Wimbledon, England (AP) — Like many other sports, tennis has a well-known coach. Unlike those sports, they are not always allowed to give instructions to coaches.
Novak Dokovich will not be able to receive instructions from Goran Ivanisevic at Wimbledon’s center court in the semi-finals on Friday. No one can communicate with the coach during the match. Patrick Mouratoglou’s Simona Halep, Ivan Lendl’s Andy Murray, Carlos Moya’s Rafael Nadal, and no tennis player yet running.
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The WTA, which runs the female side, has been experimenting with some form of communication over the past decade, for example, it has become possible to have face-to-face conversations during the exchange, while ATP, which runs the male side, is among them. It didn’t work. Directional, except for a brief experiment in the 1990s.
It was completely forbidden to give instructions during Grand Slam tournaments. until now.
When the Wimbledon tournament ends on Sunday, ATP will follow in the footsteps of the WTA and experience the rest of the year with a series of tests that confirm contact between court players and stand technicians.
This means that technicians will be able to communicate with their managers at the last big tournament in 2022, the US Open. The US Open will begin on August 29th in New York.
“Suddenly it’s interesting for coaches to be able to analyze everything they discussed before the match during the match. Things can change. If something goes wrong, you can go to Plan B or Plan C. You can, “said Brad Gilbert, a former player who ranked fourth in the world and has managed Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and more.
“Innovation is great,” Gilbert in Wimbledon added, calling for an ESPN match. “Before you say something goes wrong, you have to try it.”
ATP’s announcement to give coaches space during the match was controversial. Some say that there is a growing interest in sports, while others say that it goes against the essence of tennis, that is, the direct confrontation of one player with another.
Djokovic and French Open finalist Casper Ruud say they see benefits in both positions.
“I respect (ATP) for trying something new,” said 23-year-old Norwegian Ludo, run by his father and former professional tennis player Christian Ruud. “At the same time, one of the attractions of our sport is that we have to decide our own strategy and everything else.”
An important moment in the debate over tennis coaches was at the 2018 US Open Women’s Final between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, where the referee saw Mouratoglou, who was coaching Williams, giving instructions to the players from your seat. It was time. Mouratoglou admitted that he did.
Some players, like Tommy Paul in the United States, say there are many directions that go against the rules of tennis.
“If they hadn’t done that yet, it would be a mistake,” said Paul, who made his debut at Wimbledon’s All England Club and reached the fourth round. “I don’t want to have a technician. It’s not how this sport should be done. But they’re doing it so much that it’s already normal.”
Stan Wawrinka, who won three major tournaments, said: This is simply what is currently allowed. “
Others have suggested that inequality situations can occur when players do not have a coach. Are you at a disadvantage?
“Some players can’t afford a coach. Maybe they’ll travel with friends and siblings,” said Francistifor, the 28th-ranked American in the world’s fourth round at Wimbledon. is. “And some people pay $ 5,000 a week to those who know everything.”
World No. 9 Jessica Pegula, who has played twice in the quarterfinals of major tournaments, already has the help of her coach during the match and believes it will not have much of an impact on men’s tennis.
“Some people think it’s going to be revolutionary, it’s going to change political parties. I don’t believe it. You can’t plan a play. There’s no set piece. (It’s not like American football or basketball.” “And some players probably don’t want to have anything to do with it. They will say,” Stop talking to me! “
Grand Slam rules explicitly prohibit technician instructions. “Players will not be able to receive guidance during a match (even during warm-up). Any kind of audible or visible communication between the player and the manager is considered a sign,” the rulebook said. Says.
As of Tuesday, three women were fined as directed by Wimbledon coaches. This includes a $ 3,500 fine for 2016 champion Garbinem Guruza and a $ 4,500 fine for Resia Turenko.
The new ATP guidelines stipulate that coaches can only sit in their assigned area and talk to players if they are at the same end of the pitch. Hand signals are allowed. Contacts are allowed as long as they do not interrupt the game and distract the opponent. Lectures are limited to “several words or short phrases”.
