A Quick Guide to Who You'll Root For (OT)

A reader accused all Americans the other day of not liking Eastern European tennis players. That's not fair in my opinion. First of all, it's a generalization, and we all know the cheerful axiom: "All generalizations are false, except this one." Second, all humans tend to root for players they can identify with. Here's a quick guide for how likely you are to root for a particular tennis player. To use the guide, score yourself using the point system on the left. The lower your total, the more likely you are to root for that player.

His or her last name:

1  Same as yours.

2  You know or grew up around people with that name.

3  You can pronounce it*.

4  You had no clue it was a last name.

His or her home country:

1  Same as yours.

2  You've been there.

3  You vaguely knew it was a country but better not be asked to locate it on a blank map**.

4  You never heard of it before.

His or her native language:

1  You both use the same regional and age-group expressions and inflections.

2  You both speak the same language***.

3  One of you speaks a broken, halting, heavily-accented, half-fluent version of the other's.

4  Neither of you could understand a word the other says.

His or her fame and reputation:

1  Everyone's heard of them, even people who don't follow the sport****.

2  The player's a veteran and most people who follow that sport know them.

3  Other players on the same team or from the same country might know them.

4  Their mother, father, coach and girlfriend know them.

The closer you score to 16, the less likely you are to root for that player, and the closer you score to 4, the more likely. Personally, it doesn't matter to me. I just like who I like. I rooted for Borg over Connors and McEnroe, and one of my faves was Guillermo (which I still can't pronounce) Vilas of Argentina. I watched him all Summer in the Grand Prix Tour the year he won Forest Hills. But I'll maintain that the above goes for many fans in many countries, not just Americans. I could be wrong. 

Mike

*For five life points, pronounce "Kamil Majchrzak vs. Emil Ruusuvuori" without help. (Ruusuvuori won, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1.)

**Quick, which ones are countries: Barbu, Nauru, Antiflu, Gine-Bissou, Raducanu, Tuvalu, Bayou.

***In the sense that Larry the Cable Guy and Prince Charles speak the same language.

****Like I've heard of "Beckum" and kinda know what he looks like.

P.S. And, um, I'm procrastinating again....

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Featured Comments from:

Robert: "Hi Mike. I root for Djokovic (1 point), before it was Lendl (2 points) and McEnroe (0 points, but style!). To your blog about sympathies: I do not know about Americas, but you have been fair, so there is at least one American.... ;-)

"Here in German-speaking part of Europe we have an interesting situation: Some things cannot be said, but there is a portion of (ehm) reservation. It manifests itselfs in veeeerrry sober and fair view on, say, Djokovic, so a lawyer would not find anything, but rather a warm and generous view on a player (or whoever) from Western Europe.

"Perhaps folks here read The Lord of the Rings too much—The Good is in the West, the Bad is in the East. It is the natural duty of the West to teach the East about many good things....

"Take care! By the way—how is doing your music and stereo life?"

Mike replies: I will write about music and stereo again but not soon.

I've liked Djokovic since before 2011, when he was just another of the many players grouped below Federer and Nadal. I liked his sense of humor. The first time I became aware of him were those videos of him mimicking the styles of other players. He doesn't do that any more because people started taking it personally. It's something a lower-ranked player can do and it's all in good fun, but when a top-ranked player does it it becomes mockery.

I've never taken to Nadal, but I am coming to appreciate him more and more. I think he's a good man and a greater champion than I gave him credit for earlier in his career. I thought he was just a bruiser and that he would break down early with injuries. Then he got injured...and came back from it stronger than ever. Plus, I thought he was only a clay-court specialist. But he proved me wrong there too.

I've always appreciated Federer because...well, who can't? He's such a magician. His skills are at the apex, the pinnacle. We've simply never seen anyone with such a beautiful game. He falls detectably short on killer instinct—something you will see when he gives an opponent too much mercy from the net. But, concerning the fan relationship, I always had some reservations of the careful type you mention. There's something fey about him, the way he dances around the court, the way he never sweats, the way he is so fastidious about clothes and image—and the image he chooses all very "yacht club" and faux-aristocrat. The blazers with the crest on the pocket and all that. I'm just describing the reason for my own reaction, these are not criticisms—he can be any way he wants to be.

I haven't watched much tennis in years, and in watching all the highlights from the Open from the first two days I see a lot of Federer's influence in younger players. That drop-shot into the front corner of the service court that Federer pioneered as a standard shot is everywhere now...it wasn't back in my day. And they all do the "Federer Fist," the little clutched fist-shake in front of the rib cage that shows they are happy about a winner. I always scorned that when Federer did it—such a half-hearted little gesture, although mimicking a full-blooded one—like shouting "yeah" but in a small, timid voice—and now it is universal, they all do it! They got it from him.

The thing that amazes me about Djokovic is that he is always the underdog, very much the "third wheel" who is unwelcome in the club of two, the one who is spoiling the party, who the crowds hate and will applaud against, and yet despite this he has risen to be the equal of the first two. That's really astonishing to me. Just the idea that he would even try. That he would even think he could try.

I've watched all the highlights from the first two days and I notice how many times the lower-ranked players will give up on a ball Djokovic would have dug for. And I like the way he has eked the very most from his game and his skills, always trying to find even the tiniest edge. It would have been so easy for him to be a "lazy top ten" player, earning a fortune, coasting on his talent, having a good but not great career stockpiling money for a long cushy retirement. So many golfers are like that. Satisfied to be on the Tour raking in dough, not really hungry to be at the top. It frustrated me when I was a young admirer of Ilie Nastase and Vitas Gerulaitis (RIP) that they had such talent but would not work. (Both had reputations as harder partiers than practicers, if you don't know the names.)

