Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Replay makes Grand Slam debut at US Open
By HOWARD FENDRICH, AP Sports Writer
August 20, 2006
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Imagine this scenario unfolding in a few weeks' time: Andre Agassi vs. Roger Federer, U.S. Open final, fifth set, full house, match point. Agassi whips a shot past Federer and drops to his knees, celebrating a Grand Slam title in his last tournament as a pro. The crowd goes wild.
Uh, hold on a second. Federer walks over to the chair umpire and challenges the call. Agassi gets up. Fans hush. Everyone looks up at the overhead screen to watch a video replay, and ... the call stands. Agassi drops to his knees again. Cue the crowd.
Anticlimactic? Perhaps. But the man in charge of the U.S. Open wouldn't mind: Arlen Kantarian wants to make sure calls are correct, which is part of why the challenge system will make its Grand Slam debut in Flushing Meadows a week from Monday.
"This thing is changing outcomes of matches -- so, so far, so good," Kantarian, a U.S. Tennis Association executive, said in a telephone interview. "It's been met with virtually complete support on the part of the players. Hey, the lack of controversy has been no fun at all."
Kantarian followed that line with a chuckle, but there's certainly some underlying truth there.
After all, one goal of using replay is to try to make sure there's no repeat of the obvious-to-everyone-but-the-umpire missed calls in a 2004 U.S. Open match between Serena Williams and Jennifer Capriati. Another goal is to add spice to the sport.
It's why the WTA Tour is allowing on-court coaching. Why the U.S. Open courts are now blue. Anything to draw attention.
"It's about marrying a sport that's been steeped in tradition with innovation," Kantarian said. "We've got to give the players some recourse and the fans some more excitement -- and, so far, instant replay has done both."
As two-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal put it at the Cincinnati Masters: "It's part of the show."
All indications from U.S. Open tuneup tournaments over the past month is that the system really is a hit with players and fans. Well, most players. One holdout is two-time U.S. Open champion Federer, who didn't like the idea from the start.
More representative is Andy Murray, the 19-year-old Scot who ended Federer's 55-match winning streak in North America last week.
Earlier this month, at an Open tuneup in Washington, Murray was enthusiastic -- even though he was 0-for-the-tournament on challenges until then.
"If you can get the crowd involved in any way, that's better. They're going to enjoy it more, regardless of how many you get right or wrong or how much it can change a match," Murray said. "And that's the most important thing: If you can get people to come and watch, that's better for us."
At Washington, spectators applauded or yelled when players challenged calls, then made more noise when replays were shown. They were as animated about replays as any volley or groundstroke.
"It's great for the fans, it's great for the players, it's great for the linesmen -- it lets them know if they're right or wrong," said Brad Gilbert, who's coached Agassi and Andy Roddick and now works with Murray.
"Unlike NFL football, where it takes a long time," Gilbert noted, "it's 10 seconds."
And unlike in football, there aren't judgment calls to be made by an official tucked under a replay-hiding hood. When a player questions a call, above-court video screens show a graphic rendering of the ball's flight, in slow motion, with a dark spot indicating where it landed. That spot either touches a white line -- the ball was in -- or it doesn't -- the ball was out. Simple as that.
"It doesn't distract the game a lot," 2004 U.S. Open runner-up Elena Dementieva said.
That's also because players get two challenges per set, plus an extra one if a set goes to a tiebreaker. Through the first four weeks of the U.S. Open Series, there were an average of 3.09 challenges per men's match and 2.25 per women's match. Calls were overturned 39 percent of the time overall.
Kantarian isn't surprised by the changed rulings.
"The speed and power of today's game is something that the human eye cannot keep up with," he said. "You've got 150 mph serves, 100 mph forehands, and right now, technology is going to have to make its impact on this sport."
Some don't like that intrusion, though, and there are other concerns, including why the number of challenges is limited.
"Unlimited challenges would render the game mechanical. We don't want to turn this into a video game," Kantarian said. "Keeping the human element in all sports is critical."
Another complaint: Because of the money and logistics involved, the system is being used only on one court at most events and will be used at two of 18 courts at the U.S. Open (at a cost of about $300,000).
"You have to be the same for everyone -- same rules," top-10 player Tommy Robredo said.
His loss to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the Cincinnati Masters semifinals Saturday ended on a challenged call. Instead of closing out the match with an outright winner, Ferrero had to wait while Robredo made the umpire check a ruling.
"It was a little bit disappointing finish," said Ferrero, the 2003 U.S. Open runner-up. "But it's one kind of finish we can have in tennis, no? Not the best, but. ..."
It's also the sort of finish that could be seen a lot more, depending on how things go in New York. While the French Open doesn't need replay, because balls leave marks in the red clay, Wimbledon and the Australian Open are looking into it.
"We'll be monitoring the U.S. Open very closely," Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said, "to see how successful the system works there and if there are any lessons to be learned."
AP Sports Writers Beth Harris in Carson, Calif., Joe Kay in Mason, Ohio, and John Pye in Australia contributed to this report.
