Your Valentine's Day Call, 2.14

By Rosangel Valenti, TW Contributing Editor

Hi all. Here's today's thread for discussing live tennis, and anything (or anyone) else that takes your fancy.

It's been something of a tradition in TW to have a special post for Valentine's Day, so yet again, it's time to focus on love. It's a word that I think must be one of the most over-used in the English language (and not only because in addition to all its connotations of tenderness, it also signifies a zero score in tennis). During last year's Valentine's Day discussion, which largely focused on why so many of us love watching tennis, I can recall the opinion being expressed that this feeling about the game isn't really love - but of course, the word is often used to denote a strong enthusiasm for a subject or a pastime, and we just don't seem to have another good word to describe this kind of...er...love.

While thinking about today, I had a look around for some articles on the the kind of love that sports fans feel towards the teams or people that they support. I couldn't turn up anything specifically on tennis or other sports that focus on individuals, but this piece by James McKinley from the New York Times some years ago caught my eye. It's discussing team sports, and the psychology of some supporters. A key quote is:

Does that sound like what happens to some of us in TW? I'd like to ask you all about this. Yes, I know all about Rachael's womb, but what about the rest of you? Do you have involuntary physiological reactions as your favourites go through agony and ecstasy on the court? Do wins and losses affect your general outlook on the days when they occur? Do you ever wonder (after a crushing defeat) whether it's all worth it? What do you get out of it?

I certainly confess to having sweaty palms and a raised heartbeat at moments of high tension, though I'm doing my best to throw off the inability to look at the TV screen at such times, and rarely hide behind the sofa these days. I think perhaps the opportunity to see and photograph so much live tennis in 2007 and 2008 gave me an increased appreciation for what all of the players go through, and also gave me a better overall sense of the nature of the daily contests that they are up against. Of course, it could be argued that my camera became my metaphorical sofa. As to whether it was all worth it - in spite of some very disappointing moments (the second US Open men's semifinal was my personal nadir), I'm thrilled to have had the experience, and I love watching the game (now from the safety of my own home) as much as ever. As for what I get out of it - I've said all along that I think of tennis as a game of character, and love 'em or not, I'm highly focused on the nature of the very varied human individuals who play the game, and how it affects their ability to win - or not. I'm a sucker for people's stories. Sometimes they inspire me, and I do like to be inspired.

I also wonder whether the gladiatorial nature of tennis means that it attracts a different kind of fan to team sports - one who is almost inevitably focused more on following individuals than teams (incidentally, I also wonder whether it's just an uncanny coincidence that so many tennis players have cited "Gladiators" as a favourite movie, but that's a separate discussion).

Lastly I'd like to ask you all whether participating in a forum like TW in any way changes the way that you behave when rooting for your favourites? Do you express everything that you're thinking when you post here, or  do you hold back some of what you're feeling at key moments of victory or mourning because of the sensibilities of others who you know are rooting for the other side? We often seem to achieve a very civilised level of discussion at such moments - sometimes I'm very touched by it, as one player's fans show compassion for the fans of the other, or congratulations are offered (as though, indeed, it was a personal victory, no less!). It's one of the reasons that I'm a fan of TW itself.

Yet I do also think that honesty in any discussion is important, and I'm always interested when people show their true feelings of sadness or happiness in full, without restraints. These days I admit that I often hold back immediate emotional reactions in TW, and wait before expressing them. After a match when many of us care about the outcome, it seems to take me additional time to reconcile my feelings with the rational response to what's happened, knowing that others may be having radically different reactions. I think maybe Pete hit on something important when he originally described TW's comment-posters as "the Tribe" (now often known as the TWibe). In spite of supporting many very different players, our similarities often seem far greater than our differences - put another way, it often doesn't feel like two tribes going to war with each other. Sometimes I wonder how we achieved this, given the strength of so many TWibe members' feelings of fan loyalty. Maybe it's some kind of, um, what's that word - love?

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone.