Australian Open Day 1 – More Observations

More Drama

That little dust up between the Croatians and the Serbians apparently started in the stands. What ESPN showed was the end part where the police got the two groups separated prior to escorting them out.

This event when added to what some say was the shameless behavior of Serbian fans during Jelena Jancovic’s match against Kim last week has started a flame war on one message board between Serbian and Croatian fans which in my opinion makes it impossible for an outsider, a member of neither ethnic group to comment on what happened. If anyone saw the basketball riot where fans were throwing lit flares at each other this was one level below it since it seems one group of hooligans did indeed bring lighted flares with them to enhance their tennis experience.
If you don’t know what happened here is an article about it.

Balkan rivalries erupt at Aussie Open

Tuesday January 16, 2007

Balkan animosities again erupted in Australia yesterday as Serbian and Croatian youths attacked one another at the first day of the Australian Tennis Open in Melbourne.

Cheered on by a group of Greeks supporting the Serbians, about 150 youths clashed in a wild brawl that erupted shortly after midday.

Fighting spilled out through other fans as police and security guards rushed to separate the warring sides.

The brawl follows a decade of simmering tensions between Serbian and Croatian communities in Australia, fuelled by the war in the Balkans after the disintegration of Yugoslavia.

Yesterday's violence came after the breakdown of an informal separation of fans, which usually saw Croatians attend the Open on Monday and Serbians the following day.

But yesterday, with several Serbian and Croatian players due to appear, youths from both communities arrived, many draped in their national flags.

Reports said the trouble began when the two sides began trading insults and racial slurs.



The Sydney Morning Herald website reported that Serbians had chanted "Die Croatians, die" in their language, cheered on by Greeks shouting "Greece, Serbia, Greece, Serbia".

As youths ploughed into one another, police and security guards raced to pull them apart.

Troublemakers were led from Melbourne Park through different exits.

Police reported some minor injuries, but no arrests were made.

Serbian tennis star Jelena Jankovic, the No.11 seed and winner of the ASB Classic in Auckland, said the problem was one which seemed peculiar to Melbourne.

"I think just here in Melbourne there is this kind of problem," Jankovic said after defeating Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak.

"Anywhere else in the world it's fine. When you play a Croatian girl or when there's matches - Serbian and Croatian - it's fine, but here it's just ... I don't know what it is.

"It's just a sport and people should just come and enjoy the game."

Croatian Mario Ancic, who defeated Japan's Go Soeda, said Croatian players had the best fans.

"They're well-known for their good supporting, correct supporting and I've been here many years," Ancic said.

Police are expected to be on high alert today when Croatian Martin Cilic faces Serb Ilia Bozoljac.

Additional reporting by AAP

It’s been my opinion for some time that the J-Block, a publicists dream during Newport a couple of years ago now is a very bad idea. Seeing them taunt Federer live during the US Open was not a pleasant experience. Last year everyone thought Bagh’s vocal fans were entertaining. I think that anyone who sanctions hooliganism needs to reread the definition of entertainment. Tennis matches are not held at the Roman forum.


Mary Carillo

I guess it was Mary’s salute to Martin Luther King Jr. Whoever approved her piece comparing Serena’s recent troubles off court to James should have their head examined. It just goes to show that reporters and producers on the tennis beat talk among themselves and not with anyone who might give them a perspective on how their loopy ideas will come across once they see the light of day. I guess they figured that since both players are African American they could get away with saying that there is no excuse for Serena’s long road back to tennis superiority because James faced daunting problems and is now number four in the world.

No one would deny that losing a parent is traumatic. But to compare the death of a parent or sibling to a lingering illness to that of losing a parent or sibling to a random act of idiocy is facile to put it nicely. I would also assume that Mary has never had knee surgery. I find it interesting that Marat is given the benefit of the doubt regarding his slow comeback but Serena is supposed to just bounce back as if her knees are different in structure from Marat’s.

I think the push on Serena is because right now there are no American women in the upper echelons of tennis. Venus succumbed to the pressure and played a match late last year where it soon became obvious that her wrist was not ready to be tested in match play. With Lindsay, never a fave of TPTB out having her first child desperation has set in. In my opinion Serena should play a limited, targeted schedule this year similar to what Justine did last year. Serena has to do what’s best for Serena. If she does that she is doing what is best for tennis.

Andy Roddick

When Roddick burst onto the scene in the waning years of Pete Sampras dominance of American tennis by winning not only the nascent US Open Series but the US Open I was ready to embrace him as the standard bearer for the United States in the ATP. The US Open win was widely criticized by many as having been engineered by the USTA. There was a lot of rain in the second week of that Open and the usual schedule adjustments took place. Many of the foreign players ended up playing two matches a day while Roddick got the favorable times and placement so the argument went. I was willing to explain that away too.

But here we are four years later and Roddick has yet to put the negativity that follows his career behind him. His performance last night will only add to it.

Last night was the first time I’ve seen Jo-Wilfried Tsonga play. I don’t think it’ll be the last. The announcers explained that he’s been injured much of the last two years since he turned pro in 2004 and that he was playing in only his second Grand Slam match. He is a big man, big boned, and at 21 he can stand to drop a few pounds. But he has the game to upset many of the men in the top ten. Andy should be thanking his lucky stars that Tsonga’s fitness deserted him after that marathon 20-18 tiebreak in the first set otherwise he and Ivan Ljubicic would be on planes heading for parts unknown.

If the match was going to be remembered for the play of both men that would be a good thing. But what most fans remember is Roddick cursing at Jo-Wilfried who simply glared back at him and then insulting the chair ump not once but twice, both times on mike. There are lip reading translations of what Andy said to Jo-Wilfried but I won’t publish them here. The one I did hear left me slack jawed. Andy said to the chair that he would stop jabbering “when you say something remotely intelligent.”

In any other sport Jo-Wilfried would have won in a walk over since Roddick would have been ejected. Instead of Andy being contrite about his behavior during his in studio post match interview Chris Fowler made it seem as if he had no idea what all the fuss was about and implied that Roddick’s behavior was no big deal. This is what I think is Roddick’s problem. No one calls him on his shit. He did make a stirring defense of both Venus and Serena during the Exo season but that does not excuse his behavior last night. It’s why so many people rejoice when he loses and will continue to do so.

The Shallow end of the pool Part 2

Was Stella McCartney inspired by Pierre-Yves now famous sleeveless blouse to create the outfit Maria Kirilenko was wearing? Did he get a cut for his inspiration? Somehow I don’t think the Catholic girl uniform fetish will catch on in tennis.

I like Sveta with dark hair. It just looked weird last night with the head band.

What the hell was going on with Mary Carillo’s hair last night? Did she rush past the stylist on her way to the set? She’s a little too long in the tooth for that edgy spiky style cut the younger women are wearing.

Did I mention I hate the yellow’s they’re using this year? And that I hate the baby blue tops being worn by a top player?

End Notes

Pam, Mary and Mary Jo dogged Serena badly before and during her match against Mara Santangelo last night. After Serena won they miraculously resurrected her, to hear them tell it, rotting corpse. To his credit Mardy Fish did not join in the hate fest.