The Sharapova Shift: Less Love for Clijsters & Co. (Part one in a series)

Maria Sharapova undeniably draws attention to women's tennis, and tennis as a whole.

But the kind of coverage she gets in mainstream American media shifts attention away from other deserving athletes on the WTA Tour, and possibly female athletes in other sports.

Back in December, the LPGA's Annika Sorenstam deservedly won the 2005 AP Female Athlete of the Year.  Though she won in a landslide, seven other women received votes.

Tennis was the most represented sport, with three athletes garnering votes:  Sharapova had 5 votes, Venus Williams -- 4, and Belgium's Kim Clijsters -- two.  Two.  Nine other U.S. sports editors of the AP, whose mission is to be "the global news network," looked to the sport of tennis and still overlooked Clijsters -- the woman the International Tennis Writer's Association voted 2005 Player of the Year.

Tennis is a glamorous sport and when it comes time for formal appearances and runway struts, Clijsters can doll it up with the best of them.  But in evaluating who was the best player of the year, it's all about how a woman rocks a racquet, not a dress.

At the beginning of 2005, Clijsters' future in tennis was questionable.  She didn't even enter the Australian Open.  At the end of the year, Clijsters ranked higher than Sharapova and Williams.  She also had a more compelling story.

KIM POSSIBLE: While splits are a common tactic on clay, Clijsters is unique in her ability to use this to her advantage on all surfaces. 

THE GLORY

Sharapova reached world number one on the WTA Tour and was the first Russian woman ever to gain that honor.  But her reign only lasted seven weeks.  While Sharapova showed consistency in the year's four Grand Slams, American Lindsay Davenport was better.  Davenport owned the top ranking the rest of the year; Clijsters came two matches away from taking it away from her.

At year-end, Clijsters ranked second, Sharapova -- fourth, and Venus -- tenth.

Though lower ranked, Venus did something Sharapova did not do in 2005, she played a Grand Slam final.  Venus hadn't won a Slam since 2001 and many thought she'd never resurface.  In recent times, she'd been slowed by niggling injury and many surmised that her off-court pursuits had taken away from her game.  But she displayed her competitive fire at Wimbledon, knocking Sharapova out in the semifinals and winning the longest ladies' singles final ever played at the All-England Club.  She saved matchpoint to beat Davenport in the third set and became the lowest ranked seed (at 14) to ever win the title.  Venus' joy when she won was infectious; an adored champion's return.

Clijsters also had her doubters.  Having been runner-up in four Grand Slam singles finals prior to 2005, she was seen as a great player who couldn't finish on the big stage.  Lacking venom sometimes found in competitors, she was labeled "too nice."  Indeed, in the U.S. Open Series marketing campaign, "Summer's Hottest Reality Series," Kim's nickname was Miss Congeniality.

The U.S. Open Series, inagurated in 2004, is six weeks of hardcourt tournaments leading up to the U.S. Open, in which players are awarded points based on performance.  The 2005 men's race was tightly contested; Andy Roddick cleared a 15-point lead over fellow American Andre Agassi.  On the woman's side, Clijsters won three of the four events she entered and finished with 125 points over second place Mary Pierce.

Points aren' t the only thing the Series offers.  A Bonus Challenge is set up for the top three finishers.  Each earns a percentage bonus; the final dollar total is determined on their winnings in the Slam itself, the U.S. Open.  As Series titlists, Clijsters and Roddick would double their winnings from the upcoming Open.  Both had a shot at $2.2 million.  Neither of the 2004 series winners, Davenport and Australian Lleyton Hewitt, were able to carry their momentum through the two-week championship to win it.

When the U.S. Open draw was revealed,  Clijsters was in a difficult half, along with top seed Sharapova, defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, and both Williams sisters.  Clijsters beat Venus in the quarterfinals and Sharapova in the semis, both three-set matches.

Mary Pierce was cruising, having only dropped one set in the tournament to earn the way to her second Slam final of the year.  The former champion, finding renewed happiness in her game, was imbued with confidence.

But on the day, Pierce offered little challenge for Miss Congeniality.  The match ended in 65 minutes, with Kim the victor, 6-3, 6-1.

Fans in Flushing Meadows knew how much Kim had gone through to get to that moment.  Audience members offered their hands in support as the woman, known for her gymnastics on court, climbed into the stands and balanced on stadium rails to reach her friends, family and coach in the player's box.

Clijsters made history -- Sept. 11 in Queens, NY -- winning $2.2 million for the tournament, the largest purse ever in women's sports.

No! Not that kind of purse... but Kim does collect bags.

THE MONEY

That in itself should be a significant mark.  While women athletes (including tennis players)are still fighting to match incomes with the men, the standard U.S. Open Champions check is the same for men and women, $1.1 million.  Roddick, who doubled his sum as well, lost in the first round.  The men's Champion, Roger Federer, just missed third place in the preceding Series.  Had he been able to take that slot, his winner's check would have increased by 25 percent.  Clijsters was clearly the dominant player, woman or man,  in the nearly two-month long North American swing.

Sharapova is acknowledged as the highest paid female athlete in the world.  It should be noted that estimates of $18-23 million include endorsements.  As far as strictly tournament winnings for 2005, Clijsters ranks top on the women's earnings list.  (Not just because of the bonus; she won a tour-high nine titles.)  Sharapova ranks fifth.  Compare Kim to the men's ATP field and her $3.9 million edges out Rafael Nadal for second.  The only player to top her tournament winnings is Federer. 

The $3.9 million is the second highest total in WTA Tour history; Kim set the top mark in 2003 when she became the first woman to break the $4million mark with $4.4 million.

What makes her year an even more tantalizing story is that the money was the least significant achievement.

To be continued with THE STORY and THE HONEY....

Part two in this series can be found here. 

NOTE: The 2006 Australian Open is on!  As of this first posting on Jan. 19, Clijsters and Sharapova have made it through the second round.  Both women are playing injured: Sharapova with a recurring shoulder problem and Clijsters with a new, more serious, hip injury that is only allowing her to train 10 minutes per day.  Players have long been voicing their opinions about the season being too long; injury is one of the biggest stories in Melbourne this year.  Most notably, the electrifying Marat Safin, defending men's champion, is unable to return due to injury.  Venus was, unfortunately, already eliminated in the first round.

 

 

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