April 2007
"Juego, parcial y partido" (game, set and match) Diego, the umpire, called and a jubilant young Juan Spina rushed forward, with some relief, to the net to shake the hand of his opponent, Jonathan Gonzalia. These boys clearly met regularly on the local tennis circuit, and in true Latin fashion, hugged each other with genuine affection. They had just finished a Herculean battle for supremacy on the best court of the San Rafael Tennis Club, in front of a touchingly vibrant and encouraging crowd.

No strawberries and cream, no large ladies in matching blazers…no Cyclops…this was certainly not Wimbledon, and the only similarity with that famous tournament was the astonishingly high standard of play.

The final went to tie breaks in all three sets, with 21 year old Spina having the edge over his opponent in the psychological stakes. But you could not fault the entertainment value of the tennis; the crowd of local club members was held mesmerized by the sheer speed of Spina’s serve and the tenacity of his opponent in returning some stinging down-the-line forehands; even the temporary ball boys forgot their duties at times, so engrossed were they in this closest of matches.

The knockout rounds were wonderfully relaxed with the players picking up their own balls and keeping (and arguing) the score themselves, while the mothers’ and toddlers’ club sunned themselves by the crystal blue swimming pool, seemingly oblivious to the battle of wills alongside.

This tournament, the Copa Tower (Tower Cup, sponsored by the Tower Hotel in San Rafael…along with a plethora of other local businesses) is in its second year on the Argentinian tennis circuit and is played at the San Rafael Tennis Club in the town of the same name, located 1000km to the west of the capital city Buenos Aires - in the foothills of the massive Andean mountain range that stretches imposingly along the western edge of the country.

A town of some 170,000 inhabitants, San Rafael boasts several tennis clubs; The San Rafael Tennis Club, opened in 1952, is the most popular and has an eclectic membership of local Argentinians and American, British and other European ex-pats. It also has an encouragingly enthusiastic tennis school for some 150 children aged 6 to 16, under the expert tutelage of chief coach Profesor Diego Forcada, who as well as being a popular and gifted teacher, speaks excellent English.

Tennis, along with football and polo, is one of the most popular sports amongst Argentinians, whose climate of hot, hot summers and dry winters lends itself to an outdoor lifestyle. Although still considered an upper to middle-class sport in the country it is practiced by many, regardless of age. Tennis in Argentina is regulated by the Asociacion Argentina de Tenis (Argentine Tennis Association), which also selects the coaches for the Argentine teams for international matches.

British immigrants brought the sport to Argentina in the early 19th century, but it was not until late in the 1970s that Guillermo Vilas’ success made the sport popular. Today, there are five Argentinian players in the top 50 world ATP rankings (Association of Tennis Professionals), with David Nalbandian, being the most well known on the Grand Slam circuit and ranked 12th in the world. Twenty three year old Jonathan Gonzalia (23) from Quilmes, Buenos Aires is ranked 707; Juan Spina, from La Plata, Buenos Aires, is ranked 803.

Tennis can be traced all the way back to ancient Greek times when a ball game called sphairistike was played; but the game most like modern-day tennis hails from France. Supposedly, a wandering minstrel gave the game to the French Royal court in the 10th century and by the 11th century the game was being played in French monasteries, with a rope stretched across the central quadrangles and the young novices using their hands to lob the ball over. Louis IV and the Church both attempted to ban the game in France…to no avail, and by the 14th century the game had found its way to England where both Henry VII and Henry VIII were keen players. Henry VIII, so legend has it, invented the ‘service’ – he trained his servants to throw the ball up for him to hit because he was too fat to do it himself! There are suggestions too that he was instrumental in developing the peculiar scoring system 15, 30, 45 – being the King, he liked always to win and to ensure that he did so, for every point his opponent scored, he earned 15!

There are several other theories to explain this entirely illogical system ranging from the French finding it easier to say quinze, trente, quarante to the possibility that the score was based on the quarters of a clock that may have hung on the court, with the '45' being abandoned and replaced for ease, by '40'. (I personally like the Henry VII scoring theory but if anyone has any other bright ideas, please send a Letter to The Editor!).

Modern tennis terminology is definitely derived from from French roots…..thus;
Tennis from the French verb tenir …to hold; racquet from raquette….possibly developed from an Arabic word rakhat meaning the palm of the hand; Deuce, from a deux le jeu….meaning to both is the game = equal scores. Love is thought to hail from the French word oeuf…a reference to zero and the fact that an egg is O shaped…though the etymology is questionable!!

The Grand Slam international tennis tournaments are under way culminating in the famous Wimbledon Tournament played in the UK in June/July each year; the prizes for those champions run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. In sleepy San Rafael, the prize is the Copa Tower – a wooden statue, carved by local San Rafaelians…depicting the sun, the grapes and the tranquility of the region.

But look out for some of these young competitors on the circuit in years to come...they will be the tennis giants of the future.

San Rafael Tennis Club: +54 9 2627 423744
For tennis lessons with Diego or information on the kids' tennis school: + 54 9 262715 562693  Photos: Sebastian Rich www.hungryeyeimages.com

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