Djokovic overcomes a determined Wawrinka to reach semis.

Djokovic was extended to his second tie-break of the tournament by Wawrinka. After winning the first set tie-break, Djokovic reacted as if he had won the match.

 

He kneeled down to his knees and pumped his chest. It did turn out to be the turning point in the match because Wawrinka went down tamely in the second set 6-2.

When asked about the theatrics: “I’m a very emotional player on the court and very emotional person off the court as well,” said Djokovic, also known for his wry sense of humor. “As you could see by the reaction, it was one of the—not one of the, probably the most important point of the match.”

Djokovic now awaits the winnner of Nadal and Blake, to secure his berth in the finals, most probably against Federer.

The flash in the pan ends here.

Latest addition to the tennis manual.

Here are a couple shots of Mirka this month. Does she look pregnant here?

 

 

Federer’s child should be public property. Should be moved to a tennis academy from day one.

The count has already started: By 2024, the child should start winning Wimbledon and complete the calendar Grand Slam next year. Or the whole life is a waste and you have grossly underachieved.

We don’t care about child abuse. Just make the child an even more dominating tennis player, irrespective of what he / she wants. It’s your fault. You’ve spoiled us and you have to pay the price for pulling the rug from under us so early by producing the child.

We are waiting.

Is this the ideal time to bring a child in the mix for Federer?

I don’t know how far it’s true that Mirka is pregnant, but if you have been able to avoid it for the last what eight years, this has to be intentional, don’t you think?

And if it is, how huge of a knucklehead decision is that? Not only are you going to lose your manager soon, her and your priorities better shift from the focus you have now. If that’s a deliberate move, and there can be no valid excuse for that not to be, you have just waived the white flag to everyone on the tour, prematurely and in the middle of a fight for your very existence on the circuit.

It cannot be equated to Tiger Woods, since that sport is not as demanding as tennis and he has a longer time span to achieve his goals, and a few hiccups on the way does not translate to what a few months absence on the tennis circuit means.

Replacing Mirka at this time will be disastrous. Even a slowed down Mirka will be an impediment, considering what all she is in-charge of and how vital it is to how Federer performs on court.

Why would you make such a move when you are at the brink of greatness and in the middle of a crucial year for so many reasons. No. 14, Olympics and Roland Garros to name just a few.

No matter how mentally tough you are, you cannot afford even the slightest of distraction when the window is so small and is getting smaller by the minute with the recent developments both within and outside your control.

You obviously thought this was a good idea. It may be if you have grown a liking to the exhibitions you have been playing with Sampras. What a dumb move.

OK, I lied it’s just four inches.

Courtesy: Andre.

Mission accomplished. Certified Sumo wrestler.

Courtesy: Stephan.

Mirka is pregnant.

Daily tennis is reporting it.

Is this an accident or the excessive activity on-bed to get here is the real culprit for Federer’s on-court woes?

Wow, you look older than you are. Oops, did I say that aloud?

 

Semifinal/Final match up at Indian Wells, tennis fans are salivating for.

Semifinals:

Federer vs Nalbandian.

Djokovic vs Nadal.

Finals:

Federer vs Djokovic – To settle once and for all whether the new era has already begun or it still has to wait a while. Federer-Nadal rivalry is old and stale. It has no implications for the future. Federer-Djokovic has far reaching consequences, possibly even something to do with No. 14.

Just freaking bribe Blake and Fish, or forcibly put them on plane to Timbaktoo. Don’t spoil the freaking fun. You are not going to win anything anyway why ruin someone else’s chances. Go freaking home.

Let the games begin!!!!!!!!!!

Nadal vs Blake. Another adjustment match for Nadal?

 
 

When the player who humiliated you in straight sets at your first hard court Grand Slam semifinal, is taken to a tie-break in the first two sets and then knocked out of the tournament, you have achieved lot more than just a ‘W’, if you are a clay court specialist.

