Tennis player watchability rankings: Part 1

Welcome to the official Tennismash Watchability Rankings! Here staff writers Bede Briscomb and Matt Trollope rank forty star tennis players on their entertainment value, using the following criteria:

Style
Does he/she play with some panache?

Highlights
Does he/she produce a heap of GIF-worthy points or shots?

Personality
Includes celebrations, temper tantrums, coach interactions, the brute force to which he/she smashes a racquet, engagement with the audience and improvement of stadium atmosphere.

Conversation
How much does the casual fan care about the player? If I’m at a bar, and I tell a stranger I like tennis, what is the likelihood this player will be brought up in conversation?

Outfits
Do they wear boring outfits?

Before we get stuck into it, please remember that this is a completely subjective list…but if you do disagree then you are *Serena Williams voice* a hater, and you are unattractive on the inside.

Today we’ll be doing Tiers 5 and 6. Tiers 3 and 4 will drop later this week.

Related: every main tennis country’s best chance at a world No.1

TIER 6

40. Eugenie Bouchard

Trollope:  The Canadian’s profile outstrips her ranking by a long way. But there’s a reason for that – she was once a top-five player who in 2014 reached the Wimbledon final plus the Australian and French Open semis. She did so with a game that appeals to fans of the modern-game; hyper-aggressive, first-strike tennis that’s big on power and athleticism. While her form has faded, there’s still plenty to keep her legions of fans satisfied, including regular updates on her social channels, endorsements of brands, nice Nike outfits and a forceful media presence. She was a harsh critic of “cheater” Maria Sharapova’s return from a doping ban, and as a result, their clash in Madrid – and Bouchard’s eventual victory – was one of the talking points of 2017.

39. Dominic Thiem

Briscomb: When they do you with headlines like this, you’re probably not box office. If you’re a tennis fan who thinks long, methodical rallies are the best rallies, perhaps Thiem is for you, but the Austrian (intentionally) offers no window into his personality other than he likes to train really, really long and hard.

38. Johanna Konta

Trollope: Lovers of the game will appreciate Konta’s big serve, relentless aggression and explosive athleticism. Cerebral fans will gravitate to her worldly upbringing – raised in Australia by Hungarian parents before settling in Britain – plus advocacy for female sport and Buddhist-like approach to psychological performance.

37. Kei Nishikori

Briscomb: One can count on Kei to be prepared, remain composed, play smart, well-placed balls and zip around the court, but he is just missing that extra oomph to be truly box office.

36. Karolina Pliskova

Briscomb: Leading the WTA in aces for the third straight year, KP or ‘Ace Queen’ does her best work when she overpowers opponents with a distinct combination of power and precision. A terrific case in point was the 2016 US Open final where the Czech serve-and-volleyed a white-hot Angie Kerber to her limits before falling 4-6 in the last set. She loses points for being emotionless, but gains points for her Polynesian tattoos and making Fila sports apparel work.

35. Ash Barty

Briscomb: Ash is adored and admired for her class and on-court versatility but her Fila outfits are enough to tranquillize a large grizzly bear. The force at which the undersized Aussie hits her groundstrokes, particularly the forehand, is always worth watching.

You may also like: happier Barty completes incredible 2017 season 

TIER 5 

34. Elina Svitolina

Trollope: The Ukrainian is fun to watch, especially since she notched up the aggression in 2017 to complement her excellent defensive skills and court coverage. Svitolina is the archetypal modern player and the physical intensity with which she plays – including a guttural grunt – is a must-see for tennis fans. She’s a glamorous presence on social media; a relationship with English cricketer Reece Topley doesn’t hurt in the entertainment stakes either.

33. Simona Halep

Briscomb: The AntiPova 5000. Halep is short, never shrieks, very quick and wins on instinct and endurance without having elite natural talent. She also rarely emotes and never wears anything flashy or says anything contentious. This is why she’s a robot, and I will continue to believe so until a third party checks the back of her neck for a barcode, computer chip or errant wires.

32. Tomas Berdych

Trollope: You want crisp, clean, technically-correct shotmaking? Then Berdych is your man. The towering Czech, when in the zone, can be largely unstoppable thanks to an aggressive, all-court game that can overwhelm opponents on any surface. It explains why he’s reached at least the semifinals at all four majors, a stat that adds some heft to his presence on the court. Berdych did flirt with some garish fashion choices when sponsored by H&M a few years back but now opts for a more conservative Adidas ensemble. His demeanour is similarly subdued, but it occasionally takes a turn, like when he maddened Spanish fans by shooshing them after beating Nadal in Madrid one year, and riling Aussie spectators when he refused to shake Almagro’s hand at the net in 2012.

31. Kristina Mladenovic

Briscomb: Controversy is never far from “Kiki”, whose insistence on speaking her mind has led to fractious relationships with other players, and dramatic matches when they clash. Her all-court game is impressive to watch and her matches against Sharapova in Stuttgart and Muguruza in Paris are still referenced months later. A glamorous, statuesque athlete, Mladenovic loves the big courts. She’s also dating Dominic Thiem, which is fun.

30. Agnieszka Radwanska

Trollope: Few players possess the creativity that Aga brings to the court. The Pole is a human highlight reel, frequently winning the WTA’s shot of the year competition. Her videos have been viewed millions of times as she has improvised winners, produced ingenuity and flummoxed opponents. Largely dispassionate on the court, Radwanska can turn icy when not impressed by her opponents’ behaviour, and some of her handshakes are iconic – my favourite was her complete dismissal of Sabine Lisicki at the net after their Wimbledon 2013 semifinal, a moment even emblazoned on a t-shirt. Fans love Aga, who until this year was a top-10 stalwart; she was voted the WTA’s fan favourite six years in a row, beginning in 2011.