French Edition: La Terre Battue

::: Moment of Silence for the UVa tennis team's 3rd straight NCAA defeat from USC :::
I cannot imagine a more dramatic comeback and heartbreak as #3 Singh was broken to finish off my Cavaliers 6-4 in the 3rd set of the final match...   USC = NCAA Champions!
Maybe UVa can bounce back and win the Lacrosse championship this weekend...

Professionals:


The first round is complete in Paris.  Plenty of good round one action, including Nadal losing two tie-breaks to Big John Isner.  Djokovic rolled past De Bakker easily (18-6 in games), and still looks unbeatable.  Fed is primed to challenge if Novak stumbles; his forehand destroyed a challenging opponent for rd-1 (F. Lopez).  There have been some relevant upsets (Berdych, a semi-finalist in 2010, and Almagro, who just won a clay tournament last week in Nice).


It is an open question as to who will have the toughest path...
  Djoker: Del Potro then Gasquet then Youzhny then Federer/Ferrer
  Nadal:  Davydenko then Verdasco then Soderling then Murray
Easiest path to Semis must be for Murray.


3rd round match I'm excited for...
  Djokovic / Del Potro  (also interested in Fish / Simon)
4th round...  
  Ferrer / Monfils  and  Federer / Tsonga 




When Nadal was down 2 sets to 1 to Isner, he finally got his break, 2-1 in the 4th.  He said that was the turning point because there is no tie-breaker in the deciding 5th set...  That's how difficult it can be to get ahead on Isner's serve.  (Btw. I don't buy the side story about the new faster flying Babolat tennis balls.)


The TV coverage has been great so far.  We have Brad Gilbert on ESPN2 and Johnny Mac on Tennis Channel.  Just getting warmed up...


Obama is trying hard to win my vote next time around.  The Ping Pong Prez...

the Best Defense is a Good Defense

The Djoker dethroned the King (again).  This is two consecutive Slams that Nole has taken out Roger.


Sadly for the sport, we learned that the best defense is too good for the best offense.  Roger brought the big shots, he played beautifully.  He made all the shots, but he just couldn't put the ball past Djokovic.  I say Federer would have won the match in day conditions.  In the relentless rallies, Fed's backhand had too many cracks.  I still like Fed as the favorite for Wimbledon.  Where offense still reigns?    


Djokovic won 8 more points than Fed over 3 straight sets (119 - 111).  They served the same number of games, but Novak served 20 more points.  Here is a statistical fun fact: "winning % on second serve" includes double faults in the denominator.  {Does that make sense?}

The Noble Myna

The King, Roger Federer, is in trouble down under.  His problems are anything but minor, down two sets...


The birds are also making a fuss and are part of the story.  We have these same indian mynas here in Hawaii.  They are my favorite birds.  Smart little starlings.

Myna problems.

Nadal Slammed

Early on Nadal was hurting.  It turned out to be a left thigh injury.  But, let's get one thing straight, Nadal is no Jay Cutler...


"The tennis career, you have higher moments and lower moments. I had almost all the time very, very happy moments and very nice moments in my career. That's part of the sport. Last year I was very lucky. I was healthy most of the year. I was playing unbelievable during all the year. This year I did I think all the right things to start the season playing really well. And, seriously, I was playing like this in the first exhibition in Abu Dhabi. After that starts the problem. Was a difficult month for me, no? That's part of the sport. Accept; keep working; try my best in the next tournament. That's what I can do."


"I hate the retirements, so this wasn't the day. I did last year. I hate that moment. I didn't want to repeat that."


It was tough to watch because we could see that Nadal wasn't 100% but you never knew when he could make a great shot or pull out a few points.  David Ferrer played very well given the circumstances.  


The problem for Nadal is that his game is to be physical and punishing.  That is his edge to a large extent.  He cannot handle these injuries the way a Pete Sampras could when he was #1.  Pete still had his serve and his moments of power, he played through back pain and illnesses.


In the semi I do not think Ferrer will trouble Murray very much.  Unfortunately he doesn't match up very well with Murray in my opinion.  He won't be able to hurt Murray.  Versus Nadal he had a plan to come to net and it worked quite well in the match.  I doubt he will pursue that against Murray, but I don't know that it would matter.  Up or back, I don't see where he would find the advantage.

