Hello all. :)

What is a cube farm? It sounds intriguing! *imagining vast fields of growing Rubiks cubes waving in the breeze*

First?

Oh well second... :)

jewell : I suppose it refers to cubicles in call centers, or BPOs as they are otherwise known. Though I loved your mental picture of Rubiks cubes waving in the breeze, sounds far more interesting. :-)

Hey not wanting to watch any more clay court tennis?

has the world gone crazy?

please Clay is the only way to go

I could watch it all year long

Pete maybe you need to get another girl friend? lol!

Clay to grass to clay to hardcourt..makes my knees ache!

I'd happily swap, I hate it when my inanities are first. :)

oh, and YAY for more coaching series. :)

I am looking at a bleak two weeks of no TV coverage of any tennis, so I guess I'll have to make do with a return to those terrible hard courts again when it comes....

Hola GV girl!
Long time no see :)

Well I've never been the biggest fan of clay tennis (maybe because I was never any good on that surface) but tennis is tennis, so I'm happy we have some tournaments to keep us entertain until HC and I much enjoy seeing the 'other' players get a chance to shine.

Well I wont get my Chanel leather jacket now

Sigh!

Also i dont want the booby prize either.

I thought about Marat Safin yesterday for a minute while watching a little of Borg and Connors play the 1976 USO final. I do not have much to say about Marat but here goes, we all know Marat is retiring after this year and 3 matches came to mind. Will list them but in no certain order

(a)2000 United States Open final win against Pete Sampras
(b)2005 Australian Open semifinal win against Roger Federer, who may be on a conference call with Pete today(9-7 in the 5th)
(c)2008 Davis Cup quarterfinal win over Tomas Berdych rallying from 2 sets.

thanks VC, I was just looking it up. :)

Tfactor If you had learnt on the clay,you would find it helps you translate to all other surfaces

As Rafa says it has helped him no end,also your technique.

Oops, wrong again as usual. Should have known Pistol Pete was the answer.

MA-pete is talking to pete. don't see him talking to Mr. Federer!

AM, unfortunately I learned on hard court and never had much opportunity to adapt to clay, plus I always felt it took away my best weapon (my serve)

Master Ace That match with Roger at the AO was Marat at his best.

I'm surprised a detergent company hasn't stepped forward to shill their product can get red clay out of white clothing! Maybe use bleach?

Rosangel,
This week indeed is a very dull week as far as tennis on TV is concerned but Indianapolis will be back on ESPN2/Tennis Channel on Friday July 24th.

MA, you forgot Mr. Federer has 15GS? ;-)

That said about clay, until this year's RG I truly enjoyed watching Rafa dominate on the surface. Right now though I just want to forget RG entirely.

Tfactor No way jose

I am a leftie,on the clay you can use your serve to its full advantage,slice,kicker,put spin on it.

""I'll be back a little later to report on what Mr. Sampras has to say, ""

Waiting eagerly!! Thanks in advance, Pete!

http://www.morethanthegames.co.uk/summer-sports/144940-borg-backs-murray-become-world-number-one

Borg Back Murray to become World #1:

"""

"He's going to be up there fighting with Nadal and Federer from now on and one day I think he might be the number one player in the world," said Borg, who is set to play at the ATP Champions Tour event in Chengdu this November alongside his long-standing rival John McEnroe.

"He's a definite player that can win Grand Slam tournaments and if he's not going to do it this year I think he has a very good chance next year to win Grand Slam titles.

"I believe he is going to come back to Wimbledon next year and be even more ready considering the strain he was under throughout the fortnight.

"Before Wimbledon this year I had picked Murray to win. That match against Andy Roddick could have gone either way so he was a little bit unlucky there and I actually thought he played a great Wimbledon with all the pressure he had."

"""

Robby Fan,
As you posted your correction, I admitted my error. Agree about a detergent company have not taken advantage of showing us how to get rid of red clay on clothing.

