Sam getting a bit miffed at herself about...something.
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July 2010
July 26, 2010
"Son of aaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
Masha's day started out with shits and giggles and goofiness...
And ended with this:
After once again disputing a line call with Mike, Maria pumps the shrieks and the hitting to 11. To no avail. And then gets some advice from the peanut gallery.
It's all good. She was clearly in a good mood. Hell, she said hi to Dinara as she left the court. That counts for something, right?
Guess Who's Back. Back Again. Chakky's Back. Tell A Friend. Guess Who's Back, Guess Who's Back, Guess Who's Back...
Chaks will jump up 29 spots to #74 with her amazing run in Portoroz, Tournament of Dreams.
I'm not sure if the spinning top falls or not. And I do not care.
I Was Not Expecting Any of That.
It's 3:25am so I'm going to have to make this a bit short. Some notables from today:
- Absolutely thankful that Steph was able to make it today to pick up for my slack. Without her we wouldn't have seen this.
- Walked into the media center and was greeted with a "Andy Murray? Really?" Once again I am left to defend my cooter-love for the Muzzard. An indefensible position, I know.
- Got to finally meet @sblily. Nothing like kicking off a day full of tennis than yukking it up in the stands with a seasoned and snarky tennis fan. Looking forward to seeing her throughout the week.
- Bethanie lost in qualies. Bummer.
- Ana seems to have a new trainer, a woman who is very tan and, I'm guessing by the fluency and ease with which Ana spoke to her, Serbian. Will try and get more deets. Whoever she is, Ana is clearly comfortable with her. Ana was a chatty Cathy all through her warmups. Seemed in good spirts today.
- Kleybs. Shirtless. Mind you, I was in jeans and a long sleeve all day. I reiterate: IT AIN'T THAT HOT.
- The All Access Hour was really fun. That said, it was my worst nightmare realized. I had repeatedly expressed concern that if I ever actually got a media credential and actually got to interact with these players in a normal way, I would probably like them and thus, not be able to bring my A-game snark. Sure enough, I was totally charmed by Mono. That doesn't mean I'm not going to call her crazy, but I'm definitely going to feel bad about it. Having a conscience, even a rudimentary, childlike one like mine, is a bitch.
- The free food and Evian is a godsend. Stanford, you classy little bastard.
- Maria and Scott seem to get along quite well. He's a charming and easy-going motherfucker. That said, I'm not sure Maria's all too keen on the random warmup exercises he makes her do. While Ana seemed to buy into the system, Masha seems...over it. She can barely do 3 reps without giggling.
- Totally got called out for my Twilight love in the media center. WHY DO I PUT THESE THINGS ON THE INTERNETZ???
- Because I have no shame.
- Sam has an amazing techno ring tone.
- Met FD Reader Rachel tonight. Very cool. Took a picture of her with Ana.
- A guy was standing outside waiting for Ana to sign after her night session. He said his friend really wanted to get a picture with Ana but might not get there in time. So he scrambled to find a scrap piece of paper, begged to borrow a Sharpie, and wrote out "Hi Phil!" on the paper. When Ana came out he asked her to hold it up, which she did, giggling the throughout. After he took the pic, she softly said "Tell Phil I said hi." Steph and I cackled loudly all the way to my car. "Ana, you already did. You held up a sign that said 'Hi Phil.' You said hi. To Phil." Kid never fails to crack me up.
- Was going through my pictures in the media center when Ana suddenly walked in. She walked by me when I had a HUGE picture of her on my screen. Not my best moment.
- If you think a sock tanline is bad, you clearly haven't seen a wristband tanline. *cough*Sam*cough*. I kept thinking she was wearing a white leather cuff or something.
- Dinara came out after her night session and signed and took pictures with everyone. She then stood on the sidewalk for a good 10 minutes waiting for the car. It was kind of awkward, seeing as how we were all standing 20 feet from her waiting for Ana.
- I was really impressed by the turnout over the weekend. Obviously the qualie sessions were free, but the walkways were a bit crowded. And the fans were really knowledgeable. Which is to be expected on qualie weekend, I suppose.
- Met Matt Cronin again today and met Doug Robson for the first time. Both were uber nice. And really good question askers. Thankfully. By my count, there were only five print journalists at the All Access Hour. Lord knows I wasn't planning on saying shit.
