Posted by
Ed Lilly on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 1:35:09 PM
From Foxnews.com:
A 9-year-old girl has been banned from playing tennis by her local club because she grunts too loudly.
Lauryn
Edwards was told at the weekend that she could no longer play her
favorite sport after a complaint by an opposition player.
The
Mt. Carmel Tennis Club, in Sunbury, Australia, told Lauryn's stunned
parents, Duncan and Ruth, that the grunting had become too much.
I've been no fan of all the grunting and shrieking that many of the top women tennis players on the professional tour have been engaging in for quite a while. Monica Seles, the Williams Sister, Sharapova, etc. have all been pretty ridiculous in their noise making on the court. I would have been in agreement with efforts by the grandees in professional tennis to have the players tone it down or face penalties in the way of forfeited points, games, etc. in a graduated punishment system. There's no reason for making very loud noises when hitting tennis ball, other than trying to psych out your opponent. It's cheesy gamesmanship that should have been slapped down at the start. Unfortunately, no one tried seriously to stop it, and so it has only continued and encouraged young players like Ms. Edwards to follow in the footsteps of the pros.
That said, I have no idea how egregious Ms. Edwards' grunting may be. Part of me is suspicious that the player whose complaint appears to have started the ball rolling in this matter is also trying to just get an edge, or has parents who have better connections than Ms. Edwards' parents. I guess what I'm wondering is whether the player who complained has had a history of trying to get Ms. Edwards to tone it down, and just what the history and timeline show about the history of these two players at the very least.
In any event, I hope Ms. Edwards continues to play tennis, and continues to enjoy it. I just hope she also plays it more quietly and that her parents somehow find a way to help her stop with the grunts and shrieks that have no place in the normal course of play.