AM, my serve was all about power. Spin, moi? LOL

Where has my estimada Gabriela gone? :(

After RG (and MC, Rome, Hamburg past years, Estoril or Madrid now), I would rather eat dirt than watch it. There's something inordinately slow and laborious about clay. Just thinking of it, I feel tired - never mind waiting for a point to finish. May be Wilander and Lendl were to be blamed for lulling me into a stupor 20+ years ago...those endless rallies with little variation till a UFE or a rare winner closes it...and I still can't shake out of it. Thank God the Clay Season is Over!

Waiting eagerly!! Thanks in advance, Pete!"

Imjimmy, your Sampras dedication always makes me smile :-)
I imagine we'll see you're partner in crime appear soon.

Speaking of clay, the WTA is on their 2nd week playing in Palermo, Italy and Prague, Czech Republic after playing at Bastad, Sweden and Budapest, Hungary last week. WTA will have one more clay tournament in Bad Gastein, Austria next week but also will have a hardcourt event in Portoroz, Slovenia.

imjimmy Well I thought you were a Rafa fan?

thank goodness you came out of the closet you are a Murray fan,i thought so

if you think Rafa isnt going to fight to get back to no 1,gee dont sell him short at all,before this injury he was hands and heels above the rest.

he loves being the hunter.

Of course I meant 'your' not you're!

MA, did you ask your question yet?

"Tfactor If you had learnt on the clay,you would find it helps you translate to all other surfaces

As Rafa says it has helped him no end,also your technique."

I'm interested to know more about this. Which surface is the best one to learn and develop your game so that it works well on all surfaces?

What's pertinent about the short return to clay is how it highlights the value of tournaments that are close to home for the pros, and the challenges of grass court maintenance.

After a short-ish spell in the UK, the European players get to stay close to home before setting off for North America (assuming they do).

Additionally, since grass courts are more rare and tough to maintain (chicken or egg?), it's natural that by staying in Europe they play on clay.

I'm not saying this is or isn't my personal preference, but it's how I see the reasoning behind this mini-season.

Clay tennis is about perfect point construction

something that is missing on h/courts

also clay makes you think.

It also makes you mentally stronger

Gee why is it that most players go to train in Spain?

Tfactor I actually like the mini-clay period after Wimbledon - sometimes I do get a bit of TV coverage, so this year is disappointing. However, I guess it may be posible to get something via tennistv.com , which is a poor substitute but better than nothing.

For me it's sometimes quite pleasant to have a period when I don't feel too bothered about outcomes.

Tfactor,
It is more of a comment or a thought but I posted it earlier discussing Marat Safin.

oops forgot to add

your footwork on clay which also translates to other surfaces

Rosangel,
Think tennistv.com is doing Hamburg next week since it is a "500" event.

fair enough about Jelena, VC, I was just chancing my arm. :)

I love clay but I wish the seasons made any sort of sense and were evenly divided between HC, clay and grass.

Now, why didn't I think of Marat?????????

although the way skip put it makes perfect sense. LOL.

Jewell I forgot about Marat too,well after his dreadful showing at Wimby? sigh!

Rosangel,
Yes, unfortunately tennis doesn't get the same kind of coverage as other sports. I can't complain too much on my end because from what I've heard here my TV coverage is not bad at all.

That's it AM. Back in my day (longer than I want to admit) my average rallies were 2-3 shots, playing on clay was literally torture for me ;-)

By the way, when I visited Stuttgart post-Wimbledon a couple of years ago, I had a wonderful time there. A very relaxed atmosphere, and the ability to get near to the court and see the play close up.

Gee give me a Borg match on clay any day Major Sigh!

Tfactor: hte he.. the partner in crime is keeping a low profile, and unfortunately the Sampras flame is getting weaker by the day at TW. Anyway, I re-watch Pistol Pete's older matches during the off season (like this month).