- Sam has small hands. Either that or her ginormous forecep dwarfs it. It's a good thing I recorded her interview because 90% of it was me pondering how the hell she gets her hand around her racquet handle.
- Mono wears brown Crocs flip flops. An...interesting choice.
- On my way to the restroom I saw Domi, Zeljko, and Dejan on the track. Domi was in black bootie shorts and trying to jump Zeljko. Sorry...jump on Zeljko's back. I briefly thought about going back to get my camera, or even whipping out my iPhone, but I honestly could not be bothered. I just...don't care.
- Hey, you know how a certain tennis journo said that Dinara looked preggo at RG? Yeah, he can take his e-book and shove it up his ass. Oh, wait. It's an e-book so it actually isn't a physical, tangible thing. FOILED AGAIN!
- Maxim is here with Elena. Mama's at home. Speaking of which, no Dragana either. Bummer. She would really fit in here in Stanford.
- Dinara was really crushing the ball today. The serve still looks iffy. Sam and Masha were a bit pissy with themselves.
- Last Sam tidbit: She's going to Facebook headquarters tomorrow. Can we just take a moment to laugh about one of the quieter, shy, private players schilling for Facebook? Dear WTA: Next year, send them to Twitter HQ. (And yes, I *know* you're reading this because you're going to give me shit about it in 7 hours.)
Thelma and Louise.
The great thing about going along to the Dinara photo-op was finding out that she was planning on hitting at 8:30pm. I was convinced that given the order of play on Monday, Ana would be hitting at 7:00pm. So while all the other journos wisely called it a day, I stuck around to watch Dinara practice. But imagine my surprise when at 7:30, Masha walked out on the court. What??? Sadz.
But then I saw Ana walking out onto a side court with Heinz. Yay! Ana's practicing! So I abandoned Maria's shriekfest and watched Ana warm up and hit some serves. But after about 20 minutes of warm up she left the practice court. Boo!
And then it happened. I went back to watch Dinara hit and low and behold, Ana was there! Hitting! With Dinara! It turns out that there was a bit of scheduling crunch for late practice sessions on center court so these two former number ones teamed up to hit on center. I'm not sure I can put into words how amazing this was.
Two former #1s, who played each other in a Slam final, after which their careers took dramatic turns (in opposite directions, obviously), now found themselves laughing it up and hitting with each other in preparation for first round matches that they're not exactly favored to win.
Throughout their session I couldn't help but just sit and reminisce about the last two years. These two have been the driving force in my tennis fandom over that time, celebrating their ups, and feeling the gut-punch of their downs. All in all, there was something sweetly, and sadly, poetic about the moment. This was the 2008 French Open final, on Center Court, under the lights, in front of...30 people, with last minute hammering and blowers serving as a soundtrack.
It was surreal.
It will easily go down as one of my all-time favorite live tennis moments. Special stuff.
More pics after the jump.
Pic This: This One's For Katie
Dani hit the courts on Sunday and she was rocking a pretty amazing tan. She may or may not have rolled around in baby oil as part of her pre-match routine, too. Unfortunately my media access does not allow me to confirm or deny this.
Seriously, I have to think that she spent her holiday on the beaches of Miami drinking Pina Col-baby-oils for two weeks. Inexplicable.
Lanky. But we knew that.
Jay Z back there.
"Oh, shit, she's coming towards me..."
Yeah. This one got awkward.
Pic This: I Suck, You Suck. Let's Be Friends!
I want to wallpaper my house with this picture. I want to put it in my wallet so that whenever I get sad I can pull it out and believe that there is goodness in the world. I want Ellen Page to go into my head and recreate this world so that I may live in a permanent dream state in this picture.
There was no way this day was going to suck after seeing these:
Throw some Joseph Gordon-Levitt in there and this is my happy place.
Mono Speaks. And Now I Kind of Feel Bad For Ripping On Her So Much.
"It was crazy. But at the end of the day the French media likes that kind of stuff. And I think they just want to build up...I mean the are great because at some point they invented a story without anything. To be able to create a story without any kind of beginning of a story is quite a major achievement. But I guess it will always be like this. The year before it was Razzano, the year before it was Cornet, so it's always like this."
In response to a question as to whether she wants to talk privately with Aravane to tell her things have been blown out of proportion or untrue, and a question on her relationship with the FFT:
Boom. Suck it, France.