The turnaround speaks volumes of the ability and willingness of Nadal to make necessary adjustments to deny Tsonga his favorite shots. This is the first time I have seen Nadal make visible and immediate changes to his hard court game to overcome a tough opponent who had defeated Murray, Youzhny, Gasquet and him at the AO.

 

Aunt Tony deserves credit too for bisecting Tsonga’s game on the drawing board and coming up with executable strategy given the limitations of Nadal’s hard court game. What I don’t understand is why and what in the world is stopping Nadal from firing up more aces to get some free points? How freaking difficult is that? At least increase the speed. That in itself will ease life on the court.

Blake is a perfect antidote to Nadal’s loopy heavy topspin game. Like Tsonga, Blake is able to flatten his shots from both sides of the court to take away time for Nadal to heave his forehand. But unlike Tsonga, Blake has a much sharper and flatter backhand to neutralize any strategy to overplay that end of the court.

No wonder Blake has a 3-0 H2H advantage. Nadal has been able to win just one set in his three matches with him. Of all the eight jokers alive, Blake has had the toughest road followed by Fish. Blake defeated Moya and Gasquet on his way here.

So Blake is coming in battle tested and with good momentum. This is his favorite surface and he has home court advantage. On the other hand, Nadal has a poor record winning a match right after a gruelling battle. But Blake’s timing has to be off just a tad, and it could change everything.

 

Nadal cannot afford to get into another extended dog fight, with Djokovic looming ahead. Djokovic has been very stingy with his time on court and that’s not likely to change against Wawrinka.

It’s hard to imagine Nadal winning the title here, with Djokovic and Federer standing in the way. Nadal actually has a better chance of beating Federer than taking out Djokovic, but to get to Federer he has to first bell the big cat. That may get even more unlikely if Blake turns his match into a war and the chances may not be very good if Blake beats him and knocks him out.

Federer is hoping that Nadal is at least able to play spoiler and take some wind out of Djokovic’s sails by putting up a good fight. If Djokovic is as fresh as he is today and without his breathing problems, Federer will have a fight on his hands that may not end with his hands over his head on Sunday.

And that will make for a fascinating trophy presentation. Watch of loooooong faces and abrupt comments on how Djokovic will never succeed.

Williams Sisters’ Dad Hates White People. From cragger. Thanks.

cragger |

March 17th, 2008

Williams Sisters’ Dad Hates White People

by Staff
Richard Williams speaking to India’s Deccan Herald: “Tennis is a prejudice game. Well, I’m black and I’m prejudiced, very prejudiced. I’ll be always prejudiced as the white man. The white man hated me all my life and I hate him. That’s no secret. I’m not even an American, it just so happens that I was born in America. People are prejudiced in tennis. I don’t think Venus or Serena was ever accepted by tennis. They never will be. But if you get some little white no-good trasher in America like Tracy Austin or Chris Evert who cannot hit the ball, they will claim this is great…I think [Venus and Serena] can easily be No. 1 in women’s tennis. They have speed, they have power. Right now, they are more interested in learning to develop more businesses.”…

http://www.tennis-x.com/xblog/2008-03-17/399.php

Federer vs Haas. Anything to get excited about?

 
 

Their head to head is 8-2 in favor of Federer. But Haas is just the only other player, other than Nadal, to extend Federer to a five setter. Even better, he has done it twice to once from Nadal. So he has taken sets off Federer, smack in the middle of the incredible run Federer was on.

Their last meeting was in Dubai last year, where Federer won in straight sets 6-4, 7-5. But this is a whole new year for obvious reasons. Although Haas has been riddled with his unending injuries and has had a poor season so far consequently, he has done amazingly well here so far.

 

He has convincingly defeated two legitimate contenders to the title, back to back, in Roddick (straight sets) and Murray (after losing the first set). Both of them were coming in with two titles already in the bag this season and had great momentum.

Haas’s best performance here, in his nine attempts, was last year when he reached the quarterfinal. Murray knocked him out in a close third set tie-break.

