@@CULTTENNIS Could you compare and contrast the Chinese tennis system with their system for table tennis or badminton two sports which they've had absolute dominance in?
@@thekelvinproductionlore it's a big gap in term of years, Swedish one would be more interesting, from Borg's dominance, Wilander's short but powerful reign and Soderling's rise in RG
Our best boxer on the team who’s won a Olympic silver medal Zhilei, now works in a gym close to my home in China. 5000 RMB a month, round about 700 Euro.
@Rushabh no, I’m in Germany now, but, it cost the same amount to feed and roof myself here, bills are cheaper in China, but 700 euro is just scraping by money there, with his injuries, and virtually no health insurance to speak of after retirement at age 22, he’s not doing well, and all our professional athletes had their date of birth changed on their identity papers, most of them are less than 18 when they’re in the Olympics.
@@CULTTENNIS Every 2 weeks could be an option, but chances are you're going to be busy with something, so maybe not idk ... but the next vid: you gotta tell us more about the ending to the Bouchard video ...
As a Chinese, I have to say that your analysis is exactly on point. Personally, I regard Wu Yibing as the current best male player in China (he won Junior US open back in 2017 and beat Zhang Zhizhen in almost every tournament held in China last year). But while Zhang is out there qualifying for Wimbledon and other ATP competitions, Wu is trapped in China preparing for the Chinese National Game (which is the single most important thing for officials of provincial sport agencies). Meanwhile, there is a player that I recommend you to follow. His name is Shang Juncheng and he is ranked top 3 in junior World ranking. Both of his parents are former athletes (who know about what's wrong with the Chinese system), so Shang has been training at IMG academy since a very young age and has already beaten top 200 player at the age of 15. Would definitely consider him as the next Chinese hopeful
Great feedback! You brought up some good points I was unaware of, I also believe some male up and comers do have the ability to break through the system. I believe I showed Shang early in on the video, if he keeps up the good results I really hope we do see a male Chinese star in the near future!
@@CULTTENNIS Hopefully so. I thought Wu would be the Messiah when he was competing with the likes of Medvedev and Rublev and winning Junior Grand Slam, but now it is almost impossible for him to live up to what he was expected to be (due to both the system and his injury). I think Zhang is likely to break into Top 100 in a year or two if he improves his mental game and tennis IQ (He put up a close one at Wimbledon and battled Delbonis, who has had a great clay season, in a three-setter in Hamburg). But Shang is still the most likely to make a real breakthrough, and I believe that he has the potential of matching the record of Nishikori in the future.
@@robh4680 Shang is now the number one junior male in the world and the youngest player in the top 10. Was rooting for him in the us open final but he's two years Rincon's junior. I think he can be a real superstar in the sport and I'll be following his career closely
@@CULTTENNIS you have to realize how much you have to spend in training in order to compete at top level, roughly about 10million Chinese yuan from age 8-16. In North America, parents have to pay those fees, but in China if you are in a PE specialized school your cost is nearly minimal, but you don't have specialized training, eg, no private coach, no nutritionist, etc. If you want to be in the top 200 ATP, you have to train at your own cost. You know why Li Na did not thank China, because Chinese general admission of sport want her to share some of her prize money. I don't think the Chinese government is wrong at this point. The government paid Li Na's training from her age 6. Think about that that is about 2 millon US dollar invested in a comparable training environment in US.
Hey maybe make a video of this : Why does India struggle to win grand slams in singles whereas it's players regularly win doubles slams. We have players like Leander Paes and Sania Mirza doing well in doubles but in singles we're struggling (nothing more than the singles bronze by Paes in 96). I can also help you with this video as I have myself been through much of the tennis structure in India. Cheers
Thanks for your video, it is showed some great ideas. As a Chinese who played a lot of tennis in Europe, I would like to share my views. I have also discussed this question with my friends, why there are so few great Chinese tennis players? Besides the point mentioned in the video, such as the sports system, I think the tradition and history of China should not be ignored. The country is poor for a long time, even the government want to encourage people to do sports, they should select the "cheap" ones, such as table tennis, basketball, and football, just imagine, how expensive and venerable the natural gut is back to that time, the rubber used in one tennis ball can reach 50g, which can only last several weeks at most, but the rubber can be made for a table tennis racket. In fact, I have witnessed many rackets without rubber when I was a child and people can still have a lot of fun from it. You also need only one solid table and a small net to play table tennis, but for tennis, you need a much larger space and need to be quite flat and solid. A high fence is also necessary for the tennis court. So time keeps going and the selection of Chinese when choose sports kept stay away from tennis. Table tennis and badminton art top two single-person ball sports in China and there are few tennis courts. Obviously, the construction of a tennis court is more complex, it takes more space, needs more maintenance, and of course, takes more money, which results make tennis not an optimum choice for sports and social contact. Li Na and the era of the big three changed this cycle slightly, I can recall back to the time in 2011-2015, tennis matches are very popular on TV. In fact, the broadcast time of AO is just in the afternoon of the Chinese new year, when everyone is on holiday and stays at home, so the great performance of Li Na and Zheng Jie made a great influence in China. I also started to play tennis during this time. Even more and more people enjoy the pleasure of tennis, they are still facing the following questions: expensive courts, expensive training fees(much more than in Europe, maybe *4 times and more), lack of tennis friends, and low-level tennis environments. In my opinion, that is the biggest problem of tennis in China: lack of environment. Europe is really a heaven for tennis lovers, just like table tennis lovers in China. The training, the clay court, the scale system, and the tennis population are great. With the rapid growth of tennis lovers in China, one day they can produce their feds, nadals, and tennis systems. But the building of a great tennis environment needs time, so this is a question of the selection of Chinese people, if they choose to play tennis, one day China can be a great tennis country, if they still prefer other sports, no systems can really help.
