...and now we can have the whole discussion over again. LOL.

Hey, everyone. :)

Ooh - better idea - we should have a "fangirl over Grant" comments section and repost all our favourite Grant comments in tribute.

I nominate the poem from one of the MNP threads a few weeks back...*goes off to hunt for poem*

eek...I hate being first!

Pete I just loved the sitcom

"I Dream of Jeannie" remember she had a habit of popping out of that bottle at the most ill gotton times.lol!

Monday Net Post on 11/05/2009

Grant @ 6:22pm

Ode to a Monday Net Post Discussion Thread

Though some may call our little spats
Silly and myopic
I take solace in the fact that
We're discussing new topics!

While dirt boys, coke, and messes hot
May have us all abuzz
The nth installment it is not
Of "Rafa sux", "no, Roger does".

Davis Cup Schedule (all matches are indoors except Germany/Spain and times posted are TW or United States EST)

Argentina @ Czech Republic
Friday - 9 AM : Saturday - 8 AM : Sunday - 7 AM
Juan Monaco vs Tomas Berdych
Juan Martin Del Potro vs Ivo Minar
Del Potro/Mayer vs Dlouhy/Stepanek
Juan Martin Del Potro vs Tomas Berdych
Juan Monaco vs Ivo Minar

United States @ Croatia - Live on Tennis Channel
Friday - 10 AM : Saturday - 9:30 AM : Sunday - 10 AM
James Blake vs (Dr.) Ivo Karlovic
Mardy Fish vs Marin Cilic
B Bryan/M Bryan vs Karlovic/Zovko
James Blake vs Marin Cilic
Mardy Fish vs (Dr.) Ivo Karlovic

Russia @ Israel
Friday - 6 AM : Saturday - 8 AM : Sunday - 8 AM
Igor Andreev vs Harel Levy
Mikhail Youzhny vs Dudi Sela
Kunitsyn/Safin vs Erlich/Ram
Igor Andreev vs Dudi Sela
Mikhail Youzhny vs Harel Levy

Germany @ Spain
Friday - 7 AM : Saturday - 10 AM : Sunday - 7 AM
Andreas Beck vs Fernando Verdasco
Philipp Kohlschreiber vs Tommy Robredo
Kiefer/Zverev vs (F-Lo)Lopez/Verdasco
Philipp Kohschreiber vs Fernando Verdasco
Andreas Beck vs Tommy Robredo

Don't forget that lineups on Saturday and Sunday are subject to change.

And now, back to the tennis. ;-)

* Maybe the best thing about these regular orgys of denunciation and outrage is the way they provide Grant with a platform for some of the funniest comments I've ever seen posted, anywhere.*

Word.

"I put it down to the fact that for many, any perceived criticism of their idol - whoever he is - becomes the dominant theme in any post. It's a forest-trees kind of thing, and it causes many people to seemingly abandon what capacity they have for critical, careful reading. It's a form of hysteria, I suppose, caused by drinking too much of the Kool-Aid."

KADs hopping mad over anything remotely non-positive about their idol? I'm shocked!

Moving on to DC:

I'm going tomorrow and yesterday, I got tickets a bit too late, so my seats are horrible. Safin will not play tomorrow, doubles and deciding rubber, I guess. I will try to get a photo with Safin, I don't know though. I don't mind being a fangirl away from home, but I feel akward being one in Israel.

Thanks for that breakdown, Master Ace. :)

Really hope Spain can win...no prizes for guessing why. ;-)

I'm in court today, going to try out Grant's suggestion re the Judge asking for evidence...*wonders if I'll be placed in contempt*

*I'll report back to the Twibe how it goes, eh, if I'm back"

"Really hope Spain can win...no prizes for guessing why. ;-)"

Nando, Tommy and Feli. Oh, it's so hard!

Now that Nalbandian is out for the rest of the season

Del Potro really has to step up.Though I was impressed with him in his last appearence at DC level.

