Playing tennis can increase life expectancy by 10 years

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Playing tennis could increase life expectancy by a decade, according to an ongoing cardiovascular study.

The Copenhagen City Heart Study has examined people over a 25-year period and evaluated improvements in life expectancy through participation in various sports and leisure-time activities.

In total, 8577 participants were examined for all-cause mortality between 10 October 1991 and 16 September 1994 until 22 March 2017, with various sports found to improve and increase life expectancy.

Of the sports included in the observational study, tennis topped the charts for potential life expectancy gains by some considerable distance, with results suggesting as many as 9.7 years could be added to an individual’s existence.

This is 3.5 years more than its nearest competitor badminton, the playing of which has been found to increase life expectancy by 6.2 years, with football having the potential to add 4.7 years and cycling 3.7 years.

Swimming was found to boost life expectancy rates by 3.4 years, jogging by 3.2 years, calisthenics by 3.1 years and health club activities by 1.5 years.

A further conclusion of the study suggests that leisure-time sports which involve greater levels of social interaction are associated with the higher levels of longevity. The study intends to investigate this finding further.

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Barty earns Roland Garros final berth with wild win over Anisimova | TENNIS.com

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The momentum swings were mind-boggling, but given it was both their first Grand Slam semifinals, it’s hard to blame either player for any mental desertions and strategy struggles. When all was said and done, Barty played the cleaner match for the longer period, with 40 winners to Anisimova’s 41 errors.

Barty got off to a flawless start, winning 12 of the first 13 points. But instead of closing out the set at 5-0, 40-15, she wavered. Anisimova took full advantage and came storming back for 6-5, by swinging freely and hitting the pristine backhand winners that have taken her this far.

“I felt like that happened really quickly then I went away from what was working,” Barty said. “Amanda was so aggressive, she was able to take advantage of that.”

Barty’s normally steady serve, which was so effective against Madison Keys on Thursday, didn’t hold up against Anisimova, dipping all the way below 50 percent on first deliveries. She still had the early edge in the first-set tiebreak at 4-2, but again, Anisimova surged back, winning five points in a row for the set. With full momentum on her side, the 17-year-old American forged ahead to 3-0, extending her run to 17 straight points.

“I was really happy the way I was able to respond at a set and 3-Love and to really turn the match on its head, even though it wasn’t the best tennis in pretty tough conditions,” Barty said. “That’s probably, yeah, what I’m most proud of.”

To her credit, 23-year-old Barty remained perfectly calm. You don’t get to No. 8 in the world without some belief in yourself. She got on the board for 1-3, and then won seven games in a row. It marked Anisimova’s first dropped set of the fortnight.

http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2019/06/ashleigh-barty-amanda-anisimova-roland-garros-market-vondrousova/82399/

A sturdy and stoic Rafael Nadal survived the wind and Roger Federer | TENNIS.com

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Tactically, Nadal was the more certain of the two. Whether it was with his serve or his passing shots, he seemed to be one thought and shot ahead of his opponent. Determined not to give Federer openings to attack, Rafa made 81 percent of his first serves; while the vast majority of them went to Federer’s backhand side, he also caught the Swiss leaning the wrong way in the deuce court numerous times.

As for Federer, he tried to serve and volley, he tried to drop shot, he tried to go hard into Nadal’s forehand and move forward, but too often he ended up where he didn’t want to be, at the baseline, hitting backhands from shoulder height. Federer won just 48 percent of his net points, and 39 percent of his second-serve points. As good as Federer’s forehand approaches were—many of them would have won him the point against anyone else—Nadal’s hooking passing shots were still better.

What was different about the 39th meeting between these two were the conditions. The wind swirled through the stadium, blew the clay across the court and into the players’ eyes, and made the balls dive and curve uncontrollably. Normally, that leads to an unsightly match, but for two sets at least, Nadal and Federer made tornado tennis fun as they hacked and chopped and lunged at the ball, and ran each other into the corners. If the wind affected one player more than the other, it was probably Federer, who struggled with his serve and his volleys; he said he was happy just to avoid looking “ridiculous” out there. if anyone’s game is sturdy enough for a hurricane, it’s Rafa’s.

http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2019/06/roger-federer-rafael-nadal-2019-french-open-semifinal-rafa/82417/