Belief

by Savannah

David Ferrer is one of the best tennis players on the planet. On Monday he will be ranked Number 4 in the world - at the age of 30 (He'll be 31 on April 2). His ranking makes him the top ranked player in his country. But I bet he'd trade all that if he could turn back time and not challenge a shot that he saw as in and played what looked like a winner. It was match point in his battle against Andy Murray. But he did challenge. He'd made up his mind to challenge and he did. Murray's shot was good and that was game, set and match for the Scotsman.



Instead of hoisting the trophy as the first Spaniard to win Miami he made a poignant speech saying to his fans "I'm sorry." Ferrer was blitzed in Acapulco by his countryman Rafael Nadal and played Indian Wells hungover from that loss.

But in Miami he seemed to have put all of that behind him. He defeated fan favorite Tommy Haas to make the Final and with his head to head with Murray close - 6-5 in Murray's favor going into the match - there were a lot of Ferrer fans who thought that David had a chance today.

And all the fight, all the work, came down to one miscalculation.



It looked to me that Ferrer didn't believe that he could win after that error. Not that he gave up but in a championship match belief is half the battle won. Like the women's runner up Ferrer will have some time to get over what happened during his match. I think the mental pain of Ferrer and Maria Sharapova's must be about unbearable. Both came so close only to run into walls. David's was self made. Sharapova ran into a will stronger than hers. And therein lies the difference.



I said that Sloane Stephens needed to watch Serena's match against Dominika Cibulkova. She should also watch the final Serena played. I know he won't but David Ferrer needs a look at the indomitable force that is Serena Williams. Serena had no business winning either of those matches but she believed that she should and that she would. And that makes all the difference. When Serena takes the court she BELIEVES that she will win, she believes that the woman across the net from her cannot beat her.



No one who makes a WTA Premier Mandatory or a M1000 final gets there solely on luck. Sure you can have a soft draw but that will usually get you to the quarters or semi's. Shit gets real in the quarters and semi's and it's win or go home as an also ran. All that came before means squat.



Let's be real here. Murray didn't play that well but he played well enough to win and become the #2 ranked player in the ATP. The Brits are in 7th heaven for sure but lets see what the rankings are after the US Open. There have been whispers that some of the Europeans didn't play their "A" games because of the looming clay court season in Europe and Davis Cup next week.

But in the end none of that matters.

It all comes down to belief. You can have all the confidence, all the belief in yourself in the world but if someone else has more you're not going to win. You can fight as hard as you can for as long as you can until your body gives out on you but if you don't have self belief you will not win. It's as simple as that.

Must See Tennis TV

by Savannah


Everyone has been hating on Miami to the point that the mere mention of the tournament draws a sarcastic remark.

It's easy for those of us sitting on our sofa's or in bed watching men and women play an individual sport for which many of them are not paid well to say this tournament is garbage. But for every player out there there's a story and they deserve more than our dismissive attitude.



Even those at the top of the sport, the names that, when the sport is mentioned, even a casual fan can name, are sometimes mentioned with a shrug. Their greatness is taken for granted and it's only when one of the lowly ones gives one of the greats a run for their money that the hard core fan takes notice.

Serena Williams is known world wide. She is the Queen of her Sport, considered it's top player whether she is at the top of the rankings or not. When she takes the court against one of the players no one but the hard core knows about it's assumed she's going to blow them off the court with her power. Not much thought is given to how she thinks on court, how she strategizes, how she plays the person across the net from her. But all of that was on display in her match against Dominika Cibulkova. For me it was the best women's match of the tournament so far. I've already talked about this match but I'm mentioning it here for a reason I'll get to in a moment.

Tommy Haas will be 35 on April 3. He's been on the tour since 1996. That's a little deceptive though because for much of that time Haas was injured. He made several attempts to come back but it seemed that as soon as he did something else would go wrong. He's been playing rather well for awhile now and has notched some big wins against some big players but it seemed that people sat up and took notice this week because this tournament feels so much like the morning after the party is over.

Haas was the man who had to play Novak Djokovic on a cool windy night in Miami. Fifty degrees in Miami is coat weather from what I saw the other night. When the match was over I think I heard Djokovic asking if anyone got the license plate of the truck that ran him over. Djokovic came in a 14-1 favorite. Some folks made some money I guess. I still don't think Djokovic knows what hit him.

Why a separate post for these specific matches? If you have a friend or a relative who doesn't get why you're into this so called "effete" sport show them these two matches. I guarantee you they'll want to hang with you during Qualifying Week at the US Open, or go with you to whatever the major tournament is in your neck of the woods.

We've still got semi finals and finals to be played. There could be more great tennis coming our way. I just want to make sure everyone finds video of these matches and watches them. Both matches represent tennis at it's best.

The Whisper's Are Getting Louder...

by Savannah

The debate about the 5th Slam is over, at least for 2013. Indian Wells dropped that mic and Miami's flow is not working.
Is it time to take another look at the two events place in the calendar? Is it time for Miami to think about becoming a clay court tournament so that European players will be more inclined to stay and play? Will IMG give up it's control of the event?

Actually all of the questions are interrelated.

First the IMG story. The players highest in tennis fans esteem, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, left the fold last year. With no pipeline to the inside story I can only speculate and say that the decision was purely a business decision. The controversial head of IMG, Theodore Forstmann, died in November 2011. In doing some research I came across this:

The sale is expected to draw interest from big entertainment players ranging from Creative Artists Agency and William Morris to French media group Lagardere, according to the people familiar with the matter. Large private equity firms and billionaires are also expected to participate, the people said.
(...)
Forstmann Little has been holding on to the IMG investment for longer than a typical investment period for private equity, and has for years rebuffed overtures from prospective buyers. Buyout interest increased following Teddy Forstmann’s departure in April 2011 as IMG Chairman and CEO, and his death later that year.

