It's difficult to fill stadiums without Federer, Nadal, Djokovic - Bartoli
Marion Bartoli criticized the women's tennis. Speaking to reporters at the US Open, the former world No. 6 said: "I am not sure it's a good thing that China hosts the WTA Finals for ten years for the jet lag difference and also the TV broadcast. Who will watch matches? The live matches will be scheduled at a wrong time in Europe and in the United States and I am not sure the Chinese fans are interested enough to tennis. You see it in Beijing and Shanghai too, if there are not Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams or Novak Djokovic it's very difficult to have a packed stadium. I think on the men's side you can understand it's not only about money. If ATP Finals take place in London or Turin, you definitely guarantee a good crowd that knows tennis. There are two Majors in Europe, how many in China? With all the respect for Chinese fans, I think WTA needs a bigger and long term view. When the WTA Finals took place in New York featuring Martina Navratilova and Chrissie Evert and Steffi Graf, the stadium was a packed one. For me it's about promoting the players in order to have packed stadiums. But how many times is the crowd packed if there is no Serena?"
On Donna Vekic, Wilander added: "She is an unbelievable fighter. She never gave up and she feels confident. Vekic is a very welcome young player who was very good and then probably injuries and pressure influenced her. Vekic doesn't have nerves, she hits very straight forward. Now she deals with the nerves and be like, I am the favorite heading into this match."
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2LhacD6
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