CAUSEWAY BAY, Hong Kong – Admittedly, I’m no authority on tennis. A rare chance to attend the JB Group Classic 2008 promised to be an interesting experience.

The tournament, contested by eight of the world’s best female players, took place from January 2-5 at the Victoria Park Tennis Stadium in Causeway Bay.

Like most folks from Hong Kong’s outlying Lamma Island, I come within sight of tennis paraphernalia only when wandering past the island’s only tennis court. Even that lone court sees more idle time than action.

Hong Kong isn’t much of a sports city. On Lamma, we favor different physical activities, like hiking (actually, dog-walking) and weightlifting (carrying shopping bags home from Causeway Bay).

Once seated at Hong Kong’s top tennis event, I took a good look around. Corporate advertising appeared everywhere – on the sidelines, halfway up the stands, above the stands, in the program, on tennis balls given away outside and even on the net. Hardly subtle, it seemed excessive, even annoying.

As usual in Hong Kong, the proceedings began with a short dragon dance and martial-arts exhibition. Ho-hum!

A glance at the program revealed that the tournament starred two former Wimbledon champions: Venus Williams of the US and Maria Sharapova of Russia. They were joined by Peng Shuai, a symbolically important Chinese player, plus Ana Ivanovic (Serbia), Anna Chakvetadze (Russia), Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia), Elena Dementieva (Russia) and Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark),

In the opening match, 20-year-old Sharapova, rated fifth in the world, faced the 60th-ranked Wozniacki, aged 17. Wow! The ball really zipped. Those ladies could overpower Lamma’s best players.

While competing fiercely, Sharapova grunts a lot. Her every swing sounded like an act of fury and desperation.

As the ball zoomed across the net, I sensed everyone there engaged in the classic tennis-watching behavior. We looked left, then right, from one player to the other. This viewing could cause dislocated necks.

Across the court, dozens of photo-journalists pointed cameras and gigantic lenses. Their gear resembled cannons aimed for battle.

Numerous red-shirted line judges and ball chasers, all looking intense, lurked near the playing surface. During breaks, the players retreated to designated chairs and gulped from water bottles. A few paces away, security men stared distrustfully into the crowd.

Sharapova built a big lead and made it unassailable. With more anguished grunts, she completed a first-round victory, 6-2, 6-2.

By then, my interest had waned and I considered how it’d make a better spectacle if such players appeared on Lamma’s more modest tennis court. Those grunt-propelled strokes might pierce the wire fence and send the balls bouncing all the way to Hung Shing Yeh Beach.

Then I reflected on more pressing matters. Maybe I should buy groceries and carry them home. Then I’d need to walk the dog. Maybe we’d stroll by the empty tennis court.


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