Jewell: I like your lil' poem. :)

Pete: Absolutely true-objectivity is tough sometimes. *drinks favorite orange Kool-Aid drink*

THAT picture! Oh my gosh! I love DC! Go USA and Vamos Armada!

Congrats to C-Woz fans on her win today.

Actually, it's so Rafa might get to play DC again this year.

although I wouldn't object to more Lopez or Robredo.

Fabulous, Or...will you be reporting too? Hope you have a good time.

NP Its Not always about the tennis you know.

It's Grant's poem, Rafadoc. I just love it.

Or: How fabulous! *NP-please look away*. Will you blow a kiss at Marat for me? ;-)

Jewell: I missed that. Grant strikes again. lol

*insulted that Rafadoc doesn't read my extremely deep and meaningful comments properly*

Hi, btw. :) *opens red wine*

"Actually, it's so Rafa might get to play DC again this year."

Lie.

AM, yes. Just ask Gaudio.

rafadoc... I dunno why you just asked me to look away.

Aw, Pete;

Well you kinda brought it on yourself, don't ya think? I mean, you'd already covered the issue, and then you saw fit to revisit it. Perhaps if you had led off with the "fresh" material, and stuck to it, you would have had a response more to your liking.

Gaudio?mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

I will ask that loaded question to the "Rock God Of Tennis"

NP: Fangirl moment. It was supposed to be funny because you make fun of that sort of thing now and then and tend to be a more X's and O's guy. Oh well-humor fail!

Jewell: Hmmmm...do I smell a nice bouquet? Maybe a Merlot? :)

Merlot it is! *pours* Wait...you didn't want to taste it first, did you? I seem to have filled the whole glass...

rafadoc, I thought your comment had more to do with Marat. Gotcha.

My CB sez....

Argentina def. Czech Republic 3-2.

U.S. def. Croatia 4-1.

Russia def. Israel... who gives a sh*t?

Spain def. Germany 4-1.

Jewell: Oh well-if it is already poured. :) LOL.

i would like to see Blake come back and USA winning the tie

NP I thought your CB takes a well earned brake when DC comes around.

I'd like to see Seal Face do well, and Sela...enjoyed his Wimbledon run.

Hey folks,

I was hoping to see a Gulbis v. Dmitrov show down in the Africa/Europe zone Group 2 second round, but it looks like Grigor hasn't made the team. Even with Pa Dmitrov as team captain. Perhaps there's an injury or other priority to attend to?

http://tinyurl.com/km6ue5

Shame, this was my 'will Gulbis be bypassed by the next hot new thing' test. I'm just going to have to assume the answer is yes.

Stupid mutually exclusive tennis wants!

AM, Wal-Mart special, and you thought I was gonna snatch only one CB? C'mon, you know me better than that.

Mm...Grigor. Such a pity about that 1HBH, and the knee tape...but I can't help liking him, he's so adorable. Enjoyed his match against Simon at Queens.

Syd - I had no complaints about the reactions. I just think about things,is all, and if I took personally these kinds of things, or even the fortunes of various players, my life would be a lot tougher.

NP Ok I got caught out I was having a "Moment"

Hey all!

Anyone else in the twibe planning on attending the WTA LA tournament in August? I just got my tickets for Sat. today :) Also going to one session of the LA ATP tournament with some Twibers--will be fun!

Also, +1 on the Grant comments.

Well, I am off to participate in that grueling sport called "mini-golf". Wish me luck! Have fun all!

LOL, Rafadoc, is it plain mini-golf, or crazy-golf? Good luck. :)

Or, good luck on the DC thing!

Pete, you know that famous exchange from the American President?

"[People] are so thirsty for it they'll crawl through the desert toward a mirage and when they discover there's no water, they'll drink the sand."

(And the counterpoint: "People don't drink the sand because they are thirsty; they drink the sand because they don't know the difference.")