AM: Of course I am a Rafa fan. Just quoting what Borg said. I am a huge Borg fan too, so I keep a careful tab on what he says.

Speaking of clay court tennis, just saw F.O 2008 SF and F on the weekend. I'm guessing the way Rafa was playing at F.O last yr, no player from any era would have beaten him. Unbelievable tennis.

I saw your post about Marat but wasn't sure that was it.

Tfactor Also you learn Patience

When playing defense then ofense

Gee 2 to 3 rallies lol! thats typical boring h/court tennis lol!

"Clay tennis is about perfect point construction

something that is missing on h/courts"

Well yes, in the sense that clay tennis is about constructing points for clay tennis, I suppose h/courts would be missing that.

Imjimmy,
"Sampras flame is getting weaker by the day at TW"

Well we can't stop the passage of time or the breaking of records ;-)

Master Ace: yes, Hamburg is a lovely tournament too (I really liked Hamburg itself as well, and the area surronding the tournament site is leafy and airy ). Personally I'm sorry that it's been downgraded - the stadium is very pleasant, and I also got to see the famous roof in action during the Nadal-Djokovic battle for number two.

imjimmy Well good to know lol! I dont have to issue a demerit card then lol!

Methinks Borg lately has had too much sun? lol! sometimes the things he says are a bit weird and then come back to bite him.

Yes the s/final of the 2008 RG was a Masterclass clay tennis from Rafa I have watchewd it 5 times already

"the Sampras flame is getting weaker by the day at TW"

Is NP sick or something?

I am a huge fan of Borg's tennis, but in recent times he seems to change his mind every five minutes when it comes to making predictions.

Oh well. His punditry wasn't the reason that I started watching him.

Master Ace -- yep, sadly Safin never quite fulfilled the promise of that opening Slam. At the time it looked like he'd win a half-dozen of the things.

What often gets lost in that '05 SF win against Fed, is that he turned around and beat Hewitt in the final, who was getting mad green and yellow love Down Under. In some ways, it was more impressive than his win against Fed, though not as scintillating a match. It was like he was stopping a national movement. (Think Roddick over Murray at this year's Wimby.)

He also prevailed in a tough 5-setter against Agassi in the AO SF the year before, but he got taken to the woodshed by Fed in the final. That was the year Marat had the punk rock GF with the pink hair, who his camp was trying to pass off as some relation to his trainer. I'll miss the big lug.

The Sampras flame will never die out. :-) It's not all about records.

"Speaking of clay court tennis, just saw F.O 2008 SF and F on the weekend. I'm guessing the way Rafa was playing at F.O last yr, no player from any era would have beaten him. Unbelievable tennis."

I'm guessing it's been done here before, but how would you rank the top clay-courters in history?

imjimmy - agreed on rafa's play from FO 2008. He got progressively better as the tourney went on, by the end he was virtually unplayable. It may be the best I've seen him play.

While clay is my least fav surface, i'm much happier with it lately. Players seem more and more to be attacking on it, showing more variety, coming in to net and not being quite so content to just lay back and hit balls until an error is drawn.

It definately seems to be the best surface to learn on though, as it does force a player to develop different shots, work on defense and not be so dependent on raw power, which can be a trap 'hard courters' can fall into.

just imo of course!

*trudges back to work*

Borg is a classic bandwagoner. He'd fit in well here. ;-)

VC
The Sampras flame will never die out. :-) It's not all about records"

Nothing last forever ;-)

Seriously though, he'll of course always be remembered but sometimes we just have to keep up with times and focus on the here and now.

Rafa is the greatest clay court tennis player I have seen.

Borg was incredible,gee he is still my idol

After Rafa's Masterclass RG 08 he took clay tennis to another level.

He made it his own.

*rubs eyes* This isn't Sampras Hour! anyway, isn't there going to be a whole post all about Sampras later?

I will wake Hubby only joking lol!

NP will be in his element for sure

By the way where is he these days?

