\n<\/p>\n
Lights. Camera. Quiet please…<\/b><\/p>\n
When it comes to etiquette in tennis, there are a fair few unwritten rules.<\/p>\n
Apologising after winning a point from a net cord. Honesty around line calls, double bounces and double-hits. Post-match handshakes. <\/p>\n
As for the spectators, it is common courtesy not to disturb the players during points.<\/p>\n
Around 100 influencers and content creators have been granted accreditation for the tournament in New York – double the amount from last year.<\/p>\n
Their presence has led to debate over how to balance bringing tennis to a new, different audience while respecting the game’s etiquette.<\/p>\n
“I definitely think it’s cool to have a new demographic and I definitely think it helps grow the sport,” world number four Coco Gauff said.<\/p>\n
“But if you’re being invited to a red carpet, you wouldn’t show up in jeans.<\/p>\n
“I think it’s just follow the etiquette of the sport. That’s all.”<\/p>\n
During two-time champion Naomi Osaka’s first-round match on Arthur Ashe Stadium, one group held a photo shoot in their hospitality suite while play was going on.<\/p>\n
The group turned on a portable ring light while Osaka was serving, leading to a reprimand from the umpire.<\/p>\n
When Osaka returned on Thursday, the umpire had to remind the crowd several times to be quiet.<\/p>\n
“Today the umpire told everyone to be quiet more than I’ve ever heard an umpire tell a crowd to be quiet,” Osaka said.<\/p>\n
“I tell people I normally just focus on the match and the court, but there was a moment where there was people shouting and you could hear it quite clearly.<\/p>\n
“I think it bothered my opponent, too.”<\/p>\n
In one video, which has gone viral, a group can be seen speaking loudly as they film themselves during Osaka’s first-round match on Tuesday, which led to the chair umpire calling for them to stop.<\/p>\n
“I think obviously if you come to a sporting event, you have to respect the sport,” Osaka said.<\/p>\n
“I feel like it’s common courtesy to read up on the sport, especially the etiquette.<\/p>\n
“It could be a good thing for people to make the sport of tennis popular to their specific audience, but I think it has to be managed a lot better, especially in the situation like my first-round match.<\/p>\n
“Overall, I think there are huge positives. You want people to continue to grow the sport. <\/p>\n
“I just think it has to be in a way that everyone knows the rules and the etiquette.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n