Marion's problems with the FFT are long documented but they primarily revolve around the fact that the FFT won't let any outside coaches for Fed Cup, which means her father can't help her prepare. She explained today that she doesn't need him as her on-court coach, but she does need him to prepare for her matches. Until this is resolved, don't expect Mono to fly the flag.
As for her post-Wimbledon break, she attended her older brother's wedding in Carcassonne. It was a crazy wedding, apparently. "We finished at 5am. Everyone in the pool. Including me, of course." And she didn't go voluntarily. "They pushed me."
Towards the end of the time the conversation turned to Serena. "I heard she has a cut on her feet, right? She can play no match before the US Open and still win the US Open without dropping a set. So that's not a huge issue for her...Eh, she won Wimbledon so she can have the whole summer off. That's not a problem for her. I heard she arrived 3 days before the Championship at Wimbledon from New York and she still won it."
And on what makes Serena so tough:
"She has the serve. She can serve 4 aces and you don't touch the ball for 2, 3, 4, 5 games in a row. And that's it. When you see the Wimbledon final, Vera was in the final, for the major part of the match she didn't barely one point on return of serve against Serena.... She can serve every type of serve, everywhere in the box, with the speed she wants, and a topspin, flat, slice, so (pause) that's a weapon, yes? And she's quite intimidating when you play Serena in a match. You don't feel very comfortable, to be honest."
I feel bad because with all of these pressers, the tone can't be conveyed in a black and white quote. Marion, Sam, Elena, and Aga were totally great. Very funny, quick to laugh, very approachable and easy to talk to.
You know, if, unlike me, you had the balls to actually talk to them.
July 25, 2010
It's Cool Guys. Step Back. I'm A Corgi Expert. I Got This.
Sam was Sam. And I don't mean that as a slight at all. From the minute she sat down and put her leg up to retie her shoes, she was pretty relaxed, answering questions about the FO final (she though Franny played fantastic and that she played good enough to win most matches, just not that one), why she sucks on grass (contrary to popular belief, she didn't grow up playing on grass in Australia), and her newfound popularity in Australia.
And she and dropped this awesome nugget: She's planning to play doubles at the USO with Franny. The partnership came about via text message.
I, of course, sacked up and finally asked a question or three:
Q: How was the reception when you got back?
A: Oh it was good. Had a bit of a party at home. Had some a bunch of friends over and had a really good afternoon. That was a good opportunity for me to catch up with everyone all at once. Yeah, just saw some other friends. It was good. It was really nice to get home.
Q: Did you feel that when you were walking around, were people recognizing you more now, after your clay success and everything like that at the French Open?
A: Yeah for sure. I noticed that a lot more than other times, yeah. In the supermarket line, buying a thing of milk and somebody comes up to you and starts talking to you and stuff like that. It definitely happened a lot more, yeah.
Q: Freak you out a little bit or do you get used to it?
A: Yeah, I guess it's just kind of one of those things. I happened occasionally but seeing that every time I went outside somebody else would talk to me or say "well done" or whatever. But it's pretty cool, too, because everyone told me that Australia was really behind me at the French and that kind of proved that no matter who they were that, pretty much they all were watching and that was great.
Woot. Totally got to ask her the ultimate Corgi question.
Watch Sam fawn over Rafa:
I was totally waiting for her to just stop and say "He's so dreamy!" But, you know, she wouldn't.
Ahem.
Oh come on. You know I had to.
Class.
Elena was exactly what I expected. Classy, articulate, and wise and, actually, pretty funny. An absolutely pleasant person. After spending two weeks off the courts to heal up (during which time she traveled around Europe visiting family), she says she feels "good" and "ready". When asked if she kept up with Wimbledon during her break, "To be honest, this time I didn't watch Wimbledon. I was just too disappointed that I'm not there."
It was nice to hear that she feels the support from fans regarding their/our desire for her to win her first Grand Slam. In fact, when the question was asked, she got a very "aw shucks/wow, that's so nice!" sly smile. It made me happy.
Towards the end of the interview things turned to the topic of Dinara, with whom she practiced with the day before.
Her general thoughts on what Dinara needs to do to get back:
"I think Dinara, she always used to worked really hard. Even when she was a little girl and right now I'm sure it's not easy for her to come back after a back problem. But I practiced with her and it looks like she's in good shape. She took some time off, she feels refreshed, and she feels like she's ready to play. All she needs right now is to play matches and get confidence."
