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Sep 10 2007 4:36PM EDT

U.S. Open Tennis Ratings Fall Without Star Power Beyond Federer

Maria Sharapova and Andy Roddick were missing from the final weekend of the U.S. Open tennis scene in more ways than one. Their absence on the court hurt CBS' television ratings during the pinnacle hours for the last Grand Slam of the year.

The network drew 4.2 percent of the possible audience in the 56 largest U.S. media markets rating for yesterday's men's finals, which saw Roger Federer defeat Novak Djokovic for his fourth straight title. That was down 17.6 percent from last year when Federer had to fend off Roddick to claim his third title at the National Tennis Center.

On Saturday night, top-seeded Justine Henin's victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova in the women's finals, drew a 2.6 rating in the same big-city markets, 18.8 percent lower than a year ago when Maria Sharapova defeated Henin for her lone U.S. Open championship.

Clearly, it's tough for U.S. audiences to flock to their television screens if tennis stars/celebrity figures like Roddick and Sharapova aren't part of the drama. Despite the greatness of Federer, who has now won 12 Grand Slams titles, a true rival has not emerged for him on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.

And without the always-worth watching Williams sisters or the part-time model Sharapova, audiences find other ways to spend time instead of watching tennis.


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