https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/28785010/maria-sharapova-retires-tennis-19-year-pro-career
― totally unnecessary bewbz of exploitation (DJP), Wednesday, 26 February 2020 19:47 (four years ago) link
Sharapova burst onto the tennis scene at 17 by upsetting Serena Williams to win Wimbledon in 2004. She would beat Williams again at that year's season-ending tour championship to improve to 2-1 against the American -- and never won another one of their matchups, dropping the next 19 in a row.
Even in retirement, Sharapova is stuck in Serena's shadow.
― totally unnecessary bewbz of exploitation (DJP), Wednesday, 26 February 2020 19:48 (four years ago) link
Stood in a queue for 40min at Schipol airport Friday evening (lesson learned, train *both* ways in future), watching Monfils edge closer to victory on my score app. “No one beats Gael Monfils seventeen times in row”. 6-3 in the t/b. Marvellous. And then he blew it. By the time I was on the tarmac in the pouring rain walking to the plane Novak had levelled. I guessed the rest. Up to that point Monfils had won 25 consecutive sets. One decent serve for 26. Damn it. So, Novak and Rafa win their respective post-AO ATP500s and nothing changes. We better see some upsets in IW and Miami.
― Michael Jones, Sunday, 1 March 2020 09:31 (four years ago) link
crossposting
Glenn Greenwald had planned to produce a documentary about Martina Navratilova, with Kimberly Peirce of Boys Don't Cry renown. And then...
https://theintercept.com/2020/07/14/cancel-culture-martina-navratilova-documentary/
― brooklyn suicide cult (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, 14 July 2020 21:42 (four years ago) link
sabalenka/gauff is p compelling, though each now have double digit double faults
serena v venus tomorrow btw
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 12 August 2020 21:53 (four years ago) link
serena, desperately trying to end the match serving at 0-5 down, saves 7 match points and holds lmao
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 26 August 2020 03:11 (four years ago) link
incredible as always from Naomi Osaka, and the rest of the tour have joined her lead
pic.twitter.com/miKzgSdGxY— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) August 27, 2020
pic.twitter.com/l7cOoEMU8z— wta (@WTA) August 27, 2020
― Roz, Thursday, 27 August 2020 04:21 (four years ago) link
I enjoyed this: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2906596-you-can-be-a-role-model-at-any-age
― shout-out to his family (DJP), Monday, 31 August 2020 19:04 (four years ago) link
Sofia Kenin became the first top five player and reigning Grand Slam champion to be defeated by a 'double bagel' (6–0, 6–0) scoreline since Maria Sharapova was defeated by Lindsay Davenport by such a scoreline at the 2005 Indian Wells tournament. Kenin was defeated by Victoria Azarenka in the second round
― johnny crunch, Thursday, 17 September 2020 23:42 (four years ago) link
Oof, brutal. I remember Lendl double-bagelling Connors at Forest Hills in spring '84, when Jimmy was reigning US Open champion. (A few weeks later Connors got his revenge in the Wimbledon semi).
― Michael Jones, Friday, 18 September 2020 10:15 (four years ago) link
Actually, now that I look it up, I see that Lendl led Connors 6-0 1-0 in the Rotterdam final a few weeks earlier, when it was abandoned due a bomb scare. Lendl won their match prior to that, so that's a minimum of 20 straight games heading into that Wimbledon semi-final.
― Michael Jones, Friday, 18 September 2020 10:34 (four years ago) link
paire/fognini head case battle @ atp cup, 1-1 rn in broken racquets
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 3 February 2021 00:10 (three years ago) link
theres 89 matches today btw
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 3 February 2021 00:31 (three years ago) link
There's a LOT of tennis going on. I was surprised to see 15/25-level Futures events going on all through January, in Egypt, Turkey, France, US, etc.
So, these two "one-year license" ATP250 events (Great Ocean Road and Murray River) are happening *at the same venue* in Melbourne as each other *and* the ATP Cup? Crazy. But I guess it's no busier than it'll be next week when the actual Aussie Open starts. Wawrinka/Dimitrov top two seeds in one, Goffin/Khachanov top two in the other.
RBA-DeMinaur looked like the best of the ATP Cup Day 1 matches. Nadal sat it out. Hoping Shapo would upset Novak, but he came closer last year. RUS and ITA already in the semis. GRC-AUS has gone to the doubles.
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 3 February 2021 11:52 (three years ago) link
Wait, there's three WTA events too?! Gippsland Trophy, Yarra Valley and Grampians.
