Watching Tennis With The Kids

It's tennis and cricket seasons now. And since I know next to nothing about cricket, I opt for the Australian Tennis Open. After all, I was at one time a big fan of professional tennis.


We can't afford the pricey tickets at the Rod Lever Arena to catch the action live. Fortunately, we get to see matches broadcast live daily over Channel 7. So we tune in to watch tennis whenever the kids are not hogging the TV to watch their kiddie shows.


Last week, Joshua and Joanne watched their very first tennis match - the 3rd round match between Aussie underdog Casey Dellacqua and former Australian Open Amelie Maurismo. Joshua the patriot wanted Dellacqua to win while Joanne chose Maurismo simply because she was dressed in pink, Joanne's favourite colour.

It was an exciting match with both players taking turns playing brilliantly. Joshua, still new to the game, kept asking me how the points were scored. So I explained as the match progressed. He could read fairly well now so he could tell who was leading. He was definitely anxious for Dellacqua. Because it was a close match, he couldn't sit still. He would cover his eyes, walk around, wince or grimace each time Dellacqua lost a point or made an error. He would cheer and jump up and down excitedly when a point went in favour of Dellacqua. Naturally, he was over the moon when Dellacqua emerged the winner of the match. Joanne, on the other hand, wasn't all that concerned that the "pink girl" lost.

Dellacqua's quest however was over in her next match against Jelena Jankovic. Joshua was disappointed. Then he turned his attention to another match involving another Aussie - this time the match between Lleyton Hewitt and Novak Djokovic. Until yesterday, Joshua has never heard nor seen Hewitt but Hewitt instantly became his favourite in yesterday's match. Unfortunately, Hewitt too lost.

Yes, Joshua was definitely disappointed but not crushed. Even before the match ended and we all knew how it was going to end, Joshua stayed true to his "hero", saying he didn't care and still wanted to cheer Hewitt on. At Joshua's age, I would've stopped watching if my hero was being given a sound beating.

There are a few more days of tennis watching to go. Joshua is sure to sit next to me if I'm watching. I wonder if he'll pick up watching cricket or footy too. Probably not, since I don't.