Why Caroline Wozniacki And Women's Tennis Need 5 Set Matches At The Slams

As I cast my mind back to the 'greatest tennis match of all time' - the Federer v Nadal Wimbledon epic, won by Nadal 9 - 7 in the fifth set after a spirited comeback by Federer in sets 3 and 4, a thought occurs: What if this match had been the best of three sets?

Would we hold this game anywhere near as much in our affections? The answer of course is 'no way'! Nadal would have cruised to victory 6 - 4, 6 - 4, and the match would have been quickly forgotten by all but tennis aficionados.

Similarly, the previous 'greatest tennis match of all time', between Borg and McEnroe in 1980, in the best of three sets format, would have been won by Borg before the legendary fourth set tiebreak.

It could be argued that it is impossible to have an epic match within the confines of three sets. Epics need time to develop: For the ebb and flow of momentum; for great players like Nadal and Federer to return repeatedly to their deep wells of talent and mental strength, until there's barely a drop left and their souls are bared to the world.

The Colosseum in Rome at it's height was always brimful of expectant, enthralled people because it's our human nature to revel in these Gladiatorial contests. We love to engage with and support super humans who put so much of themselves on the line, especially when the 'battle' is evenly matched, one-on-one and unyielding.

In today's tennis, the best-of-five-set match is the closest we come to this Roman carnage. It's even better when there's no fifth set tiebreaker to spoil the fun. Just look at our fascination with the Isner v Mahut 'death grip' each had on the other for nearly three days!

So what about women's tennis? Why is the women's game denied the chance to show that women can be every bit as mentally tough and physically fit as men? Why can't women tennis warriers engage in tennis struggles as riveting as the men's?

Some say that women aren't physically able to cope with four and five hour matches, but this is a nonsense. Women run marathons, climb mountains, compete in triathlons. Tennis is a 'walk in the park' compared to these, with regular sit-downs, refreshments, ice-packs, physiotherapy and attentive attendants hanging on your every gesture.

With so much effort spent on equalizing prize money and bringing ATP and WTA tournaments together, it's strange that there isn't more focus on uniting the number of sets played as well. After all, we're not talking about a huge number of events to change: Just the four 'Slams' and the Inter-Country team Tournament, the Federation Cup.

There's been slight disappointment at the 2010 US Open that there haven't been more exciting women's matches. This can be partially blamed on the dominance of a few players, but I can't help but think that if, for example, Caroline Wozniacki had had one more set 'to play with' against Vera Zvonareva, she might have found her range and game, and we might just have had another classic tennis match to savor.

What's equally frustrating and intriguing, is that the women currently at the top of the game may not be the same ones that would prevail in a tennis regime akin to the men's, where a large chunk of ranking points were only available over the five set format at the 'Slams'.

I can't see the Williams sisters voting for this change any time soon. They seem to like to maximize the tennis silverware with the minimum amount of tennis played each year. But super-fit athletes like Francesca Schiavone, Elena Dementieva and the 'Golden Retriever' herself, Caroline Wozniacki might well relish the challenge, and end their careers with many more titles than would otherwise be the case.

As Roger Federer and Raphael Nadal know well, a best-of-five-set tennis match is a wholly different animal to a best-of-three. The fitness, determination and mental strength needed to prevail over five sets highlights the professionals and exposes the pretenders. Some of the world's most talented tennis players, like David Nalbandian, have excelled over three sets but couldn't rise to the challenge of five.

The most prestigious tennis events, the 'Slams', seem to have more than their fair share of gripping men's tennis matches during the year. The simple reason for this is that matches are longer and allow more time to engage and ultimately captivate the audience.

After yet another disappointing women's final at the US Open, where a large crowd paid a lot of money for less than an hour of entertainment, it's time to allow women to capitalize on the 5 set format - the most exciting form of the professional game, to reap the benefits of greater interest in a better 'product'.

Cheri Britton

Publisher of www.womens-tennis-apparel.com

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