Doubles players angry at proposed ATP cuts
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EN: The present perfect tense ('have reacted') is used here to describe a recent action or event that has a direct relevance or impact on the present situation.
The players have expressed their concerns about the new schedule.
EN: The relative clause starting with 'that' ('that would reduce...') is a defining relative clause modifying the noun phrase 'new plans'. It uses the modal verb 'would' to describe a hypothetical future result of these plans.
They proposed a strategy that would increase ticket sales.
EN: In professional tennis, 'draws' refer to the bracket or schedule of matches that determines who plays whom. A reduction in draw size (e.g., from 32 pairs to 16 pairs) means fewer players can enter the tournament, directly impacting the livelihood of lower-ranked doubles specialists. The ATP Tour is the elite worldwide tennis tour for men organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals.
EN: The passive voice with modal verbs (e.g., 'would be' + past participle) is used to describe hypothetical future actions or plans. In this sentence, 'would be cut' indicates a proposed change that has not yet happened but is being considered.
Under the new policy, the budget would be reduced by ten percent.
EN: The prepositional phrase 'from A to B' is used to express a range or a change from a starting point (A) to an ending point (B). In this context, it shows the reduction in the number of pairs.
The working hours were changed from nine hours to eight hours.
EN: In professional tennis, 'draws' refer to the bracket or schedule of matches that decides who plays whom. A reduction in the draw size (e.g., from 32 to 16 pairs) significantly limits the number of players who can enter the tournament, thereby reducing their opportunities to earn ranking points and prize money. This has been a major point of tension between doubles specialists and tennis governing bodies like the ATP.
EN: The structure 'have + object + present participle (-ing)' is used to describe a situation where someone or something experiences an action happening. In this sentence, 'have eight pairs competing' means eight pairs will be participating in the event.
The music festival will have several bands performing on the main stage.
EN: The modal verb 'would' is used here to express a future possibility or hypothetical situation based on the proposed changes to the ATP Tour.
Under the new rules, the school would only allow students to use tablets.
EN: In professional tennis, the 'men's tour' refers to the ATP Tour. While singles tennis receives the vast majority of media coverage, prize money, and fan attention, doubles tennis is a distinct discipline with its own specialists. The proposed changes mentioned in the context highlight the ongoing financial and promotional tension between singles and doubles players in the sport.
EN: Passive Voice with Modal Verbs: The structure 'modal verb + be + past participle' (could also be reduced) is used to show that the subject receives the action, rather than performing it. 'Could' expresses a possibility in the future or present.
The meeting could be postponed if the manager is busy.
EN: From... to...: This prepositional phrase is used to express a range or a change from a starting point to an ending point, often used with numbers, percentages, times, or locations.
The temperature dropped from 25 degrees to 15 degrees overnight.
EN: In professional tennis, there has been a long-standing debate regarding the distribution of prize money and attention between singles and doubles. Singles players generally draw much larger crowds and television audiences, leading to higher revenue. Consequently, organizations like the ATP Tour often face pressure to allocate more resources to singles, sometimes at the expense of doubles players, who struggle to make a living despite being elite athletes.
EN: The modal verb 'would' is used here to express a hypothetical situation or a future event from a past perspective, indicating what is likely to happen under the proposed changes.
If the weather improves, we would go for a walk.
EN: The adverb 'likely' is used to indicate probability, meaning 'probably' or 'in all probability'. It often appears between the modal verb (would) and the main verb (receive).
They will likely arrive before dinner.
EN: In professional tennis, there is a long-standing financial and popularity gap between singles and doubles. Singles players receive significantly more media coverage, prize money, and sponsorship deals, which is why proposed cuts to doubles prize money to benefit singles players cause such strong frustration.
EN: Passive Voice (be + past participle) is used when the focus is on the action or the receiver of the action, rather than who performed it. Here, 'were discussed' emphasizes the discussion of the changes.
The new rules were approved by the committee yesterday.
EN: Non-defining Relative Clause with 'which' is used to add extra information about the entire preceding clause. It is separated by a comma, and 'which' refers back to the whole situation of the changes being discussed.
