Alright, listen up, y’all. Let’s talk about them folks on the TV who yap while them tennis players smack that little yellow ball around. You know, the tennis TV announcers.
I ain’t no fancy expert or nothin’, but I watch me some tennis, and I got ears, see? And some of them talkers, well, they make the game even better. Some, not so much. It’s like this, some folks just got a way of makin’ things sound excitin’, even if it’s just two fellas hittin’ a ball back and forth.
They got all kinds, these announcers. Some of ’em sound like they been watchin’ tennis since they was babies. They know all the players, all the moves, all the fancy names for them shots. They tell you who’s doin’ what and why, and sometimes, I swear, they know what’s gonna happen before it even happens! Those are the good ones, the ones that make you feel like you’re right there on the court with them players. They make you understand the game, even if you don’t know a backhand from a chicken coop.
Then you got the other kind, the ones that just…talk. They say a whole lotta nothin’, you know? They use big words and fancy phrases, and half the time, I ain’t got a clue what they’re jabberin’ about. They sound important, I guess, but they don’t really add nothin’ to the game. They just fill up the air with noise. It’s like listenin’ to a rooster crow all day long – loud, but not very useful.
- The smarty-pants ones: These are the fellas who know everything about tennis. They can tell you the history of the game, the stats of every player, and the angle of every shot. Sometimes they’re good, sometimes they just make you feel dumb.
- The cheerleaders: These folks get all excited about everythin’. “Oh, what a shot!” “Amazing!” “Unbelievable!” They’re fun to listen to sometimes, especially when the match is gettin’ good. But sometimes, they get a little carried away.
- The storytellers: I like these ones. They tell you stories about the players, about their lives, about their struggles. They make you feel like you know them personally. It’s like listenin’ to your neighbor gossip over the fence, but in a good way.
- The quiet ones: These are the ones that don’t say much, but when they do, it’s important. They let the game speak for itself, and they just add a little bit of commentary here and there. Sometimes, that’s all you need.
And then you got them famous folks, the ones who used to play the game themselves. They got the experience, they know what it’s like to be out there on the court. They can tell you what the players are thinkin’, what they’re feelin’. Those ones, they’re usually pretty good, ’cause they know what they’re talkin’ about. They’ve been there, done that, got the t-shirt, as they say.
Take that US Open, for example. It’s a big deal, that tournament. And they got a whole bunch of announcers, all tryin’ to make the game sound good. Some are British, some are American, some are from other places. They all got their own styles, their own ways of talkin’. But the good ones, they all got one thing in common: they love the game. You can hear it in their voices. They make you love the game too, even if you just sittin’ on your couch in your old housecoat.
And it ain’t just the big tournaments neither. They got announcers for all kinds of tennis matches, all over the world. You know, ATP, WTA, all them fancy letters. They even got announcers for them little table tennis games, the ones where they use them tiny paddles. I saw one fella on the internet, they call him Snakeman. He’s real popular, always makin’ videos about table tennis. He’s one of them cheerleaders, always gettin’ all excited, makin’ it sound like the most important thing in the world. And you know what? Sometimes, it feels like it is.
So, yeah, tennis TV announcers. They’re important, I reckon. They can make a good match great, and a bad match… well, at least they can make it a little more interestin’. They’re the voices of the game, and without them, it just wouldn’t be the same. It’d be like watchin’ a movie with no sound, or eatin’ a pie with no sugar. Just…plain.
But I gotta say, sometimes I wish they’d just shut up and let me watch the game in peace. But then again, I guess that’s just me gettin’ old and cranky. Like my grandson says, “Grandma, you complain about everything!” Maybe he’s right. But I still say, a good announcer is worth their weight in gold. They’re like the salt in your soup, the sugar in your tea, the cushion in your chair. They just make things better.
And remember, it don’t matter if they’re famous or not, if they talk fancy or plain, if they’re loud or quiet. What matters is if they love the game, and if they can make you love it too. That’s what makes a good tennis TV announcer, plain and simple. And that’s all I gotta say about that.
Tags: [Tennis, TV Announcers, US Open, ATP, WTA, Commentators, Sports Broadcasting, British Commentators]