LI NA LI

You've gotta love Li Na.  Half the players call her "Na Li", it is very confusing with the Chinese surname going first, and both names being so short.


She, "the Girl w/ the Rose Tattoo", came back from a match-point-down to Wozniacki to win in 3 sets.


Post match interview:
   **She blamed her coach/husband's snoring for her poor sleep the night before.
   **She cited "prize money" as to what pulled her through in the final set.
   **She explained why her mother doesn't come to any of her matches ("I have my own life.")
   **She almost forgot her own wedding anniversary, but actually it is the 29th (or is it?)


She is the first Asian singles player to advance to a major championship.  This in "the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific".  I can just picture every Chinese tennis prodigy going in for her tattoo tomorrow...


I think it will be a pretty good final between Li and Kimmy.  Both are very strong hardcourt players with no emotional/psychological problems (which I can't say for so many of the top female pros these days).  


Li beat Clijsters a couple weeks ago in Sydney.

G'day Australia Day (Speed Kills)

In Murray / Dolgopolov we learned a little wrinkle to tennis strategy.  I had always been coached to approach the net on a strong (deep) shot to my opponent's backhand.  This gives the best chance of a put away on the next shot.  However, last night we saw that Murray moves so well and has a solid enough backhand that Dologopolov was losing when he approached to the backhand side.  The reason was that, when he approached to the backhand, it would naturally lead to an open court play to Murray's forehand side.  Where Murray would promptly make a pass on the run!  Speed kills, especially when it leads to a forehand passing opportunity.


Speed also killed in Djokovic vs Berdych.  Djoker was just too much.  His abbreviated directional backhand was too good and his loopy forehand dipped in time and time again.  The tale of the tape (Brad Gilberts checkmark method) was very tight, but "speed kills" was the determinant.  The trump card.
   I will be very interested to see how Federer attacks Djokovic tonight.  Will he try to step in and take time away from Novak?  I think Djoker wins the longer rallies.  He is moving so well right now.  I think Fed will look rally up the middle of the court until he gets a one time shot to pull Novak way wide on a shorter, angled, spinning shot.  Don't be surprised to also see serve-and-volley plays.
  If Djokovic can serve a high 1st serve %, I really like his chances.  I believe Fed will find himself forced to hit the extra shots, and from what I have seen so far, I'm not sure he is up to it...

Fed Level

Roger had a field day against his countryman and Davis Cup teammate Stan Wawrinka.  The trick shot-making was off the charts.  He actually avoided a between-the-legs shot because he didn't want to do two in one point!  He was hitting shots around the net post and droppers that spun backwards.
  An example of how he thinks.  As he went for his first 'tweener, he recalled that, in a previous match against Stan, his opponent had crowded the net when Fed went back for a lob.  So he knew that he must go for his own through-the-legs lob return.  And he pulled it off with ease!  Sort of insane.


Federer is showing once again that he can raise his game as the tournament goes deeper.  He attributes it to receiving a better ball from his better opponents.  I had noticed that in his early matches he was always in control of the points but he wasn't sharp.  Meaning that he would be setting himself up for winners but just missing.  With that cleaned up a bit, his opponents are in trouble.


Nadal destroyed Cilic.  Cilic came in with a game plan which got eviscerated by Rafa.  The best part is that Nadal looked fit and his game looked big.  I even saw him hitting some nice slice backhands...


Last three A.O. winners...  Nole, Rafa, Fed.  I would put Murray right there as well for his strong results.  This should be good.

Counting down to Nadal v Cilic...

Nadal v Cilic is the premier match of the round and the last one in for a rocking Quarterfinals.  I can't wait for this one.  Nadal's heavy top spin jumps right up into the Cilic's hitting zone.  Nadal had been punished by Del Potro's power before.  I think Cilic, though less powerful, can cause similar problems.  He is 1-0 over Nadal in one previous meeting.  Also going against Nadal is that apparently he caught a virus from his physio (doctor) last week.  He has been sweating profusely and feels more tired.


Recap of how we got here:


Roddick (tweet ya later) has bowed out to the über-solid Wawrinka.  It will now be Swiss-on-Swiss when he plays Fed.  Watch this match for a priceless one-hand backhand lesson.  Imagine this, Federer just won a set without losing a point on serve.  20-0 for his service points against Robredo.  Robredo did bounce back and take the second set though.


