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What It Takes for a Tennis Star to Drive TV Ratings in the US
Published: September 26, 2013
That's according to Jason Bernstein, senior director of programming and acquisitions at ESPN, who spoke with Tennis.com's Steve Tignor after the U.S. Open.
This may be news to Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray fans. Maria Sharapova loyalists are probably shocked.
I'm not.
I'm a die-hard tennis fan. I wake up at ridiculous hours in the morning to watch Australian Open matches live. But I'm in the minority in this country.
I know that unless the players are American or have reached Greatest of All Time status, most Americans couldn't care less.
Face it, more Americans are fixated on fantasy football than on real tennis players. Casual tennis fans don't care about players whose names they can't pronounce who come from places they've never been.
Not even an Americanized Russian like Sharapova piques our interest. Sharapova receives twice as much money in endorsements as Serena Williams. However, the Russian fails to move the ratings needle in this country.
When it comes to women's tennis, the ratings begin and end with Serena. This year's U.S. Open final between Serena and Victoria Azarenka scored a 4.9 rating, according to Sports Business Daily (subscription required). The men's final, played on Monday, garnered just a 2.8 in the overnight ratings.
Bernstein told Tignor the "Serena factor" played a major part in those ratings. "She's a proven ratings star, especially in the United States."
He said that while Federer and Nadal draw well, Djokovic and Murray haven't caught on with Americans.
Bernstein believes it takes time for Americans to warm up to non-Americans. Federer and Nadal have been winning for a while. They've grown on us. And even though Federer is slipping...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis
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