The best thing about Djokovic is his belief. He believed he could be as good as the best. Self-belief is the thing I lack, my nemesis, so it is a thing I admire in Djokovic.

I'm all prepared for him not to win the Slam, but I so hope he does. It would be the best thing I ever get to see in tennis.

Comments

[John Krumm]

I don't know. I pay little attention to tennis. However, my dad loved watching it in the 80's and I remember watching Bjorn Borg vs Conners and McEnroe in various matches. I think I rooted for McEnroe just because he was an underdog an Borg seemed like a bulldozer (but that could have been how the media played it up back then).

[Zyni Moë]

Think this is a neophile / neophobe thing: your criteria are aimed at neophobes. For me, well if I go into some dark club, and there is a band playing music I can't understand, singing in a language I don't know and using instruments I do not recognise: this is the best.

I do not follow tennis, because I can understand the rules: the most important thing any person can do is to avoid be interested in things they understand.

[Stephen Scharf]

I just root for the Spaniards. And, not for any of the reasons you've listed above.

I like the fact they don't whine, complain, or behave like the unmitigated *ss that Djokovic has been the last 5 years.

They just get on with the job. Competitors that underestimate these guys do so at their own peril.

Always been a huge fan of Rafael Nadal, and before he retired, David Ferrer, but also always pull for Pablo Carrreño Busta and Roberto Baustista-Agut.

Carreño Busta took out Djokovic in the Olympics to win the Bronze Medal, a match where Djokovic, once again, went absolutely mental, and disgraced the Olympic spirit and ideals.

"Robby Bats" just took out Kyrios last night.

Vamos, hombres!

[Hmm, rooting on the basis of maturity. Guess you don't like that Greek guy then! --Mike]

[Rob Strong]

I used to read the news on 99.3 FM, WFRD, at Dartmouth. As a private challenge I would pick Tennis stories, to see if I could sight read the names for the first time live on air. Same for hockey recaps.

[You've got to admit some of the names are pretty great, for instance "Botic Van De Zandschulp." And tonight I watched highlights of Felix Auger-Aliassime vs. Bernabe Zapata Miralles. I would frankly rather have gone through life as "Bernabe Zapata Johnston" a lot more than just plain vanilla Mike. As I recall I wrote an article once about Ted Morgan, who wanted a "normal" American name and gave up his birth name, which was Count Sanche Charles Armand Gabriel de Gramont AKA Sanche de Gramont. The point was that if he didn't want his former name any more, I would take it. --Mike]

[Richard Tugwell]

Is Serbia East European?

[Thomas Walsh]

Djokovic is on record saying he would not take the Covid vaccine. That's all I need to know.

[David Lee]

Don’t miss the story about how Agassi and his coach figured out which side, left or right, was Boris Becker going to serve and how he told him, many years later when they met in a beer tent during Oktoberfest. So funny...

[Moose]

"A Quick Guide to Who I'll Root For"

No One, not in any sport.

Simple

[David Dyer-Bennet]

I've actually been watching some of the US Open; it was one of my father's sports (along with soccer).

I do sometimes find myself caring who wins a bit, but the whole "rooting for" thing I don't entirely understand. I want to watch some good tennis, that's what I want out of the time spent.

The commentators keep referring to the players by first names, when only last names are shown on the screen, resulting in my sometimes having no idea who they are talking about for long stretches of time.

[Just a hint, the score will usually show a little yellow dot next to the player who is serving. That way you can tell who is who.

I do wish there were a rule that the players can't dress identically! It makes watching highlight hard when it happens, because they're switching from side to side and from serving to returning with just a cut, and it's easy to become confused. (But talk about first-world problems.) --Mike]

[Gerard Geradts]

Richard Krajicek

I can pronounce his last name (3)
Same home country, city even (1)
Same native language (1)
I know of his fame, winning Wimbledon is apparently an achievement (1). I know this, because it was all over the news.
In the same summer another guy from the same country, city, Michael Boogerd, won one etappe in the Tour de France. I couldn’t miss it because, again, it was all over the news.

I never watched tennis on TV. In the 'eighties I used to watch road cycling, my favourite was Paris–Roubaix, aka the Hell of the North.

[Graham]

As a left-handed person, handedness is an absolutely overriding factor to root for one player over another.

[Robert]

Hi Mike!
I made it into Featured Comments! To see Rome and to die! Will make a print :-)
I knew all those players you mention. In my young days I even tried to become a tennis player. It meant one hour ride by bus, then one hour to prepare (clay) courts, then one hour play without a trainer (no wall, just "play" with my equally unskilled friend), one hour preparing courts, one hour by bus. My partner and me did not persevere...
Take your time with those stereo things. I just rekindled my hobby (kids have left the house and I am allowed to listen to what I want) and am building loudspeakers. I have B&W about 50cm high, but am wondering, what bigger (means big) loudspeakers can do. DIY I can afford.

[Stephen Scharf]

Guess what? That "Greek guy", the No. 3 seed, was just taken out by...a Spanish tennis player, Carlos Alvarez. Only 18 years old.

The crowd at Ashe just fell in love with another Spanish player...

The TV commentators were so into the match, one of them just blurted out, "...this is awesome!"

Never, ever, count the Spanish guys out.

[I promise I never will. I will never say a word against a Spanish player again. Did I ever mention I was a Manuel Orantes fan too? --Mike]