Hey Pete and everyone.

I am really looking forward to the coaching post. :)

[You go into the books as someone who pulled your team and nation through a tough but winnable tie, and it's. . . sweet. Oh, so sweet!]

[The truth of the matter is that a Wimbledon final is played a few thousand times each year on the tour, on clay, indoors or out, by individuals destined never to decorate the cover of Tennis magazine. ]

Exactly! Thanks for this Pete.

oh God, that was not at all insightful.

Paris Order of Play for Wednesday:

http://tinyurl.com/clvtqt

I meant my comment, in case that wasn't obvious.

Thanks Pete, for acknowledging the rank and file.

jewell - now you know how I feel every time I'm accidentally first :)

Hey Pete, Thanks for this post on the "lower" players we all seem to forget about. I can never forget the one on Bethanie Mattek after her USO loss. These players also give their all even if they never get to where the top players get to.

I was particularly impressed with Melanie for being able to pull off that win in in a "must win" situation after dropping the first set and despite the rain delay. Also kudos to Liezel and Julie for puling off the doubles win to clinch the tie.

Woohoo! Ferru won. All's right in my (tennis) world for today.

And it looks like Grigor "Is he legal yet?" Dmitrov also got a good win over "HE WAS WHO WE THOUGHT HE WAS" Berdych. Has Berdych won a match since the AO?

LOL, G, I did anyway, but I think I'll just drape a towel over my head and pretend the world isn't there for a few minutes. I hate being first. ;)

ooh - avid, I remember that post as well! Funny how some stick in your head. I felt so sad for her.

Master Ace - Thanks for the Paris OOP.

jewell, it was too insightful. i am also looking forward to the coaching post. it's like you saw inside my mind. :P

avid and jewell - I think about that Matthek post all the time. I don't know why, but it kind of haunts me. Glad I'm not the only one.

sblily, Berdy was a little injured in AO, it didn't help to play five sets probably...

Avid Sports Fan,
Kvitova lost to Karolina "Ted Watts score keeping" Sprem. Indeed, the US win Sunday was a good one for the team with them missing their top 4 players and Fed Cup QF hero a year ago(Serena, Venus, Lindsay, Bethanie, Ashley)

Haunting is exactly the word, gauloises.

Sher - Berdy had an injury? Other than the one between his ears? Hmmm, didn't know that.

Didn't Roger come back from a 5-1 deficit or something to beat Denis Gremelmayr last year?
The dude is losing badly to Roko now.

jewell and gauloises - I'm happy I'm not alone on that piece!

Master Ace - Yeah I was surprised that Kvitova lost to Sprem. I mentioned it in the other post. I guess consistency is what the young players have to work on and true about team USA pulling off the win without their top four players.

greenhopper - Hope you enjoyed SAP open yesterday. Did they give any reason why my "take home" man did not play Pete S?

greenhopper: he lost a set to him on clay in Estoril (and Djokovic lost a set to him in 1R at Roland Garros), but you're thinking of Ruben Ramirez-Hidalgo, he of the one rolled up sleeve.

avid - are you feeling better?

I'm also glad *I'm* not the only one who remembers that post. :)

avid - yeah, so much fun.
I posted a bit about Blake here: http://tinyurl.com/azsg93

oh ok. Thanks for that, crazyone.

jewell - yes I am thank you. But I am still getting occasional pains. I don't know if it's because of the stitches.

*And it looks like Grigor "Is he legal yet?" Dmitrov also got a good win over "HE WAS WHO WE THOUGHT HE WAS" Berdych. Has Berdych won a match since the AO?*

Sblily, I still laugh when I think of that line of JJ's. Poor Tomas.

I just flove that name - Ruben Ramirez-Hidalgo. Mmm.

avid - *glad*

For some reason my Rotterdam stream stopped working and can't connect to the media anymore.

greenhopper - Thanks. Oh no my "take home" man *sigh*. I hope he gets better before his singles match *sigh*

Tennis Fan - I just saw your response about the WTA spreadsheet. Thanks. You could also just give us a summary of what you have from time to time. That will do.

c1, i've had that problem with the stream since yesterday, i've officially given up on Rotterdam watching-wise.

sblily he took an injury timeout sometime in the 4th or 5th set in the match vs Fed and had his thigh taped.

