Is Tennis Getting Boring?

It is.

It is getting very, very boring according to Ernest Gulbis.

He goes one further, too and blames it all on Federer:

"I respect Roger, Rafa, Novak and Murray but, for me, all four of them are boring players. Their interviews are boring. Honestly, they are boring as crap. I often go on YouTube to watch the interviews. With tennis, I quickly stop. It is a joke.

It’s Federer who started this fashion. He has a superb image of a Swiss gentleman, perfect for him. I repeat, I respect Federer but I don’t like it that young players try to imitate him. When I hear them answer like Roger, I am terrified by phrases like: ‘I had a little bit more success at certain moments and that is how I won. ' I do not want to hear in an interview a guy who I will not name, but who I know well thinks all his opponents are a***holes, putting on an act.

I want to say what I think. And if my prediction is that I am going to win the match, it doesn’t bother me to say so. I would like interviews to be more like in boxing. OK, maybe those guys are maybe not the brightest on earth, but when they face each other down at the weigh-in, they bring what the fans want: War, blood, emotion. All that is missing in tennis, where everything is clean, and white with polite handshakes and some nice shots. While the people want to see broken rackets and hear outbursts on the court.”


Fed boring? Surely, Ernie cannot be serious!!!

What do you think of it all?

"I do not want to hear in an interview a guy who I will not name, but who I know well thinks all his opponents are a***holes, putting on an act."

I wonder who Earnie is referring here to?

Here are a few memorable interviews off the top of my head:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srpPPrbKTfs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plbomcLe1rI

An Ernie compilation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSmYYuZewro

Finally, the king of interviews, himself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co6Eum_87gE

Interesting.
Bit gutted about his loss today, he looked great at times, but that fh is a real liability at times.

Well he is saying interviews are boring...not tennis, isn't it? In a way he might be right but strangely I have always found Federer's interviews pretty interesting as he can analyse courts, players and conditions better than most.

I like Gulbis a lot...I just wish he was winning more and talking less though.

I have always found Federer's interviews interesting and honest, too, so was a bit surprised that Gulbis chose him as the example (goes back to the "between the ears" comment I think).
Federer is not a naturally witty guy or a born entertainer, but at least he is honest and interesting to listen to.

For someone allegedly so brave and speaking his mind, Gulbis had no guts to really name Nadal as the most boring and politically correct interviewee of all time.

Eanie, you have let yourself down on this one, I'm afraid....you are not as earnest as you like to make yourself out to be.

noleisthebest wrote:Federer is not a naturally witty guy or a born entertainer, but at least he is honest and interesting to listen to.

But even the most "entertaining" tennis players like Safin, Gulbis, Agassi, McEnroe, Roddick have never really interested me as I was essentially interested in tennis and much less in the show side of the game. This is exactly why I liked Fed's interviews.

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Federer is not a naturally witty guy or a born entertainer, but at least he is honest and interesting to listen to.

But even the most "entertaining" tennis players like Safin, Gulbis, Agassi, McEnroe, Roddick have never really interested me as I was essentially interested in tennis and much less in the show side of the game. This is exactly why I liked Fed's interviews.

Yes, we all know that, incl. Gulbis.
I , for example never liked Agassi and Roddick full stop.

The point Gulbis is making is that players are restraining themselves and putting on a sterile facade of "perfection", pretending to be something they are not.
People can see through it and prefer honesty whether it's witty or not.
Nobody wants to listen to politically correct interviews full of worn out cliches.
Except maybe those who love "humble warriors".

Well yes but the problem is not so much the players but the weight of the sponsors they have on their shoulders which prevents them to really speak their minds.

If you have Gulbis or Safin money and charisma you can buy some freedom of speech....if you are granollers...it's a bit harder.

For me, fair play is the ultimate, then good tennis, then a bit of spark and spice like cherry on the top.
I like to see players' characters come though on court freely, both positive and negative: Murray is hilarious in his self-destructive mode, I love Novak's outbursts of fire, too, also when Fed loses it with umpires.
And I don't mind a bit of a cold handshake either
Funny, I don't like it when Nole applauds opponents' good shots.
Even Nadal's Rosol bump last year was great in some way, showed what he was really like and how badly he wanted to win at all cost.

