Tennis News and Updates: Oct. 30, 2012

So Serena has walked away from the WTA Championships as the year-end winner! She beat Sharapova in the finals 6-4 6-3. At 31 years old, it's a huge accomplishment for her winning this, Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open. Not many players over 30 can brag about such a fruitful year. Congratulations to her and hopefully she gets a good break before the Australian Open!
Other updates: Azarenka, despite not winning the WTA Championships, will still end up staying at #1. Federer has also pulled out of the Paris Masters' to be in good shape for the year-end ATP championships.


I read something interesting today about a school in California for the blind who are starting to teach its students to play tennis. It is hard to wrap your head around trying to hit the ball without seeing it, but they have found a way to help the students experience this sport. The net is shorter, the court is smaller, the racket head is bigger and the grip is shorter. The ball is made of foam and filled with metal beads that rattle so that the students will be able to locate and track the ball. These things are tailored to aid the blind in playing tennis. The instructors say the biggest problem is the timing in hitting the ball. That is even hard for non-blind people to do. I think this is a great way to expand the sport to everyone.