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 3 February 2021 11:54 (three years ago) link
shapo/djoko have now played 4 times in like 15 months, i feel like i've seen all or most of those matches; theyre good competitive matches & shapo often feels on the brink of taking games/sets etc but novak really hones in against him and its not a good matchup for denis he cant sustain a hi enough 1st serve % and eventually hits badly timed errors, etc
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 3 February 2021 14:03 (three years ago) link
fed pulls out of dubai after losing to basilashvili -- matches on back to back days was always gonna be a hurdle, is he just gonna get ready for grass season now?
meanwhile, muguruza into the dubai finals, she has been great lately -- her "offseason" regime of training w the spanish civil guard has seemingly really paid off
― johnny crunch, Friday, 12 March 2021 15:32 (three years ago) link
kinda crazy the recent dubai mens champs & this yr aslan karatsev O_o
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai_Tennis_Championships#Men's_singles
― johnny crunch, Saturday, 20 March 2021 16:49 (three years ago) link
how bout this monte carlo rafa/rublev match -- rublev 6-2 first set (rafa played badly for his level), 2nd set rublev gets up an early break but gives it back @ 4-3 (on an awkward slam at net that rafa guessed right and hit an open court winner on & then rafa proceeded to hold and break for the set)
hard to believe rublev can come back 3rd set after such a momentum swing.....then he breaks every rafa service game in the 3rd set and wins 6-2 holy hell
― johnny crunch, Friday, 16 April 2021 18:18 (three years ago) link
rublev played stellar defense this match & just committed to out rally rafa on clay (insane)
― johnny crunch, Friday, 16 April 2021 18:20 (three years ago) link
Only saw bits of the first set; Rafa’s serve was awful though he was still playing staggering defence at times. V surprised at the result after the 2nd set recovery. I’ve been enjoying Evans this week. “Can’t play on clay” and “not competitive at Masters level” both swept away in a few days. I expect it ends today but 360pts is not a bad week’s work. Beats winning that Les Patterson Memorial Classic or whatever it was in Feb.
― Michael Jones, Saturday, 17 April 2021 10:19 (three years ago) link
(I should have said Dame Edna. Sir Les is a Sydneysider)
― Michael Jones, Saturday, 17 April 2021 10:57 (three years ago) link
tsitsy is on a nice run, hasnt dropped a set yet on clay, into the semis in barcelona vs sinner
― johnny crunch, Friday, 23 April 2021 13:58 (three years ago) link
There should surely be some kind of rule about competing in venues that bear your name. But at least it's entertaining if said player loses there...
So, nice to see Novak losing at the Novak Tennis Center at his family's Belgrade ATP event (returning to the calendar after 8 years)... Karatsev saved 23 of 28 BPs. Highlights reel I just watched focused on Djoko's ridiculous shotmaking to pinch the second set from 2-4, sadly little of the Karatsev's heroics in the decider!
I guess tomorrow we'll see if the Legends can be taken down a further peg, with a defeat for Rafa on Pista Rafa Nadal.
― Michael Jones, Saturday, 24 April 2021 22:04 (three years ago) link
lotta respect for steph but rafa will win imo
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 25 April 2021 02:37 (three years ago) link
tsitsy getting from 2-4 down to 6-4 up in the 2nd set tiebreak was wildly impressive
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 25 April 2021 16:43 (three years ago) link
great match, great momentum swings.. each player w championship pts
nadal was below his peak, costly doubles, uncharacteristic errors but in toto not a staggering amt; stef was just solid throughout, cant say enough for his play really
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 25 April 2021 17:50 (three years ago) link
match time: 3:40
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 25 April 2021 17:51 (three years ago) link
That horrible forehand error at 5-5 15/0 seemed to be the moment it swung away, but even then, it was no capitulation - chances to hold, and to break back. 3hr 40!
My Amazon stream had no commentary. It was really quite nice like that.
In Belgrade, Berrettini lost only six points in the deciding set vs Daniel last night, and whitewashed Karatsev in the 3rd-set breaker today. Strong finisher.
― Michael Jones, Sunday, 25 April 2021 17:56 (three years ago) link
A flurry of grass court action, even overlapping with Roland Garros this year, thanks to the re-schedule.
Jo Konta wins her first WTA title in four years in Nottingham... also in Nottingham, a pair of strong-draw ATP Challenger events: Evans top seed in week 1, loses qf, Tiafoe takes title; Gasquet top seed in week 2, ongoing... Cilic wins Stuttgart, as FAA maintains his 0% record in ATP finals (now 0-8, and 0-16 in sets!)...
