Tennis Show #3: An Intersation with TennisAbstract.com Creator, Jeff Sackmann
Tennis has neglected for too long the stories that data tells. Jeff Sackmann has picked up that mantle to change the game.
Home Court Health with Tom Foolery
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Show Notes
My deep love of tennis has moved me to re-connect with various aspects of the game: coaching, playing, watching, reading, etc. What I could not have anticipated was the discovery of data that would capture my attention...
I am so grateful to Jeff Sackmann for his work in collecting and organizing decades-worth of tennis statistics. He has artfully turned that collection into a fascinating data set that has become the go-to resource for people like myself, as well as world-class professionals such as Iga Swiatek and her team.
Having followed his work throughout this year, I knew I had to have him on the podcast to indulge some of my questions as a tennis and baseball fan, and to better comprehend his massive undertaking to be the pioneer of modern data capture.
In this wide-ranging intersation, Jeff and I discuss:
- His background in data, including his publishing a GMAT Prep book
- Criticism and praise of tennis broadcasters
- Match charting & watching tennis as a student
- Jeff's dedication to producing the Tennis 128
- The parallels between organizing data for baseball vs. tennis
- How can we think about the GOAT discussion?
- Memories of live tennis - best experience is court-level, no matter the players
- Necessary changes to evolve baseball and tennis for the sake of the fans and athletes
- Modern players: are they soft? too friendly? Who's to say?!
Further resources to follow:
- TennisAbstract.com
- The Tennis 128: Great Players of the Last 100 Years
- as of this podcast release, Jeff has produced biographies up to #25 on his list; very insightful & entertaining to follow
- Tennis TV for streaming ATP matches
- WTA Stats Leaderboard on TennisAbstract.com
- ATP Stats Leaderboard on TennisAbstract.com
Thank you for listening to Who's to Say? with Tom Foolery. Please leave a review, write me a message with any criticism or suggestions, and check out my website to follow the journey of open source discussion and portals of information.
Thank you for listening to Who's to Say? with Tom Foolery.
Please leave a review and visit my site to connect with more content and resources.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit homecourthealth.substack.com