Berdych v Djokovic is the premier QF match.  Both cruised easily in the round of 16.  Berdych put up one set 14 winners to 0 errors at one point.  He wiped Verdasco off the court.   Novak has played well and been fortunate, he is very well-rested.  Should be an awesome eastern european matchup.  All of the final 8 are european.  This whole tournament has been notable for european dominance.  Only a couple of Chinese women have been the exception (more below).

Murray's scores are ridiculous. His closest set of the tournament has been 6-3. He is averaging 17.5 to 5.5 in total games per match. And now he comes up against unseeded Dolgopolov (who?). Actually this Ukranian has knocked off Tsonga and Söderling in back-to-back 5 setters. I think we have to assume that "the Ukraine is weak" at this point!

What are the most important shots in tennis? Serve and Return. Those were on display when Roanic (Canada!) boomed it at David Ferrer. Ferrer showed some amazing return game to keep up. He took sets 2,3,4 to await... Cilic? I wonder how much more we will see of the 20-year-old kid from Canada. He will crack the top 100 with his Aussie result.


Sheilas:

It is amazing to me that we don't see any tattoos on tennis players.  Do we?  I can't think of any.  And even more amazing that the first I have seen is on a Chinese woman (with the curtest name on tour), Li Na.  She has some sort of rose inked just below her left collar bone.  I would think we'd see more on tour by this point.  Are they banned from Wimbledon or something?

Shout out to Kuznetsova and Schiavone for playing a 3-hour final set to 16-14. All kinds of drama.  It might have been an hour shorter, but Schiavone lost a key point for running into the net!

Kimmy is still looking good as the favorite.  About to go on court.  And, No, she is not pregnant.

Gravity, you just hold me down so quietly.

A "must see" 6-second video...

Physics down under...

Love - 2

Week One has flown by...  there has been some amazing tennis as usual.  The theme for the first couple of rounds was coming back from two sets down.  Monfils, Seppi, Tsonga, Kohlschreiber, Fish all did it in round one.  Simon almost pulled it off against Federer (166-0 all-time from a 2-love lead) in round two.  Simon has the skinniest legs on tour.  He looks like me on the tennis court, circa 1991.

The first amazing moment of the tourney that I caught was Tipsarevic v Verdasco.  Tips has serious game when he is on.  He took out Roddick in last year's US Open.  He once stretched Fed to 10-8 in the 5th set at Melbourne Park.  Meanwhile Verdasco played the match of the tournament in 2009 against Nadal (the Spanish lefties).  In this 4th set, Tips was serving for match point up 6-5...  he came into the net and hit volley after volley.  That has to be the most nerve-raking play in tennis, up at the net with the match on the line but not getting put-aways.  Finally he takes a backhand overhead smash which the lefty chases down and hammers right through the box past Tipsarevic!  The game went on for a few more deuces, but eventually Verdasco was able to get it to the tie-break.  From there it was 7-0, final set: 6-love.  Tipsarevic could not recover at all.  And that is how a match can swing...   Fernando is now going strong in the round of 16 with Berdych up next.

The Baghdatis/Del Potro match we were anticipating got off 6-1 to Marcos.  But DelPo was able to win one set.  Hopefully he can get his mojo back this season.  Baghdatis is a tough out in Melbourne, partly due to the Greek-Cypriot crowds.  Well at least until the next round when he suffered a right pinkie injury!  He "felt electricity going through [his] hand" to the point where he could not continue.  "I'm very disappointed."

Isner v Cilic was also properly anticipated...  Marin (9 games) over Big John in the 5th after 4.55 hours on court. 

The best set of the tournament so far has to be Monfils v Wawrinka set #1.  75 minutes of excellent quality, plus 30 seconds of Monfils giving it away at the end.  Monfils is just incredible.  He can track every ball on the court down.  Through the legs? check.  Around the net post? check.  Drop shot? with ease. He has to be even more frustrating to play than Nadal.  At least Nadal will put you out of your misery eventually.  Monfils just keeps everything coming back.  The Frenchman slides on the hard court as if it were clay.  I don't even know how that is possible (special shoes?).  Just unbelievable get after get.  Wawrinka is so solid.  He is just a rock on that one-handed backhand.  And hits everything hard.  These two are friends and hitting partners which partly explains why the rallying was off the charts.  Average points were 7 shots.  In rallies over 8 shots the point wins were 12 to 11.  Very fun to watch.  (After Wawrinka took the set in the tie-breaker, he basically cruised through the next two.)