Yes teh good thing about sport is that when the pressure is on and the gloves fall off...we get a better idea of who we are dealing with.

Yes, even at club level, where there's nothing really much at stake (except pride for egomaniacs), people really let themselves down....

luvsports! wrote:Interesting.
Bit gutted about his loss today, he looked great at times, but that fh is a real liability at times.

The match was on G's racquet early on, but Monfils had the overwhelming home crowd support all the way. Ultimately, perhaps he wasn't defeated by Monfils but the audience cheering for him.

BTW, LS, very belated congrats for completing your dissertation.

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Federer is not a naturally witty guy or a born entertainer, but at least he is honest and interesting to listen to.

But even the most "entertaining" tennis players like Safin, Gulbis, Agassi, McEnroe, Roddick have never really interested me as I was essentially interested in tennis and much less in the show side of the game. This is exactly why I liked Fed's interviews.

Yeah, I can't stand Monfils' showy acrobatic theatrics. We already have nadal's phoney antics.If I want to see circus acts, I'd go to the Cirque du Soleil. Now that's real entertainment with class.

SR wrote:

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Federer is not a naturally witty guy or a born entertainer, but at least he is honest and interesting to listen to.

But even the most "entertaining" tennis players like Safin, Gulbis, Agassi, McEnroe, Roddick have never really interested me as I was essentially interested in tennis and much less in the show side of the game. This is exactly why I liked Fed's interviews.

Yeah, I can't stand Monfils' showy acrobatic theatrics. We already have nadal's phoney antics.If I want to see circus acts, I'd go to the Cirque du Soleil. Now that's real entertainment with class.

LOL! But I think Monfils' theatrics are really him and not a tactic to deconcentrate. In fact I think it affects him more than his opponent....a bit like McEnroe's.

I have no problem watching players expressing something different on court. To me it's very important that Mondfils is a fair player...or certainly seems like one...though I perfectly understand why some would hate that. Monfils loves to play for the crowd...his game is really about acrobatics more than theatrics...it;s his style and glad a very different one than most players on tour.

He is probably my least preferred French player but still a player who brings something new and original on court.

All fairness to Monfils, he used to be much worse with his exhibitionism. He's toned it down and has become a much more competent player along the way.

I like Tsonga. He's got the cutest smiles and the coolest parents.

Now Fed has potentially a contingent of 3 local sons to beat before the semi, I think. But lucky for him, the French fans love him as one of their own.

Yes they do respect the great Fed and it's just as well that Fed respects the French players as he said a few times.

SR wrote:

luvsports! wrote:Interesting.
Bit gutted about his loss today, he looked great at times, but that fh is a real liability at times.

The match was on G's racquet early on, but Monfils had the overwhelming home crowd support all the way. Ultimately, perhaps he wasn't defeated by Monfils but the audience cheering for him.

BTW, LS, very belated congrats for completing your dissertation.

Thanks bud, I'm done with Uni as well!

Ernest hit the nail on the head. I consider Fed's comments as the most boring. His phoney friendship with his great friend Rafael looks like a tragic comedy. Fortunately they can praise each other nicely

paulcz wrote:Ernest hit the nail on the head. I consider Fed's comments as the most boring. His phoney friendship with his great friend Rafael looks like a tragic comedy. Fortunately they can praise each other nicely

You mean this is not genuine!!!?:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94xyOpETYYs

Joking aside, unfortunately, times have changed since Connors, Nastase and Mac's days...remember grumpy professional Lendl?

Those were the days we all love because they had the peak/perfect balance between the prize money, entertainent, players' lifestyle and most importantly tennis itself.
It really was a golden era in every way.

Now, we have the same scenario but with the twist: tennis is very popular, but sadly, it is a tragedy without the comic relief because lawyers and money have killed everything and extinguished spontaneity and joy of life not just for tennis players.

Black people are now of "African origin" & whites are "Caucasian" . Fat people are not fat any more, they are "large" & "overweight".

What a palaver!!!!

So it all spills over into professional sport where there is so much money swirling around.

