An engineer overthinks tennis in a daily journal.
From the earliest posts about the tennis related impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have bemoaned the lack of rigorous scientific evaluation of potential transmission of the SARS-CoV family of diseases via tennis balls. A recently published study has changed that situation. At first glance, the news is fairly promising which apparently prompted the USTA to issue a statement on the topic.
One sure sign that tennis is gearing up for the resumption of play following the COVID-19 hiatus is the bow wave of requests to sign waivers currently populating my email inbox. Waivers will clearly be required to participate in organized tennis going forward and in some cases to use facilities at all. Not surprisingly, this new wave of waivers includes updated language addressing transmission of communicable disease while playing tennis. It makes me nostalgic for the days when tearing an ACL or other physical injury was the primary concern.
The USTA player safety tips say to not play if you have been in close contact with someone who is COVID-19 positive, but not the actual player. Seriously.
Two weeks ago today, the USTA announced job cuts and the closure of the White Plains, NY offices. I have to confess that I initially missed the story. I am guessing that probably a lot of other people in the tennis community are also unaware that this happened. The announcement was not widely carried or reported.
2 responses
Today I want to examine motivation within the context of junior tennis. This will not be news to anyone with kids in the proximity of the teenage years… these are entirely different beasts than adults. I say that with genuine affection.
Based on my personal exposure and experience I perceive that there are a lot more league players than there are tournament players. At the same time I think that the majority of tournament players also play leagues. This leaves a small sliver of players who play only tournaments.
To pin a thumb tack on this moment in time, I am in the middle of what is shaping up to be a broad and sweeping arc examining the return to organized competitive play following the COVID-19 shutdown. In my home USTA Section, Texas, sanctioned tournaments are allowed to resume July 1.
1 response
In physics, critical mass is the smallest amount of material needed for a chain reaction. The concept of critical mass is a useful analogy for participation in tennis tournaments. Enough players have to enter an event in order for it to be held. Additionally, players typically will not enter tournaments if they assume or are concerned that the draw might not make.
Today I am returning my attention to the post COVID-19 protocols implemented a couple of weeks ago at the “$Prize Money Austin UTR Open @ Austin Tennis Academy. ” Earlier this week I wrote about the ball hygiene practices implemented during that tournament in “Tournament Ball Safety Protocols.”
2 responses
Yesterday I wrote about how the financial and liability structures of the USTA and UTR was very likely a dominant contributing factor in the decisions the organizations made about the suspension of tennis tournament play under COVID-19. Today I am exploring how the independent nature of UTR creates an agility advantage for UTR event organizers.