Monfils looks like the third sideshow brother.  Facially and hair-wise.  I believe they also speak french...

Amazingly the Men's top 8 have held up so far.  Quarters should be stacked with talent, ability, and experience.  That's why I've been saving my blogging for week two...

On the women's side Goerges from Germany made a lot of new fans in her match with Sharapova...

Get it on, gotta get it on!

Top 8 seeds as they appear in the Main Draw...
1 Rafa   \
7 Ferrer /      Ferrer \

4 Soderling \   Murray /

5 Murray    /

6 Berdych  \

3 Djokovic /   Djokovic \

8 Roddick \    Federer  /

2 Federer /

Second round match to look for...
  Del Potro v Baghdatis


Third round match possibilities...
       Isner v Cilic
        Fish v Querrey

From the Archives (2010): Salinger passes as does Murray

--Andy Murray--

  If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where he was born, and what his lousy childhood was like, and how his parents were occupied and all before they had him, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth.  In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, his parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them.  They're quite touchy about anything like that, especially his father.  They're nice and all--I'm not saying that--but they're also touchy as hell.  Besides, I'm not going to tell you his whole goddam biography or anything.

  I'm just going to tell you about this one match and really this one shot.  This shot is Andy Murray at the 2010 A.O..  If you haven't seen it yet, you bettah aks some body.

  Now, how are you (Cilic) going to win a match when your opponent can hit better shots on a full run than you can hit with a perfect set up?  You aren't.

As B.G. describes the mentality of a Major contender: you've got to knock off 21 sets.  Each round you are 3 closer to your goal.  Murray has made it to the final by notching 18 sets, while only dropping one (6-3 to Marin Cilic).  He has tamed everyone with superior ball striking.  He is just so damn solid off of both wings and serve.  And he stays in every point, often winning them on the run or with a circus return.  He also enjoys a career winning record against Roger Federer (6-4).

--Fed v J-W Tsonga--

  Tsonga can beat Federer.  He beat him last summer in Montreal leading up to the US Open.  Tsonga has the big power game and also the net ability.  If he wins a tie-breaker or two, he could take this match.  Having said that, I'll be curbing my enthusiasm for a Tsonga championship berth.  Fed will pounce on Jo-Willie during any momentary lapse of concentration.  That is a fact.  Fed seems very relaxed out there.  I think even if he lost the first 2 sets, I would still expect him to take down Jo-W.  Alle!

--Williams & Williams--

  The Williams sisters won another grand slam title in the doubles!  They won 3 of the 4 last year.  They say their goal this season is to make the year end championships again (which invites the top 4 teams by accumulated points).  Obviously they are a top 4 team, but they actually have to win these big tournaments, because they rarely enter the smaller ones.

J.D. Salinger, rest in peace.

From the Archives (2009): 3D physics and Jordan/Shaq

Trophy Time:  Williams/Williams win Ladies doubles!

   I have been reading about physics lately so I feel inspired to inform.  (Though it may seem Nadal & Federer can warp space/time, translational symmetry ensures that the laws of physics do apply.)  The camera angle used for most tennis (above and behind one baseline, namely the one that spells [M[E[L[B|O]U]R]N]E] ) compresses the depth of the court.  It "foreshortens" the court giving the effect to us TV viewers that the balls are actually moving more slowly (ie. covering less distance in the same amount of time).  My point being, these guys are hitting balls significantly faster than it appears.  (Well described by DFW... "RFed as Religious Experience".)  This is part of the reason early round matches played on the outer courts and filmed with eye-level cameras are fun to see.  Whew!  Fast serves and returns.

  I'm not going to get into the physics of "hawk-eye" or "x-mo" unless we get stuck in some rain/heat delays...  I think we have all mastered the C → F translation by now.  40°C = Hot.  50°C = RF HOT!

   Mere moments away from Rafa/Nando...  the Spaniards on nickname bases.  Well, these guys were not ready to play, they are playing a waiting game...  ¡Vamos!  They don't realize it is 11pm Hawaiian.