>I still laugh when I think of that line of JJ's. Poor Tomas.

what's this? :)

Dani H now ranked 35? Ouch.

Sher, during the match, JJ was providing a running commentary on Berdych. During the first two sets he thought that Berdych had finally turned the corner on all his headcase issues and was ready to fully utilize his rather significant talent, but yeah, as the match turned in Federer's favor it became clear that no such event had occurred. So when the match was over, JJ wrote that we could now say:

"HE IS WHO WE THOUGHT HE WAS!! HE IS WHO WE THOUGHT HE WAS!!"

My bad, 39. Plus de ouch.

I'm also having problems with the stream it says connecting to data and then it turns green and messes up my computer.

crazyone,

First: LOL!

Second: oh I thought you meant Jelena J!

Two thoughts on five setters:
1. I do enjoy them. I like to be able to sink my teeth into a match and sit back and watch the play. Best of three just wets my appetite. Fivers bring out the potential and the possibilities of players recovering, players rebounding, players playing, players being forced to pull from deep within - especially if the matches go five sets. The main thought is I believe that for the future generation of tennis players, some of the matches other than the majors should be required fivers so that the young ones coming up who may not get into main draws will know how to play them, how to train for them, how to persevere through them.
2. On the other hand, the toll fivers can potentially take on players may just warrant the justification for restricting them to four times a year.
But as one of my favorite commentators puts it, when we get a good one - "My oh my!"

Sher - Thanks for the reminder. I missed that injury -- I'd probably already rolled my eyes and turned away from the match in disgust by then. :)

Avid - LMAO at "take home man."

Vie - Thanks for Rafa vids you posted on the previous thread (esp. the dandelion wish clip).

*joins crazyone in laughing hysterically at "HE IS . . . " God bless Dennis Green for giving us what has turned out to be one of the greatest phrases in sports history.

the stream is working for me now.

sblily - LOL!

ivan's defense on that point was outstanding. I was sure that was going to be a winner by Murray.

Stream for Rotterdam, please. Does it work on non-Windows systems (Linux)?

*Does it work on non-Windows systems (Linux)?*

No idea, but it's good to see you're not hiding it anymore.

http://www.abnamrowtt.nl/cctv/

BTW, I was glad to see that Andy's take on the final and how well Rafa and Roger played in it was the same as mine...

Murray breaks aided by two DFs by Ljubicic.

crazyone - what did MAndy say?

jewell, I think it's in Sher's post in the last YC thread...

c1, Nope it needs Windows Media Player :-(. What did the Muzzinator say?

jewell and Pspace:

http://tinyurl.com/bzfnd4

*The Scot said: "I thought the situation made it a great match but there were a lot of mistakes, especially in the fifth set.
"Federer didn't serve particularly well throughout the match and there were parts when Nadal looked tired and missed some shots he wouldn't normally miss but there were some incredible points.
"I thought if Nadal could win the first set it would mentally make a big difference. Because of it being Federer's possible 14th Grand Slam it was probably always going to go the wire."*

thanks crazyone. :)

I'd kind of go with that as well, adding feverish and unfounded speculations as to the whys and wherefores, of course. :)

c1, thanks. His analysis is always good.

I have to say I'm reallly disappointed that the Tennis Channel isn't carrying any of the 3 tournies being played. I know they will show the semi's and finals of the WTA tourney this weekend, but still. I guess they have to spend so much of their resources now to carry the big events that they don't have the money to pay for these smaller tournaments. Hopefully once they start making more money, they will get back to televising these smaller tournies along with the biggies. It's just not the same trying to watch a match on an internet "thumbnail" - you lose too much of the details to really feel like you "saw" the match.

