The television announcers raved about what a great tennis match it had been after Marat Safin defeated Nicolas Kiefer in a five-set match that lasted more than four hours at the U.S. Open. A newspaper headline the next morning said: "Safin Outlasts Kiefer in Thriller."

It was indeed a monumental contest, with the little-known Nicolas Kiefer matching the very talented and highly ranked Marat Safin shot for shot and game for game for four long hours. But four hours of scrambling and hitting in the heat and humidity of New York were too much. In the end, Kiefer was so cramped up and in such obvious pain that I turned the TV off rather than watch his suffering.

Although Safin did not seem to be hurting as much, the match took a lot out of him as well. Afterward he said: "How was I feeling? Dead. Completely dead." He added, "I was choking so badly I was embarrassed. I couldn't serve, I couldn't play. I couldn't move."

What is the point of reducing great tennis players to a level far below their normal skills and subjecting them to strains that make the match a test of physical endurance more so than anything else?

Seven men have already quit during the first round of the U.S. Open. Why men? Probably because men play the best three out of five sets, while women play the best two out of three.

How many fans would rather watch a five-set match where the level of tennis has fallen off badly, rather than three sets with the players still playing with the high level of skill that the fans came to see?

We may applaud the courage and stamina of a player who hangs in there, despite obvious pain and disabilities, but is that what tennis is about? Does it make for a better experience when you see Pete Sampras throw up on the court or have to be helped off the court when the match is over?

Contrary to what some snobs think about sports fans, most fans are not there to watch pain or blood. When a referee stops a boxing match because one of the fighters is getting too battered, there is usually applause and almost never a sign of disapproval. Fans want to see a contest, not carnage. Continued...