The state of the tennis media is at an all time rock bottom low now. From being called “the worst and awful” by a champion player (Reilly Opelka), to several reporters asking Grand Slam press conference questions and not even knowing if the player had won or lost, to one idiot pervert reporter even asking Grand Slam champions Thanassi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios about butt touching on court shortly after they won the Australian Open doubles title, it’s painfully evident the tennis media is suffering from severe dysfunction, incompetence and bias.
This week I asked a veteran tennis journalist, who has covered Grand Slams, Masters 1000s and Davis Cup for decades (who shall remain nameless) for some of his thoughts and views on why the tennis media is failing the sport so miserably…
This week after Paula Badosa had to remind an idiot reporter that she actually lost her match and didn’t win, it was the breaking point that the tennis media is in a disastrous state of crisis and major changes are needed.
“It’s embarrassing. Tennis has the very worst journalism nowadays,” said the international tennis reporter based in New York. “It is sad.”
Question: In my experience covering tennis since the early 90s, I think the tennis media began to go bad when Djokovic started beating Federer and Nadal. When do you feel the tennis media started it’s downward spiral of bias, incompetence and unprofessionalism?
Reporter: “I would say after Agassi’s retirement it started. Soon after Roger left it has gotten worse. They – media Grand Slam management – have been making it impossible to have access to players because of idiots like this dude at Wimbledon (Badosa incident). They go after the wrong people and keep people who have connections going through the credential process unchecked. I saw lots of discrepancies in Roland Garros, I am not surprised that this ‘bubble’ burst in their faces at Wimbledon.”
Question: Can you name some names of some people with connections who go through the process unchecked?
Reporter: “Usually they’re nameless. They just go to watch tennis and take up space and ask ridiculous questions at press conferences. You can tell who they are. Somehow they got credentialed – for the whole tournament.”
Question: How did Agassi’s retirement start the downward trend?
Reporter: “American press interest declined. Some of the biggest names in sports journalism began to be absent. European press increased with Roger and Rafa. Djokovic had some interest but not on the level as the interest that Rafa and Roger drew.”
Question: The media bias and agenda against Novak Djokovic is despicable. Your comment?
Reporter: “I totally agree.”
Grand Slam · Novak Djokovic · Rafael Nadal · Reilly Opelka · Roger Federer · Tennis media · Wimbledon
catherine · July 9, 2023 at 11:10 am
Also, as interest in tennis seems to declining in the US, from comments I’ve read, sports editors don’t always send their best reporters.
A lot has changed since the internet. Everyone’s an expert now. I have sympathy for the staff dealing with credentials. The demand is overwhelming because of the plethora of outlets, blogs, websites etc. None of those were around years ago of course. Press officers can’t know everyone, or if all applicants are bona fide.
Access to players I’m afraid can no longer be as free and easy as it used to be. That’s just impossible now and is the same across all sports. Matter of luck and whether the player and/or their team likes you or not.
Scoop – you have the idea that everything revolves around Djokovic. Fair enough, but I can’t agree with you. A lot of things were wrong before Djoko came on the scene.
I was lucky in that I inherited my position where I could request press passes. But even that wasn’t easy. Magazines were low on the totem pole. I had a hard time at my first USO. The press guy didn’t like Brits.
Scoop Malinowski · July 9, 2023 at 12:04 pm
Catherine, Djokovic is the lightning rod that has exposed the bias of the media and the agendas IMO. If Djokovic retired in 2017, I believe the tennis world would look a lot different and presented differently. The establishment do not want Djokovic as the face of the sport. And that’s a shame. I didn’t start noticing any biased reporters until Djokovic excelled, the media press rooms were very happy positive places to work and interact. Now there is a lot of bad vibes. Hope it changes back.
turan köy · July 9, 2023 at 11:10 pm
Very well presented. Every quote was awesome and thanks for sharing the content. Keep sharing and keep motivating others.
Douglas · July 10, 2023 at 7:20 am
If there is any justice for our game the majors record followed by the grand slam goes to one, lone, principled player, No-vax Djokovic.There’s your sea-change to report.
Steve · July 10, 2023 at 8:53 am
Interesting. I had always assumed the journalists were so bad at asking tennis questions because they usually covered some other sport and were randomly chosen to also cover tennis which they have no actual interest in or knowledge about.
Scoop Malinowski · July 10, 2023 at 10:40 am
Steve, there may be some reporters like that assigned to cover tennis but most I know of who cover other sports, like Marc Berman NBA writer for NY Post, also covers US Open for many years and understands the sport. And won’t be involved in any kind of embarrassing episode. Most writers who want to cover tennis want to be there. It’s very hard to cover US open and drive there through traffic and deal with parking lot delays. Most who do it love tennis and know it.
catherine · July 10, 2023 at 11:56 am
Scoop – there were plenty of biased reporters before Djokovic. You don’t recall McEnroe in his prime. Punch ups in the press room ? Nasty vibes indeed.
Matt Segel · July 10, 2023 at 3:20 pm
Here’s one from yesterday…..
I was going to have you look ahead to the two possibilities in the next match, Tsitsipas or Eubanks. First saying Stefanos.
JANNIK SINNER: It’s Roman.
Q. If you could preview your next match…
JANNIK SINNER: Obviously Roman, it reminds me a little bit of the story of Karatsev in Australia, no? Coming here without losing, playing quite freely. He plays some very, very good tennis.