There's an awful lot of spin in that headline, too, not really borne out by the article itself, imo.

T""There's an awful lot of spin...""

It's Rafa's world after all, no?

jewell: yup, which is why I didn't mention it. That's not really what Murray said.

"There's an awful lot of spin in that headline, too, not really borne out by the article itself, imo."

jewell - spot on!

crazyone - Thanks for the article on MAndy's take on the AO final.

"There's a blaze of spin in every shot..."

Lol, Pspace.

Just for you, avid.
http://i42.tinypic.com/f4hfmt.jpg

greenhopper - awh :) Thank you so much. I like it when he's all clean shaven though ;-)

it was Sher who initially posted that article.

in that case, thanks Sher, as well. :)

oh thanks Sher ;-)

The author of that article uses a bit of hyperbole in the title, but the quotes from Murray were pretty close to the author's characterizations, I thought.

The hawkeye replay is a lot quicker in Rotterdam than it is at the slams.

Sandra: I don't think so, in the quotes Murray acknowledges a possibility, while the headline says that Murray thinks that that event is *probable*. Not the same thing.

Ljubicic is really getting owned here.

*off to cook etc*

see you all later. :)

""The hawkeye replay is a lot quicker in Rotterdam than it is at the slams.""

Less pressure?

Funny little video about Nadal's righthandedness.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nge5tuWnMk4

Simon and Dima played dubs? Now, there's a hoot. Bet it was pretty entertaining.

Jeez Mandy.
Not that I am unhappy about Ljuby not eating a bagel.

wow, that ended up being a TERRIBLE game by Murray. DFing all over the place, on match point and break point.

"I have to say I'm reallly disappointed that the Tennis Channel isn't carrying any of the 3 tournies being played."

I agree, Sandra. Instead, they were showing Davenport/JJ in Dubai 2005 the last time I looked in. And to think that, years ago, I actually thought that TC would be the vehicle whereby we'd see many of the smaller tourneys that the "big networks" didn't care to carry. Things change, I guess.

c1, I think he felt sorry for Jubby :-). Why wouldya wanna bagel that guy?

MAndy does not want to embarass Ivan ;-)

errh ... birdy?????????
losing to 17 year-old baby baby federer (square-baby federer?) is just ghastly.
and you, grigor, grisha, baby baby federer, are on my hateration list already. may your career be as successful compared to baby federer´s as baby federer´s is compared to (original) federer´s.

congrats to Boduor and Arun though. jajaja.

thumbs up to ferru and muzz (yeah not over yet, but really ... any doubt?).
and to JJ. those statements are the first useful thing she has done in 2009. bit pitiful that her tennis is crap so far, but at least off the court her form is decent, no?

have to run now. i´ve been late the whole day and it´s kinda piling up the longer the day goes. why did i even write this post? i should have been out of my flat like 30 minutes ago... ´later.

hmmm seems Ivan saw his favourite movie last night " No Carbo's for Old Ljuby"

sic - Thanks for video link. Love it! LOL at the look Rafa shot Uncle Toni after throwing the dart with his left hand.

Btw, all the guys here might wanna check out C Note's blog. Some picks from the SI swimsuit edition with Hantuchova, Golovin, and MaKiri. Yowza! Smokin'

*errh ... birdy?????????
losing to 17 year-old baby baby federer (square-baby federer?) is just ghastly.
and you, grigor, grisha, baby baby federer, are on my hateration list already. may your career be as successful compared to baby federer´s as baby federer´s is compared to (original) federer´s.*

As usual, I find your hateration hilarious. I hope Grigor Dimitrov does have some success so we can hear more such comments ;-)

MAndy won, seems that I didn't miss much. It was a DF party they both serve horrible, 50% really MAndy that is just awful.

crap...Damn you Bird...now Rafa gets two one-handers in a row? Whatevs.

"now Rafa gets two one-handers in a row? Whatevs. "

Pspace - One match at a time no? ;-)

Nice win for Dani 2 and 2.