In regards to the discussion of fashion in tennis -- when there is no other discussion to be had (and what, prey tell is the more fascinating subject of discussion after all the goats have been put away for the tenth time?) the internet masses will discuss even Federer's clothes, given a thread. At least, I will, having been suckered in after about 12 hours of nothing else to discuss.

Thank god DC is coming up!

oof. Good luck, rafadoc. I hate minigolf. 3 holes are about sufficient to make me go all Marat Safin-ish. :)

Pfft to that game of golf mini or otherwise

I spent wasted Hours inside a Golf shop while hubby could not make his mind up what Colour new golf bag to buy?

Give me strength,gee us girls get the flak sometimes.

"Dorothy" yesterday, "Lauren" today - is there an in-joke I'm not getting?

Sher: apropos of nothing, love your parenthetical!

Pete,

Your last comments about Davis Cup highlight the fact that the competition, instead of inspiring national fervor for being the glorious tennis competition that it was designed to be, has now become a pain in the butt - Tennis needs to look at ways to make Davis Cup meaningful again. No Nadal, no Federer, No Roddick, No Haas? Karlovic on clay?

In my humble opinion, this thing is using about 25% of it's potential. Sure, die hards are in, but the rest of the world is out fishing...or at a Dodger game, or taking tango lessons, or watching tapes of Federer's footwork...

http://octbfeature.blogspot.com/ (blog post in the same vain)

Am I crazy or does something need to be done?

Peg - you know what they say, "So many Huttons, so little time. . ."
Thanks, I mortify even myself sometimes. . .

Hello good people!

"Merlot it is! *pours* Wait...you didn't want to taste it first, did you? I seem to have filled the whole glass..."

jewell - I didn't get the memo. I won a bottle of Merlot at my golf tournament yesterday. I should have brought it to share with the Twibe ;-)

rafadoc - mini-golf eh? I am still suffering pains of all kinds after my golf tournament yesterday and it was a small course of just par 3s and par 4s. So enjoy it :)

Now I have to try ad get back to actually working LOL!

Meanwhile where was it confirmed that Nalby is out for the rest of the season? oh my I hope Nancy is not too heart broken cos I know she will be *sigh*

fan child - I'm a DC KAD who believes the only thing DC needs is greater commitment from some of the top players, but at the expense of format-altering solutions (played in one locale every year, over two weeks,etc). One good solution would be giving the finalist in any given year a first round bye the next.

I got "Grantified" yesterday. i consider it an honor to have been a muse for a really good zinger :)

Apologies if this has already been posted, but a bit on Federer in teh NY Times--and not the sports section, the opinion section. Nothing groundbreaking or particularly original, but in case anyone is interested:

http://tinyurl.com/kvs2zu

"the latest Brit who couldn’t quite"

So nice to have a little bit of perspective...LOL.

*waves to Hart and Avid*

*waves back at jewell*

I like your moniker. Have you planned a Summit Meeting yet? Perhaps we should declare one day Top-10 Free Day--discussion of players ranked 11 and under only! Violators will have Grant turned loose on them.

I kind of like the idea of DC being organised more like a Slam...would that work with just the World Group, or could it work with all the ties being played? Don't see why not.

Though the participation of the Federers and Nadals will get an unimaginably significant coverage, DC will continue to be exciting and competitive with or without them taking part imo. And due to the highly electric nature of the game (in general) the big dogs are bound to plan their schedule carefully compromising on one tournament or another (of which DC could be one). It is not ideal (considering how important DC is), but understandable.

"the only thing DC needs is greater commitment from some of the top players, but at the expense of format-altering solutions (played in one locale every year, over two weeks,etc). One good solution would be giving the finalist in any given year a first round bye the next."

Great thoughts, Pete.

I think that's a pretty good idea as well jewell...it would take away a lot of the home crowd, small(er)-town (well maybe not small but not currently on ATP/WTA circuit, lets say) atmosphere that Davis Cup has, which is a shame...but perhaps the benefits in terms of attendance and attention would be worth it.

