About tennis.
And women.
When we were kids, women got special treatment (and lots of limits). There was a lot they couldn’t do. Women got to participate in sports, but their own sports; all the ones they were suited for. Women weren’t allowed to run marathons because it was too physically demanding. I remember Billie Jean King making the point that professional women athletes should get the same respect, and money, that professional men athletes got. Radical.
That was the old days. The opportunities and rewards seem pretty even now. I like that. Equal opportunity. There is one thing left I can’t figure out though. Grand Slam tennis events. Men play best of 5. Women play best of 3. Why is that? Men have marathon matches. Women are done in an hour or two. Two sets can go pretty fast. Whichever woman wins the first set is one more service break, or one tiebreaker away from the match. Women play hard, but men play harder. If I was a woman, I’d be offended. Women get equal prize money at the U.S. Open and Wimbledon. Why don’t they have an equal challenge? Are they not strong enough? Is tennis too difficult for them?
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