CAMELOT FANTASIES

Great post, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Although time is limited it pains me that each broadcast constantly spits out the same “facts.” For a person who watches a lot of tennis it’s total overkill and especially when you’re throwing out terms without explaining what you mean. We’ve heard it all before and while I understand that new viewers come on board constantly it just smacks of being lazy to me.

2. They don't realize the audience level of understanding and experience varies so they kind of assume the watcher is rather dumb, and will just accept whatever they say, or perhaps very knowledgeable and not care much what they say.  So the middle ground watcher is often left begging for more information, or rather the why's and hows behind their sometimes brash declarations.

I agree with this, but for me it’s killing the sport. I have a hard time listening to that bull crap. When I first started watching tennis the commentators did not act like this. They didn't talk during points and waited for more opportune times to speak. It's such a relief sometimes to watch a match and enjoy the decorum used during the match.

3. They are often paid to glorify the top players and make them look like supermen or the most courageous athletes on the planet. 

That’s another problem and I don’t how other fans view it, but when they constantly talk about the top player and give no credit to the other player, that irks me. It’s even worse when they omit stats and figures and slant it however they please.

4. They are paid to keep the viewers entertained and watching, even if it is a dull or never in doubt match.  Sometimes they will say outrageous things, infuriating some viewers, similar to trolls on an internet forum.

That’s a perfect analogy. They remind me of internet trolls and it is infuriating.

The best commentators don't say too much, but commentate when a particular strategy is being used, or might be used, and explain why it might have a better chance or less chance of working against a particular opponent. They inform the watcher, but do it in such a way that someone new to the sport can understand, but someone experienced can still appreciate.

Yeah, there’s some guys, not from the U.S. and that’s exactly what they do. It is more interesting and informative to speak about the game, moreso than just the players. The American commentators also engage in a lot of gossip. Who’s going with who, how someone’s parents abused them and things totally unrelated to the match at hand.

Stan’s mentality has changed big time, but he still bores me to death so not much to say about him. He’s too inconsistent for my taste, not in skills, but in mentality. If he doesn’t seem to care many times, why should I as a fan?

Not everyone is made the same, not everyone is committed to wanting to win everything in sight at the cost of other things, and I respect his choice.


I don’t think you have to win everything in sight and maybe compromise important things, but I also don’t like to waste my time watching a contest where one of the combatants doesn’t seem to care half the time. And that’s the vibe I get from Stan, Monfils, and some others.

Thanks for the information. You make things so clear and easy to understand. I appreciate you filling in the gaps.