  Roddick.  Let's be clear, he was completely outclassed by Federer.  Federer broke him down and sent a message in Andy's second service game.  After that it was never in doubt.  Even though Andy did not play his absolute best tennis, it would not have mattered in the final result (he could have taken a set at most). 

Here is my take on Federer/Nadal.  This is a Jordan/Shaq matchup.

   Federer is clutch.  His record in majors at every stage is amazing.  His winning percentage in Semis and Finals is unbelievable.  And in non-majors his record in Finals is similarly insane.  I attribute this to flow.  Roger plays his game under control.  When the matches get bigger, he has an ability to focus more and play better.  Most of even the top pros exert and work at such a high energy level that they cannot relax or raise their game with Roger.  They are not under control in the same way.  I think it is more difficult for his competitors to find flow for that reason.  They can't reach that state of relaxation and top play simultaneously.  It as if Roger speeds up time for his opponent, while slowing down himself.  When you saw Jordan at his prime he had an economy of motion that really wasn't matched by anyone during his championship runs.  Federer has this same quality.

   Nadal.  I'm not entirely sure about Nadal.  Due to his (relatively) poor results in hardcourt majors, I have not seen him play nearly as much as Federer (French Open matches are visually displeasing).  I'm not sure if he gets to the same level as Federer in the control/flow department.  Nadal has advantages with his power and spin.  He is able to hit extremely powerfully yet consistently.  My impression is that his game is so big it can build in a margin for error.  When Federer is "on" his margin for error is small, but he doesn't make errors!  Meanwhile, Nadal is just punishing in his approach.  He can hit high over the net and deep into the court without aiming for lines.  He is like Shaq.  Shaq doesn't have to be "on" to have a big night.  Jordan in a sense has to be "on" to take over the big games [I'll have to watch more of Nadal.  What I'll be watching for tonight (and against Fed) is his return of service.] 

From the Archives (2008): Contorted Metaphor edition

Happy (belated) Australia Day!  Did anyone take off yesterday in observance (the first Monday after January 26th)?

Caballeros:
        When they said that the Djokovic family owns a Pizzeria and Pancake House in the ski mountains of Serbia, was anyone else thinking, "Mmm… Pancakes!"  That gave Nole the early advantage in my mind.  But JW's father Didier had a mean right hook, which sort of evened things out.  How funny was it that a hoard of French fans were sitting/standing/chanting "Ali" right behind the Djokovic family box?

        In the end the match turned out like the movie (There Will Be Blood).  Full of promise and it kept you on the edge of your seat, but it wasn't executed perfectly.  Djokovic was Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis): A competitor, you will agree.  Angry at the world, or at least the crowd that was against him.  Don't tell Nole how many times he can bounce the ball, and don't tell him how to raise his family!  Tsonga was the messiah for the 3rd Revelation [aka. Eli Sunday (played by Paul Dano)], followed by true believers, and the believers grew after the first amazing set.  What a performance!, even Plainview could appreciate.  But as the sets wore on God forsook Tsonga (or was he never chosen in the first place?), he didn't warn about Djokovic's forehand…  The 4th set tie-break set the stage for drama, but it was one-sided in favor of the Serb.  Final rating: 3.5 stars for both. 

*Correction from yesterday's blog: I erroneously said Tsonga was the first tennis player I've seen who could play pro football.  I should have said first male tennis player...  I apologize to Serena Williams.

Damas:
        I respect Sharapova for preparing her speech ahead of time.  That is exactly her style.  And these speeches are always so "gracious" and "eloquent", give me a break.  Let's play some serious tennis, kiss the trophy, and leave the speeches for Dick Enberg (those are inadvertently hilarious).  I'm just going by an article I read because when she was talking about text messages from Billy Jean King and started into the whole "If someone had told me…", I just turned off the TV.  (So much for my dedication to the blogging audience, right.)

        As expected Maria played well and won in straight sets (the entire tournament in straight sets).  She had a great tournament.  Up there with her amazing Wimbledon 2004.  This win showed her game in top form and under control.  Wimbledon '04 was more a case of her playing out of her mind for two weeks.  And my prediction also came true, the Serb to first break through was Djokovic, not Ivanovic (or Jankovic).  I wish there was more to say, but…

Catch you blokes and sheilas later.