WTA Championships: Where are the Americans?
Came across an article at Yahoo! Sports dealing with the notable absence of American players at this year’s WTA Championships. For the most part, I hadn’t really given the idea much thought. I tend to like players for the players themselves and not for the country they’re representing, though it’s painfully obvious that the U.S. is lacking in some superstars at the moment.
They’ve got Lindsey Davenport who was on fire last year, but crashed down and lingers down in rank 19. The Williams sisters have been pretty much out of commission for a while - despite having tried to get back on the courts this year.
Injuries seem to be the major obstacles at the moment, and the fact that their young players haven’t managed to climb the ranks quite yet. They’ve got Davenport at 19, then Shaughnessy at 39 …
All around not good.
“(American tennis) needs the young ones to come through now and make it through to the top,” said No. 1-ranked Amelie Mauresmo of France. “It’s probably tough when you have such a big history. For them to reach the highest level is not easy — I think it’s a lot to live up to, and they’re probably being criticized because they’re not there yet — so that’s even more pressure.”
Yeah I think players like Shaughnessy and Perry and Jackson have that pressure on them now that the top players in their country are injured. It’s time for them to step up, but that can’t be easy with so many more experienced players blocking the way to the top.
I guess we’ll see what next season brings in terms of American participation.
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