Notable buyers that had approached Teddy Forstmann included former Yahoo CEO Terry Semel, who was willing to pay $1.5 billion for IMG in 2008. Sources told Reuters at the time Teddy Forstmann wanted at least twice the amount.

Both men have opted to work with their personal PR people.

Turmoil always opens the door to chaos and that seems to be what is reigning in Miami right now. The tournament admits that ticket sales are down. Indian Wells had record attendance.

Then the issue of so much hard court play came up. Victoria Azarenka, who seems to be the only top rated woman who uses her vocal chords on and off court raised it in relation to her injury. Rafa has been a one man band about it for awhile now.
I guess that's why the idea of Miami switching to clay has been floated.

Now to me clay is red clay, not the artificial stuff used in the United States. Hard court purists decry the slow hard courts of Indian Wells because the big servers don't do well on it. I have to think that for players coming off the South American swing it's a god send. Of course most North American players don't make that swing.

If the slow hard courts of Indian Wells hamper North American players why aren't they well represented in the late stages of Miami? The only American doing well is...Serena Williams. Oh yeah Sam Querrey is still around but if he makes the final I'll be surprised. Very surprised.

I don't think the USTA, after mounting a full court press to get rid of Monte Carlo as an event, will let Miami change to clay without a fight. I'm pretty sure it's loyal press will soon start posting stories about the glories of hard court play. We've already seen the idiotic results of strict enforcement of the twenty five second rule, an emphasis that makes it easy for largely immobile hard servers to stay competitive while those who play a more sophisticated game are supposed to suffer. The most experienced chair umps, after a long rally, give the players time. Steve Ulrich, with the freedom retirement brings, called the rule "crazy". And he's an American.

Then of course there's the issue of top players dropping like flies. Almost every day has brought another player pulling up lame or citing illness as the reason for their withdrawal. That is why Sam Querrey is still around. Milos Raonic said he has strep throat and is unable to play so Querrey got the walkover. I can imagine tournament officials holding the remaining seeds hostage to ensure their appearance.

Lastly if Miami is moved where would it go? The last thing the USTA wants is a player focused TD like Larry Ellison getting control of the event. I'm guessing it'll be some organization that will allow things to go on as they have been.

But the issue going forward will still be hard courts and their effect on players. The game is much more physical, requires much more thought than a fast hard court will allow. There has even been talk of reviving indoor carpet.

I think in the end Miami will stay where it is in the calendar and remain a hard court event. Sorry a fast hard court event.
Of course I could be wrong. Time will tell.

Miscellany



I think that we will soon be able to add Sloane Stephens to the trash heap next to Melanie Oudin. I'm being so harsh because I watched Sloane play a brilliant set of tennis against Aga Radwanska yesterday on her own, with no coach flying out of the stands to tell her what to do. After that set her new coach, USTA darling David Nainkin, came and talked to her. And that was it for Sloane. She stopped doing everything she'd done well and played right into The Queen Vulture's hands. I didn't hang around for the third set so missed seeing Sloane get served a bagel.

Any player can beat any other player on any given day. Look at what Alejandro Falla almost did to Tomas Berdych yesterday. And let's just forget how hard Serena had to fight to come back against Dominika Cibulkova.

On second thought lets not forget Serena's match. Domi was all over Serena like a cheap suit. Serena couldn't find the court. Her footwork was nonexistent. Her smashes were finding the net. But she took a deep breath and ended up a winner. Her father got so nervous he left the court. Patrick Mouratoglou looked like he was on pins and needles. But Serena sat on the sidelines and fought her way out of the trap she'd set for herself. This is what Sloane is going to have to learn to do. And attitude is not going to win anything for her. The top players see her coming now and be ready for her. Sloane, dearie,(I'm a big OUAT fan), all those people blowing smoke up your ass because you defeated a severely injured Serena in Australia are bullshitting you. You are not a top ten player. In fact you sound as if you'd be content to be a top thirty player. Think I'm kidding? This is what a fiery Sloane said at her post match presser yesterday:

Sloane Stephens: "I'm 16 in the world. I can lose in the first round the next 2 months and I prob would still be top 30. "

The above was posted by @jonwertheim but he wasn't the only one who posted it yesterday. That is not what you want an up and coming player to say. It's not what you want an up and coming player to even conceive of thinking. Unless Sloane has the cojones to go outside of the US coaching establishment I don't see her game maturing much beyond where it is now. That injured woman you played in Melbourne is sitting on top of the rankings Sloane. She didn't get there by being content with a lower ranking.

Ironically Sloane is allegedly seen by Sam Smith as being the only athlete among the younger players. It's something I've noticed but been loathe to bring up after the Patrick McEnroe comments about sixteen year old Taylor Townsend.

But Smith has a point. There is a difference between being slim and being fit. I've seen more spare tires around the waists of women much more mature than Townsend, players considered the top picks from their countries. No one is saying women have to go the Ana Ivanovic route but there has to be a happy medium.

As for the lack of television coverage for WTA matches I'm saying the same thing I've been saying. Improve your product and you will get butts in the seats and television coverage. Right now the WTA is getting what it pays for. It sucks for fans of women's tennis but it is what it is. All the photo shoots and red carpets won't change what happens on court. It says something when two 31 year old women are fitter than the young'uns. It would also help if the WTA got rid of on court coaching. It's a crutch a top player shouldn't want or need.