"Well I talked to her I think she's good enough. She said she took some time off during Wimbledon and now she feels like she really wants to get back on the court playing these matches. It's good to see because she played way too many couple years ago so she probably overplayed."
Thoughts on whether the pressure of winning a Slam had an effect of Dinara:
"Well I think that in the beginning of the year she was hoping to play that well. But she didn't imagine it would be *that* well, you know what I mean? Winning week after week, without any break, that's what it cost. Some injuries, back problems. The way she was playing on clay courts, winning so many matches, she was physically ready to go and she couldn't stop from winning these matches. She was in great shape."
And finally, on whether Dinara's coaching stint with Zeljko was too intense or negative:
"Well it's hard to say. I think Dinara should answer this question because she's the only one who knows how much he put into her game. And how much he was involved in the success. But I think he was working really hard with her. As you can see he was really following her game and he was trying to help her and trying to improve her game and she did improve her game a lot. So it's very difficult.... It was a very unique situation, put it this way. She was winning so many matches. And I think they were both a little overexcited, I would say, about these results. And so maybe it wasn't the smart decision to play so many tournaments. But at the same time, I mean, she wanted to play. Nobody pushed her to do this. So I think in the end it comes to your decision. And I think she's old enough to make it, right?"
And now a funny exchange:
Q: You have any sense of it's history? When the first circuit was formed that becamse the WTA, San Francisco was the first stop.
A: Oh really? I didn't know that. It's very special.
Q: There were only, what 8 players? I think the first draw was 8 players and the winner won $1000. Billie Jean King.
A: I don't know why we made the draw so big. [laughter] I mean, three matches? That's good enough.
I hope that translates in black and white. It was pretty funny at the time.
Some video:
Aga Radwanska, Professional Tourist.
Aga's presser was pretty straightforward and generally as expected. She's happy with her hard court season, lost some matches she should have won on clay, and didn't take a break after Wimbledon because she says she didn't play that much in the first half of the season.
But the bombshell, at least from the Forty Deuce perspective: Aga is studying tourism at the University of Krakow.
The best part of the interview was when Matt Cronin asked Aga which city she thought was the best organized. "For sure, not France." The press corp erupted in laughter. Why? Mono just happened to be walking past her when she said it.
It was not a good day for France.
Yes. Yes You Are.
Dinara had a promo shoot on the Stanford campus at 1pm today and she was a little bit late. Apparently she got dropped off at her hotel to change and inadvertently sent her driver away. The hilarious thing is that we were standing there looking for a car to pull up when suddenly we turned around she was walking at us. The idea of Dinara wandering around the Stanford campus alone cracks me up.
Girl was working for the camera in her t-shirt, D&G jeans, and flats that I should recognize but I don't. I didn't really talk to her, which made the whole interaction somewhat awkward seeing as I was the only print journalist there, along with Steph, the BotW internal photographer, and a camera man for ABC 7 news. As expected, she was super quiet. I asked her if this was her first time on the Stanford campus, she smiled and said yes, I said it was a really beautiful school, and she ignored me.
It was oddly reminiscent of every first date I've ever been on.
I *was* able to get her to crack a smile though. After her interview with ABC7 the camera man wanted some b-roll footage of her walking around the school. So he made her walk 30 feet away, turn around, and walk back.
"It's like walking on a fashion runway."
"What?"
"IT'S LIKE WALKING ON A FASHION RUNWAY!"
"Oh, well..." crooked smile, scoff, eyeroll.
Annnnnnnd scene.
"Bitch, what'd you say?"
"I just keeding, my twitties!"
Practice Makes Pink.
Ana and Dinara were hitting side by side again today. I was unfortunately stuck in traffic and developed a fairly severe bruise on my forehead from banging my head against the steering wheel in frustration. Thankfully Steph, Forty Deuce photographer emeritus, was on site and caught the action. And oh, it was glorious.
Word on the street (read: Steph told me) that Heinz was hitting a lot of flat, hard balls to Ana's backhand. Clearly she's preparing for Kleybs. Unfortunately it wasn't going well. She was visibly frustrated and was talking to Heinz quite a bit.
Man, you can spot Team Adidas from a mile away.
Run, Smiles, Run!
You guys know the drill. Steph took these so please don't take without attribution.
No Socks > No Hair. Or Something.
Well that just about says it all.
A-Rod goes down to the Sockless Twit, 76(5) 63.
