01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, May 20, 2004

The best tennis players in the world are in Newport this week, and unless you read reporter Richard Salit's feature in the Rhode Island section of yesterday's Providence Journal, I guarantee you have never heard of them.

Rob Fahey of Australia? Hall of Famer and two-time Grand Slammer Rod Laver still has greater name recognition even though Fahey has reigned as world champion since 1994 and won Grand Slams in 2000 and 2001, a back-to-back accomplishment that eluded even the mighty Laver.

Tim Chisholm of New York? He has won five Grand Slam tournaments but doesn't turn heads when he walks the streets of Manhattan, not like that other boy from New York City, John McEnroe.

Fahey (pronounced Fay) and Chisolm will play the second day of their potential three-day World Championship match today at the Newport Casino, but you won't hear veteran announcers Cliff Drysdale or Dick Enberg describing the action from high above courtside at the National Tennis Club.

And you won't read florid prose from Hall of Fame scribe Bud Collins, he of the rainbow-hued slacks, with your morning coffee.

That's because this is court tennis, monsieur et madame, once the game of kings, now the sport of the mere elite. And get this: "The U.S. is the most elite. Very WASPish."

That's from Susie Falkner, chief executive of the London-based International Real Tennis Professionals Association. Real tennis over there is court tennis over here. Either way, it's the ancestor of lawn tennis, which, of course, became just tennis when Europeans discovered that red clay is easier to care for than a manicured lawn and Californians decided that concrete and asphalt are even easier.

Falkner represents the 105 pros from around the world -- mostly in England, Australia and the United States -- who teach this archaic game of strength, speed and nerve. One of her missions is to promote its growth, a challenge given that only 41 courts exist in the world, 10 in the United States, and most offer scant seating for spectators. At the peak of its popularity, there were 1,800 courts in France alone. That was in the 13th century. French Revolutionaries in the 18th century took care of most of them. France has three courts now.

Television and sponsorship, vital links in all sport these days, are key to any expansion in court tennis. Falkner is trying to interest British television in covering matches. A hurdle is the court itself. Each is different. All are indoors, walls and lighting are not uniform, and unusual angles are the norm. Most were built long before anyone dreamed of television. Falkner noted that Hampton Court in England didn't have flush toilets for the longest time. But she also noted that a new court at The Burroughs Club at Middlesex University in England has great lighting and cameras built into the walls.

Falkner should appeal to ESPN over here. I'd watch court tennis before spending a minute on pool or poker, each of which gets cable time.

Falkner is trying to convince sponsors over there that fewer promotional dollars can go further in court tennis than in big-time sports such as soccer. Plus, she adds, court tennis is a game of honor and trust. Youngsters learn quickly that "if you cheat, no one will play with you."

And it's clean. "Drug-free," she says, "except for alcohol, and we don't mention that."

There is, indeed, an active social side to the game. Players are as comfortable in black tie as they are in shorts. Social events this week include cocktails at the Reading Room tonight, a clambake at The Clambake Club tomorrow night and a dinner at the New York Yacht Club Saturday night.

Falkner would like to see schools and universities, and perhaps even tennis centers, build courts so more people can play. That's a nice thought, but if a court costs a million bucks, we won't be booking time at URI or Providence College or even Ivy League Brown University any time soon.

First, though, Falkner wants people to understand the game and rules so complex that they take dozens of hours to learn. "To do that we have to go out and market it," she says.

Here's a suggestion. Make the athletes more available. Fahey is a great player with 21 Grand Slam titles on his résumé. In the tournament program, organizers describe him as "our charismatic and dynamic current World Champion." Chisholm is a converted tennis player who pushed Fahey to the thirteenth and deciding game of the 2002 World Championship at Hampton Court in one of the most dramatic matches in recent court-tennis history.

But neither champion nor challenger is available to chat with media types during the tournament, which started Tuesday with Fahey sweeping four sets, resumes today with four sets and concludes Saturday with five sets, if necessary. The first player to win seven sets is the champion.

Imagine Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, or any tennis player for that matter, disappearing for the Wimbledon fortnight?

Court tennis is an intriguing game with a fascinating history, but it will remain a niche sport as long as the rules are complex -- and my guess is few, if any, in the game's hierarchy want to simplify them -- and access is restricted by the lack of courts and viewing space.

That said, visit the International Tennis Hall of Fame this summer and check out the court in the building at the rear of the Newport Casino grounds. If pro Josh Bainton is giving a lesson, or a couple of National Tennis Club members are playing, watch for a few minutes. You'll wonder how they do it, and what they're talking about as they call out the score.

Better yet, check out the Schochet Cup for the U.S. pro singles championship June 1-6. Some of the best players in the world will be there. And you will not have heard of them.

Drop shots

Congratulations to Kelly McAndrew of Barrington on her fine four-year tennis career at Villanova. She graduated with a degree in French and a minor in international business. . . . And to Rutgers senior Harry Cicma of Providence, who posted a 7-4 record in singles this year. . . . And to Springfield senior and Ponaganset alum Brad Boisvert, who earned NEWMAC second-team honors at No. 2 doubles. . . . And better luck next year to Colgate's Marissa Alikpala of Lincoln, who was 10-10 in singles and 1-11 in doubles for the 9-10 Raiders.

Contact Mike Szostak at mszostak [at] projo.com