Scoop Malinowski · July 10, 2023 at 6:05 pm
Well that fight with Charley Steiner and the Brit was about someone asking questions which provoked McEnroe to walk out of his press conference, if I remember correctly. No bias there, just a rude question. Which caused a reporter and his outlet to not get the story they were seeking. Presumably. You may know more details about it.
Scoop Malinowski · July 10, 2023 at 6:09 pm
Good catch Matt, the bloopers just never stop. Today Ivo Karlovic posted on Instagram his discontent about ESPN’s Goodall commentary about Eubanks being a guy ranked 150 a year ago and playing “semi pro” tennis. One of the comments on Ivo’s post was this by Reilly Opelka, “Tennis media is the worst in any sport.”
Opelka is surely one of many top players who are extremely annoyed by the rotten tennis media.
catherine · July 11, 2023 at 2:01 am
Scoop – if your comment was in answer to mine, it was an incident at W’don and involved a tabloid journalist and someone I can’t remember now. Hacks tended to take sides over McEnroe so some of the reporting was far from objective.
Plenty of ‘non-tennis’ questions at that time too which lead to stricter rules, most of which were not observed, and still aren’t.
Scoop Malinowski · July 11, 2023 at 6:43 am
I saw the video this week on twitter someone posted it, very heated incident, something like that would never happen today. Tennis reporters tend to be more beta and lazy – many rarely leave the press center and cafeteria.
catherine · July 11, 2023 at 12:06 pm
The non-tennis rule was introduced around 81/82 I think as a reaction to Martina Navratilova’s crucifying by the British tabloids.
At one point there were more tabloid hacks in the press room than sports writers.
Happy to say one paper, News of the World, was closed a few years later after having paid millions in libel settlements. Too much even for Rupert Murdoch.
Scoop Malinowski · July 11, 2023 at 12:53 pm
Catherine, why did the media crucify Martina?
catherine · July 11, 2023 at 3:06 pm
It was just about her sexuality and her decision not to hide it, which believe it or not was considered very shocking by the tabloids in those days. I don’t think this was the same in the US. You didn’t have those kinds of papers, except maybe the National Inquirer.
In 1982 (I think) the writer Rita Mae Brown came to Wimbledon with Martina and gave interviews here there and everywhere. You can imagine the fuss. That’s when the press room became
moderated. But everyone had moved on by then anyway, to new scandals.
Scoop Malinowski · July 11, 2023 at 9:05 pm
Catherine, well now the media is pro gay and pro trans, so tough luck on Martina enduring that fish bowl scrutiny but it was her choice to go public, she could have kept it private. Unlike Badotsipas.
catherine · July 12, 2023 at 1:58 am
Actually it was Rita Mae Brown’s choice, not Martina’s. Brown wrote a novel about it all. Called ‘Break Point’ or something really original.
They parted soon after.
Players today give the press what they want.
Scoop Malinowski · July 12, 2023 at 7:14 am
Catherine, looked like Iga gave her a gift, too many wild silly errors and that smile at the handshake.
catherine · July 12, 2023 at 10:33 am
No. Iga wasn’t prepared. She just didn’t expect that level from Elina and her team was without an idea.
No one ‘gifts’ anyone at Wimbledon. Or if they do they regret it.
Scoop Malinowski · July 12, 2023 at 11:32 am
Catherine, in our days in the tennis media did you ever hear the term “buy and sell matches”?
Harold · July 12, 2023 at 1:17 pm
Opelka sure did take a job with Tennis Channel pretty fast. Has he changed the discourse in tennis media, or did he fall in line for a paycheck?
Scoop Malinowski · July 12, 2023 at 3:07 pm
Harold, I don’t know the details of Opelka’s broadcasting stint with TC but he just took another shot at the tennis media this week in a comment in Ivo Karlovic’s Instagram post criticizing Jason Goodall’s calling Chris Eubanks a “semi pro” before 2023, commenting “Tennis media is the worst in any sport.” My guess is TC tried to buy out his criticism by giving him a job but it didn’t succeed.
catherine · July 12, 2023 at 3:33 pm
Probably. I heard a lot of things. But in this case I’ll trust my own observations. Iga was simply not ready for Elina’s new approach. She thought she was playing the old pusher Svitolina.
Answer the old question: ‘cui bono’ ? Who profits ? After that match it certainly wasn’t Swiatek. Despite the ritual smile.
I’d sack that psychologist person.
Scoop Malinowski · July 12, 2023 at 4:02 pm
Catherine, you’re not the only one who would like to see Iga dismiss that control freak psychologist. It’s curious how she has so much influence on Iga, as Petkovic said earlier this year, WTA players are the ones used to making all the commands.
Scoop Malinowski · July 12, 2023 at 4:03 pm
Impressive win today by Jabeur. My take I shared with a media outlet in Kazakhstan who asked for me analysis: The creative shot arsenal of Jabeur made mighty Rybakina looks one dimensional today. Jabeur seemed to offset Rybakina’s power hitting with her variety, slices off both wings, dropshots, and taking advantage of opportunities to be aggressive. Masterpiece performance by Jabeur today. The match looked like a great boxer outwitting a heavy hitting slugger or a matador outsmarting the raging bull.