The Cruelest Game

A revelatory exposé of modern tennis--the world''s most competitive, physically and mentally grueling sport--THE CRUELEST GAME reveals the inside stories of the current legends and tomorrow''s young stars, with never-before-reported stories of their struggles and accomplishments on and off the court, by revered Nadal and Djokovic...Serena and Sabalenka...Sinner and Alcaraz...The inside story of modern tennis burns bright with fame, fortune and glamour--and high-stakes the likes of which the game has never seen before. Players must excel beyond the court under excruciating pressure, with the public spotlight blazing on those who win, and shunning those who lose. But what toll does it take? And what does it take to win year-in, year-out? If you''re outside the top 40, you’re much closer to 80 than to number 1. THE CRUELEST GAME offers an intimate, insider account of the costs of getting to the top, and the price of the fame and glory that comes with it. Futterman delves into the lives and struggles of modern tennis'' most critical players at a critical time for the sport, when fans are searching for a new set of heroes to take over for the legends whose careers are fading to black. With the likes of Rafa, Roger, Novak, and Serena;walking off the court;and into retirement, a new crop of aspiring tennis hopefuls faces a shifting landscape. This book builds on award-winning journalist Matthew Futterman''s unique access to the very top echelons of professional tennis (he has worked as the top <New York Times< and <The Athletic< tennis writer for years), and takes readers inside established and new players'' quest for the secret codes that allows them to survive and thrive at the top of a brutal game.

Autorentext

Matthew Futterman

Klappentext

**A riveting exposé of professional tennis by revered journalist Matthew Futterman (of The New York Times and The Athletic), The Cruelest Game offers never-before-reported access to the daily routines, mindsets, and personal trials faced by today’s major stars and tomorrow’s rising newcomers • Best Book of the Summer: Boston Globe, Bloomberg, LitHub, Kirkus

“Matt Futterman is one of the clearest modern-day journalistic voices in tennis.... A great read for all sports fans.”—Billie Jean King**

Alcaraz, Sinner, and Shelton . . . Sabalenka, Gauff, and Świątek . . . Djokovic, Williams, and Nadal. The story of modern tennis shines with immense fortune and glamour—as well as unrelenting high stakes—like the game has never seen before. Players excel and implode under excruciating pressure, alone on the court for the world to see. With legends like Rafa, Roger, and Serena retired and Novak trying to figure out when to go, a new generationof electric stars has burst onto the scene and begun their quest for the secret codes that will allow them to thrive at the top of a brutal game.

Matthew Futterman, whose dynamic insider reporting has placed him at the center of the tennis world, now takes us inside this rarified sport as it has never been seen. From private practice courts to the tunnels beneath the major tournament stadiums, from training academies to faraway wartorn hometowns, Futterman sits us down with the stars whose relentless drive leads them to battle against a game of millimeters, and explains the off-court tensions that can both lift and destroy them. With unmatched access to the top players and coaches, and their unique psyches and personalities, The Cruelest Game is a breathtaking account of what it takes to succeed, the price that is paid, and the insatiable competitive spirit that propels the rarest of athletes to greatness.

Zusammenfassung
A revelatory exposé of modern tennis—the world's most competitive, physically and mentally grueling sport—The Cruelest Game reveals the inside stories of the current legends and tomorrow's young stars, with never-before-reported stories of their struggles and accomplishments on and off the court, by revered New York Times and The Athletic tennis writer Matthew Futterman.

Nadal and Djokovic . . . Serena and Sabalenka . . . Sinner and Alcaraz . . . The inside story of modern tennis burns bright with fame, fortune, and glamour—and high stakes the likes of which the game has never seen before. Players must excel beyond the court under excruciating pressure, with the public spotlight blazing on those who win, and shunning those who lose. But what toll does it take? And what does it take to win year-in, year-out? If you're outside the top 40, you’re much closer to 80 than to number 1. The Cruelest Game offers an intimate  insider account of the costs of getting to the top, and the price of the fame and glory that comes with it. Futterman delves into the lives and struggles of modern tennis's most critical players at a critical time for the sport, when fans are searching for a new set of heroes to take over for the legends whose careers are fading to black.

With the likes of Rafa, Roger, Novak, and Serena walking off the court and into retirement, a new crop of aspiring tennis hopefuls faces a shifting landscape. This book builds on award-winning journalist Matthew Futterman's unique access to the very top echelons of professional tennis (he has worked as the top New York Times and The Athletic tennis writer for years), and takes readers inside established and new players' quest for the secret codes that allow them to survive and thrive at the top of a brutal game.

Leseprobe
1

The Lions Go Kicking and Screaming

Two questions.

Why does this game seemingly drive everyone mad?

What does it take to survive and thrive?

That’s what’s rattling around my brain in the summer of 2024 and the months that follow as the old ones, the lions of this game, go kicking and screaming, battling past the end, with and against bodies that have given them the biggest trophies, wealth, and fame but have failed them long ago. That’s what any of our bodies ultimately do. And yet the lions still resist, struggling with the impossibility of it all.

By the end, time blurs the dark memories, all the battles against the fear of never being enough. The lions can remember only the joy, the good stuff. Maybe that is for the best as their bones and joints begin to wither.

For so long they have beaten back every challenge. They have won so many fights on the long climb to the sport’s summit . . . so many points, matches, and tournaments that felt like life and death played with the world watching. They have camped out on the summit for ­longer than anyone imagined they possibly could. So how could a knee, or a hip, or a stiffening spine, or the smallest drop-­off in previously unmatched speed and flexibility and touch not be just another opponent to solve or a match to win on the way to yet another immortal triumph? Surely there has to be one more secret code they can unlock to solve this, to get one last adrenaline rush of glory that they believe will complete their journey rather than leave them craving more.

The young ones are next up. They know it. They are a staggeringly gifted bunch, but they just can’t figure out how to get to where everyone says they are going to go, to emulate and overtake the lions—­or how to get there without losing their minds. The young ones wonder if their minds possess the steel, and their bodies the grace and balance, to survive this dance on the knife’s edge of sanity.

So many of the young ones, even the ones who display early greatness, descend into tears every time they lose a big match. They beg their coaches, one after another, to find them a way out of the fire, fearing, or in some cases knowing, that it has already consumed them. Full-­body cra…