The female competitors — even minus Serena Williams — will, and should, be what draws audiences, Michele Willens writes
No Federer. No Nadal. No (defending champion) Thiem. And now no Serena. The New York-based U.S. Open starts on Monday, and Novak Djokovic is, once again, feeling underappreciated, especially as he goes for the Grand Slam. Assuming he doesn’t stub a toe, he should reach that goal, lack of applause — or added asterisks — be damned. The truth is, the female competitors — even without Serena Williams in the competition — will, and should, be what draws the viewers. “It’s very exciting to have this many women with very different games, playing with power and touch,” said Joel Drucker, who has covered the tennis world for many years. “I think the women have always had compelling stories and can definitely drive and sustain ratings,” adds Andrea Joyce, who has covered the Open on TV for decades. “It’s a reflection of the culture and times we live in. Coming off the Olympics, we are celebrating strong women and there is no shortage of that in women’s tennis. I have never felt that the women lacked excitement or drama… sometimes just overshadowed and overlooked.” Such parity is refreshing, especially compared to the male troika that has dominated for more than a decade. Yes, the Williams sisters — especially Serena — had a period of domination. But as she nears 40, things are obviously fluid and occasionally frustrating (hold that thought). Equal excitement is welcome, and appropriate. Financially (thank you, Billie Jean King) the U.S. Open winners — men and women — will take home roughly $2.5 million each, and even losing in the round of 32 still earns them close to $61,000. Unfortunately, there is also equality in terms of the stresses — both physical and mental. We might expect that men would get injured more, but these days, not so much. Serena slipped at Wimbledon and quickly retired. Simona Halep has missed much of the year due to a calf issue (the same one afflicting Mike Trout).
