She came to America at a very young age for training and opportunity yet played for Russia.
She cheated by using drugs to improve her endurance, was caught and banned for 15 months from playing.
She introduced the world to loud screeching with every ball strike starting a trend paving the way for others to do the same. It is only now being reined in for younger players.
I'm not a fan.
Monica Seles was the first one I heard who grunted/groaned/shrieked whatever with every shot.
When I played tennis many moons ago I never uttered anything when I hit the ball, and I hit the ball very hard.
I never heard anyone else I played against or saw on the outdoor courts or at the racquet club where I played shout or yelp when they hit the ball. A lot of them were much better than I was.
I think today's young athletes have been told to shout or else they simply copy other players who shriek whenever they hit the ball. For some strange reason young athletes in many sports feel they have to shout/scream whenever they do something good.
Too many athletes today showboat something that would have invited physical retaliation in the old days.