Extremely well made (as usual) video, with a lot of research done. However, as a table tennis fan I couldn't help wondering why the system works there. So I single out one of your arguments: the fact that the athletes are being coached within the nation, while a tradition and therefore expertise in tennis is lacking. In table tennis, China dominates because of their superior knowhow. All other arguments, like collectivism, one child policy ... count for table tennis too and don't stand in the way of (individual) dominance.
@ShoLKAN At the basic level certainly but we're talking world domination here: for that the amount of expertise and training required is similar. I would even say more so in table tennis since tennis has a residual advantage of physical capacity like length.
@ShoLKAN I play both tennis and table tennis. The average height of Asians is the absolute advantage giving us more maneuverability considering the height of the table. Techniques for both sports are also exclusive from each other, and it is hard to master both. You can only adapt to either one if you play both at the same time very often
One thing is the ability to source world class players as coaches. If they create a top 10 player they will get him to coach after retirement. They dont have that for tennis, no high tier top 20 tennis pro will coach for a glorified sweatshop unless they have gone through the same system.
it's honestly always the height. Look at the top 10 ATP tennis players now, do you see anyone bellow 185 cm. Try finding a 185+cm east asian man. It's not easy at all isn't it? That's why Japanese players do well in junior tournaments but drop the ball hard when they go senior
Agree, Badminton, Table tennis are counterarguments against that point. Regarding badminton, traditional powerhouses like China, Indonesia, Denmark, etc. can train their athletes within their borders. They have the knowledge necessary inside. China doesn't have that for tennis, so sending your prospects overseas is better.
As an Asian American recreational park player, this was very interesting to know and it made so much sense that there was almost 0 Chinese presence in the pro tennis world due to the one child policy. I really think we will see a lot of Chinese talent come on the scene. Pro players that have played in the many tournaments around the country have amazed fans and local talents alike. Bless the tennis world and the top 10!
That makes a lot of sense when viewed in isolation, but broadening the scope of the question to sports in general and one has to ask why it worked for table tennis, badminton, and gymnastics, but not tennis
Good point. I think the issue is exactly that tennis, as a sport and industry, is not table tennis, badminton, and gymnastics. I don't have data on hand but I'm guessing tournament payouts and sponsorship revenues are significantly larger than what a table tennis player, badminton player, and gymnast can earn. Sportico estimates in a report, as of july 2021, that Federer has earned a billion dollars since turning pro. His earnings from tournament winnings? Only $120 million. And that is coming in second place to djokovic. Nadal has to be pretty high on that list. And if i were a corporate sponsor, I would want him representing my product more than djokovic. In 2020 the top 10 highest paid female athletes were all tennis players. No other female athlete from another sport squeezed into the top 10 list! The downside is if you're ranked in the 1000s of the atp and wta, you're probably broke. So getting free room and lodging and airfare and meals is a pretty good deal.
Where is China's dominance any sport, really? Even stuff like badminton they are often in a hard scrabble against countries like South Korea that aren't even 1/10th their size. Hell, with all their emphasis on their magic martial arts why aren't Chinese champions just tearing up the MMA?
I think the Chinese program might be making some progress in recent years, especially in the WTA. Wang Qiang has had a few solid Grand Slam runs and was even ranked just outside the Top 10 in 2019 (before the pandemic destroyed all of her momentum), and Wang Xinyu is showing some flashes of greatness in the lower levels, but I don't know if there's a "Yonald Doung" or a next Li Na out there, at least right now
A super interesting video that taught me a whole bunch of information. My one question is: Why specifically tennis? China has the same policy around all of the sports that they train kids for, and in almost all of those sports China has people near or at the very top of the game. Why is it that the system works for every other sport but tennis? What makes tennis different? It seems like this wasn't really addressed.
Their system won't work in Team sports. Tell me any team game where china dominated?? On individual sports they are good cuz they start since childhood. And some times becuz of doping.
@@kaafi_anmol tennis ,golf, equistrium, polo like sports in all china and asia lacks cuz all are rich people's game. For tennis u need 1-2 cr investment in india. Also in india atp tournaments not happens more. So travelling to other countries to participate in ganes is the only option. And u have to travel to the all tennis tournaments on ur own, u have to pay coach salary and his travelling also. Plus tournaments fees. Plus training, diet charge. Govn only gives equipments mostly. Also sponsors will help if u become top ATP player. Also hardly Govn don't interfere in these games as it need to much money. That's why after 80s asia became worse in tennis and now u'll see only europian and us people. No game is darker than tennis. 😭😭 I played tennis till college and I left. Forget that I feel sad whenever I watch any tennis game. So I never even try to watch tennis game. This game hardly need many equipment. But due to ATP rules now mostly this game become a commercialize sport. Middle class people who live in asia can move forward in this game but just 1-2% chance.
Could also be that lack of success. If the standard is "do we well in Chinese tournaments" because barely anyone has cracked top 100 WW, then theres less pressure on any one individual to do the same.
@@imnotdaredevil3714 no Asians used to be good in tennis. There was one Indian who top in top 3 tennis player in 60-70s. So many Chinese players came in top 50. Everything was fine until atp announced those open grandslams. Since then tennis became highly commercial. And just due to lack of money Asians especially Chinese & indians didn't produce players. Due to grandslams players started getting huge amount. But unfortunately coaching and tournament fees also they increased rapidly. After 2015 so many ATP tournaments got abandoned in Asia. So touring to any other country is the only option kr getting nationality which is the most difficult work. As a indian I know most costly thing for Asian person's life is constantly travelling to any foreign country.