*will get an unimaginably significant coverage FOR DC, I mean.

*waves at jewell*

well I forgot to also say that my *take home man* James Blake looks great in that pic, all shaven and yummy too ;-)

Would lightning strike me if I wished just for a moment that both Federer and Nadal would take the rest of the year off and force everyone to focus on other players?

I am for Hart's top-10 free day. Or even top-2 free.

Can't wait for Davis Cup.

True, Hart...it would take away some of the charm, maybe.

No summit meetings yet...I like the idea of Fedal Amnesty Day or equivalent though. :)))

Agree, Arun, mostly, although the absence of a particular favourite does tend to take some of the gilt off the gingerbread for me. But that's personal...doesn't ruin the competition.

Set up more like the football (I know, I know, 'is there any other?) World Cup?

Although I guess it would be FOOP Amnesty Day. *makes idiot face*

Pete - You write half a post about Roger's fashions in a clearly disapproving way, and then explain that his fashion choices get in the way of people appreciating his accomplishments (your opinion), and then decide you are perplexed about people commenting on the fact that *you* seem to not be able to get over his fashion choices? (I'll also say here that it's perfectly fine for you to have this opinion. I would quibble with you projecting it on objective folks, though.)

Do I have that right? I'd like to understand, truly. I feel that you really come down hard on Roger's fans in particular for these kinds of discussion. It is very hard not to be insulted by it. Believe me, I don't want to be insulted. I'm not looking for it. I only know that I read these rebukes to KADs, which I feel is most often directed at Roger's fans, I never know who is in that group you are targeting.

You can feel free to call me paranoid. I would much rather be called that than included in the hysterical group you are referring to. ;-)

lol Jewell. FOOPAD. It has a nice ring to it. I like it.

In fact, I like it so much, I say we stage a coup. To my immediate remembrance ( a shaky thing to rely on, to be sure) none of the men's top 4 (or Roddick) are playing this weekend...And the women just have smaller tournaments, so unless you count WTT, i don't think a lot of the top women are playing, either...so, here is our opportunity! I say we take over the Davis Cup for FOOPAD!

News flash: The Davis Cup, apart from the Olympics, is the only tennis event where national pride reigns supreme. Couple that with the lack of fanfare compared to that of the majors, and it's unlikely that the Federers and Nadals of the world will boost the DC coverage significantly. Let's put down the Kool-Aid here.

Holding the DC ties over 2-3 consecutive weeks doesn't sound like a bad idea, but not in one locale. That's what sets the DC apart from its siblings in other sports.

I know that even this is a tough ask, but not talking about FONOPs when they are not playing isn't a major accomplishments is it?

I guess that should be talking about NOPS not FONOPs.

"U.S. def. Croatia 4-1."

NP, who are you seeing as the weak link?

What do y'all think about Blake-Karlovic (H2H 2-3)?

ptenis, what's FONOP?

Peg, Cilic is still young and inexperienced, and for some reason I see Blake as the potential hero of this DC tie. So sez my CB. :)

DC is almost here! whoohooo!

I am adsurdly fond of DC, so am all sorts of psyched that its starting, but a bit grembly that I have to work tomorrow. Boo. :(

I do lurve that James looks like a little kid compared to Dr Ivo...!

And I know I'm going out on a limb here - but I'm rooting for Fishy! he gave up points and money, (and being waterlogged) to scoot over to play for the US. So I'm all about the sox-less wonder this weekend! Go Fish!

Fans Of Not Other Players? I feel that, in the spirit of the movement, the top players should be described in terms of the Other Players.

Gotcha, ptenis.

I wonder why Querrey is not in the DC line up for the US.

LOL @ FONOPS.

Tell me about it, pt. Ryan Harrison is apparently with the team in Croatia right now. Inspirational move, I guess. Both Querrey and Fish were entered to play in Newport, but Fish was made to pull out to replace Roddick.