""The Sampras flame will never die out. :-) It's not all about records.""

VC, thanks a bunch! Tfactor- heh! take that :)

Speaking of Borg, I think he won the fourth Wimbledon when he was close to 23. Nadal needs to win the USOpen to stay close to Borg in terms of slams. Borg had 10 slams when he was 24. Amazing!

Part of Borg's aura was that he went out early at 25. What if he had stayed on, played until 27-28 and won a couple of slams more? Would we think of him the same way?

Never mind me VC, it's pretty obvious I'm not the biggest Sampras fan and couldn't wait for Fed to break his record ;-)
Anyway, I'm sure NP/Imjimmy and Co. will make sure he stays relevant somehow.

While clay may take away the advantage of a big server, I do believe it favours powerful hitters. It's so hard for a player who relies on pure timing and taking the ball early to generate pace off the surface. Heavy topspin is a must if a player wants to do damage on clay. Look at the way Federer struggled with JMdP's big hitting off both sides, for example. However, the value of good volleying and change-ups on clay is also vastly underrated.

Imjimmy, taken! ;-)
I'm out to lunch anyway.

No problem, Tfactor. :-) I wanted Federer to break the record also, but I was a Sampras fan in the '90s. Anyway, I find that you tend to appreciate all great players over time, even if you hate them in the beginning.. :-)

Borg still has the best overall stats in grand slam finals too

Rosangel posted some amazing stats of Borg

One wonders if he continued to play what he would have achieved

Like winning that rotton US OPEN for one Sigh!!!!!

Well if Rafa had stayed on track he would be at 8 GS titles now at age 23 not bad

Well still 6 isnt bad either.

Thank you for the pic of Fabrice. I just LOVE that little guy!

Hello?

First things first, allez Gilles! ;)

Second, this is probably old news but did y'all check out SI's Most Thrilling Players of All-Time list? The Magician's at #8. Gotta say, I was pleasantly surprised to see him, of all players, on there.

Ah, and as I speak, he's on the verge of bagel-dom ... :(

6 is pretty good really. :) Hope he doesn't end there, but if he does, it's still pretty good...can't really complain.

Oh, and of course, he's our pic for today, too. It's We <3 Fabrice day, apparently. :)

Miss Jackie O well its Bastille Day you know

14th July,except here in Oz we been there and done that lol!

I have my eye on a wonderful Chanel jacket,except noone brought it for me,seeing it was Bastille Day and all I am miffed.

is Gilles making you Bastille Day pancakes, Jackie?

Speaking of the Magician:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKnmpcywFA0

Amazing b/w the legs tennis lob

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-VolX8dtkE

Classic Santoro pt at Nalbandian's expense. Hillarious!

Ooooh, Bastille Day. As the wife of a Frenchman, I should know these things.

jewell, I'll be the one making HIM pancakes. Only if he wins, of course. :)

Miss Jackie We will forgive you this time ok

Seeing you are such a busy woman and all.

Also? May I point out that this is the 839th time Hubby has played during my lunch hour. The schedule gods are conspiring to keep us apart!

Ah, but I'll be a foot away from him in a month's time. Cincyyyyyyy.

HA, aussiemarg! Much appreciated.

Apologies for appearing contrary, but the idea that a point that consists of a serve, penetrating first volley and finishing volley is less than perfect is a shibboleth of the highest order.

There's nothing inherently perfect about a long baseline rally. The only irrefutable things you can say about it is that it was long. And it was played from the baseline.

If the goal of playing a point is to garner you a winning point, and an ace accomplishes that, I'd say that's pretty perfect, too.

One may enjoy one style over another (and who am I to argue against that?), but the idea that one style or the other is more perfect isn't really accurate. What's perfect is what ever gets you the W. If all tennis was played the same way all we'd get is homogenization.

Miss Jackie Well I hope you can get some more photos again just of the two of you like last time.