He passed his driving test on the first attempt, which surprised everyone.
EN: The Present Perfect Tense (has + past participle) is used here to describe a recent past action that has strong relevance to the present situation.
The committee has approved the new budget.
EN: Adverb Placement: The adverb 'strongly' is placed directly before the main verb 'criticised' to emphasize the intensity of the action.
She strongly supports the new policy.
EN: Julian Cash is a professional tennis player from Great Britain who specializes in doubles. In professional tennis, doubles players often face different financial and promotional challenges compared to singles players, which is the background of his criticism against the ATP Tour's proposed changes.
EN: Non-defining relative clauses (using 'who') provide extra, non-essential information about a person. They are separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. If the clause is removed, the main sentence still makes complete sense.
My brother, who lives in New York, is a professional musician.
EN: The passive voice in the past tense ('was created') is used to focus on the action or the receiver of the action, rather than the agent performing the action. It is formed with 'was/were' + past participle.
This school was built in 1990 to provide education for local children.
EN: Wimbledon is the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, held annually in London. Winning a Wimbledon title is considered one of the highest achievements in tennis. The ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) was formed in 1972 to protect the interests of male professional tennis players, which is why Cash emphasizes its original purpose of protecting 'all' players, including doubles specialists.
EN: The verb pattern 'accuse someone of doing something' is used to state that someone has done something wrong or illegal. 'Of' is a preposition, so it must be followed by a gerund (verb-ing) or a noun phrase.
She accused him of lying about his qualifications.
EN: The phrasal verb 'kill off' means to destroy or get rid of something completely, often used when referring to a group, an idea, or a part of something.
The cold weather could kill off the young plants.
EN: In professional tennis, the 'organisation' refers to the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals). Tensions often arise between singles and doubles players regarding the distribution of prize money and media attention, as singles is historically much more lucrative and popular globally.
EN: The verb 'remind' is a transitive verb that often takes an indirect object (the person being reminded) followed by a 'that'-clause (the information being recalled). The structure is: 'remind + someone + that + clause'.
She reminded me that the meeting starts at nine.
EN: The coordinating conjunction 'and' connects two parallel verb phrases within the 'that'-clause: 'are also members...' and 'pay their membership fees'. Both verbs agree with the plural subject 'doubles players'.
EN: The ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits. Players pay annual membership fees to be part of the association, which is supposed to represent and protect their interests. Julian Cash's reminder highlights the argument that doubles players are equal members who contribute financially and thus deserve fair treatment.
EN: The structure 'it is + adjective + to-infinitive' uses 'it' as a dummy subject (or preparatory subject) to represent the real subject, which is the infinitive phrase ('to deal with this situation') placed at the end of the clause for better sentence balance.
It is difficult to learn a new language in a short time.
EN: The verb 'tell' is a ditransitive verb that typically takes an indirect object (the person being told, here 'the BBC') followed by a direct object, which in this case is a 'that-clause' functioning as the noun clause.
She told her manager that she would complete the report by Friday.
EN: Wimbledon is the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, held annually in London. For professional players, dealing with off-court politics and stressful structural changes during such a major event is particularly distracting and frustrating, which explains Glasspool's strong reaction.
EN: Indirect speech with 'that' omission. In English, when reporting what someone said using a reporting verb like 'say', the conjunction 'that' can be omitted, especially in informal or spoken contexts, leaving the noun clause directly after the verb.
She said she would arrive at five o'clock.
EN: The modal verb 'should' followed by 'do more to [verb]'. This structure is used to express a strong recommendation, duty, or desirable action that someone is expected to perform in order to achieve a goal.
The government should do more to protect the environment.
EN: The ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits. In professional tennis, singles matches traditionally receive significantly more media coverage, sponsorship, and prize money than doubles matches. This sentence reflects the ongoing tension and advocacy for better representation and financial equity for doubles specialists within the sport.