It'll be an All-American final between No Socks and Tall Boy, with No Socks on a 9 match win streak. Weirdness continues under the Hotlanta sun tomorrow.
Meanwhile, In Portoroz...
WOT?!?!
Chakky's into the finals despite getting bageled by Werner Hercog (TM Maz).
Too much smiling.
It's like seeing a three-legged rainbow unicorn for the first time.
July 24, 2010
Summer School.
(Flickr)
Confession: I love Stanford. I'm not talking about the tournament. I'm talking about the university. See, when I was a kid my parents didn't have a lot of money. So they had to come up with cheap ways to entertain my kid sister and I on the weekends. This mainly involved the four of us piling into our green Volkswagon bus and going on road trips. When I was nine years old we visited Stanford for the first time. It was the first university or college I had ever visited and I thought it was the absolute coolest thing. We biked around the campus, visited the Rodin Sculpture Garden, went into Memorial Church, and I absolutely fell in love. I ended up doing a California history report on the school in fifth grade, would go to sports camps here in middle school and high school, and drive an hour and fifteen minutes on a school night to see a Stanford Women's Volleyball game or basketball game. Hell, in high school I would drive to Stanford and study at the library.
It's pathetic, I know.
All his is to say, given my love for the school, I'm kind of predisposed to absolutely blow sunshine up this tournament's ass. The minute I hopped out of my car and smelled the eucalyptus in the air, I had a stupid grin on my face.
So with that in mind, here's my report after Day 1 of Qualies:
- Had a bit of panic attack when I was directed to the "credential" office, gave my name and was told it wasn't on the list. "Uh...hold on, let me pull up the confirmation email on my phone." After fumbling with my stupid iPhone for 5 minutes, the woman finally said "Are you media?" "Yes." "Oh, that's a different office." PHEW! I walked down to the media center, picked up my pass, and settled in.
- You can request workspace at the tournament and I, surprisingly, had been given a spot. In the front row. This would be awesome except that as I unpacked my laptop I realized that there's no way I can ask a question at the pressers. Because if I do, the players will look in my direction and see the "I Am Not An Asian Tourist" sticker on my laptop. And to add insult to injury, two weeks ago I put a Hello Kitty sticker on it. So yeah...SILENCE.
- Everyone in the media center was super nice. And they read Forty Deuce. I was mortified.
- Packed up my shit and headed to see what was going on the practice courts. To my pleasant surprise (read: SQUEEEEEEEEE!!!) Ana and Makiri were practicing next to Lena and Dinara. I only got to see 10 minutes of Dinara's practice but she was crushing it. Lena's still using that abbreviated service motion. Ana's toss was ALL OVER THE PLACE and she was visibly frustrated. MaKiri was...MaKiri.
- Kleybs practiced shirtless. Shahar had her right thigh taped.
- Mono was set to the drawring at 1pm. We all know how that turned out. One funny moment: When it came time to draw her first round opponent, the tournament supervisor called out the number, and the supervisor in charge of matching the numbers to players said "Roger Federer." Mono giggled like a school girl and said "That would be perfect." She knows this isn't wasn't a drawing for Match.com, right?
- After the draw was done they opened up the floor for questions. "Any questions for Marion?" Crickets. Sorry. I just couldn't bring myself to ask her the burning question on everyone's mind: "So...what's your deal?"
- Went to lunch with Love All at Cheesecake Factory. Ironically, mind you. I can report with certainty that their "smaller" lunch portions are still larger than any dinner I have ever had.
- Came back on the grounds and was informed that I missed Dinara practicing next to Domi. Spent 30 minutes in the bathroom crying, obviously. But I must thank the kind gentleman who did a dramatic reenactment of Zeljko's behavior during the session. Let's just say it involved a lot of crossed-arms, standing akimbo, and stoicism, mixed with a touch of sneaky glances over at Dinara. SHE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU! Get over it!
- Sam was back on the practice courts so I stood and watched her entire practice session from ground level. Had a lovely chat with my new favorite Bank of the West Classic usher, Donald about life, love, and other mysteries.
- Once Sam was done it was pretty quiet on the grounds so I headed back to the media center. It's quite fun just sitting in there and talking to other journos and tournament people. I'm just not used to being surrounded by knowledgeable tennis people. It's fun to just pick up on little factoids and tidbits that you don't know. Quite intimidating as well. All I have to offer is, "Um...I want to have sex with Andy Murray." It's not really a conversation starter.
