This weekend will be the start of a brand new tournament which Patrick Mouratoglou hopes will help increase the popularity of tennis among the younger generation.
The Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) will be a men-only event that is set to take place over five consecutive weekends. Stefanos Tsitsipas, Dominic Thiem and Matteo Berrettini are some of the stars set to take part. It will be played in what organizers describe as a ‘classic league format’ with the six highest scoring players progressing to the knockout stages (top two qualify automatically for the semi-finals and the other four will play in the quarter-finals).
“The first goal is to have people like it,” Mouratoglou told reporters on a video conference call on Thursday. “A lot of people are going to be against it, but that’s okay.”
Unlike traditional tennis, UTS has a completely brand new format. There will be no warm-up, players will exchange serves after every two points and matches will be broken down into four 10-minute quarters. If the match is tied at two-all, a decider will be played. Furthermore, on-court coaching will be allowed with one 30-second timeout per quarter allowed.
Besides the rules, there is something called ‘UTS Cards’ which can only be described as the tennis equivalent of the community chest cards that is used during a game of monopoly. Organisers say these cards will make the event ‘more exciting’ with the coach of the player choosing two out of four cards. There are a total of seven cards but only four will be provided to a player based on an algorithm that will be used. The cards are the following :-
-1 serve: Your opponent gets one serve instead of two.
– Winners count x3: Each of your winners counts triple.
– Next point counts x2: Next point counts double, only if you win it.
– x serve points in a row: Player serves x times consecutively.
– +1 serve: You get three serves instead of two (one extra first serve).
– Serve & volley: Your opponent is forced to serve and volley (or at least move towards the net after the serve).
– Win in 3 shots max: Your opponent is forced to win the point with 3 shots or less (serve or return + 2 shots).
Mouratoglou’s motivation for co-organising the event is based on his concern that the sport is struggling to attract a younger demographic of fans. On various occasions he has said that the average age of a tennis fan is 61 and increasing. Although that claim that isn’t entirely true. The study which concluded the average of 61 was conducted two years ago and based solely on Nelson TV viewing figures in America alone. Therefore the assumption can’t be applied to the entire sport worldwide.
"People watch sports for the same reason they would watch a movie: They want to feel emotion."@pmouratoglou believes #UTShowdown will offer the platform for the players to express their emotions fully. pic.twitter.com/bkBCwoj6FM
— UTS Tour (@uts_tour_) June 5, 2020
Not a great start
After confirming the UTS rules on Thursday, many took to social media to voice their opposition. Including some well known people related to the world of tennis. Stuart Fraser is the tennis correspondent for The Times. On Twitter he wrote ‘June 13th will be remembered as the day that tennis was bastardised…’ making reference to the date the competition will get underway.
Another critic was veteran Australian broadcaster Craig Gabriel, who has worked in the tennis industry for many years on behalf of numerous publications. He has also been the media manager at Apia International Sydney and Shanghai Rolex Masters.
Give me a break. What a joke… Unfortunately its not even funny just a dumb one.
— Craig Gabriel (@crosscourt1) June 11, 2020
Kris Soutar is a consultant at Tennis Scotland and the project manager of the Judy Murray Foundation. An organisation set up by the mother of former world No.1 Andy Murray. Soutar has criticised the UTS over how they have changed the scoring system.
“UTS – Ultimate Tennis Shitshow. I’m all for experiments within tennis and creating a show around the match but the scoring system in tennis is amazing. Create entertainment in other ways in my opinion.” He tweeted.
Despite the critics, there are also some who are staying upbeat over the proposals. USA Today reporter Dan Wolken said he is intrigued by the prospect of having timed quarters. Something that it best associated with other sports such as American football and ice hockey.
“This is wild. No wonder Patrick wouldn’t tell me much about the format. And they got Thiem to join the field. Will be a must watch if you like tennis,” Wolken commented.
“The more I’ve thought about this, I’m really pumped to see this format. I’ve never considered the idea of tennis on a game clock,” he added.
Mouratoglou has said he is targeting 50,000 subscribers for his new event during the first weekend.
