By Rusty Jones, Senior Day Leagues Vice President
A memory that has lived with me for more than two years now, is one of a player going down in an ALTA City Finals match. There he was, lying on the court, his opponents and teammates attempting CPR on him, all praying for him to breathe. I watched his wife bull her way to his lifeless body to take over the CPR procedure. But this story isn’t all doom and gloom. Having an AED at Windward Tennis Center and seeing bystanders and EMTs leap into action so fast was one of the most amazing miracles I have ever seen.
I witnessed multiple on-court emotional incidents at the spring ALTA Senior Day League Men’s City Finals held at Harrison Tennis Center and at the Spring ALTA Senior Day League Women’s City Finals held at Windward Lake Tennis Center. I also witnessed another incident that involved another on-court heart attack. This emergency was not caused by bad calls, or by any rules violated, but these events made me think about why people get so angry when they are not sure about the rules of tennis. This is where the unsportsmanlike conduct creeps into the picture. Tennis is a game that is supposed to bring people together to have competitive fun, eat great food, and make friends. Why do people get so angry when they get called out for not understanding tennis rules? Why do people get so frustrated when they obviously don’t know where to begin a tiebreak (so much so that they were yelling and screaming at an ALTA volunteer who was trying to help that person understand where to start his service during the first point of the tie break)? I felt the brunt of their temporary insanity, and the amazing thing is how anger ruled the thought processes. Not only were they wrong, but they also did not want to listen.
After watching their reactions and thinking about the two heart attacks that I had witnessed, I wonder what the future holds for people that get so angry over a tennis match. We are Senior Day League players, and no one in this league is under 55 years old. The memory of two heart attacks will stay with me for a long time and will help me to understand that anger on or off the court at ALTA City Finals could lead to either serious health consequences or, at the very least, unsportsmanlike penalties for the individuals, captains, or teams.
My point is this: None of us wants to have a stroke or heart attack due to something as simple as a disagreement during a tennis match. Elevated blood pressure at our age can do serious harm. Losing your cool over a tennis match is not worth harming your health. Let’s all focus on what’s important — living a full, healthy life. Put tennis matches in perspective and treat opponents and volunteers with respect. We are on the courts for fun!
