Tennis mailbag, with CNN's Candy Reid
(CNN) -- Do you have a question about tennis for World Sport Anchor Candy Reid? E-mail candy@cnn.com.
Q. Dear Candy, As a fanatic tennis player myself, I am always wondering why in the men's singles, anyone in the top 200 can beat the top players, as opposed to the ladies, where the group of top players seems so much smaller. It is always the same 20 or 30 girls who divide the prizes. Why does it look like there's more competition in the men's tennis? Thanks for your answer! Kind regards,
Jim Heirbaut, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
A. Jim, I think the serve is the main reason. The 200th ranked men's player for instance could have a huge serve, but isn't ranked higher because he is inconsistent. On any given day, those serves could be going in, and if he has something to back it up with, and can produce a couple of big returns, he could cause an upset. On the other hand, there are very few women that actually have a match-winning serve and those that do, generally have good rankings. Also women ranked inside the top 200 usually have good returns (many are better than the men's) so a break of serve isn't a set decider! Having said that, not many of the top players on the ATP Tour have suffered huge upsets recently. Guys like Federer, Roddick and Nadal seem to reach at least the semi-final of every tournament they enter and Nadal is unbeatable at the moment!
Q. Hello, Ms. Reid. In your latest tennis mailbag, you made an omission in your answer to Nassim Escobar, who asked about players from Africa. Although he seemed to be asking more about ATP players, you also mentioned Cara Black of the WTA. Which brings us to your omission -- Dally Randriantefy of Madagascar, who has cracked the top 50. She also holds the distinction of being the first black player to win the African Junior Championships. Hers is a rather fascinating story, including taking up tennis to help with a medical condition, and having to take a few years away from the tour due to financial problems in her homeland.
Anon
A. At the time of writing, 28-year-old Dally Randriantefy is ranked a career-high 44th so I apologize for not including her in my response last week (Click here to see). However, I mentioned at the end of my answer, that a coach is imperative, and a coaching parent is even better (you don't have to pay them!) Unless I'm very much mistaken, Mr. Randriantefty has coached both Dally and her younger sister Natacha. Dally also had financial help from a Swiss business man so perhaps she had more going for her than most. But no matter how much outside help you have, becoming a top professional athlete requires hard work and dedication -- so all credit to her!
Q. Dear Candy, Prior to serving the pros will take, for instance, three balls, look them over and swat two back to the ball boy (or girl). What do they look for? All balls look the same to me.
George Lattimore
A. Well George, the balls are definitely not the same. When you're serving, you want the least "fluffy" ball available to get more pace, slice or spin on your delivery. Usually a "fluffy" ball (one that has usually been used more) sits up, allowing your opponent time to crank the return back. You'll see the players that rely on their serve heavily, spending more time selecting the ball.
Q. Dear Candy, With the recent come back wins of Justin and Kim, the Belgian team is sure to give the USA team a big headache should they decide to play in the coming Fed Cup; is that possible? Are Lindsay and Serena playing? They were both injured in their last WTA tournaments.
Conie
A. The U.S. advanced to the semi-finals on Sunday, Conie. Unfortunately it wasn't much of a tie because both Kim and Justine were unavailable for selection. Both of course are coming back from injuries and illness. But had they been there, it would have been a fantastic match-up as the U.S. had pretty much their strongest team available. Davenport played singles along with Venus. Serena was in the squad, but coach Zina Garrison decided to rest her because of a sprained left ankle.
