garbage, chicken feathers, and urea. These disgusting items found in cow feed plus antibiotics that are often laced in as well can cause liver abscesses, acidosis in their rumens, illnesses a...
Read more