Negative Reporting on Pete Sampras, Maria Sharapova and Andy Murray Angers Tennis World, ‘Reputed’ British Publications Risk Boycott?

A bunch of British media houses have come under fire from tennis fans for their insensitive reporting on stars of the sport. Illustrious names like Pete Sampras, Maria Sharapova, and Andy Murray have been on the receiving end of some negative coverage in recent times.

In this age of increasing online news readership, many publications are guilty of resorting to sensationalism to gather more clicks. Such media houses often misuse the names of star athletes to mislead audiences. There have been calls among the tennis fraternity to boycott these companies.

Recently, leading British outlet Daily Mail faced heavy backlash for targeting Pete Sampras. Alongside an unflattering photo of the 14-time Grand Slam winner shared by their official X (formerly Twitter) account, a callous headline called him ‘unrecognisable’. Fans rightly criticised the post for abusing Sampras’ fame to get more clicks. Former WTA doubles No.1 Rennae Stubbs also slammed their journalistic standards.

Another British media group, The Mirror, used the same term to describe Maria Sharapova. In December 2023, a published article claimed she had transformed since retirement and looked ‘completely different’ to how she was during her active career. However, the only change was Sharapova’s hair colour, while she looked barely dissimilar to her playing days.

Tennis fans were displeased with the sensationalised article. They called it an attempt to farm readership using Sharapova’s name and an exaggerated headline.

The BBC, one of Britain’s most famous media companies, met with criticism for pushing Andy Murray to retire. The Scottish star is not in his best form, winning only one of his last 10 matches. The BBC said it was time for him to hang up his boots, implying he is too proud to retire. They also questioned whether extending his career is ‘worth it’ since it is damaging his legacy. Fans on X slammed this reporting, as Murray himself also hit back, saying he won’t quit.

Tarnishing my legacy? Do me a favour. I’m in a terrible moment right now I’ll give you that. Most people would quit and give up in my situation right now. But I’m not most people and my mind works differently. I won’t quit. I will keep fighting and working to produce the… https://t.co/nF0var6IfL

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) January 30, 2024

Another classic British news house, The Times, published an article last year targeting Jessica Pegula. It implied that the American may lack the motivation to win big titles since the rewards won’t make much difference to her, given her billion-dollar inheritance in the waiting. Along with other fans, Pegula joined in on attacking the article, calling it trash.