I think Venus Williams cheats.

[11 Bravo]

She has gone WAY beyond simply grunting on every shot. She now screams with each stroke in a transparent attempt to distract her opponent. I have a cousin who knocked around the women's tour for a couple of years, and she tells me that the Williams sisters are infamous in the locker room for employing the tactic. Her quote was, "The bigger the point, the louder the scream". The WTA keeps threatening to crack down, but they never do.

[CatWoman]

1. hmmmmmmm

get lost on your way to the Lounge?

[Dogmudgeon]

2. NO SEX THREADS.

Violators will be tarred, feathered, spoken of harshly.

--p!

[elehhhhna]

3. Is there a rule prohibiting grunting loudly?

It's not golf, for crying out loud!

If there's a rule, it should be enforced.

Otherwise it's just gross. She sounds like she wants to barf.

[alfredo]

4. Wasn't it David Schwimmer who said the grunts and screams

were "stimulating"?

[bloom]

5. maybe her opponent should try to grunt louder... eom

[kaitykaity]

6. Let's all thank Monica Seles in unison.

She started it. Worked for her.

It's not cheating if what she's doing isn't against
the rules.

[MuseRider]

7. Cheating?

Nahhh, I made noises trying to hit the ball that hard too. To quote a really famous player from the past..."Ah..EEEEEE Ah..EEEEEE". Cheating? I don't think so.

[dragonkeep]

8. Not!

Both players were out there grunting. With the power they were both generating, it's not surprising. Just started watching the Sharapova/Petrova match and they are both doing it too. I think you will find almost all of the power players do it. The level play in women's tennis is truly awesome these days and spectacular to watch.

[11 Bravo]

10. And Sharapova has been told to tone it down.

Years ago Monica Seles was told the same thing. The Williams sisters have not been warned. Again, I will simple relay the feelings of a woman who has been on court with Venus (but not Serena). She believes that the screams are intended as a distraction, and she tells me that many in the locker room share those feelings. If a player has been warned, that would indicate to me that there must be some sort of codified prohibition agasinst excessive grunting. I defy anyone to tell me that what I heard today was not "excessive".

[Blue Belle]

20. I would agree to that except...

My boyfriend and I were watching one of Venus' matches and she let out a blood curdling grunt... then dinked the volley daintily across so that it plopped just over the net. My boyfriend and I instantly looked at each other an laughed out how ridiculous the dramatic grunting display was. If that much exertion is the criteria used for primal grunts, look for chess matches to become more vocal. :)

[Tim4319]

9. I don't really see that as cheating.

If her opponent was as focused as they should be, the grunts and screams shouldn't have an effect on their game.

[ecstatic]

11. then grunt back

What's the big deal? Why should a grunt distract? Because she's this scary black woman who might "lose it" at any moment?

[Richardo]

12. I'd say this is more gamesmanship than cheating.

All's fair, etc. as long as it's not aginast the rules.

[NorthernSpy]

13. sorry, but I've got very little sympathy for sore losers

Perhaps your cousin should spend more time working on her game and less time working on her excuses. She might have less to complain about then.

The thing is, I'll bet that even if Williams were doormouse-quiet, these complainers would still lose to her. There's a simple reason for this: they're just not as good.

And whining won't change that.


:nopity:

[Shell Beau]

14. I call bullshit!

[elperromagico]

15. I used to sound like I was singing Led Zep's "Immigrant Song"

while playing racquetball. "Ahhhhhhhhhh... AHH!!!"

One makes all sorts of bizarre noises while engaged in vigorous physical activity.

[July]

16. I don't think so.

She grunted a lot today (only at the end of the second set, by the way), but she doesn't do it all the time. Serena does it more than Venus does, and Sharapova does it all the time. And in today's match, Venus and Mary Pierce were BOTH yelping in the second-set tiebreak on almost every point.

I follow tennis closely, and I haven't heard of any WTA threats to crack down. I do remember Monica Seles being asked about it some years ago, and she did try not to grunt at one tournament (can't remember which any more).

In my opinion, Venus and Serena get criticized twice as much as everyone else out there, despite their excellent records in singles, doubles, slams, the Olympics, and Fed Cup. The double standard is getting a little old.

The former pros who do commentary on TV (like Pam Shriver and Mary Carillo) HAVE mentioned gamesmanship recently -- when talking about Justine Henin-Hardenne. In fact, your "in the locker room" comment is almost exactly the phrase one of them used about Henin-Hardenne during Roland Garros.

As far as I can tell, current and former players who grunt are doing what many athletes do in exhaling on the effort (with sound, of course). I can handle the grunts of Maria, Venus, Mary, Serena, and Arantxa better than I can handle strategic bathroom breaks, glares, bumping, underhanded serves, or "The Hand + The Lie" (H-H), tactics used by players other than the Williams sisters.

[tigereye]

17. what Seles did was closed to shrieking

it's effective, and I suppose it makes sense in the heat of competition.

[Yavin4]

18. I Think That All Women Tennis Players Who Grunt Should Be Spanked

and I humbly offer to do the spanking.

[Scout1071]

19. I use to make fun of the tennis grunters. Until I started playing.

I don't know what it is, but I have the grunt/yell as well.

Reminds me of when I took karate as a kid. They make you yell because you tend to hit with more force. Same thing for tennis I suppose.

Nonetheless, I was somewhat terrified to discover that I was a grunter. What are you gonna do? You can't stop it. It's compulsive.

[Nye Bevan]

21. If a major league baseball player can hit major league pitching....

with 50,000 fans roaring and cheering, a pro tennis player should be able to learn to ignore one person's grunting.

[Misunderestimator]

22. I don't have an opinion on her specifically, but I have noticed a LOT of

tennis players grunting loudly lately. It's like it's a tactic that is being coached now. And wasn't it Monica Seles who was the first one to grunt like that years ago? As I recall it was ONLY her doing that, pretty much her trademark, now it seems they ALL do it. I saw two guys doing that a couple of weeks ago. It's distracting to watch (hear), frankly, and makes it unenjoyable.