A Display of Exuberance, Not Treason
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Version 0 of 1. John Isner lumbered off the practice court Friday afternoon, and as he worked his way through the usual gantlet of autograph hounds at the United States Open, many of the assembled chanted his name. It felt more patriotic than it would have a day earlier. It felt downright American. On Friday, the fans did not cheer for Isner’s opponent, the way they did on Thursday, a gesture that ignited indignation across social media, left Isner “disappointed” and created an unnecessary controversy over the cheering etiquette supposedly required of tennis fans, of all the worthwhile debates. Isner, of course, did not have an opponent Friday. But this still somehow qualified as progress. What happened Thursday night was not an act of collective treason. Far from it. What happened Thursday night was a tennis match that embodied what is great about the United States Open. It took place at night, under the lights, and featured two of the sport’s more intriguing players. There was Isner, a giant with a serve so fast it should be given a ticket for speeding. And there was Gaël Monfils, a theatrical Frenchman and a deserved fan favorite. That Isner happened to be the 13th seed and the highest-ranked American in this tournament, and that he happened to be playing on American soil in what amounted to a home Grand Slam, ignited a debate that stretched into Friday. Namely, is there an unwritten rule of tennis fandom that says Americans are obliged to cheer for an American, any American, all Americans? No. There is not. Tennis, after all, is an international sport. On the men’s side, the biggest stars of this generation, the so-called Big Four, hail from Serbia, Spain, Switzerland and Scotland. Their followings cross borders and religions and ethnicities. They have fans in America. Thousands of them. Millions of them. Some of those fans even live in New York City, the melting pot of melting pots. Those fans can be unpredictable and international and rowdy, and that is all part of the Open’s charm. They want long matches — four-setters, five-setters — and scintillating tennis. Or basically what they got late Thursday. Wimbledon is defined by its traditions, the French Open by its artistry, the Australian Open by its festive atmosphere. The United States Open is defined by night matches like the one contested between Isner and Monfils, the atmosphere charged, the action tense, the crowd as much a participant as the players. Yet when the crowd chanted Monfils’s name, Twitter users all but exploded in righteous disbelief. Fellow pros expressed their shock. Bradley Klahn pronounced the “anti-American crowd” embarrassing. Caroline Wozniacki posted that she “can’t believe the crowd.” “They’re missing the point,” said Justin Gimelstob, a retired player who insisted he could still remember every point he played at night at the Open. “The crowd wasn’t disrespectful. It was about them. They wanted Isner to win, but they wanted him to earn it. This is New York. This is America. They wanted to see the pain before they gave the adulation.” Isner handled the events as well as could be expected. In his postmatch news conference, he acknowledged noticing that the crowd had turned against him. He did not lie, as many players would have. He admitted that it bothered him. He said that the opposite would not have taken place in France. That is true. And immaterial. This is New York. There are unwritten rules involved. There is, in a sense, an etiquette, in that there is less etiquette than at your typical major tennis tournament. That is also part of the Open’s charm. It is fine to cheer for an underdog. It is fine to cheer for a match to be extended well into the night. It is fine to cheer for your favorite players. It is fine, even, to down a few too many Honey Deuce cocktails and spend a few hours as “that guy” for the night match. “As a former player, I understand John being ticked off,” said Patrick McEnroe, an ESPN analyst. “For a player, when you’re out there, I don’t think you view any of those unwritten rules as acceptable. But we’re in New York. If you bought your ticket, within reason, you should be able to do anything you want. Sure, it wouldn’t happen in France. But you’ve got to get over it.” Monfils lost the match in four sets, it should be noted, but sounded afterward as if he had won. He said, “I’m just, like, happy,” and, “I’m enjoying it,” and, “It’s nice.” He said that the crowd support surprised him, that he loved to play in New York, that the atmosphere was “amazing.” McEnroe said Isner had done a better job this summer with his temperament, with staying positive. That, combined with the events of Thursday night, will help Isner connect with the fans here, McEnroe added. Because of the way he handled himself. Because he won. Because he is the best hope for the American men. Male tennis players in America have not given American fans much to cheer for of late. In that void, the fans have embraced a Serbian, Novak Djokovic; a Spaniard, Rafael Nadal; a Swiss, Roger Federer; and a Scot, Andy Murray. So have fans in Antarctica. And Africa. And Greece. That’s not exactly treason. By the end of Isner’s match Thursday, chants of “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” echoed through the stadium. The cheers were loud, and they lasted long, and they were less about Monfils and Isner and more about another rousing night of tennis at the Open. <NYT_AUTHOR_ID> <p>Ben Rothenberg contributed reporting. |