At first, this was a nasty exchange between Muguruza and her coach Sam Sumyk. Then the reigning French Open champion could only apologize for her previous outburst by repeating, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” to her coach. Unfortunately, this is the most interaction heard or seen since on court coaching has started.
Tennis viewers have seen too many times when the coach talks tactics and thoughts while the player sits still with no response or reaction. The women look annoyed and seem like they do not want to hear anything. Muguruza just voiced what the majority of the women are thinking.
Footage of the Muguruza/Sumyk incident pic.twitter.com/IdWNaeYHcQ
— Andi 🻠(@GOATrena) March 24, 2017
There was one humorous moment at Indian Wells when Lauren Davis’ coach, Mark Shanerman, said, “Do you think they’ll be mad if I take my shirt off? “I want to get a suntan.” It sounded like Shanerman had nothing to say but felt obliged to fill the air with some comments.
On-court coaching came about due to concerns that players are coached anyway, maybe secretly, from the boxes through hand signals or other verbal clues. So why not just let the coaches come down to the court during breaks. The leaders of the WTA also felt the interaction between coach and player would give fans some insight and make good television.
Steve Simon, chief WTA executive, said, “Our audiences are looking for access, and I think coaching during a match adds to the strategy and the fun of what’s going on.”
On the men’s side, executive Chris Kermode, stated, “We’ve never had a consensus in support of this, “Apart from detracting from the essence of one-on-one competition, I think the idea that coaching adds to the spectacle is debatable at best.”
Many club players might sympathize with Muguruza’s outburst, but it was not suitable for the average viewer. We are used to other sports having coaches on the sidelines, but tennis has a long history of being a one on one battle where the combatants are on their own.
On-court coaching had its try out. It is time to put this trick back on the sidelines and off the court.
