First.
Hey

This is the first 'first' for me. Some little pleasure.

Bud Collins (along with others) did a 2 min infomercial on Roger. Buffoon had to bring up the GOAT. Who cares Bud!

One, two and third as well?

C'mon!!!

Good morning, folks. Great day for tennis.

Keep Smiling

hey creig bryan
How are we doing today?

This series of commercials for "ally" where kids are given something only to cheated? Got to say: the kids act so well. Especially that chubby kid who was switched his toy-truck for a cardboard drawing.

PS: With NBC, I feel like these kids.

greetings people of planet earth
5 minutes till SHOWTIME!!!!!!

iknow triple, i don't know whats wrong with bud.

Morning, all.

Dinara Safina is a very talented player, but are we talking Nikolay Davydenko talent, or Novak Djokovic talent?

Plus, talent gets you an invitation to play. It doesn't put you in a position to win. For that, you need the warrior spirit. No evidence yet that this shows up when she needs it. "Why I am such a chicken?" isn't quite "I have not yet begun to fight."

Hello tennis lovers!!! Have a wonderful day enjoying the matches.

yellow fuzzy - thanks so much for your match calls yesterday!! I could hardly breathe during the Serena/Elena match - you were magnificent!!

jan

Now that I've broken the string (Good Morning 3F), I've a question:

The updated Roger Federer Rolex commercial features Roger wearing a taylor-maid, sharkskin suit, while hitting his usual perfect strokes. Does anyone have an inkling as to the significance of the suit, in relation to the watch, the selling of the watch, the marketing angle? What's the concept?

Keep Smiling

Samantha: I know you must be highly appreciative of Cliffie's serving tips on ESPN.

Venus is such a class act, but I think yesterday's match and the beatdown Dina took will only make more people ask the same questions. Venus won't keep the critics away from Dina only winning a slam and justifying her ranking can do that. What's sad about Dina is that she has the game to win a slam unlike hot mess. Dina has a lot of power and a good first serve, her problem are in her head, not her game. Yes, she has earned her number l status, but I don't think anyone can argue that she's truly the best player or even the second best. To be the best, you have to beat the best in the biggest events, the slam. Sadly, she freezes during the most important events When you see the number l player in the world only win l game in the most important event in tennis, it leaves you shaking your head and questioning her status. It's not good for women's tennis and certainly not good for Dina. Her best chance was at the FO because I still believe she's the best clay court player. I don't think she will win the USO as there are several players who are better than her on the faster surface. Her game doesn't match up well against Venus or Serena. Good luck to her. Go Caro, Scandinavia's#1, World's#9!

It's interesting that it's Enberg-PMac instead of Cliffie-PMac. I've always been an Enberg fan, even during the last few senile years, but I like Cliffie's laid back style.

Good heavens, Roger has the ridiculous jacket on again.

CB, yes I was, I enjoyed him in those shorts, very HOTT!

I disagree with you Pete on your point that the ranking system isn't representative of who the best player is in the ATP. I'm a huge Fed fan, but Rafa deserved his no.1 ranking up until Roland Garros. The fact that he is still no.1 now is only a temporary solution till someone, probably Roger, does the inevitable thing of collecting enough points to make his no.1 ranking official.

As for the WTA, it's a mess. The no.1 ranking is almost never an indication of who the best player is.

Andrew:

Well no even her manager, Ion Tiric thinks that Dinara is talented enough. "He wishes she'd had at least 1/10 th of Marat's talent, but as it is she just works hard...". I'm quoting an interview he recently gave to a Romanian reporter.

Anyhow, she can still improve and being tall, she's also a tad clumsy.

Gl Tommy Haas!

morning all! creig - not sure of the concept etc, but i think Fed looks good.... haven't given it more thought than that.. :)

News Flash:

I spoke to Roger last night.
He said he is going to use this Wimbledon as his hair brush holder!

PS: Hair God's Hair Brush Holder coming up!

Brad says Fed in 3, one close set.

'morning sports fans!

Love the pic of Venus on top (who is she leaning on btw?) and FLOVE her handling of that wienie reporter yesterday. she absolutely rocks.

Tidbit from espn2: Guess who Tommy Haas' hitting partner was for the week before wimby? the one and only TMF! But the commies are saying Roger in straights. Geez I hope it's closer than that.

How long will it take for the match to begin??

just a note
you are most welcome...it helps me to channel my nervous energy and not bite my nails

Tommy at the net already!

