August 3, 2001 - Pat's meal Ticket
It's not smart to bite the hand that feeds you, but in the case of Davis Cup Captain Pat McEnroe, who's still up in the air because Andy Roddick told him to jump, the master could feed him dog dou and he would not complain.
Yes you want him on your team, you want him to play Davis Cup, but if Pat does not watch out, his enthusiasm for Andy will alienate the other up and coming players, and they may play hard ball with him, when it comes time for Davis Cup.
If Andy becomes a true force in the game, and Davis Cup starts to interfere with his schedule, he will send Pat packing, but meanwhile Mr. McEnroe will continue to jump and follow instructions.
As I'm writing this point, I'm watching the Roddick-Pavel match, Roddick has lost the first set, Pavel is showing Andy how to play tennis with a brain, but yet, Pat can not find it in him to criticize the kid's game. Nothing about the lack of patience, lack of variety, the inability to scale back, the unforced errors. But with such raw power he may still come back and win the match.
It's now 6-4, 4-3 Pavel, and Roddick tried to serve and volley and finally McEnroee says something that can be classified as
a criticism when Roddick dumps an easy backhand volley in the bottom of the net.
After a major struggle including saving 3 break points and playing a great tiebreaker, the match is now in the 3rd set. I can't remember the last time I saw a player slam his racquet down violently in complete frustration after getting aced, which is what happened when Pavel went ahead 5-2 in the 3rd set.
Roddick held his serve easily and Pavel stepped up to the plate to close it out. At deuce, Pavel aces Roddick wide to the forehand, match point, then another ace
to the forehand, game set match, Pavel.
Need I say more!!!!
August 2, 2001 - The mute champion!
Has Pete Sampras ever said anything of substance?
Has he said anything that has challenged the tennis establishment?
Has he made any recommendations and unique observations?
Has he done anything that's out of the ordinary?
Has he firmly expressed his approval or disapproval on any issue?
I can go on and on and on and the answers will of course be, NO!
The man just plays tennis, just wins, just piles up grand slams. He is a classy guy, he lets his tennis do the talking, and for that he is unique and stands out in this day and age of in your face athletes.
As his career winds up, this would the perfect time for Sampras to let the world know how he really feels, this would be the time for him to make a lasting impact other than the 13 slams and his dominance on the grass courts at Wimbledon.
Wouldn't it be nice if he suddenly became a powerful ambassador of the game, one different than the bombastic and at times too much of the beer drinker type John McEnroe.
Pete has the utmost respect of the sporting community, could he use his voice to lift our game to
new heights, could he be the commissioner that our sport do not yet have, could he go
beyond the sport and make an impact on society?
Well I'm afraid the answers are again NO!
Pete lost his public tongue almost 30 years ago.
August 1, 2001 - No-names need not apply!
How many awards will they find to give to Chris Evert? why does it seems that only named players with built reputation are
acknowledged with merit awards and service badges over and over?
Individuals who are in the trenches with low name recognition are apparently not worthy of being recognized, even if they might be doing something of value tot he sport.
The latest example is an award given to individuals who've displayed excellent sportsmanship on and off the
court, called "The International Club Jean Borotra Award", established in 1997.
What would happen if our local tennis club gave an award to Chris Evert for helping the growth of the game by popularizing the two handed back hand, would she
accept it? No, it would be like me declaring my love for Susan Sarandon, she would never consider my amorous offer,
after all I'm a no name, not addicted to any substances, do not need a therapist and am not even an actor.
July 31, 2001 - Fast lens are bad!
Have you ever wondered why tennis, the most flamboyant, eloquent, demanding of individual sports is never highlighted with great photography?
No photo essays, but yet we have great looking
athletes, dressed in the most colorful and attractive clothing, asking and
getting the most out of their bodies, in a matter that shows and expresses the human
physique at its best, but still is not the subject of photographers envy.
The reason: The photographers assigned to tennis are NOT tennis players, they are capturing pictures that are not properly showing the preparation, anticipation of the ball, the vision of the court, the agony of defeat and the thrill of victory.
There's plenty of emotion being displayed on the tennis court, photographers should know the game, know when a big moment is about to happen, look for that great reaction. They need to back up on the close-up shots, but show players hitting balls with reference with the rest of the court, the other player and the fans, zooming in shows an isolated player and using the fastest shutter speed possible distorts the player's body.
Lastly, do not try to capture the ball hitting the strings, what you'll get is the player looking in one direction, the ball in another and the racquet head in a position that makes it look impossible for contact to have been made.
A great picture would show the player's focus on the ball, the court and the position of the other player, leaving the viewer to guess what kind of shot will the player hit and where will the ball land?
We need artists and tennis players photographing our
sport.
July 30, 2001 - Stop it NOW!
This year more and more players are playing Team Tennis, the ATP and WTA should put an end to it right now. The players do not understand future impact on open tournament competition, back in the 70's, some players were banned, mainly Jimmy Connors, for taking part in team tennis, the leaders of the professional associations, and ITF should catch this problem early and right now before it gets out of hand.
Open tennis makes our sport unique and is more beneficial to the players than a stringent limited team format. If team tennis becomes the norm,
it will be competing directly with smaller, less known and established local
open events.
In a team formatted league, the amount of spots available are limited, you are playing for an organization who can fire you or sit you down even if you play well. In open competition, "you have racquet you play". In the past World Team Tennis was for struggling and old pros trying to make a
little cash, but a quick look at the 2001 roster will reveal some very big marquee names. (Serena, Kournikova, Gambill, Raymond, Davenport, Seles, Dokic, Roddick).
It's a classic case of players not realizing what they have, instead of promoting their present situation, they are instead engaging in something that could be detrimental to their livelihood. They say, there's too many tournaments, the season is too long, they are required to play to many events, but look who's adding more match play to their schedule.
Today's players are brainless robots who are being dictated by the dollars that the sports marketing companies can offer them. World Team Tennis has aligned itself with several top marketing groups and they are delivering the players to the league.
I don't like team tennis, our sport is at its best when played one-on one, team tennis especially in the WTT format will never challenge the individual to bring his best to the court and will always be an
exhibition and fluff. The problem is the public likes the WWF type of
entertainment.
Next time a player complains about the long season and the amount of tournaments, the ATP and WTA should simply say, "Stop playing Team Tennis".
(c) 1stserve