‘Tennis players or animals in the zoo?’ TA defends behind-the-scenes cameras after Swiatek backs Gauff |
Iga Swiatek thought Coco Gauff was right. How far does tennis-tainment need to go? Is it sport or reality TV?
When Gauff remodelled her racquet on a concrete ramp in frustration after her quarter-final loss, the world No.3 did so thinking she was in a private space and free to vent her spleen and liberate her racquet strings. Both of them were strung tight and needed a release.
But it wasn’t private. As Gauff smashed at the floor with the world’s most ineffective sledgehammer, she was being filmed.
World No.2 Swiatek, who might well have felt like having a go at the concrete with her racquet after losing her quarter-final to Elena Rybakina on Wednesday in straight sets (7-5, 6-1), had nothing but sympathy for Gauff.
“Are we tennis players, or are we like animals in the zoo where they are observed even when they poop, you know?” Swiatek asked.
“OK, that was exaggerating, obviously, but it would be nice to have some privacy. It would be nice also to, I don’t know, have your own process and not always be observed.”
Tennis Australia, which produces the broadcast in-house, defended on Wednesday the use of behind-the-scenes cameras at the Australian Open, after Swiatek backed up Gauff’s view that “certain moments” like her ramp smash should not be beamed to the world.
TA said striking a balance between the players’ privacy and showcasing their personalities was a priority, and such access actually helped the players build their own brands.
Earlier in the tournament, Swiatek was filmed being stopped by security in the bowels of the Melbourne Park complex because she didn’t have her accreditation dangling from her neck in a players area.
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