Novak, Roger and Rafa privately hate each others' guts and we all know it, just like they do, but they just can't let it all hang out, it's in their contract.
Listen to what Novak had to say about Gulbis's "accusation" in his interview today:

"After Federer admitted he was rarely a source of sensational stories, blaming it on the high number of media commitments players were obliged to honour, Djokovic said Gulbis may have a small point.

"I agree with one small fact is that maybe we are lacking more enthusiasm and maybe more entertainment in the players, so more creativity in the players.
But on the other hand ... it's tough because it's such a demanding sport now physically, mentally, emotionally.
Every day you're basically on the court throughout the whole year."

(video of the whole interview with better detail is on this website but you have to scroll down it's a small screen on the right, couldn't copy the link for some reason)
http://www.tennis.com/

Also, it's like any other job in the world: you may hate your boss or a colleague and you can't do much about it so you put up with it for the sake of money you are earning there. Imagine telling your boss he has terrible breath! Same for the players. Big bucks-big, small-print clauses, PR professionals telling them what to say....

It's a shame it's like that and I am sure players themselves would love to be able to say what they think more openly just like we do (I do anyway )

After all, as good old Rafa keeps repeating to the umps: Is it good for The Show?

"I agree with one small fact is that maybe we are lacking more enthusiasm and maybe more entertainment in the players, so more creativity in the players.
But on the other hand ... it's tough because it's such a demanding sport now physically, mentally, emotionally.
Every day you're basically on the court throughout the whole year."

Yes....that's very true. tennis is a job...a job taken seriously by Djoko and that's why Novak is number one and Gulbis is number 50 even though Gulbis is more talented than Djoko.

Tenez wrote: Yes....that's very true. tennis is a job...a job taken seriously by Djoko and that's why Novak is number one and Gulbis is number 50 even though Gulbis is more talented than Djoko.

An Ode to T

There is a certain T
Talent he loves to talk
Today Tomorrow and Always
More than you and me!

He is quick to tell you
Who has it and who not
Oh, run for cover, here he comes
Angry and fuming hot !

It's easy. Talent is an obvious trait very easy for all to see. Problem is that it is not measurable so we can easily argue against the "quantifiable" part...even though once again talent is plain obvious.

And you may have read this old interview of Djoko admitting that Gulbis was more talented....so you may want to write a poem about Djoko too.

Tenez wrote:It's easy. Talent is an obvious trait very easy for all to see. Problem is that it is not measurable so we can easily argue against the "quantifiable" part...even though once again talent is plain obvious.

Of course it's easy.

I even have my own little talent-ometer : I look at a player's face when they hit the ball:

Yep that could be a good criteria....any pictures of Djoko.

Tenez wrote:Yep that could be a good criteria....any pictures of Djoko.

Why, for your office door?

luvsports! wrote:http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?um=1&sa=N&biw=1366&bih=677&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbnid=yKfMurpZSJz32M:&imgrefurl=http://www.foxsports.com.au/tennis/novak-djokovic-moves-into-third-round-of-australian-open-with-straight-sets-thrashing-of-ryan-harrison/story-e6frf4mu-1226555429730&docid=gUwONhFvTnrRbM&imgurl=http://resources0.news.com.au/images/2013/01/16/1226555/428104-novak-djokovic.jpg&w=640&h=360&ei=JuOnUb_iKoWm0QWxyYDgBQ&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:5,s:0,i:178&iact=rc&dur=2207&page=1&tbnh=168&tbnw=274&start=0&ndsp=19&tx=115&ty=60

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?um=1&sa=N&biw=1366&bih=677&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbnid=nXqZYbhKcovP2M:&imgrefurl=http://www.3news.co.nz/Novak-Djokovic-in-Australian-Open-final/tabid/415/articleID/284342/Default.aspx&docid=wF2uxsfm2X9xAM&imgurl=http://cdn.3news.co.nz/3news/AM/2013/1/24/284342/novakdjokovic1AAP.jpg%253Fwidth%253D460&w=460&h=307&ei=JuOnUb_iKoWm0QWxyYDgBQ&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:15,s:0,i:208&iact=rc&dur=513&page=1&tbnh=169&tbnw=261&start=0&ndsp=19&tx=109&ty=120