 

Obviously he would have liked to have seen Federer pushed a little in his early matches, but with retirement queries popping up at virtually every presser he faces, he sees this his last chance to make a splash and revive his chances to continue playing on the tour. What better way to achieve that than beating Federer in the quarters.

But with Federer still not fully grounded mentally after the mono episode, Haas may be able to sneak in, if he continues his level of play AND Federer drops a notch. If Haas is able to return Federer’s serve and get them to drop deep enough to trouble Federer, he might have a shot. If Federer gets on his ace train early, this could be over even before it starts.

Haas has nothing to lose and may go for broke, if the first set closes quickly making him dangerous. 

However, if Federer maintains his game and level, this should be another routine ‘one hour’ win. 

If you are a female, you don’t need to worry if you have nothing to get an autograph – if it’s me signing!!!! I can improvise!!!

Click here.

Federer cruises over Ljubicic in another quick match. Presents birthday cake as consolation.

 

Federer’s serve is clicking so well that even a match with a score of 6-3, 6-4 was over in 1:16 minutes. Federer has 21 aces so far, compared to 3 for Nadal and 7 for Djokovic after three matches a piece. Double faults? Just one compared to 3 and 7 for Nadal and Djokovic respectively.

It seems the degree of difficulty for Federer is just perfect as he moves deeper in the draw. He is getting some needed help from the tennis Gods so he can ramp us his form as he gets closer to Sunday. What help? Almagro a seeded player was replaced with an unseeded Mahut, Robredo, a higher seed (15) was switched for a lower seed Ljubicic (23) and Murray with a winning record against Federer was knocked out for unseeded and aging Haas.

Is this going to continue with Fish frying Nalbandian next, Wawrinka ‘taking care’ of Djokovic and Blake knocking Nadal to maintain his perfect 3-0 record against Nadal?

Is Federer-Blake final likely? The stats do not support it. Djokovic-Federer final is more like it. Djokovic is a close second to Federer with his stats, even though he has battled higher seeds in his three matches so far.

Can Wawrinka upset Djokovic? Possible only if Djokovic loses his right arm in the first set and loses the left in the third – both scenarios have to happen for a W for W. Wawrinka has lost a set in each of his matches so far, with Baghdatis as the only legitimate player he trounced on his way up. Wawrinka will have the Federer-Djokovic rivalry at the back of his mind and also a few texts from Federer, to fire him up to at least induce some breathing problems from Djokovic.

Federer should be very happy with his performance so far, alongwith the presents he has received to open up the draw for him.

But he has achieved nothing yet. The wolves need the trophy shoved in their mouth to keep them shut. Nothing else will suffice. On the contrary, if he loses to Djokovic in the finals it will be even worse than losing to Blake.

Federer’s success in now being measured with Djokovic’s rise. For him to regain his armour, he not only has to win titles, but it will help immensely if he can kill two birds with one stone and defeat Djokovic every time he lifts that hardware over his head.

Everytime Djokovic wins, it’s another dent in his impenetrable defense of denying the decline theories. You think Djokovic and his camp knows that? You bet!!!!

Djokovic is more excited to play Federer than anyone has been in the last five some years. The degree with which his graph rises is directly related to how many times and in how many sets he can defeat Federer. He knows the AO win was not a real victory, but the one at Montreal where he beat Roddick, Nadal and Federer back to back was.

Djokovic is probably the only one who is truly not scared to square off against Federer. Reason: He has so much more to gain from a win and still a lot less to lose in defeat. An exact opposite of where Federer is.

It’s a true test for Federer. With no more excuses to fall back on, he has to win this title to stem the tide and probably halt the free fall.

Structure of the revised pecking order for the rest of the season may be decided this month.

Last eight prediction. From Anand. Thanks.

Anand_101 |

IW Last 8
———
Fed played a sweet match to come through and it’s now:
Fed (1) vs Haas
Nalbandian (7) vs Fish
Djokovic (3) vs Wawrinka
Nadal (2) vs Blake

Four of the top contenders still onboard but half the opponents not so stellar.