Can you believe it - China tennis is back on track with WTA's new generation - Zheng Qinwen, Wang Xiyu, Wang Xinyu, Yuan Yue rising, and ATP's Wu Yibing, Zhang Zhizhen, Shang Juncheng. The old whole country system is fading away in tennis, but with each single family putting a lot of wealth targeting on raising their children to be sport star, the new tennis generation is shining now in China. We have to thank again to the legendary of Li Na.❤❤
You’re the only yt channel out there doing what you do for tennis, you’re doing so great! The presentation is impeccable, your delivery is great and your choice of topic always so interesting. It’s not an hyperbole! Truly grateful for what you do!!
4:27 I knew you'd sneak Donald Young in the video somewhere, you son of a biscuit 😂 Seriously though, fantastic topic. I've said it before, but you always find a topic that not many truly think about, then elaborate on it in such a fantastic way. Can't wait for the next one.
Awesome video, thank you so much! Just a couple of Olympics-inspired ideas, but you could do a video about people who had great runs as the Olympics but never reached that level at other tournaments (people like Marc Rosset, Monica Puig, Jordi Arrese, Nicolas Massu, Alicia Molik, and Arnaud di Pasquale), or you could do a video about Andy Murray and how he's such a beast when he plays for his country.
Yeah, this video doesn't do it for me. It doesn't explain why there are top Chinese athletes in other sports but not tennis because a lot of the points that was raised in the video also apply to other sports.
@@johniii8147 I mean badminton is quite popular outside of China and table tennis is growing in Japan I beleive they got good viewing figures in the olympics for it
lost generation because the Big Three are still dominant? Raonic is injury prone... same went for Jack Sock, John Isner and his giant serve...thought he might be a new Sampras but he is in same cohort as Wawrinka and Fed,
Really liked what you explained and your analysis. I think it is implicit in your video but I think it’s also worth saying that the Chinese training and philosophy seems to be almost antithetical for success in such an individualistic sport like tennis. Djokovic says it in the end that it is the individual drive that turns out to be the most important foundation. Along with golf, perhaps the most lucrative world sports for individuals that will attract anyone with a modicum of talent and drive (with a lower entry cost than golf). I think Ash Barty is one of the best current examples.
As a Chinese, good video and covered almost every aspect but there is another reason that foreigners may not have a clue which is that there is actually very few tennis courts all around the nation. And the price for rent an hour or two is very expensive. That’s due to some political issues that the court used to be cheap or even free are now ran by private companies, they have to make enough profit to cover the expenses. But since there is actually almost no tennis culture or tradition in the country, there is not many people playing tennis regularly, so the price of renting the court becomes expensive and makes the matters worse.
I was in Beijing a couple of years ago and tennis seems to be on the decline. The Beijing Olympics really sparked a lot of hype and construction of tennis courts in the capital but that has died down. An excursion from my apartment to the Olympic tennis complex revealed massive stadium courts and about ten normal courts with a small pro shop but virtually no players. It was a ghost town. Shanghai is likely the best city for tennis opportunities.
You always have very smooth visuals in your editing, I respect that this probably makes your editing take MUCH longer but adds so much depth to your videos. Do you use after effects or some motion graphics software?
A rather strong counterpoint would be all of the other successful Chinese athletes in other sports. Nothing in your video explains why China struggles in tennis, but dominates in other sports and is developing very well in others. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics are currently underway, and at the moment, China leads the world in gold medals. They have been dominant in gymnastics and diving, weight-lifting and doing quite well in swimming, crew, shooting, track and field, cycling, and many other sports. You can't just say the system doesn't work because clearly, it does.
If our professional training system works, our male soccer team should not struggle to qualify the FIFA World Cup. BTW, you forgot to mention the silly “shackles” almost all Chinese professionals get from the National Games of the PRC.
As both a tennis and table tennis fan, I have mixed feelings about China table tennis domination. They brought us some of the most amazing players of all times, hopefully table tennis is so popular there that they don't need to force kids to pick that sport?
When it comes to Serbia, one trait can be found within the people. "Inat" - i would translate but there are not really good translations lol 😂 it is a trait when you don't want to let go and give up, even if you're completely wrong or the challenge is (almost) impossible, you go out of your way to prove yourself right, by all means. Most of you saw "Inat" in 2019 wimbledon final 😉 Love from Serbia 🇷🇸 great video, keep going man 👏
Hey, thanks for this, super interesting! Is Inat a word in other Balkan countries? Like Croatia for instance which has also produced a crazy amount of good male and female tennis players?
Always high-quality video!!!! I can't believe you would make a video regarding Chinese tennis and can't agree more what you mentioned as a competitive tennis player growing up in China lol
Dude I looked at your subs thought you had 751 k and I was like damn he should have at least a couple mil and then I looked again and I was like wtf ur underrated man
As a Chinese tennis fan, I have to say your analysis is spot-on. The problem is not state-funded SUPPORT for players, especially for teenagers. Many countries give generous support to promising young players and their families in the early years - Japan, the UK, Canada, etc. The problem is that the Chinese system, as a string attached to the support, takes away the rewards and incentives for the individual players and their families. Li Na, after years of flying solo, famously said that it was the pressure to feed a whole team behind her (which at the time included her own husband) that motivated her to fight the way she did. When you are in a federally funded system, you simply don’t have this level of incentive. The good thing is that almost all of the top next-gen Chinese players now fly solo. Zheng Qinwen is the next rising star on the WTA tour, who has been training abroad since she was a teen. On the ATP side, Zhang Zhizhen (who finally broke into Top 100 in 2022, by the way), Wu Yibing (3rd round at US Open 2022) and Shang Juncheng bear the hope of Chinese men’s tennis to possibly match what South Korea and Japan achieved in recent years.