Haas can't afford to miss an easy volley like he did on the very 1st pt. 15-30.

lol - sherlock - i did give a little hiccup when i saw the jacket.. :)

Can someone post a link please

Haas serving well. He holds. 1-0.

R.Arun, try http://www.atdhe.net/

R.Arun
http://atdhe.net/

http://atdhe.net

Bjorn in da house. Fed holds. 1-all.

Borg and Laver both there. Big day.

Tommy mixing up the serve

Haas serving big, and going for it on his second serves, as everyone pretty much agreed he had to.

2-1, on serve.

That last ball might've been out, but Fed decides not to challenge. Haas gets out of a 0-30 hole with strong serving. 2-1.

In that picture of Venus, it looks like she is cozying up to the guy on the left.

theres a link to the womens doubles here also
http://atdhe.net/

And folks thought that royalty would be in attendance on Sunday if Murray was in the final.

Seems to me that royalty's already in the box!

*nods to Borg and Laver*

Sherlock: does that mean it'll be cliffie and gilbert for the Andys? ugh.

I have to say this wimby has been a little dull for me. No Vamos. sigh.

Fed in full flight in that service game.

Tommy's going to have to find his inner Ivo if he wants to win this. Has to serve lights-out for the duration, and likely snatch multiple tiebreaks.

matt - agreed on the royalty already being there! :)

haas coming up big on serves when he needs to.

Haas keeps fighting his way out of these 0-30 holes. Terrific serving by him so far.

Haas recovers from 0-30 down again. Good to see his serve is clicking. 3-2.

Wow, Haas digs out of love-30 for the second straight game. Fed dumped that last backhand, but the previous three points featured big clutch serves.

3-2.

Interesting to see if the German can/will pressure Fed's service game in this opening set, as a result of these adrenaline-filled holds from initial deficits.

evie: i think that's her boyfriend/coach but i'm not sure. Can anybody clarify?

WS's up 4-0 already

Here we go.... 15-30. You can feel Haas's confidence emanating from his side of the net.

This set is already tighter than I'd like. Hold here, Fed.

I still don't think I'm over Fed not losing a single point to him in the first set at RG and then losing the set.

That's out, Fed. Forget it.

I'm following the women's double, V and S already up a break against the no 1 doubles team. I have alway said that you take two good singles players and they will most likely beat the best doubles teams. Doubles are primarly made up of players who couldn't make it in the singles just look at the Bryans.

Fed with his own (moderately) nerve-testing hold for 3-all.

The struggle a psychic one as much as anything else right now.

Something wrong with Hawk-Eye. That ball wasn't out by a mile.

Fed holds. Haas is serving well, but not as strong from the baseline.

comon tommy ! nice play until now :)

Hello TWibers!

I'm on tentacles, guy, not being able to watch this match.

Thanks for the commentary, Matt-Z, et. al.!

Tommy Haas came to play!

If there's a bad call in a tiebreak or at 6-5, Fed might not have a challenge left.

Stupid.

oh dear. feddy focusing on foolish challenges, not a good sign so early...

Down to one challenge. Better save it for a good one.

Geez, aces all over the place from Tommy.

Another bad challenge by Fed. That was clearly in. And Hawk-E (barely) agrees.

Haas holds with another ace. 4-3.

4-3 Haas, on serve. Federer's had a couple of quarter looks at 0-30, but they've only been quarter looks, because Haas has served his way cleanly out of them. No BPs yet. Federer with one 15-30 game.

David Frost in the royal box.

Yeah, Venu

jb -- I agree. When you see him make these crazy challenges, you know he's tense.

"Something wrong with Hawk-Eye. That ball wasn't out by a mile."

Does anyone else think that this happens quite often? During live action, or even on an ESPN replay, the ball seems BARELY out, and Hawkeye shows it missing by 6 inches. :)

I mean, I know we guys exaggerate, but not that much. :)

Yeah, Venus!

SamanthaE.
the womens doubles is really high quality stuff....
meanwhile Roger slices that incredible lob winner ! Those are the points Tommy has to win

Tommy, that's why you don't strike to Fed's body. Still a great lob by Fed.

And he holds @ love. 4-all.

Some good defense and an exquisite backhand lob enable Fed to improbably pull out the first point of the eighth game. Roger cruises from there for 4-all.

nope - hawkeye often misrepresents the shot i think. where it looks on a replay to be almost good, and hawkeye shows it wayyyyy out. makes me a bit dubious about it sometimes.

