Skip to search.

Breaking News Visit Yahoo! News for the latest.

×Close this window

Busted Racquet - Tennis

Busted Racquet

Fri Aug 06 04:34pm EDT

Who is the most annoying grunter on the WTA tour?

By Chris Chase

When people compare Michelle Larcher de Brito to Monica Seles, it's not intended to compliment the Portugese player's game. No, the 169th-ranked De Brito doesn't share too many tennis traits with the former Grand Slam champ other than having a reputation as being the most annoying grunter on the WTA.

It's a tough list to top. Maria Sharapova was long thought of as the heir to Seles' grunting throne and though she has the game to (somewhat) match Seles', her vocal prowess can't compete with Larcher de Brito, who once had her grunts measured at 109 decibels. It's like comparing Carrie Underwood to Whitney Houston. Both have the pipes, but only one has the pipes. 

[Photos: Maria Sharapova in action]

Ahead of next week's Rogers Cup in Canada, a reporter at the Toronto Star talked grunting with a sports medicine physician to find out the story behind the guttural shrieks emanated by players of both genders. Dr. Neeru Jayanthi explains:

"Some grunting does improve your power. [...]

"The thought is that you enhance your muscle activation. We also think there's a psychological benefit from relaxation that comes from forced exhaling. [...]

"Whether vocalizing is necessary or more effective than doing so without vocalizing is an interesting question. [...]

"Clearly some players are using exhaling or grunting ... to annoy their opponent."

Annoy their opponent? You be the judge. Here's our ranking of the top-3 grunters in women's tennis history:

3. Maria Sharapova

2. Monica Seles 

;

1. Michelle Larcher de Brito

"Some grunting does improve your power. The thought is that you enhance your muscle activation. We also think there's a psychological benefit from relaxation that comes from forced exhaling. Whether vocalizing is necessary or more effective than doing so without vocalizing is an interesting question."

Other popular stories on the Yahoo! network:
• Tim Tebow's horrible rookie haircut
• The 20 most downloaded songs ever
• Celebrities' yearbook photo flashbacks

digg delicious

Related Articles

Launch Article Browser

Busted Racquet

Add to My Yahoo! RSS

Related Photo Gallery

More TEN Photos »

Featured Tennis Video

More Videos »

Y! Sports Blog