Its sad that this happens to all sports like basketball, you see so much talented chinese players but china hasent had a worldwide star since Yao Ming.
wait, is the 65% prize tax and 100% sponsorship tax also enforced onto Table Tennis professionals? if so I suddenly feel really sorry for Xu Xin, Ma Long, Fan Zhendong etc.
Yes. But they’re still doing better than the average citizen. Don’t buy the ‘huge CHN middle class’ stuff. Spent almost a yr there. What is considered middle class is peanuts anywhere else and means a life living with a lot of relatives in cramped quarters.
Dude you can literally talk about anything and it'll be interesting as hell, can't wait for more and more of your work!
Dude I watch your channel!
Appreciate it Wivo :) Same to you!
Imagine being his girlfriend!!!
@@CULTTENNIS Should start a RUclips Channel Course. Your success is very inspiring in this very saturated minefield.
@@CULTTENNIS Could you compare and contrast the Chinese tennis system with their system for table tennis or badminton two sports which they've had absolute dominance in?
Yonald Doung, 2025 US Open Champion, calling it now.
donald young
@@francischo8891 Yonald Doung of China will win USO 2025.
Everyone is so mean to Donald young ☹️
China is terrible at providing incentives, just look at their history of communal farms. They just never learn...
@@francischo8891 yonald doung
Petition for Cult Tennis to make the Rise And Fall of Swedish Tennis
Or Australian
@@ehorn9646 yea from rod laver,
john newcombe and lleyton hewitt to australian hot heads
@@thekelvinproductionlore it's a big gap in term of years, Swedish one would be more interesting, from Borg's dominance, Wilander's short but powerful reign and Soderling's rise in RG
@@ehorn9646 australia not doing that bad in the world of tennis. sure men's australian tennis sucks but ash barty is dominating women tennis
@@pratheekk__ Well yes I suppose you can say that.
Forget Federer vs Djokovic
I wanna see Donald Young vs Yonald Doung
Yonald dung
Nadal vs Nagal
Novak vs Djokovic
These need to happen
@@BrandonSG13 We got Federer vs Ferrer many times at least.
@@tylerhaddock9583
How about this doubles match
Federer/Ferrer vs. Ferrero/Ferreira
@@SK-qu4wo I love you.
Our best boxer on the team who’s won a Olympic silver medal Zhilei, now works in a gym close to my home in China. 5000 RMB a month, round about 700 Euro.
@Rushabh no, I’m in Germany now, but, it cost the same amount to feed and roof myself here, bills are cheaper in China, but 700 euro is just scraping by money there, with his injuries, and virtually no health insurance to speak of after retirement at age 22, he’s not doing well, and all our professional athletes had their date of birth changed on their identity papers, most of them are less than 18 when they’re in the Olympics.
@@VincentDuxD That's terrible. I hope things change for all China's athletes in the future.
@@Laneous14 I hope Xi doesn’t start ww3, yeah, it’s bad back home, but hopefully the CCP could break out of it’s mold and change it’s ways.
💀💀💀
This is the same for USA when Ronda Rousey won her Olympic medal, she was broke. Until she started her MMA route.
Petition for cult tennis to upload a video every week
Goal:100 likes and he must do it
Every week might be a stretch 😂
@@CULTTENNIS Every 2 weeks could be an option, but chances are you're going to be busy with something, so maybe not idk ... but the next vid: you gotta tell us more about the ending to the Bouchard video ...
@@armstrongtixid6873 search my Twitter and you’ll find some answers :)
@@CULTTENNIS I appreciate the quality. I edit, too, so I know these videos must take a long, long time!
the quality will go down if its weekly... just look at tennisnerd... just making videos to stay relevant
As a Chinese, I have to say that your analysis is exactly on point.
Personally, I regard Wu Yibing as the current best male player in China (he won Junior US open back in 2017 and beat Zhang Zhizhen in almost every tournament held in China last year). But while Zhang is out there qualifying for Wimbledon and other ATP competitions, Wu is trapped in China preparing for the Chinese National Game (which is the single most important thing for officials of provincial sport agencies).
Meanwhile, there is a player that I recommend you to follow. His name is Shang Juncheng and he is ranked top 3 in junior World ranking. Both of his parents are former athletes (who know about what's wrong with the Chinese system), so Shang has been training at IMG academy since a very young age and has already beaten top 200 player at the age of 15. Would definitely consider him as the next Chinese hopeful
Great feedback! You brought up some good points I was unaware of, I also believe some male up and comers do have the ability to break through the system. I believe I showed Shang early in on the video, if he keeps up the good results I really hope we do see a male Chinese star in the near future!
