posted Jul 7, 2008

There were more people, and more noise, for the exceptionally entertaining over 35s Men's match, and the Girls' final, than there was for the Ladies' final.

I don't know how Navratilova can say the women's game is in good shape. It is just going to make the equal pay argument run and run. The men's and women's finals came from different galaxies.

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posted Jul 7, 2008

Why does the ladies game get equal prize money as the men? They don't play anywhere near the same ammount of tennis as the men. I can't imagine them going anywhere near 5 hours on court.

It just doesn't seem right, best way would be to earn a percentage or at least make them play best of 5 sets.

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posted Jul 7, 2008

RoyalAlbertDock - you are on something, I'm not sure what, but it aint legal !!!!

I agree with you on 2 points - the state of the women's game which I think is abysmal - the quality is not there at all - and women earning parity with the men. It is absurd that they want the same as men. Only in sport would it be possible to earn the same by doing half the work !

Dude - how can you say the Williams sisters have more technique than the rest put together ?? Obviously that comment was a wind up - either that or you don't actually watch tennis at all. Any shots that require a change of pace make them look like rank amateurs, when a little bit of 'craft' is required all too often they look cumbersome and awkward when exectuting the shot.

Regarding underprivilege, it might be boring to you, but it is a FACT of life. Some people get a better/easier shot at certain things than others. Financial contributions play a big part in who can and cannot do. In sports like football that EVERYONE has access to, people with nothing can make something of themselves, Boxing too - all you need is 'yourself' to get started.

Other sports that require a considerable outlay are nigh on IMPOSSIBLE for some kids to get into. how many families can:

1) afford to buy a go-kart and let their kid go karting or

2) pay for a horse or even horse riding lessons or

3) buy a cricket bat, pads, cricket shoes, and join a decent team or

4) buy a decent tennis raquet, pay for coaching lessons or even afford to join a tennis club or

5) buy a set of golf clubs and join a club, have lessons or even pay for enough rounds on a public course to get good enough to play the game ????

You clearly don't know what you are talking about my friend - so take it from experience - that I know what I am talking about.

And finally - your view of Rafa is somewhat tainted as you demonstrated you know very little about tennis. Graff used to run around her backhand to play a forehand all the time - didn't stop her being the best female player in the world. Whilst I admit that Federer has more strings to his bow, you cannot deny that Nadal, a completely different style of player, has many facits to his own game. Boring ?? No - that would be Federer bruv !

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posted Jul 7, 2008

for all the people who are suggesting that the women's final was "fixed", let me remind them all that out of 6 grand slam finals between the williams sisters (prior to saturday), serena had won 5!

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posted Jul 8, 2008

Other sports that require a considerable outlay are nigh on IMPOSSIBLE for some kids to get into. how many families can:
_________________________

This negative thinking is what limits people!!

Anthony Hamilton had THREE jobs to pay for his son to go karting!!

Richard Williams had to fight with gang members to get them off the ONLY public courts in his area of Compton LA!!

These are parents who fought for the right of their children to succeed in a chosen sport!

Not a silver spoon in sight and their children flourished in sports that are elitest and expensive....there's a chance if you really want it!!

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posted Jul 8, 2008

DaSilverSurfer - you make my points for me so PERFECTLY well.

POINT 1 - under privileged kids must rely on totally committed and devoted parents willing to go way and above what most other parents would do - hence my term 'nigh on impossible' cos in the real world parents of underprivileged kids CANNOT do that.

POINT 2 - if the parents have more 3 or 4 kids - how on earth can they spend money on assisting one child with their dream - when the other kids need food, clothes etc. Because of this, underprivileged kids don't even get to try these elite sports far less play them regularly. there are lots of families who cannot afford a family holiday - but you are trying to tell me these people can afford the hundreds of pounds needed to try elite sports - for one child - yeah right.

POINT 3 - Its easy to say what Richard Williams did to get his girls into tennis, and Anthony Hamilton having 3 jobs to pay for Lewis karting etc. The fact is, there are not many parents struggling to make ends meet who cant commit the time or money to do these things. You are living in a fantasy world if you think that it is easy to do and accessible for all cos it is not.

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posted Jul 8, 2008

Previous post should have read "there are many parents struggling to make ends meet" !!

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posted Jul 9, 2008

You know, it's only on 606's tennis boards that there is so much slagging off of women's tennis....

You don't see it on the athletics board, for example. I, for one, enjoyed the women's final, and I think it was one of the best I've seen. I see that a journalist in the Guardian had the same view as me:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/jul/08/wimbledon.tennis

He made some very interesting comments....

"In every respect, this was a full-on tennis match between two players sharing not just a family but an equal hunger for another Wimbledon title. Further proof came from the look on Serena's face as she watched her sister lifting the great silver dish. She was simply furious with herself for having failed where, in their two previous meetings in the final of the championship, she had prevailed."

"For once, a packed second Saturday crowd on Centre Court got value for their money even before the doubles players came along to provide light entertainment - or, in the case of Venus and Serena, who re-emerged in the women's doubles a couple of hours later, a demonstration of power play that singed whatever grass remained on the parched court."

"As is increasingly being noted, the Williams sisters adhere to a restricted competition schedule that may frustrate tournament organisers but allows them to live as fully functioning human beings, a useful corrective example to those who believe that hothousing is the way to bring up a champion."

And this one was the best....

"Finally, here's a suggestion for those who think that matches between the sisters are necessarily the victims of some sort of "family decision", as Dementieva foolishly claimed, or "fix", as others more baldly put it. While watching the match on television, try half-closing your eyes and pretending that one of the players is white. That might do the trick."

And, by the way, the Richard Williams who wrote this article is NOT the one the anti-Williams brigade think he is....

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posted Jul 11, 2008

HotHead - seriously, your second point is ridiculous. You honestly think when you're at the pinnacle of tennis, you have history in your hands,and you're playing an opponent who will batter you if you don't try to do the same, that you play down cos it's family? Ridiculous.

Obviously, it's a bit different if you're playing with a sponge ball in the garden and two plastic raquets.

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