- Sat there and blogged for a bit, enjoying my free Sierra Mist, when Chris, who is blogging for On The Baseline this week, leaned forward and said the following magic words: "Sharapova's on Center." With those words we both quickly packed up our stuff and headed over. Sure enough, Masha was there. That was a nice coda to the day.
So Day 1 is in the books and it was a huge success. Mainly because I didn't make a fool of myself. Well, except for that whole Ana/Kleybs business.
Can't wait for tomorrow. More qualies, more practice, a Dinara/Jay-Z photo op on the Stanford Campus, and All-Access Hour.
Just a reminder, you can get my random musings in real time by following me on Twitter.
"You're so competitive. Relax."
Masha was all giggles and trashtalk during her practice session under the lights, which I totally called earlier in the day (she's playing a night match on Tuesday, figured she'd want to practice at night).
Imagine my surprise when I settled down into my seat and saw this familiar face. I almost didn't recognize him without his mandals. I see how it is Scotty, you're all about the mandals when you're training Ana but now that you've graduated to Masha you're all sleek and professional and shit.
Kidding. It was cool to see him.
Anywho, Masha practiced her serve and returns for a bit and then played a mini-game with Mike, who was rocking a pretty sexy back brace. What can I say? I like my men stiff.
The game involved one person at the net, the other at the baseline, no drop shots on the first volley, first to 12, and then switch. It was pretty fun to watch, mainly for the comedy that is Maria at the net:
And the trashtalking:
"Maria, the ball was THIS FAR OUT!"
"I hate losing to you."
"You're a little too competitive. Relax."
"Quit stalling, you're exhausted. Let's go."
"She cheats!"
"He's getting anxious..."
"It's the backbrace."
"You pulled that out of thin air."
"So much for covering the line."
"Covering the line, you weren't even covering the angle."
And the general giggles:
Obligatory Hot Chick Post.
Ana headed to her car. Which Heinz was driving. Was really hoping he'd screech up, open the door and yell "Come with me if you want to live!" Kid signed and posed for pictures with all the fans. She knows what's up.
Also? Asian people love Ana. Huh.
MaKiri warming up.
This vantage point isn't creepy at all.
Dani! Smiling! Happy!
That was it for today. Put it in your spank-bank, boys.
Hammer Time.
Sammy Stones took to the practice courts twice today, first with CanWoz and later hitting with her coach and Ana Ivanovic reject, David Taylor. I thought she looked great but she clearly didn't agree. She seemed frustrated throughout both sessions, peeved at her forehand and her serve.
Mere mortals would be perfectly happy owning a serve that made two large Evian bottles explode on court. But as we know, The Hammer of Thor is not a mere mortal. The Hammer expects nothing less than perfection. I mean, otherwise, what's the point of the forecep?
Sam practicing as Vika walks on by.
This is what it looks like to be Sam's hitting partner.
I could watch Sam practice all.day.long. Shit, that sounded really creepy. Whatever. It's total tennis porn.
Aga Radwanska: Friend To All. Except Shorts. She Hates Shorts.
Aga practiced with Papa Rad today, and once again, shorts cannot contain her awesomeness. Apparently. Like, really? Booty shorts are so restrictive you gotta hike em up? But that's why we love her. Also, she was looking a bit sunburnt. Or, as Love All remarked, "orange".
It's cute though that despite her perennial bitch-face ("Oh, that's just her face") that she seems to get alone with everyone on tour. Here she is chatting up Jay-Z. Prior to this she was chatting with Jay-Z's hitting partner, who may have Leticia, but I honestly can't be sure because as we all know, all Asians look alike. It could have been Ayumi Morita for all I know.
And here she is with BFF and doubles partner MaKiri.
Said Love All, "Hey, check out the Bobbsy Twins."
Indeed.
That Was Fun. And Then It Wasn't.
So the draw ceremony. Marion came in looking tan and fit and giggly. After drawing the top 8 seets, the press corp got to draw tokens to fill out the rest of the draw. I pulled twice.
Domi.
Ana.
So you can blame me for the Ana/Kleybs first rounder in the completely loaded Mono/Vika quarter. People in the press room who are familiar with FD either stifled a giggle or shot me a headshaking grin. My reputation precedes me.
