Fragile tennis egos

[marmar]

from the WSJ:




Tennis is rich with rivalries, but this year there's a more unusual feud brewing on the courts: player versus commentator.

With the Tennis Channel and ESPN only covering the U.S. Open for the second year, the number of talking heads has mushroomed at the Grand Slams lately, and they're not announcing matches in the hushed, respectful whispers still favored by British tennis fans and golf enthusiasts.

In order to appeal to the nontennis crowd, many are taking a chattier, more irreverent and in some cases just plain louder approach, and their commentary is zooming back to the players at lightening speed, thanks to text messaging and social-networking tools like Facebook and Twitter. The chatter is rankling some of the tour's more sensitive players, like Maria Sharapova and Andy Roddick, not to mention purist fans accustomed to watching points in silence.

Mr. Roddick has been telling Tennis Channel commentator Justin Gimelstob in the locker room to "stop hammering his forehand," and this week he sent him this text while watching a recording of Mr. Gimelstob announce one of his matches from his home in Brooklyn: "I'm enjoying watching you sweat all over yourself." ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704206804575467912925555010.html