Jewell - the Grant-ism that stands out for me from the past fortnight is, "Basically, Federer at his best plays tennis as art, Rafa at his best plays tennis as war, and Murray at his best plays tennis as The Art of War."

They prolly did rock-paper-scissors to decide who would go.
But given the form that blake is in, why is he even on the team? NP's CB notwithstanding.

"...it's unlikely that the Federers and Nadals of the world will boost the DC coverage significantly. Let's put down the Kool-Aid here."

NP--

I'm not entirely sure this is the case. Don't forget that tickets to the early round US tie with Switzerland sold out in something like 45 min. when people thought Federer was going to be playing. That's much faster than they sold for the match in which the US was actually in the final two years ago.

I wonder, if that were not a central part, why would it have to be that long? Seems I am being disgusted again.

LOL Peg, I missed that one. :)

Anyway, time to go and cook and stuff like that. Later, everyone. :)

ptenis, that's why my CB sez Blake will be extra fired up.

PMac must have considered Blake's good run at Estoril. Anyway, there's a very good chance, with the current Croatian team, that PMac's picks will be justified this weekend.

ptenis: I thought Blake had a better run (compared to Sam) on clay this year. But, I'm not sure if Fish is a better clay-court player than Sam -- maybe he got the nod because of his experience?

arun - i think mardy prolly did get the nod because of experience. mardy and one of the bryans won the us's only point against spain. also, i think with he and james having the run in dubs at wimby, they're more in the groove.

FONOPS. lurve it! :)

christopher, agreed that if those NOP's were playing davis cup - there would be bit more coverage and pzazz. did the us / swiss tie sell out in record time because fed was coming? and i'm sure its the same in spain w/ rafa. they'd still sell out, but it'd be more of a scramble i think with them in the mix.

Blake did do well in Estoril didn't he? Still.

Well, Christopher, but that's only the home crowd. I was talking about media coverage in general. I don't have the exact #s, but I'd bet that in other parts of the world the DC ties are avidly followed whether or not the Feds and Rafas are participating. Here in the US it's treated mostly as a sideshow.

NP - sorry, wasn't clear. Is your "1" = Fish losing to Cilic, or one of the other matchups?

ptenisnet - I wonder if the DC captain got spooked by how often Querrey tweeted about getting slugged by random people walking to/from SW19?

(I'm mostly joking, but I would actually love to know what routes the kid was taking. Wimbledon Village doesn't come across as all that seedy...)

maybe Sam declined because he wants to train for the upcoming American Hard court swing.
maybe Blake is contacted for the team, and Pmac had no choice.
maybe PMac really likes and respects James, and he wants to give him a chance to catch a little fire.

maybe its all 3. Its an interesting tie. I can't really pick a winner.

Add me to the DC KAD crowd. Or maybe the DC Scoreboard KAD crowd. Considering succeding in watching these ties requires some kind of a degree. Big players bring TV coverage which brings fans.

NP.
We get live televised coverage of all the matches that the US is involved in. Not to put too fine a point on it, but that's better than wimbledon coverage.

Pete, if you speak of the unicorn, then once again Grant is to thank.

one of the Bryan Bros posted a picture on their twitter of coach Jay Berger getting the guys ready for the Karlovic serve.

He was standing on a 2 foot high box :)

Peg
You are right. I saw at least one tweet about being punched or something.

What's all this unicorn business?

Eh, ptenis, Tennis Channel isn't exactly a household name. Unless I'm mistaken the DC used to be broadcast on network TV in the '90s.

Peg, my CB sez Ivo will take one of the rubbers. Against whom, dunno.

This is not a dig on Ljubes, but if Ferrero can step in to replace Rafa, with an already strong DC team against Germany on clay at home, am kinda surprised Ljubes didn't get into the Croatian team.

Ljuby is hurt isn't he?

Hart thanks for the link, it was a funny article!

Sorry, yeah, I totally forgot Ljubicic was hurt in Eastbourne.

ptenisnet, you missed the memo? unicorns are funny.