Djoker and Nadal are up on Thu. Based on time spent in previous match, Djoker probably wins whle Nadal loses to a fresh Blake.

On Fri, Fed has the tougher match (although Murray would have been more testing) but he should come through, as also Nalbandian.

Mar 19, 11:43 PM

U.S. Open adopts new challenge format. From Katie. Thanks.

Katie |

Good news – did you catch all the freaking bad calls at the Nadal/Tsonga match? There were even TWO bad calls during ONE point! Yeesh.

U.S. Open adopts new challenge format

WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK (TICKER) —The USTA announced Wednesday that it is increasing the number of player challenges at the U.S. Open.

Under the new guidelines, each player will be allowed a maximum of three incorrect challenges per set, after which they are not permitted to challenge again in that set.

If a set goes to a tiebreaker, each player will receive one additional challenge.

Under the previous format, players where allowed two incorrect challenges and one additional challenge in the case of a tiebreak.

“Electronic line calling, with its player challenge system, has been one of the most widely-acclaimed initiatives in tennis,” U.S. Open tournament director Jim Curley said. “With an additional challenge per set, we look forward to the Chase Review being used more frequently at this year’s U.S. Open.”

During last year’s U.S. Open, a total of 320 calls were challenged by players. A total of 95 – or 30.6 percent – of the challenged calls were overturned.

Monica Seles is working on a memoir. From Katie. Thanks.

Katie | 

More news about Monica. Can’t say that dancing looks like her thing, but I give her credit for trying and she looked great.

NEW YORK (AP)—Former tennis great Monica Seles is working on a memoir.

She said in a statement Wednesday that she hopes “to share how I found balance, strength and happiness in my life after a rollercoaster ride of exhilarating accomplishment and sometimes overwhelming tragedy”

The book, currently untitled, will be published in 2009 by Avery, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA).

Seles, 34, won nine Grand Slam tournaments and as a teenager was the top-ranked women’s player for three years, in the early 1990s. But she is also known for one of the sport’s most bizarre and terrifying incidents: In April 1993, at a tournament in Hamburg, Germany, she was stabbed in the back by a man who climbed out of the stands.

Seles returned to the game 27 months later and immediately reached the 1995 U.S. Open final. Her final Grand Slam title then came at the 1996 Australian Open. She did reach two more major finals but was hampered by a left foot injury. Her last match was a first-round loss at the 2003 French Open. She officially retired last month.

Seles, who has struggled with weight problems, is currently a contestant on the hit ABC series “Dancing With the Stars.”

“After years of having every aspect of her training, diet and life dictated and scrutinized by others, Monica took control, deciding what she wanted from life and set out to obtain it,” her publisher, Avery, said in a statement.

“Cutting through the fog of sadness, fear and frustration that made Seles overweight and unhappy, today she looks and feels better than ever and has created a life in balance.”

Kuerten granted wildcard for Monte Carlo Masters. From Katie. Thanks.

Katie | 

And I saved the best for last, TP. Go Guga – I hope he wins it!

Kuerten granted wildcard for Monte Carlo Masters

9 hours, 10 minutes ago

PARIS (Reuters) – Former world number one Gustavo Kuerten has been granted a wildcard for next month’s Monte Carlo Masters, organizers said on Wednesday.

“The tournament’s organizing committee has decided to pay tribute to Gustavo Kuerten by granting him the first wildcard,” organizers said in a statement referring to the popular Brazilian who will be retiring after the French Open.

Kuerten will be hoping to fine-tune his game before playing his final tournament at Roland Garros, where he triumphed in 1997, 2000 and 2001.

He needed an invite to compete in Monte Carlo as he no longer has an ATP ranking since he has only played in one event over the past year.

The 31-year-old Kuerten, whose career has been plagued by a hip injury, won the Monte Carlo Masters in 1999 and 2001.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot, editing by Pritha Sarkar)