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Keith Strudler: Serena's Rankings

There are countless differences between men’s and women’s athletics, many of them rooted in historical stereotypes of sport, power, and masculinity, among other things. But there are physiological distinctions as well, some relevant the nature of certain games and other used as a red herring. But one important distinction between men and women, at least when it comes to the extended duration of a sporting career, is the ability to bear children. Now, before I continue, I realize that talking about sport and childbirth is amount to lighting a firecracker in Times Square at rush hour. It’s a tinder box most would rather ignore, if only to avoid the possibility of inadvertently saying something that might offend.

So with that as a backdrop, I will attempt to address the topic without such offense. But the topic is in the forefront thanks to the return to professional tennis by Serena Williams, the greatest player in the history of the women’s game, who in September had her first child. She’s only played in three tournaments since, including the recent French Open where she withdrew in the fourth round because of an injury. Because of that, Serena is currently ranked 183 in the world. Tennis rankings are only slightly less complicated than nuclear physics, but it’s generally based on a sliding scale of how an athlete has performed over the past year. Which is why the greatest player in history is now ranked behind athletes still working a day job.

Serena isn’t the first elite tennis player to return after child birth. Kim Clijsters had a baby in 2008 and returned to win three more majors in the following three seasons. Former number one Victoria Azarenka had a baby in 2016, but, because of long list of reasons, has never returned to top form. Women across a the sports spectrum have given birth and returned – often with great success – and typically without fanfare. I suppose this is not altogether different than the workplace in general, although often without the added challenge of the physical demands of professional sport.

This is something that men simple cannot fully understand. I say this as a man who has two kids and is a very attentive father, if I may say so myself. But, to put this into perspective, in the afternoon after both of my kids were born, I left the hospital to go for a quick run. That would not have been an option for my wife. So while men and women can bear the emotional and parenting load of newborns, it’s futile to compare the experience – especially when it comes to sport.

So, it’s clear that men and women have different trajectories when it comes to sports and birth. Which, in tennis, means that Serena Williams can leave the game ranked number one, and return ranked 183. Which makes it harder for her to advance and makes it more likely she’ll meet a ranked player early on. Which both seems unfair but also throws the whole system out of whack.

Wimbledon decided to do something about that. Instead of seeding Serena where her ranking warranted, she’s instead going to be the 25th seed for the tournament, giving her an easier draw and addressing the elephant in the room – the fact that Serena is unequivocally one the favorites to win the event. Now, this move also pushed the 32nd ranked player in the world to unranked at Wimbledon, which doesn’t seem fair either. There’s principle, and then there’s practice. They’re not always the same.

But it all raises the question, what’s fair when it comes to child birth and women’s athletics. And is fair even the right word, since, let’s face it, the process by which humans come into world isn’t at all fair or equitable. Particularly as men and women extend their athletic careers into their 30’s and beyond, having kids is a logical part of this experience. For the greater part of sports history, women were often asked to retire early, delay parenthood, or simply choose not to have children. That’s not something that’s part of the male sports experience. But asking women to return to a game far disadvantaged than when they left, leaving behind hard earned equity, in tennis known as rankings, doesn’t seem like a great solution either. Nor is it easy for a pro sports team to lose an athlete for a season or an Olympic squad to lose a potential gold medalist.

Perhaps the only answer here is, there is no good answer. I do think it’s smart to rank Serena Williams where she should be, not where her rankings say she is. I also think we should make it easier, not harder for women to have kids and return to sports, just like any other workplace, even though it isn’t.  But I also think that in the end, there are differences between men’s and women’s sport – most of them weaponized in people’s pursuit of male hegemony. Which makes child birth and sport truly a firecracker in Times Square.

Keith Strudler is the director of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. You can follow him on twitter at @KeithStrudler

The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.

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