Remember its hot and humid usually in Cinncy,make sure you keep your fluid intake up.

Ooof, Gilles, let's not do THAT all match. Holds after going down 15-40.

skip 515 true indeed,Perfect tennis is really utopia,gee thats why tennis players are still trying to work it out.

aussiemarg, you and me both! Though I hope Thierry doesn't recognize me after our 7 run-ins in IW. I might *actually* come back with a restraining order.

Yep, I'll be prepared with fans, water, and awareness of the nearest air-conditioned spot. :) Can't wait, though - I'm one of those folks who very rarely feels *too* hot.

Oooooh, and just like that, Hubby breaks. Up 2-0.

Miss Jackie Yes you were being a bit of a stalker I remember that

Have you any thoughts of going say in a disguise that will throw him off a bit,just thinking.................................

skip1515: concurring with Ivo Karlovic, eh?

I can't argue with the statement that you go into a point trying to win it - ace, return winner, moonball, penetrating groundstrokes, S-and-V - still counts as one point.

As far as enjoyment goes, I personally like variety and the spectacle of two good players engaging with each other and adjusting tactics and strategies. Baseline tennis can be as interesting as S-and-V - what counts is two thinking players executing at a high level.

imjimmy, Goran was also something of a b/w-the-legs specialist. Check out the 1st shot of this '94 FO highlights reel:

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

IIRC he also did a BTL half volley in the '98 Wimby final against Sampras. There used to be a vid for that, but looks like it's been taken down.

aussiemarg, well, I'll be wearing different clothes? *shakes head at disguise incompetence*

Okay, Hubby off to a good start. Fooding now. Be back, hopefully to a W or something close. :)

Rosangel
I agree. Even last night, I watched the '76 USO between Connors and Borg. Captivating. I am yet to figure out Connors FH though...not sure what it actually is! Is it flat, inside-out, inside-in, slice, or squash'y or just all of the above. Hardly topspin though.

One thing: These idiols - especially Borg - should stay at a distance and keep their image (cultivated or media driven or by sheer display of their game and on court persona) intact along with their mouths shut. The more they appear on TV, yakking away predictions, talking out of turn...the lesser the aura gets. JMac is different as he is always on TV yakking away and given his tantrums, one feels warming up to the guy. Laver is great that way, dignified through and through.

Welcome NP I was getting worried there for a bit.

greetings homo sapiens
The most famous 'between the legs' shot has to be the Sabatweeni
check it out

http://tinyurl.com/lgjpdb

Well Miss Jackie whatever works for you then.

Well, AM, I was here briefly yesterday. Been busy.

Fuzzy I dont like her one bit

For starters she is too beautiful for words,even now.

Andrew: agreed. Variety is the spice of tennis.

"One thing: These idiols - especially Borg - should stay at a distance and keep their image (cultivated or media driven or by sheer display of their game and on court persona) intact along with their mouths shut. "

I agree, Triple Fed. TW's Jen put it well when she wrote, right after Pistol's post-match interview, that he, like many other players, "is better seen than heard."

Now, what's "up" with the Reich reference in your screen moniker?

--Liron

I suppose the legends must get pestered for opinions all the time? Maybe they just say whoever comes to mind first. *shrug*

I take them seriously only when they say what I want to hear. :)

Found it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDrxRuHI0Oc

Encore: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9Ak84gQFs0

Aussiemarg
Gabby is truly too beautiful...she's a classy beauty, and that accent.....I'm getting dizzy just thinking about her....you are right about her being just as beautiful today...she's simply a goddess ...too be envied for eternity

L.Rubin
Just the literal meaning - Reign.
Fed is back. #1. And will reign and rule again etc., etc. And Fed is Swiss German. Nothing more, nothing less. If folks can read into it, I will change. Not good eh?

NP Poor God of The Volley Edberg nearly ran our of court trying to get to the volley of Gorans's gee poor guy.