Sports · Tennis · 3 hrs ago
Learner Tien says he found watching tennis boring as a child
Learner Tien says he rarely watched full tennis matches as a child because he found the sport slow and boring.
The American player said he often lost focus during matches, especially during breaks between points.
He preferred watching highlights and enjoyed seeing Gael Monfils play.
The breaks that once frustrated Tien now help him as a player, giving him time to rest during matches.
Tien is coming off the best season of his career so far, with an ATP title in Geneva and runs to the Australian Open quarter-finals and Canadian Open semi-finals.
He has risen into the world’s top 20 during that season.
His final singles tournament of 2026 is the Paris Masters, where a strong result could help him stay in the top 20 as ranking points from his previous title fall away.
Learner Tien said he found watching tennis boring and too slow while growing up.
He said long changeovers and breaks made matches less engaging, and he sometimes stopped paying attention.
Tien said he preferred watching highlights and enjoyed watching Gael Monfils.
He said he now values changeovers as a player because they give him a break.
Tien discussed his childhood viewing habits on The Big T Podcast.
- Who
- Learner Tien, an American tennis player.
- What
- He said he found watching tennis boring and too slow as a child.
- When
- While he was growing up; the interview was published on October 30, 2026.
- Where
- On The Big T Podcast.
- Why
- He said long changeovers and breaks made matches feel slow and less engaging.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Tien said he rarely watched full tennis matches and preferred highlights.
Tennis Head published an account of Tien discussing his childhood viewing habits on The Big T Podcast.
- Player
- Learner Tien
- Podcast
- The Big T Podcast
- Preferred viewing
- Highlights rather than full matches
- Player he enjoyed watching
- Gael Monfils
What people are saying
I did not watch much tennis growing up.
It was kind of boring to me, it was too slow.
I liked watching Monfils a lot, but I was more of a here and there highlight watcher.
A minute and a half feels very short now but back then it was like an eternity.