Easy hold. He's looking great on serve as well. Beauty of a lob there.

Lock, H-E usually gets it right, but that particular call was fishy.

30-all as Haas throws in a double.

Missed opp on that second serve, here's another...

Man, Haas is really going for broke on his 2nd serves today. And he's been mostly successful.

He holds @ 30. 5-4.

this will bring unexpected TennisWorld to you!
http://www.nowgoal.com/22.shtml

Wow, the more I learn about her the more respect I get more Miss Vee, and that exerpt from her presser above is just a total team, it's not just all about me, I respect others feelings, treat others as you want to be treated attitude. The biggest thing I remember in regard to the rankings is that they reward a player for consistency. So the person winning the Slams and the person ranked #1 are often 2 very different people. And so in my opinion, winning a Slam makes you the best tennis player in teh world. And being ranked #1 signales that you are the most consistent tennis player in the world. So both the best and the most consistent are reconized. Sometimes those two are the same person,(see Federer, Roger) and sometimes not (see Safina, Dinara) but in either case both systems do their job very well.

Yello fuzzy, I would love to see it, I rarely watch doubles because I don't consider it to be as demanding, but I love to watch V and S because of the great players they're. I think it would have more pretige if the top player participated, but now it's most ignored by the elite of the game.

What the heck is going on with his BH return. That's the third into the net.

Tommy solid on serve, Roger looking a little perturbed

Two holds, Haas from 30-30. The success of S-and-V as a tactic is that it can hustle an opponent into return errors even when you aren't coming into the net - see those last two Federer returns. 5-4, on serve.

Haas has come to play today. A lifetime opportunity for him. I feel fed is being a bit casual (his usual aloof self). He needs to kick himself with that baritone Awey or a brisk c'mon!

Haas's second serve at 30-all was a good one wide. His second ball at 40-30 went into the body, and Fed--not expecting the angle--wasn't ready for it.

5-4, Haas, using smart placement in addition to pace and angles on his second serve deliveries.

Hi everyone, As usual we are on delay here in Sydney for s/final matches,grr.

Well I am going for a fairy tale here

Go Tommy make my day lol!

eF-FedFanForever(Sergeant Pepper Fed's Second Reich!) 07/03/2009 @ 7:56 AM

This series of commercials for "ally" where kids are given something only to cheated? Got to say: the kids act so well. Especially that chubby kid who was switched his toy-truck for a cardboard drawing.

PS: With NBC, I feel like these kids.

thanks for putting this nbc/crappy coverage in a perspective maybe they would understand. hope someone sees it!!!

"30-all as Haas throws in a double"

Nerve's up - haha - double-fault again, Tommy, give it up!!!

At 15-all, Fed backpedals and still nails a topspin FH pass for 30-15.

Haas didn't beat Djokovic for nothing. And is it true he's taken Fed to five sets every time they've play a Slam?

A break here would be lovely.

5-all. That forehand pass at 15-all was huge. Haas rightly hit out in that game, knowing he had a chance to win the set. Fed fended him off. Good stuff.

Oooh, Haas dumps an easy volley. Shades of 4-all third set in Paris.

Love-15.

Haas, the new mentally tough version, hammers an ace on the next point.

15-all.

30-all.

I have a feeling this going to be a LOOOONG MATCH.

Venus and Serena 6-1 first set against the no 1 doubles teams. I think if you had Rafa and Fed on one side of the net and the Bryans on the other, Rafa and Fed would win it.

Haas's serve is still there, hitting the corners of the box for 6-5. If Tommy pulls out the first set, a five-setter is entirely possible, even likely.

Hopefully we can get into a TB. And then take the TB.

First set very important. Obviously.

Haas holds again for 6-5 from 30-30. He's hitting his spots beautifully so far, executing the game plan very well as far as I can see. Very similar to the first set of RG R16 2009, though no BPs so far. 6-5 Haas, on serve.

If they go into a tie break I'm giving Haas the advantage because of his serve.

Just Horsen I will not be cruel to you today ok

I have feelings too lol!

Nice football skills from Haas :)

if Haas get take the 1st set he will have great confidence

Come On Tommy!

i think if you had fed and rafa on one side of the net, they'd run into each other! :)

ok - fed to serve to stay in the set...oops - make that served! very quick service games here..

Okay, buckle up. Tiebreak Country.