The year was 2006, and it was a different time back then.
The Da Vinci Code swept the box offices, and Daniel Powter’s “Bad Day” dominated the Billboard charts while The Fray figured out “How To Save A Life.” And in the tennis world, the hottest trend of all was, once again, model ball people.
At least, that was the case in Madrid, the tennis tours’ problematic and innovative fave. The ATP’s tournament—back then, a men’s only, indoor hard-court event held in October—had received a lot of criticism for unveiling a squad of female models serving as ball girls starting in the 2004 edition.
But when the announcement came that the season-ending WTA Finals was moving from Los Angeles to be held in Madrid for the first time, organizers pulled out all the stops in the name of “equality”.
A city-wide casting call was held for the first male model ball boys in all of professional tennis—and who better to lead the selection process than 19-year-old phenom, Maria Sharapova?
“I came here to see hot guys and have a good time,” Sharapova quipped in Madrid, looking out at a roomful of Hugo Boss-clad hopefuls.