@@CULTTENNIS Hopefully so. I thought Wu would be the Messiah when he was competing with the likes of Medvedev and Rublev and winning Junior Grand Slam, but now it is almost impossible for him to live up to what he was expected to be (due to both the system and his injury). I think Zhang is likely to break into Top 100 in a year or two if he improves his mental game and tennis IQ (He put up a close one at Wimbledon and battled Delbonis, who has had a great clay season, in a three-setter in Hamburg). But Shang is still the most likely to make a real breakthrough, and I believe that he has the potential of matching the record of Nishikori in the future.
reading this comment while training at img really do be hittin different 😩🙏
@@robh4680 Shang is now the number one junior male in the world and the youngest player in the top 10. Was rooting for him in the us open final but he's two years Rincon's junior. I think he can be a real superstar in the sport and I'll be following his career closely
@@CULTTENNIS you have to realize how much you have to spend in training in order to compete at top level, roughly about 10million Chinese yuan from age 8-16. In North America, parents have to pay those fees, but in China if you are in a PE specialized school your cost is nearly minimal, but you don't have specialized training, eg, no private coach, no nutritionist, etc. If you want to be in the top 200 ATP, you have to train at your own cost. You know why Li Na did not thank China, because Chinese general admission of sport want her to share some of her prize money. I don't think the Chinese government is wrong at this point. The government paid Li Na's training from her age 6. Think about that that is about 2 millon US dollar invested in a comparable training environment in US.
That quote from Djokovic about Serbia producing exceptional players is actually mad interesting.
The definition of a quality tennis video.
Hey maybe make a video of this : Why does India struggle to win grand slams in singles whereas it's players regularly win doubles slams. We have players like Leander Paes and Sania Mirza doing well in doubles but in singles we're struggling (nothing more than the singles bronze by Paes in 96). I can also help you with this video as I have myself been through much of the tennis structure in India. Cheers
Thanks for your video, it is showed some great ideas. As a Chinese who played a lot of tennis in Europe, I would like to share my views.
I have also discussed this question with my friends, why there are so few great Chinese tennis players? Besides the point mentioned in the video, such as the sports system, I think the tradition and history of China should not be ignored.
The country is poor for a long time, even the government want to encourage people to do sports, they should select the "cheap" ones, such as table tennis, basketball, and football, just imagine, how expensive and venerable the natural gut is back to that time, the rubber used in one tennis ball can reach 50g, which can only last several weeks at most, but the rubber can be made for a table tennis racket. In fact, I have witnessed many rackets without rubber when I was a child and people can still have a lot of fun from it. You also need only one solid table and a small net to play table tennis, but for tennis, you need a much larger space and need to be quite flat and solid. A high fence is also necessary for the tennis court.
So time keeps going and the selection of Chinese when choose sports kept stay away from tennis. Table tennis and badminton art top two single-person ball sports in China and there are few tennis courts. Obviously, the construction of a tennis court is more complex, it takes more space, needs more maintenance, and of course, takes more money, which results make tennis not an optimum choice for sports and social contact.
Li Na and the era of the big three changed this cycle slightly, I can recall back to the time in 2011-2015, tennis matches are very popular on TV. In fact, the broadcast time of AO is just in the afternoon of the Chinese new year, when everyone is on holiday and stays at home, so the great performance of Li Na and Zheng Jie made a great influence in China. I also started to play tennis during this time. Even more and more people enjoy the pleasure of tennis, they are still facing the following questions: expensive courts, expensive training fees(much more than in Europe, maybe *4 times and more), lack of tennis friends, and low-level tennis environments. In my opinion, that is the biggest problem of tennis in China: lack of environment.
Europe is really a heaven for tennis lovers, just like table tennis lovers in China. The training, the clay court, the scale system, and the tennis population are great. With the rapid growth of tennis lovers in China, one day they can produce their feds, nadals, and tennis systems. But the building of a great tennis environment needs time, so this is a question of the selection of Chinese people, if they choose to play tennis, one day China can be a great tennis country, if they still prefer other sports, no systems can really help.
I am subbed to legit 400+ channels.... and this channel provides consistently the best content with the best editing.... and its not even close.
Please make an up and coming of Australian tennis with Barty, Hewitt, nick etc
Don't forget big Bernard
Up and coming? I kind of get Nick and Barty but Hewitt is an older generation, might as well go back to Rod Laver
@@melancholymelon4413 Australian tennis is a hard sport to go pro in. So just commenting on the history of Australian a tennis
@@melancholymelon4413 Hewitt is from the same generation as Federer. So from the early 2000s. Quite a throwback isn't it?
@@TDTheTruth goat
Extremely well made (as usual) video, with a lot of research done. However, as a table tennis fan I couldn't help wondering why the system works there. So I single out one of your arguments: the fact that the athletes are being coached within the nation, while a tradition and therefore expertise in tennis is lacking. In table tennis, China dominates because of their superior knowhow. All other arguments, like collectivism, one child policy ... count for table tennis too and don't stand in the way of (individual) dominance.
@ShoLKAN At the basic level certainly but we're talking world domination here: for that the amount of expertise and training required is similar. I would even say more so in table tennis since tennis has a residual advantage of physical capacity like length.
@ShoLKAN I play both tennis and table tennis. The average height of Asians is the absolute advantage giving us more maneuverability considering the height of the table. Techniques for both sports are also exclusive from each other, and it is hard to master both. You can only adapt to either one if you play both at the same time very often
One thing is the ability to source world class players as coaches. If they create a top 10 player they will get him to coach after retirement. They dont have that for tennis, no high tier top 20 tennis pro will coach for a glorified sweatshop unless they have gone through the same system.
it's honestly always the height. Look at the top 10 ATP tennis players now, do you see anyone bellow 185 cm. Try finding a 185+cm east asian man. It's not easy at all isn't it? That's why Japanese players do well in junior tournaments but drop the ball hard when they go senior
Agree, Badminton, Table tennis are counterarguments against that point. Regarding badminton, traditional powerhouses like China, Indonesia, Denmark, etc. can train their athletes within their borders. They have the knowledge necessary inside. China doesn't have that for tennis, so sending your prospects overseas is better.
