Not since the 1970s when rivalries among Jimmy Connors, Bjorn Borg, Ilie Nastase and Guillermo Vilas drew millions of fans has tennis been in a better position to grow.
There's a broader balance of power in the men's game with charismatic stars from all corners of the globe -- Roger Federer from Switzerland, Marat Safin from Russia, the Australian Lleyton Hewitt and the American Andy Roddick.
Close in age -- Safin is the oldest having just turned 25 -- they could be firing shots at each other for the next eight years, while still younger players look for their places in the pecking order.
Andre Agassi, meanwhile, is still around and still dangerous enough to beat any of them.
"This is, to me, the real start of the new era in men's tennis," said Patrick McEnroe, the US Davis Cup captain. "You've got these four great players, all of whom have won a Grand Slam. They are all young personalities and enjoyable to watch in different ways.
"Whenever tennis has been at its best, you have great players on the great stages. People want to see players they are familiar with in the semis and finals. This bodes well for what is coming in men's tennis. The fact that Federer is such an extraordinary talent has raised the bar."
That has translated into packed crowds at events almost everywhere. Worldwide ATP attendance, not including Grand Slams, rose to 4 million in 2004, up from 3.8 million the year before, and 3.6 million in 2002.
The women's game, boosted in recent years by the rise of Venus and Serena Williams as champions and Anna Kournikova as cover girl, has blossomed into a deep mix of players with talent and personality.
The three Russian women who won Grand Slams last year brought a new dimension to the game. Maria Sharapova, the 17-year-old Wimbledon champion, showed she's far more than just a pretty face, even if that face is all over magazines.
Serena Williams, who overcame an early back injury to beat Lindsay Davenport in the final, had to survive three match points to edge Sharapova in a semifinal that was every bit as thrilling as the Federer-Safin match.
Davenport is a compelling story in her own right. She planned to retire at the end of 2004, but after regaining the No. 1 ranking, albeit without winning a Grand Slam, she plugged on and has no reason to regret it so far. One of the genuinely nice people in sports, Davenport is as good a role model as exists in the game.
At a time when other pro US sports have been beset by problems with steroids, arrests and confrontations with fans, tennis is a civil alternative -- like golf, but with far more sweat and athleticism. No pro sport has a tougher anti-doping program than tennis.
"Let's face it, we don't have the same problems that baseball, football, basketball have with people breaking the law. You're not reading negative headlines like that," said Kurt Kamperman, the US Tennis Association's chief executive for community tennis.
A recent study by the USTA and the Tennis Industry Association showed that the sport has been growing in popularity on courts throughout the US. With 24 million players -- 4.75 million of them frequent -- the sport is not quite where it was at its height in the 1970s, when it had as many as 32 million players. But it's close to golf and growing despite many more athletic and recreational options for people these days.
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