The Olympics are over. Of course the first nine days where for a change tennisheads in the US had wall to wall coverage for the first time in like, well, forever, were insane since idiots like me were trying to watch other stuff online or turning into NBC's craptastic coverage at night. The tape delays were bad enough but did the viewing public in the US have to miss the British homage to the terrorist attack on their soil to see the first of seemingly thousands of interviews with Michael Phelps?
I know there is a huge segment of the American populace who don't know about Michael's bong smoking, ho-hopping ways since 2008 but many of us do. The big story was how he put the bong down, got rid of the pornstache and the ho's and tried to get ready for London 2012. Of course no one in the States would touch that story. One swimmer who did, Tyler Clarey, was put on the networks shit list and dogged out every time he competed. How dare you ruin this GREAT AMERICAN STORY you douche!
I don't usually watch the closing ceremonies - too sad, but I hear NBC's crack programming people cut over an hour out of what was broadcast to the US viewing public. They must hold us in contempt for thinking that we can't handle seeing the Brits pay homage to their musical tradition. Was there music before Britney Spears? Nah. We gentle souls who dwell in the United States of America can't handle music that speaks to another truth can we?
But enough of that. As I said the Olympics are over so I'll take a look at the post Olympics tennis silly season.
I really hate watching tennis played in the US and commentated by former players. They're acting as if players who won Gold Medals - Andy Murray, Serena Williams, Bob & Mike Bryan and Venus Williams were beamed over by Scotty to play the US Open Series.
Don't get me wrong, I think the US Open Series is a good warm up for not only US players but Europeans who have to get used to having their joints jarred on the colorful hard courts of the United States and its partner Canada. Let's not forget the heat and thunder showers that are also part of the scenery on the East Coast in August. Fun. Fun. Fun.
The thing is this year, of all years, don't front. Don't act as if these players aren't mentally and physically fried and are doing the tennis equivalent of falling on their swords for the sport that has made many of them millionaires several times over.
It's going to be fun seeing what is going to happen to Canada's Rogers Cup and The Western and Southern Open once Wimbledon has implemented it's scheduling change. Hell the US Open would rather play musical stadiums than seriously look at putting a roof over any of them. And while I'm on a rant let me put on Tyler Clarey's shoes for a minute here. What the hell is wrong with putting a cover over hard courts? Why is this suggestion greeted with horror? Is there someone who gets off on all those kids mopping up a court or feels it's a testament to their manhood that those Zamboni's have to come out and get what the kids can't? What's a fan to think? The British, or should I say hide-bound British, have found a way not only to put a roof on the hallowed Centre Court but to cover the grass and keep it fairly dry during a rain storm!!! I thought the United States was the country of innovators?
Oh well. The way it looks now I'll be out to Queens for a day or two of qualifying and another day or two of tournament play.
I'm not spending a ton of money for a decent seat in Ashe. I'll get a grounds pass and visit the other courts while I can, especially Louis Armstrong and the Grandstand. The conjoined courts are going to be ripped apart under the new USTA plan denying fans one of the true joys of the US Open - wandering from one court to another to watch tennis. So what if the final will be held on a Monday again due to lack of a roof on Ashe? The USTA will be damned if fans, for a few bucks, get two for the price of, well, several. We may have rainouts but we have to make money.
About Those Five Minutes...
I started seeing references on Twitter about Something the Monogram said about losing to Andy Murray at Wimbledon in the Gold Medal match. Tweeters were saying he said it took five minutes for him to get over the match. After I picked myself up from the floor after laughing so hard I went looking for said comments. Sure enough he said it. Here's the exchange.
Q. I'm wondering if you have had the time or taken the time to analyze what happened at the gold medal match. It was so lopsided, so out of the character, not what we're used to seeing.
ROGER FEDERER: Honestly it took me five minutes to analyze really. I didn't need to kind of sit down and go in a dark room and cry over it and kind of understand what happened. I think I understood rather quickly what happened.
I thought Andy played a good match. The beginning of the match was very close. I had some chances there. Had some chances in the second set. I think I missed nine breakpoints, I didn't make one. That obviously doesn't work in a big match like this against a great player like Andy. Once he was in the lead, obviously he did really well to keep the lead.
Yeah, I think that was it for me. Maybe I was emotionally drained a touch. Maybe I was a bit tired from the Del Potro match. I thought Andy did really well to put the pressure on me. It was out of character for me to lose nine games a row in the finals. That's obviously something that can happen, but I guess I got myself to blame, and Andy's great level of play.
For me, I moved on really quickly. I was happy for him and disappointed for me. I was still very happy to get the silver and the medal for Switzerland.
I found the complete interview on Talk About Tennis.
Yeah. It took five minutes all right.
End Note
Uncle Toni is saying one thing. Others are saying what Toni says isn't correct. As a fan I hope that Rafael Nadal stays out for the rest of the year and comes back in 2013. He needs to get completely healed.
2 comments:
Re: Fed and his five minutes of "getting over it," it was clear that after the first game or two, his level dropped & he couldn't keep up. And the obvious reason was that his legs at least (and maybe his mind, but who knows) were tired from his long match against Delpo.
But what was strange to me was to see how some fans who still dislike Andy Murray, or who are too glued to the notion that Federer Is Perfect to see reality, tried to use Federer's fatigue, along with the crowd support for Murray, as "proof" that Murray's win was somehow invalid.
To think that way is to ignore the fact that Murray played stronger and more consistent tennis than he ever has before - and not just against Federer, but in the semi against Djokovic, too. Sure he had the home crowd advantage. Sure Federer was tired. But even if Federer had been 100 percent, Murray was working at such a high level he'd still have had an edge. Why don't we all just look at the insanely high level of tennis he played and leave it at that? If even Federer can see it, why can't his fans see it?
Ah well, plus ca change . . .
Meanwhile I don't know if you caught much of Cincy on the men's side so far, but what amazes me is how good Milos Raonic is - and yet how far he seems, still, from breaking through. He absolutely hammered Berdych - and yet he gets beat in three sets by the likes of Stan W. Stan W.?! Very strange.
But I still look for Raonic to become a real player. He's not like the other whiz kids the press anoints, I don't think.
I am a bit puzzled by the Federer extract of how he dealt with the loss and your inference. Do you not believe him that it took him 5 minutes to get over it or that you felt it took him a lot longer? Frankly, I am glad that he is as dismissive as he is about it. For years tennis pundits have been trying to sell Andy Murray. 4 GS finals and 1 set. That about says it all. Frankly, kudos to Murray for not actually going away after that Wimbledon loss, as he is usually wont to do.
On another note I was watching the USO Classics this morning (Saturday 18) on Tennis Channel and I noticed that Federer played a 35 year old Agassi in the final. Makes me smile to think that at some point in time Fed will be that 35 year old having his ass handed to him by a youngster. I hope he does not get embarassed much as Agassi did not
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