EXCLUSIVE: Tennis stars told to 'toughen up' amid rowdy crowd complaints
Updated . First published at
MELBOURNE: Mark Petchey has told tennis stars to "toughen up" amid international criticism claiming that Australian Open crowds are too rowdy.
The 'Happy Slam' has been punctuated by grumbles from some prominent players and members of the foreign press who pine for a more traditional, staid atmosphere.
Danielle Collins and Novak Djokovic have got wound up about it - but then told reporters that the heckling makes them play better anyway.
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Fans of Kimberly Birrell of Australia cheer at Melbourne Park. Getty
One night on the backcourts got so loose that Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Felix Auger-Aliassime were forced to change venues mid-match as they struggled to ignore the noise from Courts 3 and 6.
The latter features a courtside bar and French fans were in party mode as they cheered Arthur Cazaux against Britain's Jacob Fearnley.
"It's absolutely what you want to come to," former pro player and coach Petchey told Stan Sport's Grand Slam Daily.
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Chris Stubbs and Mark Petchey on Grand Slam Daily. Stan
"You go to any other sporting event, you go to anything and the crowd get into it. Obviously you've got to draw a line, when the players step up to the line (to serve), you want to hear a little bit of silence and you've got to let the players hear the ball.
"But from a player's perspective, when they're not hitting the ball, they've got to toughen up.
"And from a global point of view, you're not coming here to a cathedral of silence.
"You're coming here to a sporting event where people are trying to steal each other's dreams. It's going to get emotional out there. Honestly, this tournament's been magnificent from a crowd point of view."
Petchey also applauded Djokovic's approach as he responded to his heckler in his post-match on court interview.
"Great humour, nice way to defuse the situation."
