Aided by the presence of Serena Williams on Saturday and college basketball fans on Sunday, tennis’ Sony Open had big gains in television ratings last weekend. In other news, TNT and ESPN had double-digit declines for NBA coverage this week, and the NHL also had a double-digit drop on NBC.
Sony Open Up Big on CBS
- The Andy Murray/David Ferrer men’s final of the Sony Open earned a 1.1 final rating on CBS last Sunday, up 38% from last year’s final between Murray and Novak Djokovic (0.8), and up a tick from the 2011 final between Djokovic and Rafael Nadal (1.0). The conclusion of the match was preempted in favor of CBS’ NCAA Tournament coverage. On Saturday, the Serena Williams/Maria Sharapova women’s final drew a 1.0 — up 67% from Sharapova’s match against Agnieszka Radwanska last year (0.6), and up 43% from Sharapova against Victoria Azarenka in 2011 (0.7). (Weekend numbers from Sports Business Daily)
Steep Declines For NBA on TNT, ESPN
- Thursday’s Spurs/Thunder NBA regular season game earned 1.9 million viewers on TNT Thursday night, down 10% from Celtics/Bulls last year (2.2M), and down 35% from Mavericks/Lakers on the comparable night of the 2010-11 season (3.0M). Earlier in the night, Bulls/Nets drew 1.1 million — down 24% from Knicks/Magic last year (1.4M), and down 62% from Celtics/Spurs in 2011 (2.8M). On Wednesday, ESPN scored just 997,000 viewers for Knicks/Hawks — down 67% from Thunder/Heat on ESPN2 last year (3.0M), and down 29% from Nets/Knicks in 2011 (1.5M). (The Futon Critic [1], [2])
‘Hawks/Wings Down on NBC
- Last Sunday’s Blackhawks/Red Wings NHL regular season game drew a 0.8 final rating and 1.1 million viewers on NBC, down 20% in ratings from Flyers/Penguins last year (1.0), but up 14% and 10%, respectively, from Rangers/Flyers in 2011 (0.7, 999K). Last year’s viewership was not immediately available. The teams’ first meeting on NBC this season, which took place during the Blackhawks’ 24-game points streak, earned a 1.3 and 1.9 million. (Weekend numbers from Sports Business Daily)