As an Asian American recreational park player, this was very interesting to know and it made so much sense that there was almost 0 Chinese presence in the pro tennis world due to the one child policy. I really think we will see a lot of Chinese talent come on the scene. Pro players that have played in the many tournaments around the country have amazed fans and local talents alike. Bless the tennis world and the top 10!
Before the pandemic there were about 4/5 female players in top 50. That certainly puts them in a leading position as a group on the WTA tour.
That makes a lot of sense when viewed in isolation, but broadening the scope of the question to sports in general and one has to ask why it worked for table tennis, badminton, and gymnastics, but not tennis
Good point. I think the issue is exactly that tennis, as a sport and industry, is not table tennis, badminton, and gymnastics.
I don't have data on hand but I'm guessing tournament payouts and sponsorship revenues are significantly larger than what a table tennis player, badminton player, and gymnast can earn.
Sportico estimates in a report, as of july 2021, that Federer has earned a billion dollars since turning pro. His earnings from tournament winnings? Only $120 million. And that is coming in second place to djokovic. Nadal has to be pretty high on that list. And if i were a corporate sponsor, I would want him representing my product more than djokovic.
In 2020 the top 10 highest paid female athletes were all tennis players. No other female athlete from another sport squeezed into the top 10 list!
The downside is if you're ranked in the 1000s of the atp and wta, you're probably broke. So getting free room and lodging and airfare and meals is a pretty good deal.
@@ryancummings5295 That's a good explanation. The individual incentives are a lot higher for tennis
4:31 it was painful at first, but it doesn't hurt anymore, thanks for treating this moment with humor throughout your videos
Only found your channel a week ago but I’ve binged every video. Your content is great :)
Fascinating, always thought China's tennis scene was strong with Li Na. Didn't know she was an outlier.
She is an outlier of course, 1.4 billion people and no current good players in contention for grand slams.
That’s what you call “propaganda”. :D
Where is China's dominance any sport, really? Even stuff like badminton they are often in a hard scrabble against countries like South Korea that aren't even 1/10th their size.
Hell, with all their emphasis on their magic martial arts why aren't Chinese champions just tearing up the MMA?
good for her
@@Laneous14 diving, ping pong and volleyball are mostly Chinese dominated. That’s more than one if you ask me 😀
When is the Genie Bouchard sequel coming?
Exactly.
probably when she stops losing lmao
@@funkytiger8683 "it's been 84 years..."
I think the Chinese program might be making some progress in recent years, especially in the WTA. Wang Qiang has had a few solid Grand Slam runs and was even ranked just outside the Top 10 in 2019 (before the pandemic destroyed all of her momentum), and Wang Xinyu is showing some flashes of greatness in the lower levels, but I don't know if there's a "Yonald Doung" or a next Li Na out there, at least right now
Qin Wen Zheng is really good!
A super interesting video that taught me a whole bunch of information. My one question is: Why specifically tennis? China has the same policy around all of the sports that they train kids for, and in almost all of those sports China has people near or at the very top of the game. Why is it that the system works for every other sport but tennis? What makes tennis different? It seems like this wasn't really addressed.
Their system won't work in Team sports. Tell me any team game where china dominated?? On individual sports they are good cuz they start since childhood. And some times becuz of doping.
@@sankkham Umm, Tennis is (mostly) an individual event, right?
@@kaafi_anmol tennis ,golf, equistrium, polo like sports in all china and asia lacks cuz all are rich people's game. For tennis u need 1-2 cr investment in india. Also in india atp tournaments not happens more. So travelling to other countries to participate in ganes is the only option. And u have to travel to the all tennis tournaments on ur own, u have to pay coach salary and his travelling also. Plus tournaments fees. Plus training, diet charge. Govn only gives equipments mostly. Also sponsors will help if u become top ATP player. Also hardly Govn don't interfere in these games as it need to much money. That's why after 80s asia became worse in tennis and now u'll see only europian and us people. No game is darker than tennis. 😭😭 I played tennis till college and I left. Forget that I feel sad whenever I watch any tennis game. So I never even try to watch tennis game. This game hardly need many equipment. But due to ATP rules now mostly this game become a commercialize sport. Middle class people who live in asia can move forward in this game but just 1-2% chance.
Could also be that lack of success. If the standard is "do we well in Chinese tournaments" because barely anyone has cracked top 100 WW, then theres less pressure on any one individual to do the same.
@@imnotdaredevil3714 no Asians used to be good in tennis. There was one Indian who top in top 3 tennis player in 60-70s. So many Chinese players came in top 50. Everything was fine until atp announced those open grandslams. Since then tennis became highly commercial. And just due to lack of money Asians especially Chinese & indians didn't produce players. Due to grandslams players started getting huge amount. But unfortunately coaching and tournament fees also they increased rapidly. After 2015 so many ATP tournaments got abandoned in Asia. So touring to any other country is the only option kr getting nationality which is the most difficult work. As a indian I know most costly thing for Asian person's life is constantly travelling to any foreign country.
This is a channel I forget I'm subscribed to until they upload and I'm so glad when they do.
