There are certain sports that lend themselves well to
live audio broadcast and others that do not. The two sports that immediately
come to mind that do not translate well are golf and tennis. With golf, one
needs the visual of the golf course to imprint the shot—there is no 50 yard
line like in football. And with tennis, the shots are so rapid that before an
announcer could voice the location of a ball’s placement, another return would
have been hit or called out.
I, on most Sundays observe the Italian ethnic
tradition of making Sunday sauce. It is a meal that I can prepare with ease.
And televised sports programing keeps me company as I go about my cooking. So this
past Sunday as I chopped and mixed and sautéed, I chose to watch the Women’s US
Open finals for tennis. I did so with my back turned to the television screen,
as my TV set sits on a countertop perpendicular to my work area.
And while my ears should not have been able to follow
the points—this time, my hearing did not fail me. Each shot by Victoria
Azorenka was not preceded by a grunt, but rather by a shrill that reminded me
of a rebel yell. I was able to keep score by the continuance or lack thereof,
of the most irritating expulsion of air that I have ever heard.
And the very next day, Serena Williams voiced on Good
Morning America that she was so focused during the match that she did not hear Azorenka’s
rebel yell at all. She only heard the sound of her opponent’s defeat.
And that is a good thing. Because I was so distracted
by the cacophony that I switched to the 49er’s/Packer’s game. I do not have Serena’s
focus. And my meatballs needed me to carry them on to victory.
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