‘Fat, Lazy Pigs’ : Richard Krajicek’s Assessment of Women in Tennis Has Taught Him to Keep His Mouth Semi-Closed

Until about a month ago, 20-year-old Dutch tennis player Richard Krajicek was known for just one thing--his big serve. All that changed at Wimbledon when he became quite famous for something else. And what was that, Richard?

“My big mouth.”

What Krajicek said--and now wishes he hadn’t--was that 80% of the women tennis players were, ahem, “fat, lazy pigs.” That was bad enough, but then he made it worse when he was challenged about his comment. Krajicek said he had exaggerated. He said he meant 75%.

Women’s tennis was outraged, of course. Martina Navratilova said she would punch his lights out. She said she was joking.

In any event, since Wimbledon, Krajicek has been keeping a low profile, which is not all that easy when you’re 6-feet-5 and you like to talk as much as Krajicek does.

“I’ve not been talking to the press,” Krajicek said over a belt-tightening lunch of Caesar salad and pasta, explaining his post-fat pig manifesto. “I just try to avoid it.”

But that may not be possible. So just in case, Krajicek said he may exercise special caution this week when he plays in the Volvo/Los Angeles tournament at UCLA and returns to his Westwood hotel. It might be painful if angry women trussed him up in racket string and branded him a swine in his own right, one of the male chauvinist variety.

“I think there are probably a lot of women who are not happy with me,” he said. “I understand. I’m not even in the top 10. I’ve never done anything. It was a stupid comment. I’m not proud I said it. I have just put it out of my mind. I started to realize now that you have to let your tennis do the talking. If you say your opinion too much, you can get negative reactions and if you don’t like negative reactions, then don’t say too much in public.

“But I must say, I don’t know what will happen at the next Grand Slam when women players are there. I don’t know.”

In the meantime, there is much to know about Krajicek, the Dutch-born son of Czech parents who fled to Rotterdam in 1970. He started playing tennis at 4 and won the 12 and 14 age-group national championships but didn’t get really big until he was 16. Then he grew 10 inches in the next two years.

Krajicek switched from a two-handed to a one-handed backhand, began serve-and-volley playing in earnest and a new tennis star was born. Sort of. Actually, it hasn’t been all that great so far, not counting a five-set semifinal loss to eventual champion Jim Courier in the Australian Open and a fourth-round finish at the same event last year.

Along the way, though, Krajicek certainly has left his mark on tennis, and not just with his critique of the female players. He had the second-fastest serve in the game last year, right behind Mark Rosset of Switzerland. He defeated Wally Masur in the final at Hong Kong and won his first title. He beat Stefan Edberg at New Haven for his first victory over a top-10 player. He finished the year No. 40.

Krajicek also angered Dutch journalists by moving to Monaco to save on taxes. He made them mad again when he took a brief dip into the murky waters of politics. In Holland, or anyplace else, this is risky business.

Krajicek explained what happened: “I just gave my views on Holland, on taxes, welfare. People, ah, weren’t very happy. I just give my views and I usually say afterward, ‘Oh, why did I say that?’ Of course, it is better if you are political in what you say. I just say things.”

The Dutch press and Krajicek have had a feud going since and it didn’t get any better when Krajicek played without a cap in the hot sun, got dehydrated and lost a five-set first-round match to Ivan Lendl at the U.S. Open last year.

“I felt the sun burning right through my head,” he said.

According to the Dutch press, Krajicek must have had his brain fried to play without something on his head.

In his defense, Krajicek said he actually had two caps in his racket bag, but didn’t pull either one out because he, well, he decided not to until he started playing really badly. By then, it was too late. Krajicek had two match points in the fourth set and blew them. He wound up losing the last set to Lendl, 6-0.

“It was the worst,” Krajicek said.

Even so, he managed to find a few important names noticing his tennis, one of them John McEnroe. To hear McEnroe tell it, Krajicek is a taller, younger, Dutch version of himself.

“This Krajicek, he’s got an unbelievable serve but he backs it up with good touch,” McEnroe said. “He’s got the potential to be sort of that all-around type thing. I see that in very few guys. My thing was about placing the ball and volleying behind it. Krajicek can do some of that.”

There are other things Krajicek can do besides tennis . . . and talking about it, of course. He just bought a new place for his mother in The Hague and redecorated it, explaining that he enjoys spending a portion of the $321,371 he has made so far this year as his ranking improved to No. 15.

“I’m not like Scrooge, who sits on every cent,” he said.

He likes designer clothes. He likes to play snooker, read Tom Clancy, watch movies in his hotel room and do a little sightseeing. While in Los Angeles, he is planning a side trip to Venice Beach.

He also likes like to eat, although at just 175 pounds, Krajicek doesn’t look very much like it. And just for the record, his body fat is 8.5%.

Lest anyone think such a percentage belongs to some fat lazy pig, Krajicek need only point to his 15-5 hard-court record, his 398 aces, his fat Nike contract, his digs in Monte Carlo, his Armani clothes and his gleaming future. These are statistical and material assets erected on the foundation of serving prowess Krajicek created in the survival-of the-fastest men’s game.

Just don’t go making any new rules on the new wave or he is likely to tell you a thing or three about it.

“This is so much crap about the speed of the game ruining tennis,” he said. “Everyone has his own weapons. Why don’t we cut one of Andre Agassi’s eyes out because he sees the ball so well? Michael Chang, let’s cut one of his legs off because he runs so well. And McEnroe. McEnroe should wear weights around his wrists because he has such great touch.”

Krajicek suddenly halted his soliloquy, picked up his Armani glasses and put them on.

“Oh, there I go again,” he said. “Ah, I guess they can do what they want with the game . . . as long as they don’t put a hole at the baseline that I have to stand in so I’m shorter. And another thing . . . “

There he went again.