Can you believe it - China tennis is back on track with WTA's new generation - Zheng Qinwen, Wang Xiyu, Wang Xinyu, Yuan Yue rising, and ATP's Wu Yibing, Zhang Zhizhen, Shang Juncheng. The old whole country system is fading away in tennis, but with each single family putting a lot of wealth targeting on raising their children to be sport star, the new tennis generation is shining now in China. We have to thank again to the legendary of Li Na.❤❤
You’re the only yt channel out there doing what you do for tennis, you’re doing so great! The presentation is impeccable, your delivery is great and your choice of topic always so interesting. It’s not an hyperbole! Truly grateful for what you do!!
Yonald Doung, one for the future definitely
Fax hopefully coaching from parents and cockiness will not ruin his career
Your videos are crisp and informative!
You are doing an amazing job! Kudos!
Thank you!!
dude not only is your reporting amazing, your video editing is out of thi world
Its cheaper to learn... but expensive to play. I played tennis for 2 weeks in China and it changed me...
an injury that took 8 months to recover from
That's on you not the sport lol
What happened?
Best tennis RUclips channel, no questions asked. I’ve been following you since around 5k subs and absolutely love it.
4:27 I knew you'd sneak Donald Young in the video somewhere, you son of a biscuit 😂
Seriously though, fantastic topic. I've said it before, but you always find a topic that not many truly think about, then elaborate on it in such a fantastic way. Can't wait for the next one.
Hopefully coming sooner than later this time 😂😂
@@CULTTENNIS quality over quantity!!!!
"cmon man, i said biscuit. BISCUIT!"
Very few channels I have seen combine good commentary with such great editing and pacing as yours
I was forgetting Federer's championship points, thanks for the new remainder, may it last :(
The quality of video editing is off the roof!
Your videos are best! Keep going like this!
I sit down with some chips and feel like I'm watching an interesting episode of FRONTLINE but with a topic I love. Tennis.
Other than just China can you also talk about other east Asian countries like Japan's Kei or the tragic story of Hyeon Chung?
What happened to Chung?
@@finnd3mpster203 injuries
@@finnd3mpster203 could’ve been a top 10 player but injuries destroyed him
@@wdsa7129 there's no guarantee he would have transitioned from the juniors
Those countries are totally different, so not comparable at all
Awesome video, thank you so much! Just a couple of Olympics-inspired ideas, but you could do a video about people who had great runs as the Olympics but never reached that level at other tournaments (people like Marc Rosset, Monica Puig, Jordi Arrese, Nicolas Massu, Alicia Molik, and Arnaud di Pasquale), or you could do a video about Andy Murray and how he's such a beast when he plays for his country.
Would be interesting to know if treatment of tennis and badminton differs (as they are so dominant at that sport)
Badminton faces similar problems tho, without going into detail, the current World rankings reflect the waning dominance really well.
Yeah, this video doesn't do it for me. It doesn't explain why there are top Chinese athletes in other sports but not tennis because a lot of the points that was raised in the video also apply to other sports.
@@tomwu163 here still winning good titles in badminton tho
They are not really comparable outside of China. They are not high profile sports and internationally and bring no press for China.
@@johniii8147 I mean badminton is quite popular outside of China and table tennis is growing in Japan I beleive they got good viewing figures in the olympics for it
Make a video about the lost generation of tennis. Dimitrov, Raonic, Nishikori
lost generation because the Big Three are still dominant? Raonic is injury prone... same went for Jack Sock, John Isner and his giant serve...thought he might be a new Sampras but he is in same cohort as Wawrinka and Fed,
Really liked what you explained and your analysis. I think it is implicit in your video but I think it’s also worth saying that the Chinese training and philosophy seems to be almost antithetical for success in such an individualistic sport like tennis. Djokovic says it in the end that it is the individual drive that turns out to be the most important foundation. Along with golf, perhaps the most lucrative world sports for individuals that will attract anyone with a modicum of talent and drive (with a lower entry cost than golf). I think Ash Barty is one of the best current examples.
As a Chinese, good video and covered almost every aspect but there is another reason that foreigners may not have a clue which is that there is actually very few tennis courts all around the nation. And the price for rent an hour or two is very expensive. That’s due to some political issues that the court used to be cheap or even free are now ran by private companies, they have to make enough profit to cover the expenses. But since there is actually almost no tennis culture or tradition in the country, there is not many people playing tennis regularly, so the price of renting the court becomes expensive and makes the matters worse.
Super "off the beaten track" interesting content...
you've set a high bar for future videos
Troicki is the most perfect example of 'fighting for every match'...
Where is Peng?
Probably my favourite youtube channel
your video editing is absolutely sublime.
dude start posting more often your videos are so entertaining
I was in Beijing a couple of years ago and tennis seems to be on the decline. The Beijing Olympics really sparked a lot of hype and construction of tennis courts in the capital but that has died down. An excursion from my apartment to the Olympic tennis complex revealed massive stadium courts and about ten normal courts with a small pro shop but virtually no players. It was a ghost town. Shanghai is likely the best city for tennis opportunities.
You always have very smooth visuals in your editing, I respect that this probably makes your editing take MUCH longer but adds so much depth to your videos. Do you use after effects or some motion graphics software?
Only Final Cut Pro (for now 😉)
Great video...sooooo well produced!
Great video, I didn’t think that’s how things worked for tennis in China!
Would love a video like this on British tennis.
Really love your narration skills, please keep going!!
This channel needs more Subs! I mean im on a binge right now. Great Vids dude!!
such a good vid. the views don’t do it justice. hope it’s not too demoralizing
Being expecting a vid from you. Awesome as always!
Great video! I’d also say that size (or lack their of) plays a role in their success in the men’s game.
I really couldn’t care less about tennis, yet here i am binging your stuff. Well written man.
