by miffedmax
The only thing hotter than the sun in Grapevine, Texas during the next-to-last week of August was Germany’s Sabine Lisicki, who torched the field at the inaugural Texas Tennis Open, dropping just 13 games on her way to defeating a resurgent Aravane Rezai in the finals.
Despite Lisicki’s blistering performance, the big story of the tournament was the 37 degree (100F) and hotter temperatures that plagued players and fans throughout the event. Although organizers hoped to beat the heat with early evening start times, the simple fact is that even by Texas standards this year has been an exceptionally hot summer—the second hottest on record, in fact. Temperatures were running well above average and evening temperatures were simply not dropping the way they usually do.
Lisicki likened playing her first to matched to “being in an oven.” Early round matches saw Johanna Larsson and Simona Haslep retreating to the far corners of the court in search of the slightest scrap of shade between points.
As with any first-time event, there were a few hitches and glitches. For much of the week, the tents that were supposed to host various tennis related retailers and displays were empty, and the temporary stands lent a sort of USTA-level feel to the proceedings, despite a strong field that included many popular players. One hates to pick on a bunch of youngsters, but the ball kids were not well-prepared for working a tournament, and there were some delays which, for the most part, the players handled with good grace and even a little humor. However, Dallas has hosted a number of USTA-level events, so it seems like there ought to be people who know what they’re doing to make sure the kids are well-prepared. These sorts of glitches are not something that happen at other events in the D/FW area, and to have them occur at the most high-profile tennis tournament in North Texas is inexcusable.
Lastly, the weekend crowds were very good, and also very kid-heavy—weeknight crowds were pretty sparse. Texas kids went back to school the Monday after the tournament started, and that severely impacted attendance.
The plus side? A very strong field for an event of its size, and a convenient location for fans from all over North Texas, which hasn’t had a major event since 1989. Under slightly more normal weather conditions, things would have been much easier on the players and the crowd, so there is some hope for the future on that count. I’m not sure what the answer on the venue is. Dallas doesn’t have a permanent site that’s “just right” for this event—most are either too big or too small. The official word is that the Texas Tennis Open will be back for next year. If the defending champion (and the doubles champions Alberta Brianti and Sorana Cirstea can be persuaded to come back and defend their titles, the Texas Tennis Open could be on its way to being a highly regarded stop on the WTA tour. It has the potential—if the venue is developed and the weather cooperates.
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