Tennis Atlantic

There’s something better about returning to a place that hasn’t changed for the worse.

After my seven year absence from the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s pro tournament, there was all of the beauty of the grounds of tournaments past and a new layer of importance with both men and women competing on the grass in Newport, Rhode Island. The frenetic pace of a one round WTA qualifying Sunday led me to the conclusion that more than ever, this event is a low-key American Wimbledon. It’s Wimbledon in miniature for those of us thousands of miles away from SW19. It’s the Rhode Island of Wimbledon, a delicious microcosm of the spirit of the sport of tennis.

The tournament was a comfortable glove to me for six years until it got away when I became preoccupied with DC, Cincinnati and New York. It was an outlier as players were hitting the turf here when conventional wisdom told them they ought to be on hard courts. Despite that, there is ambiance here that surpasses expectations better than the biggest pro tennis events. The Hall of Fame’s historical trappings will never allow it to build a concrete playground of show courts and that means that the spectator can escape here to a different vibe and time. And with weather that is invariably kinder to the human body than the US summer swing venues that follow means a pleasant place to be on an afternoon in July. 

Local fans who I spoke said they initially were disappointed that the Open—formerly an ATP 250 level event—had dropped out of the premier ATP tour heirachy. But  given the level of exciting play and fan engagement  I saw on Sunday during qualifying for the all-sexes event guaranteed a comparison to Wimbledon, thus  elevating the grandeur of the entire proceedings. Think of it as a ATP/WTA 250 now. Newport lost less than it gained when the powers that be decided to supersize more big boy events to two weeks from one. What the tournament lost—a John Isner-caliber player each year—it gained in optics and atmosphere with the dual focus on men and women’s competitions.

The ugliest Center Court in America was at Yale University, a concrete monster of brutalist confidence that it was the only bright spot for losing the WTA’s Connecticut Open a few summers ago. The best looking Center Court is right here in Newport, with its fin-de-siecle tinderbox of a viewing gallery. There is no concrete here. Think New Orleans and Fenway Park, not Stalingrad. 

It was only fitting that the first woman to qualify to the main draw in Newport today was a neighbor: Connecticut’s own Olivia Lincer, who plays for Poland but grew up competing in USTA events on these courts. Lincer defeated the highly touted wild card, Anna Frey 6-2, 6-3. After the match, Lincer was in great spirits, celebrating with her family and talking about her pet chickens.

With just four women’s qualifying matches in a one-and-done format, the women’s main draw is now set with the men needing another round before they are placed in the draw. Main draw play begins at 11:00 am tomorrow.

–S. Fogleman