A rather strong counterpoint would be all of the other successful Chinese athletes in other sports. Nothing in your video explains why China struggles in tennis, but dominates in other sports and is developing very well in others. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics are currently underway, and at the moment, China leads the world in gold medals. They have been dominant in gymnastics and diving, weight-lifting and doing quite well in swimming, crew, shooting, track and field, cycling, and many other sports. You can't just say the system doesn't work because clearly, it does.
Tennis is different though
Excellent quality videos. Keep it up. I don't know how you do such good editing.
We are pulling for you, Yonald!
BRO YOUR VIDEOS ARE SO SATYSFYING TO WATCH. Cheers from Mexico
Great video as usual! Just a slight unforced error in map choice at 9:50 😉
0:54
Exactly!! Where is Peng Shuai???
Ennjoying your vids thoroughly! We need a vid of you talking about how you got into tennis and who you like
I'm not even that into tennis but I can't stop watching your videos
How does this channel not have millions of subscribers yet?
If our professional training system works, our male soccer team should not struggle to qualify the FIFA World Cup. BTW, you forgot to mention the silly “shackles” almost all Chinese professionals get from the National Games of the PRC.
As both a tennis and table tennis fan, I have mixed feelings about China table tennis domination. They brought us some of the most amazing players of all times, hopefully table tennis is so popular there that they don't need to force kids to pick that sport?
the question of where are all their professionals, that question is asked a lot in basically every major sport
Another great video Cult Tennis. Really love your content.
When it comes to Serbia, one trait can be found within the people. "Inat" - i would translate but there are not really good translations lol 😂 it is a trait when you don't want to let go and give up, even if you're completely wrong or the challenge is (almost) impossible, you go out of your way to prove yourself right, by all means. Most of you saw "Inat" in 2019 wimbledon final 😉
Love from Serbia 🇷🇸 great video, keep going man 👏
djokovic is a cheat
Hey, thanks for this, super interesting! Is Inat a word in other Balkan countries? Like Croatia for instance which has also produced a crazy amount of good male and female tennis players?
@@HB-kb6rt yes it generally is something that is specific to balkan countries
Always high-quality video!!!! I can't believe you would make a video regarding Chinese tennis and can't agree more what you mentioned as a competitive tennis player growing up in China lol
Great quality video once again! keep up the good work
Hey man, I'm really learning about tennis with you. Besides that, you really do amazing videos.
I said it once and i'll say it again THE best tennis channel on YT by far !
coming back to this video 3 years later now zheng qinwen is an absolute superstar is a little funny
Always awesome content and production 👏🏽👌🏽👍🏽
And now we have the Peng Shuai situation
Dude I looked at your subs thought you had 751 k and I was like damn he should have at least a couple mil and then I looked again and I was like wtf ur underrated man
As a Chinese tennis fan, I have to say your analysis is spot-on. The problem is not state-funded SUPPORT for players, especially for teenagers. Many countries give generous support to promising young players and their families in the early years - Japan, the UK, Canada, etc. The problem is that the Chinese system, as a string attached to the support, takes away the rewards and incentives for the individual players and their families. Li Na, after years of flying solo, famously said that it was the pressure to feed a whole team behind her (which at the time included her own husband) that motivated her to fight the way she did. When you are in a federally funded system, you simply don’t have this level of incentive.
The good thing is that almost all of the top next-gen Chinese players now fly solo. Zheng Qinwen is the next rising star on the WTA tour, who has been training abroad since she was a teen. On the ATP side, Zhang Zhizhen (who finally broke into Top 100 in 2022, by the way), Wu Yibing (3rd round at US Open 2022) and Shang Juncheng bear the hope of Chinese men’s tennis to possibly match what South Korea and Japan achieved in recent years.
Chinese Tennis success is basically the polar opposite of Chinese Weightlifting success
Looking for the Donald Young gag is today’s Where’s Waldo. Brilliant channel, incredibly talented storytelling filmmaker.
To be fair it will be extremely hard for China to replicate Li Na. She was truly one of a kind
It’s official … with all the subtle trolling. You are obsessed with Donald Young. Just let him be … enough already.
Such a good topic and very well done. Thanks!
for going so long with no tennis to then having Li na is actually insane though. there will be some big names soon enough
whether or not it is within the system or not, the Chinese sporting success will eventually come to tennis given the overall wave
Awesome video!
Its sad that this happens to all sports like basketball, you see so much talented chinese players but china hasent had a worldwide star since Yao Ming.
One of the best channels on RUclips.
Thought you were dead. Thank God you're back. Less goooo.
😂😂
Truly unique editing style my guy
According to the ITF website, Juncheng Shang is now the world number 1 junior player. He will be one to watch
Do one on the rise and fall of U.S tennis
I think he might of done that already
@@bsteven_2 no not yet
@@possesedcake5422 women's tennis is in good hands
wait, is the 65% prize tax and 100% sponsorship tax also enforced onto Table Tennis professionals? if so I suddenly feel really sorry for Xu Xin, Ma Long, Fan Zhendong etc.
Yes. But they’re still doing better than the average citizen. Don’t buy the ‘huge CHN middle class’ stuff. Spent almost a yr there. What is considered middle class is peanuts anywhere else and means a life living with a lot of relatives in cramped quarters.
@@WestCoastAce27 Thank you, sorry to hear how bad it is in China.
Best tennis Channel on youtube
Love the humorous little Easter eggs placed in the video 😂. Keep the good work up.
been waiting for a new upload, love it bro
The strongest in Chinese sports is weightlifting, with 7 gold medals