“Tennis scoring isn’t quite socialist – one player can demolish another – but, in such uneven cases, the contest is over in a mercifully short time. There is, however, **a kind of social security system in the sport’s scoring system, which means that for the duration of any match, the losing player feels he might still be in with a chance**. It’s frankly genius. “The system of watertight games and sets means that **there is no difference between winning a game to love or after several deuces**. A 6–0 set counts as a set, just as a 7–5 win does. This means that the losing player is never faced with an insurmountable mountain to climb.” --- **Tags** -- [[quotes]], [[incentives]] , [[psycho-logic]] , **Source** -- [[202407221554 - B - Alchemy]]