A boss, but that’s all: why women’s tennis is slow to take off

Who will succeed Queen Serena to breathe new life into women’s tennis? For a few years and the slow decline of the American, the question has seemed like a sea serpent. Naomi Osaka first seriously knocked on the door with two double US Open – Australian Open in 2018-2019 and 2020- 2021. Then Ashleigh Barty looked set to pick up the slack after an accomplished 2021 season, an ideal start to 2022 in Melbourne before an unexpected retirement. And it was finally Iga Swiatek who answered the question in the wake of an exceptional year notably marked by two Grand Slam coronations (Roland-Garros and US Open, his 2nd and 3rd personal) and 8 titles in all.

But it is above all her crazy series of 37 victories that has marked the spirits, precisely recalling the cannibal rhythm which was the prerogative of Serena Williams, in recent years. Victim of an artistic vagueness which had inevitably made it lose interest since roughly 2017 (date of the last major triumph of the American), the WTA circuit has therefore once again found itself a patroness, as indisputable in the clear impression on the court than in the figures. At the end of this 2022 season, there is more point difference between Iga Swiatek and her runner-up Ons Jabeur than between the Tunisian and the last ranked player. And therein lies the new problem, so to speak.

“To make women’s tennis attractive, you need rivalriesnotes our consultant Camille Pin. If a girl wins everything, you can quickly get bored, if two or three of them share the cake, it becomes more fun. There was a bad combination of circumstances also this year: the stoppage of Ashleigh Barty who was world number 1. There would certainly have been a good duel between her and Swiatek with two pretty nice girls with quite different games, with their heads on their shoulders, which would have given a good image to women’s tennis. It’s a shame that Osaka is no longer in the game, with her punchy tennis a bit like Serena. Things could have turned out better and we remain unsatisfied. It’s not like there’s nothing.”

It is nevertheless clear that it is not easy for the general public to name the players who form the current Top 10. Once Swiatek, Ons Jabeur, a pioneer for the Arab world, even the young American prodigy Cori Gauff mentioned, the rest of the field has not yet made an impression. With the exception perhaps of a Caroline Garcia put back in the spotlight by her dazzling second half of the season and her victory at the Masters.

Is the women’s circuit suffering from a generational low? The problem is probably more complex. Because the champions with certain potential and strong personalities have spread over the past five years. From Garbine Muguruza, world number 1 in the fall of 2017, to the comet Emma Raducanu during the US Open 2021, passing by the Bianca Andreescu and other Naomi Osaka already mentioned above, the range is rather rich and varied tennistically . Still, the regularity is undoubtedly lacking. And especially on the mental level, which is perhaps a generational marker.

Personalities and talents, but mental flaws

“There was something of a golden age in women’s tennis at the turn of the 1990s and 2000s with Belgians Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters, the Williams sisters and Amélie Mauresmo. I even heard at the time people tell Roland that they preferred seeing girls to guys. It was before Federer, Nadal and Company. And why this ? Because these players were probably out of the ordinary mentally, more so than the current generation. But they managed better people’s expectations also because times have changed: the new era of social networks with a totally different communication, it tires them much more“, considers Camille Pin.

And our consultant to clarify: “I know coaches who train young people and tell me that as soon as they get out of training, they post stuff. They leave a lot of energy in there. Back in the days of the Henins and the Sharapovas, they had someone to handle the press and they were just focused on preparing. It’s as if the new champions had a second job on the side: communications. And it involves taking sides on current events, like Osaka and the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement. At some point, you have to be completely engaged in your work to be consistent. Maybe Osaka had too much to deal with all at once..”

It is also interesting to note that these young champions also lack stability in their entourage. Osaka, now 42nd in the world, separated from her coach Wim Fissette last summer, while Bianca Andreescu (45th) has just hired Christophe Lambert in place of Sven Groeneveld. But the prize in this area goes to Emma Raducanu who has been accompanied by three successive coaches this year, Dmitry Tursunov being the latest to be fired.

Swiatek, Garcia, Gauff, Osaka, Raducanu… A dream Top 10 in the future?

The British also illustrates despite herself the danger of this era of communication. Having become a real star thanks to her feat at Flushing Meadows – her pretty face spoiling nothing for the big brands – she also had a difficult 2022 season. While the sponsor deals poured in, the results didn’t quite follow. So the criticisms were as harsh as the excessive expectations for him. And this even if it was his first full year on the circuit only, at 20 years old.

At one point in the Top 10, Raducanu now points to 75th place: nothing alarming when you know that she was 150th before her New York adventure. The whole challenge for the Briton and the others will be to find more mental stability to gradually settle at the top of the hierarchy. It wouldn’t be surprising then to see exciting rivalries emerge. Some matches like the round of 16 of the Australian Open 2021 between Osaka and Muguruza have also given a good overview.

“It’s okay to be emotional, Amélie Mauresmo was and she was world number 1 with two Grand Slam titlesfinally insists Camille Pin. It’s not a brake if you manage to manage your emotions. And I’m sure these girls can find ways to stay who they are and be Top 10. If in this closed circle, we keep Iga Swiatek, Caro Garcia, Cori Gauff, Ons Jabeur and his super varied game, and we add the Raducanu, Muguruza, Osaka and Andreescu to it, it would be the dream.”