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By HOWARD FENDRICH, AP Sports Writer
August 20, 2006
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Imagine this scenario unfolding in a few weeks' time: Andre Agassi vs. Roger Federer, U.S. Open final, fifth set, full house, match point. Agassi whips a shot past Federer and drops to his knees, celebrating a Grand Slam title in his last tournament as a pro. The crowd goes wild.
Uh, hold on a second. Federer walks over to the chair umpire and challenges the call. Agassi gets up. Fans hush. Everyone looks up at the overhead screen to watch a video replay, and ... the call stands. Agassi drops to his knees again. Cue the crowd.
Anticlimactic? Perhaps. But the man in charge of the U.S. Open wouldn't mind: Arlen Kantarian wants to make sure calls are correct, which is part of why the challenge system will make its Grand Slam debut in Flushing Meadows a week from Monday.
"This thing is changing outcomes of matches -- so, so far, so good," Kantarian, a U.S. Tennis Association executive, said in a telephone interview. "It's been met with virtually complete support on the part of the players. Hey, the lack of controversy has been no fun at all."
Kantarian followed that line with a chuckle, but there's certainly some underlying truth there.
After all, one goal of using replay is to try to make sure there's no repeat of the obvious-to-everyone-but-the-umpire missed calls in a 2004 U.S. Open match between Serena Williams and Jennifer Capriati. Another goal is to add spice to the sport.
It's why the WTA Tour is allowing on-court coaching. Why the U.S. Open courts are now blue. Anything to draw attention.
"It's about marrying a sport that's been steeped in tradition with innovation," Kantarian said. "We've got to give the players some recourse and the fans some more excitement -- and, so far, instant replay has done both."
As two-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal put it at the Cincinnati Masters: "It's part of the show."
All indications from U.S. Open tuneup tournaments over the past month is that the system really is a hit with players and fans. Well, most players. One holdout is two-time U.S. Open champion Federer, who didn't like the idea from the start.
More representative is Andy Murray, the 19-year-old Scot who ended Federer's 55-match winning streak in North America last week.
Earlier this month, at an Open tuneup in Washington, Murray was enthusiastic -- even though he was 0-for-the-tournament on challenges until then.
"If you can get the crowd involved in any way, that's better. They're going to enjoy it more, regardless of how many you get right or wrong or how much it can change a match," Murray said. "And that's the most important thing: If you can get people to come and watch, that's better for us."
At Washington, spectators applauded or yelled when players challenged calls, then made more noise when replays were shown. They were as animated about replays as any volley or groundstroke.
"It's great for the fans, it's great for the players, it's great for the linesmen -- it lets them know if they're right or wrong," said Brad Gilbert, who's coached Agassi and Andy Roddick and now works with Murray.
"Unlike NFL football, where it takes a long time," Gilbert noted, "it's 10 seconds."
And unlike in football, there aren't judgment calls to be made by an official tucked under a replay-hiding hood. When a player questions a call, above-court video screens show a graphic rendering of the ball's flight, in slow motion, with a dark spot indicating where it landed. That spot either touches a white line -- the ball was in -- or it doesn't -- the ball was out. Simple as that.
"It doesn't distract the game a lot," 2004 U.S. Open runner-up Elena Dementieva said.
That's also because players get two challenges per set, plus an extra one if a set goes to a tiebreaker. Through the first four weeks of the U.S. Open Series, there were an average of 3.09 challenges per men's match and 2.25 per women's match. Calls were overturned 39 percent of the time overall.
Kantarian isn't surprised by the changed rulings.
"The speed and power of today's game is something that the human eye cannot keep up with," he said. "You've got 150 mph serves, 100 mph forehands, and right now, technology is going to have to make its impact on this sport."
Some don't like that intrusion, though, and there are other concerns, including why the number of challenges is limited.
"Unlimited challenges would render the game mechanical. We don't want to turn this into a video game," Kantarian said. "Keeping the human element in all sports is critical."
Another complaint: Because of the money and logistics involved, the system is being used only on one court at most events and will be used at two of 18 courts at the U.S. Open (at a cost of about $300,000).
"You have to be the same for everyone -- same rules," top-10 player Tommy Robredo said.
His loss to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the Cincinnati Masters semifinals Saturday ended on a challenged call. Instead of closing out the match with an outright winner, Ferrero had to wait while Robredo made the umpire check a ruling.
"It was a little bit disappointing finish," said Ferrero, the 2003 U.S. Open runner-up. "But it's one kind of finish we can have in tennis, no? Not the best, but. ..."
It's also the sort of finish that could be seen a lot more, depending on how things go in New York. While the French Open doesn't need replay, because balls leave marks in the red clay, Wimbledon and the Australian Open are looking into it.
"We'll be monitoring the U.S. Open very closely," Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said, "to see how successful the system works there and if there are any lessons to be learned."
AP Sports Writers Beth Harris in Carson, Calif., Joe Kay in Mason, Ohio, and John Pye in Australia contributed to this report.
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