Just what is coming out of the mouth of Maria Sharapova when she is serving or hitting ground strokes? It’s not exactly a lion’s roar, but it is close. Sharapova’s volume level makes her the current winner in the shrieking category, at least at the human level, with about 101 dB in volume, almost equal to the volume of a lion’s roar, and well above the level regarded as potentially damaging to hearing.
According to TimesOnline, tennis officials are considering putting a stop to the loud grunts, groans, shrieks and moans by making “noise hindrance” part of the code of conduct. If that happens, persistent grunters would forfeit points first, then a whole game and ultimately perhaps a whole match.
Here’s how the major grunters stack up, decibel-wise with their shrieks, grunts, and screams according to TimesOnline.
Lion’s roar 110 (the only winner over Sharapova at this point!)
Maria Sharapova 101
Monica Seles 93.2
Serena Williams 88.9 (at least she beats her sister on this one!)
Lindsay Davenport 88
Venus Williams 85
Victoria Azarenka 83.5
Elena Bovina 81
Anna Kournikova 78.5 (she was a cute tennis player, but loud!)
Kim Clijsters 75
Elena Dementieva 73
However, Sharapova may soon be dethroned from her loudest shrieker title. No, the Lion is not going to challenge her on the court. Her new opponent is 16-year-old Portuguese tennis player, Michelle Larcher de Brito. Her extended shriek lasts almost longer than it takes her ball to get to the opponent. Her decibel level has not yet been officially recorded, but her opponents have already been complaining, and her wails could sometimes be heard three courts away during the French Open last month. And she is only 16. Wait until her voice matures! Then she can really turn up the volume.
You can learn about a game called “Name that Grunt”, and hear Michelle Larcher de Brito’s siren scream, as well as some others, in the following video clip.
