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Tennis looks for an ace
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September 6, 1996: 7:56 p.m. ET
Despite strong U.S. Open matches, the game continues to struggle
From Correspondent Sean Callebs
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - As the top players make their way through the final matches at the U.S. Open this weekend, businesses that sell tennis equipment hope the players can reignite some excitement in a game that is about as flat as a three-month-old can of balls.
Fans long for the kind of drama served up Thursday night in the quarter-final match between defending champion Pete Sampras and Alex Corretja. Stumbling and exhausted after four hours of competition, Sampras finally won the match in five sets.(QuickTime Movie 370KB)
But even with that level of play energizing the tournament, tennis marketers are having a difficult time profiting from a sport that is sorely in need of star attractions.
The 1990s have not been kind to the game. But after racket sales in the United States plummeted 38 percent from 1991 to 1995, companies finally say they are recovering. At Prince, the popular racquet maker, President Charles Pelfer said sales are up 9 percent this year and projections look strong.
"What we say is that tennis is a sport you can play for life," Pelfer said. "It's a family sport. It's athletic. It's a social sport."
And that's a strategy tennis companies could use. Fans might still line up for autographs, but the knock against today's players remains: There is no dominant, flashy star for ad executives to latch onto.
Yet even without a star to turn tennis into a rating bonanza for broadcasters, marketers continue to bet that tennis will rebound. The USA Network, which signed a six-year contract on Thursday to broadcast tennis, is expecting a bounce.
"I think it goes through cycles," said Gordon Beck, USA's executive producer. "You'll have an era where you'll have great rivalries -- Borg, McEnroe, Connors -- and then perhaps a lull. Other stars will come."
One of the games biggest supporters, NBC Sports commentator Bud Collins, blames the United States Tennis Association for dropping the ball when it comes to promotion. Many agree that game officials have not done enough to nurture new support and regain financial success.
"They're building this new stadium for 23,000 people, which is too big for tennis," Collins said. "They've got their $90,000 boxes, which they can sell to people who don't care about money. But will there be room for kids? Will there be bleachers? You can't build tennis for fat cats. You have to interest new people."
And many supporters of the game agree: Tennis needs to nurture grass roots support to regain financial success.
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