And now we're on to 500-level events at Queen's Club (Murray takes out a barely-arsed Paire, will face top seed Berrettini tomorrow; Jack Draper beats Sinner in straight sets from 0-4 down), Halle (Federer through, will face birthday-twin FAA! Medvedev out), Berlin (Sabalenka, Svitolina, Andreescu top three, Osaka absent).
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 16 June 2021 08:23 (three years ago) link
Of course, "grass court season" isn't an exclusive thing, and there are four ATP Challengers on clay this week - Almaty, Aix-en-Provence, Prostejov, Forli, albeit with lesser draws than Nottingham - plus some Davis/Federation(BJK) Cup. And who's that familiar name turning out for Georgia vs Iceland in Davis Cup? Ah, it's the GRANDSON of the 1973 Wimbledon finalist Alex Metreveli. Not even a kid, 27yo, ranked in the 600s.
(Ok, I'm not quite that old. I don't remember watching Kodes win it in '73... I feel like I saw the Taylor-Borg QF but that's only cos they used to show it so often during rain delays).
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 16 June 2021 11:49 (three years ago) link
FAA beats 19y-his-senior Fed. For a three-setter, not particularly close - Fed only had one bp (and took it), FAA had 15 (took three).
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 16 June 2021 14:55 (three years ago) link
yea wow was gonna say losing in 3 to felix is not a bad loss per se, but that break pt differential don't look good
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 16 June 2021 15:29 (three years ago) link
rafa is not playing wimbledon & olympics
― johnny crunch, Thursday, 17 June 2021 13:45 (three years ago) link
tiafoe/brooksby in dc has had some incred rallies
― johnny crunch, Wednesday, 4 August 2021 01:32 (three years ago) link
now rafa/sock has also been v compelling, great fight by both…
― johnny crunch, Thursday, 5 August 2021 01:56 (three years ago) link
nadal looked to somewhat reaggravate his foot injury but props to him for gutting out this match, sock is back in p decent form actually
― johnny crunch, Thursday, 5 August 2021 02:29 (three years ago) link
lloyd harris takes out rafa; wonder if nadal will go play canada
― johnny crunch, Friday, 6 August 2021 01:23 (three years ago) link
Watching overnight highlights on Amazon Prime without knowing the scores - Harris-Rafa didn't look it was going to go that way! And Brooksby taking out FAA in straights... seems to have a decent amount of variety, is having a great week, but we've seen WC-aided Americans fail to break through before...
― Michael Jones, Friday, 6 August 2021 10:44 (three years ago) link
commentators have said it enough that im convinced brooksby is the next coming of murray m/lif he can serve a little bigger he is scary, i really like watching him
― johnny crunch, Friday, 6 August 2021 12:01 (three years ago) link
brooksby routined & dominated millman
― johnny crunch, Friday, 6 August 2021 19:16 (three years ago) link
If he’s the new Murray that completes the quartet, seeing as we already have Sinner, Musetti and Alcarez :)It had passed me by that Brooksby won back to back Challengers in Florida in the spring, and reached the final in Newport. He’s piling up the wins.
― Michael Jones, Friday, 6 August 2021 20:37 (three years ago) link
i like that next-next gen analogy. we'll see how brooksby/sinner rd 1 goes
― johnny crunch, Saturday, 7 August 2021 00:06 (three years ago) link
RIP Brooksby
Jenson Brooksby is the sort of player I love to watch…lots of variety..high tennis IQ….great in defence..🔥His slice and backhand volley are almost identical to Florián Mayer.#tennis @atptour— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) August 6, 2021
― Roz, Saturday, 7 August 2021 01:57 (three years ago) link
really happy to see that petko got her first title since 2015.
― oscar bravo, Sunday, 8 August 2021 20:25 (three years ago) link
1st set still going in dc, mackie has saved ten (10) set points
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 8 August 2021 22:16 (three years ago) link
cant save the 11th
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 8 August 2021 22:18 (three years ago) link
happy 40th to fed btw, hope he can play the us open but its not looking good
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 8 August 2021 23:02 (three years ago) link
this jannik/mackie match.......
― johnny crunch, Sunday, 8 August 2021 23:53 (three years ago) link
Nice to see Double-Mc winning matches again. Don't think he's registered with me since this same event three years ago, when he lost over three hours to a labouring Murray. McMc seems to have missed half of the 2019 season with injury, so a long road back.
So: a SE for him into Toronto (va Paire, who seems to have started to give a damn again), a WC for Brooksby (and Kyrgios)... no such treatment for Tiafoe: doesn't make it out of qualifying.
― Michael Jones, Monday, 9 August 2021 14:26 (three years ago) link