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?um=1&sa=N&biw=1366&bih=677&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbnid=iLUfez-qIwyKaM:&imgrefurl=http://my.hsj.org/schools/newspaper/tabid/100/view/frontpage/schoolid/3975/articleid/562970/say_cheese_novak_djokovic.aspx&docid=8SKYLZOt11Ys9M&imgurl=http://s3.amazonaws.com/asnemedia/1d6069d7-0bfe-4a89-aaa9-3afbb6e981d6-SPORTS_TEN-USOPEN_5_ND.jpg&w=3000&h=2662&ei=JuOnUb_iKoWm0QWxyYDgBQ&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:57,s:0,i:343&iact=rc&dur=915&page=3&tbnh=181&tbnw=202&start=43&ndsp=24&tx=121&ty=78

Nah...that's all photoshop

Anyway, back to the main topic....(although just like all roads lead to Rome, all conversations on Our Talent Forum end up talking about, well, .... talent!

Murray's take on Gulbis's accussation:

"As an athlete, all I do is try my best to be as good as I can be as a tennis player.
Whether people like you or not should be irrelevant. But, to be honest, over the years I have found it difficult to open up and be a bundle of laughs in press conferences or interviews.
I always try to give honest answers, but they are fairly boring so I don't have to deal with the aftermath of any scandals.
I would say that I am different from what a lot of people think I am like. What would bother me is if the people around me started telling me that I had begun changing, being an arse, or something. That's when you take it seriously.
You don't get to see what people are really like from in front of the TV. It is very easy to be false and fake in front of the camera.
But to tell jokes and be fun all the time, that's not actually very hard to do. If you are going to be truthful and tell things like they are, that is much harder."

Federer:
"But also you cannot say anything you do not like about something to someone without being totally criticised by many people. Therefore, everyone is very careful.
On the other hand, I also think it's nice that we treat each other with respect."

Nadal:

Rumour has it that Nadal found out about the "hot" Gulbis press conference question, which is why his team decided that Nadal was not going to play his scheduled match today.
They will be working on the answer for tomorrow's match press conference all night...
It must be "good for The Show"!

The funny thing is that Gulbis is not speaking his mind either as he doesn't give any name afa I know. ....So what he says is not very gutsy and therefore boring? ....or he is being diplomatic as well....like everybody else.

I think Gulbis is bitter and frustrated he isn't able to achieve results he seems to think he is entitled to because of his talent.
"Talent" ( can' believe I 'm back at it again!!!) is just one of many elements necessary to succeed on the tour and its role is shrinking because of playing conditions even more.
In his pampered mind, Gulbis must have made super "hard" effort to "come back" this year and is not where he was planning & hoping to be at this stage of ATP calendar ( not even a seed for RG or Wimbledon).
He should take a leaf out of Monf's , Delpo's or Haas's book, get his head down and put some hard yards in, let his talent do the walk and THEN - talk!

Because of its physicality, tennis is becoming more and more a test of character and perseverance than ever now.
It's a constant fight against the mind and body to go through the gruelling fitness regime EVERY day....

Sadly, gone are the days where you could just run a bit on the treadmill, pick up a racquet and play!
It's a miracle if players are still able to even enjoy playing these days, so no wonder fun has disappeared from tennis courts....

noleisthebest wrote:I think Gulbis is bitter and frustrated he isn't able to achieve results he seems to think he is entitled to because of his talent.
"Talent" ( can' believe I 'm back at it again!!!) is just one of many elements necessary to succeed on the tour and its role is shrinking because of playing conditions even more.
In his pampered mind, Gulbis must have made super "hard" effort to "come back" this year and is not where he was planning & hoping to be at this stage of ATP calendar ( not even a seed for RG or Wimbledon).
He should take a leaf out of Monf's , Delpo's or Haas's book, get his head down and put some hard yards in, let his talent do the walk and THEN - talk!

He is not far off. He is always a couple of points away from beating the best players or the players on form (like Monfils). If he carries on it will certainly pay off. I don;t think he is discouraged. I am not sure he expected things to come that easily. I think his comments about interviews are more to do with his character than his results.