EN: The sentence uses a noun clause introduced by 'that' as the direct object of the verb 'argued'. This clause (that... large) functions as a noun, representing the statement or opinion being argued.
She argued that the new policy would benefit everyone.
EN: The adverbial clause of time introduced by 'when' (when well-known singles players compete in doubles) is nested inside the noun clause to describe the condition under which the main action (the crowds are always large) occurs.
When the sun goes down, the temperature drops quickly.
EN: In professional tennis, singles matches generally receive significantly more media coverage, sponsorship, and spectator interest than doubles matches. However, when high-profile singles stars (like Rafael Nadal or Serena Williams) occasionally play doubles, it often draws massive crowds, which supports Glasspool's argument that the format itself is appealing if marketed correctly.
EN: The noun clause (or content clause) introduced by 'that' is used here as a subject complement after the linking verb 'is'. It explains what 'the real problem' is. The word 'that' has no semantic meaning in this structure and is often omitted in informal speech, though it is usually retained in formal writing.
The truth is that we don't have enough budget for this project.
EN: The adverb 'enough' is used to modify the adverb 'well'. When 'enough' modifies adjectives or adverbs, it must always be placed after the word it modifies (e.g., 'well enough', 'old enough').
She didn't run fast enough to catch the bus.
EN: In professional tennis, singles matches traditionally attract significantly more media attention, sponsorship, and ticket sales than doubles matches. This financial and popularity disparity often leads to tension between doubles specialists and governing bodies like the ATP, as players feel the sport's marketing resources are disproportionately allocated to singles stars.
EN: The prepositional phrase 'Apart from' is used to mean 'except for' or 'in addition to'. In this context, it means 'excluding' or 'other than', setting aside the Grand Slams and Olympic Games to make a general statement about other tournaments.
Apart from the cold weather, we had a wonderful holiday.
EN: The comparative structure 'far less + uncountable noun + than' is used to show a significant difference in degree. 'Far' acts as an intensifier modifying the comparative 'less'.
The new project requires far less time than the previous one.
EN: In professional tennis, singles matches command the vast majority of media coverage, ticket sales, and prize money. The 'Grand Slams' (Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, and Australian Open) and the Olympic Games are rare exceptions where doubles matches still draw significant crowd attention and prestige, which is why they are specifically excluded in this sentence.
EN: The quantifier 'few' is used with plural countable nouns to indicate a very small number, often carrying a negative connotation meaning 'not many' or 'almost none'. This is different from 'a few', which has a positive connotation meaning 'some'.
Few people attended the meeting due to the heavy rain.
EN: The verb 'choose' is followed by a to-infinitive (to + base verb) to express a decision or preference to perform an action.
Many consumers choose to buy organic vegetables.
EN: In professional tennis, singles and doubles are distinct disciplines. Historically, many top players competed in both. However, due to the intense physical demands, high prize money, and prestige associated with singles in modern tennis, elite singles players now rarely play doubles, leading to a widening gap in popularity and earnings between the two formats.
EN: The structure 'make + it + adjective + for someone + to-infinitive' uses 'it' as a dummy object (or preparatory object). The real object is the to-infinitive clause ('to earn a living...'), which is placed at the end because it is too long.
The new software makes it easier for employees to manage their tasks.
EN: The idiom 'earn a living' means to make enough money to pay for things you need, such as food, clothing, and housing. It is often followed by the preposition 'from' or 'by' to indicate the source of income.
She earns a living from her freelance writing.
EN: In professional tennis, singles players receive significantly more media attention, sponsorship deals, and prize money than doubles players. The ATP Tour's proposed changes reflect a long-standing tension in tennis between promoting star singles players and supporting the broader ecosystem of professional players, including doubles specialists who rely entirely on doubles tournaments to earn their living.
Key vocabulary words with IPA pronunciation, definitions, example sentences, and interactive quizzes.
Phrases with type tags, bilingual definitions, usage notes, and example sentences.
The schedule of matches in a sports tournament, showing which players or teams will play against each other.
To stop, destroy, or put an end to something completely.
To earn enough money to pay for the things you need, such as food and housing.