Pspace,

Just remember, Rafa indicated he may not go to Dubai if he does well in Rotterdam so VAMOS RAFA! ;-)

Sher, yes, I know! I want him in Dubai....one guy gets a cupcake to F if he doesn't come. Besides, if you're worried about a Fed matchup, he has to get by SF first.

ehhh Sher. There's still Murray at Dubai, and I think I want Federer to play Rafa a few more times in small tourneys off clay, try out a few things, get used to being the underdog, perhaps get a win or two.

the Grem beat Roko.

>Sher, yes, I know! I want him in Dubai....one guy gets a cupcake to F if he doesn't come. Besides, if you're worried about a Fed matchup, he has to get by SF first.

Eh?

I just want Federer to win Dubai, then he and Rafa can duke it out in the HC masters.

crazyone, I think the above sentence also answers your comment :) Plus, so not concerned about Murray.... :)

"may your career be as successful compared to baby federer´s as baby federer´s is compared to (original) federer´s."

Bissy: That was pretty mean even though I know what your favorite playing style is.. But, what C1 said re your hateration list! :)

I'd definitely trade Dubai for a masters, especially a clay one.

C'mon Fed, win Rome :)

crazyone,

Basically, I will start to worry about Murray if and when Federer is playing him in slams. I know how dangerous Andy is, but I just don't get as worked up about any potential loses Roger may suffer to him outside of slams.

Whereas it would be rough to have a Federer/Nadal final AGAIN immediately after Dubai. I'd rather Roger won that and went on to DC with a little less pressure, then come what may once the American swing starts.

So Vamos Rafa! Hope he wins in Rotterdam and focuses on DC which is one of his goals for this year anyhow rather than going to Fed's camping ground in Dubai.

As for the other finalist in dubai being a shoe in, even Fed is not a shoe in for the final. Are Roddick, Murray and Djokovic playing for sure?

/ fannish ramble

Arun, What is Bissy's favorite playing style? Nole and Marin? I didn't know his hateration had anything to do with the style of play. If so, he is the first person I know of who hates one-handers across the board. Steffi too?

* immediately after Melbourne.

And I don't see it as inevitable that winning Dubai means he won't win others. In fact, as other people never tire of saying, confidence is everything in tennis. If you are winning in one place you are more likely to be winning in another place. I don't see how a few smaller titles could hurt going into MSes, especially since they'll be prove to him he's doing better than last year already.

Mathieu is serving at 17%, but throws an ace down to save the last break point. But Gasquet breaks anyway.

But I enjoy haggling over unwon tennis tournaments however ;-)

Sher: what I meant was, I think Murray is definitely a stumbling block for Federer *in* Dubai. His 3-set record over Federer is stellar, and I don't think that will change. So if you're worried about Nadal being there or not being there in terms of Fed winning the title, I'm saying there's still one huge opponent, if not others (Verdasco is also playing Dubai, along with Djokovic, Roddick, the Giant-Killer, and others).

I really think Federer needs to get used to playing Nadal like an underdog. One of the disturbing things about that final was that he kept assuming he'd won points that he'd end up losing because he was surprised Nadal kept fighting for them. And I think it might make him somewhat looser on serve.

Against everyone else in Slams I think the self-perception of himself as a favorite helps him--post Wimbledon 2008, however, he should regard himself as an underdog against Nadal and fight accordingly.

This probably only makes sense in my head.

Pspace: yeah, he generally has a strong hatred for one-handers (which he frequently expresses). There are a few exceptions: Haas, Almagro, and Kuerten.

Sher, no one is saying that we don't want Federer to win Dubai. Of course I do! But I don't know that Nadal's pulling out increases his chances that greatly in a best-of-three format on HC, where he's most vulnerable to a host of players. All we need is Il Divo to have a huge serving day over two sets and then Fed's out...

c1, that's bizarre. How can you dislike one of the most beautiful shots in tennis? I should ask him sometime...I thot it was just a Federer thing, and anyone that reminded him of Fed...which is a lot more understandable...I think ;-).