I understand what he says, but as Murray says t's just a bit pointless to try to be funny or original cause we (and the media) are going to blow it up...so we get what we deserve.

At the Connors McEnroe time....we were amused by all those antics and it helped promote the game...now we would pretend to be shocked by those and media and sponsors woudl support "our" views. Just look at the mess Tiger woods was for having affairs.....did we care in teh past how many girlfriends Guerulatis and Pecci were having?

Tenez wrote:

He is not far off. He is always a couple of points away from beating the best players or the players on form (like Monfils). If he carries on it will certainly pay off. I don;t think he is discouraged. I am not sure he expected things to come that easily. I think his comments about interviews are more to do with his character than his results.

I understand what he says, but as Murray says t's just a bit pointless to try to be funny or original cause we (and the media) are going to blow it up...so we get what we deserve.

At the Connors McEnroe time....we were amused by all those antics and it helped promote the game...now we would pretend to be shocked by those and media and sponsors woudl support "our" views. Just look at the mess Tiger woods was for having affairs.....did we care in teh past how many girlfriends Guerulatis and Pecci were having?

Very good point.
It's worth mentioning it's the Anglo-Saxon (Brits & Americans) media that are obsessed with sexual scandals, not so much the Europeans ( did Sarcosy and Berlusconi suffer for their "love" life?) , which is highly hypocritical, as usual...who can forget America blasting Clinton for his Oval Office frolics with Lewinski, and at the same time not batting an eyelid on the fact they went to war with Iraq fuelled with lies, obliterating the place and killing thousands of civilians every day....
I found it hilarious how Sven Goran Ericsson wasn't bothered in the least with British media going for him during his "affair" with that secretary, just trying to oust him from his England captain job.
He completely ignored them and stayed as long as he could, getting full pay for a year (his unfulfilled contract time due to being forced to resign hence not able to fulfill it) even after leaving the job.
Unfortunately, Anglosaxon media rule at the moment which is why I choose to ignore it as much as possible. Orwell's 1984 has arrived 20 years late, but it's here well and truly!

Yes but the Anglo-saxons views are only delivering what we want...or rather they are pushing a button we like.

In France I don;t think we coudl have had a Max Mosley's stroy out in the public as they protect very much the VIP personal lives.....too much in fact, if anything.

For me, the REAL problem is not that media are giving us what we "want", but creating those wants and pushing the boundaries, all in the name of "tolerance".

And aren't personal lives just what the word says: PERSONAL?
It's the masses who don't have their own lives that are bred to live and feed off the others'.
Half of it if not most is all fabricated, anyway.

It's a sad little cheap and nasty world at best.
At worst: dangerous, manipulating, fear-mongering, society-destroying machine.

So much information available - so much ignorance and little freedom of speech.

Always a scandal up their sleeve to mask and hide the real issues.

noleisthebest wrote:For me, the REAL problem is not that media are giving us what we "want", but creating those wants and pushing the boundaries, all in the name of "tolerance".

They create those "wants" certainly but as said, in other countries they would not have the same success for such stories....they create different "wants".

They certainly do, but having lived in three very different countries, I can say that those wants vary a lot, the agenda behind it all usually the same.
Never like in the UK though do media try to ram some very dangerous moral issues down people's throats, though, the consequences of which are far reaching and irrevocable.
It has changed so much in the last 15 years and now stands out as the self-proclaimed beacon of liberality, trying (and partly succeeding little by little through things such as pop culture and fashion among the young) to influence the rest of the world.
Poorer European countries are trying desperately to oblige ( and get their bit of cash out of it), richer ones are still resisting, and good on them!

I think for Gulbis it's easy to talk, he is wealthy to start with, so for him it's more a hobby than a job, it's much easier not to be serious outside of the workplace

Very good point Sphair.

It has just dawned on me!!!

Gulbis would love it here with us on OTF, where straight talk and fun rule!
Imagine the poor thing on v2

It's true actually. We are all some kind of Gulbis here: losers with a big mouth!

As opposed to most on V2....losers with fears!

I think he couldn't stand any tennis forum 2bh.