Pretty crazy draw, actually. Sam should breeze into the quarters, where she's projected to play Wicky. The Mono/Vika draw is a tough one to call, but I'm going to tap Mono coming out of that. She just likes it here. My dark horse is MaKiri out of the Peer/ARad quarter. Wouldn't be surprised if Dani makes a run there, too if she can get past Shahar, who's got her right thigh taped up. As for the Russian quarter, I'm charting a Masha/Lena third rounder. But you gotta love the rematches there: Maria/Jay Z 1R, Dinara/Kimiko 1R, and potential Dinara/Lena 2R.
If I had to guess, I'd say a Sam/Maria final. Of course, that just might be my wishful thinking.
Will update with the draw when they release it. Until then, feel free to squint.
Touchdown.
And of course, my AnaDar is full effect. She was practicing with MaKiri alongside Dinara and Elena. It's weird to see her in colored shoes. Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, she was stinking up the court. Toss was all over the place, visibly frustrated. GOOD TIMES!
Headband!
Magenta-tastic!
Whee!
Ana and Makiri left the court and were replaced by...
And for the record, it ain't that hot out.
Hotness Takes A Hit. C Note Gets A Boner.
Sorry to 90% of the LA tennis fans, but Nole has withdrawn from LA for undisclosed personal reasons.
BUT! BUT! BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT!
Andy's in. My heart's aflutter.
Considering the crappy weather that's been interfering with his training in Miami, this seems a good move. I assure you won't get rained on in LA. Have fun at the Cheesecake Factory.
Oh, and Sod withdrew from Legg-Mason for personal reasons, too. That really has nothing to do with the theme of this post but it seems newsworthy.
July 23, 2010
No Bepa.
Via an email from the tournament, Bepa's withdrawn from Stanford with a right hammy injury. I guess I'll put my dogeared copy of "Understandings of Russian Foreign Policy" down. Bummer. It was just getting good!
"I'll Be In The Corner Crying."
Victoria sits this one out as the FD Podcast team attempts, like really really tries, to talk about the ATP. We talk Delpo, Serena's foot, buy/sell/hold prospects of the ATP top 15, and we chat about the US Open Series contenders.
How serious did we take this? We fact-checked. LIVE.
Just a reminder, you can download the podcast directly below (right-click save), listen to it on the page (just click the arrow), listen to it from the Forty Deuce Facebook Page, or subscribe to the podcast via iTunes (iTunes lists "0 items" but if you subscribe and then refresh your subscriptions, it'll download).
Portoroz: Where Dreams Meet, Fuck, and Make More Dreams.
Holy Ess. Chakky's into the semifinals in Portoroz after surviving a match point down to Dushevina. Meanwhile, Petko-hater Cone is into the semis in Bad Gastein. Did we go back in time? My head hurts and my flux capacitor is steaming.
I've said before and I'll say it again: Portoroz rules.
More pics here.
Pic This: How Dare You Photoshop The Forecep.
Even Sam's like "What the fuck'd you do to my arm???"
Thanks to @samstosurnews for tweeting.
It's Called Hotlanta For A Reason.
I cannot imagine playing in that Atlanta heat. The heat and humidity would render me a complete summer shut in. Then again, I'm a complete wuss. Summer in San Francisco means 64 degrees and partly cloudy.
A Rod was able to gut out a three set win over Ramjet Rajeev after dropping the second set in a poorly played tiebreaker. He also seems to have aged 10 years in the process. Yeesh.
B-Decks endured the disgusting heat to watch her man. That's love.
Making Love Out Of Nothing At All.
Gauloises has a good summary of the Delpo brouhaha that took place over Twitter yesterday.
Basically the story is this: Delpo confirmed via Twitter that he's planning on playing the Thailand Open, which is set for September 24. Ok, nice news but that's no big deal, right?
Well then the USTA released their "provisional entry list", lighted some fireworks, and went screaming naked down 5th Avenue that ZOMG!!! DELPO'S PLAYING THE US OPEN!!!
Now, it seems to me that anyone who's seasoned in the goings on of the tennis world would have just shrugged this news off. I mean, duh, he hasn't withdrawn from the USO. Ok. But that doesn't mean he's playing. So the news, well, isn't news at all. Everyone go about their business. Nothing to see here. Move along.
But no. That shit lit up the sports world. All of a sudden there were like, 15 articles in my Reader feed about how Elfie is planning to play the US Open. As if the fact that he's on the provisional list is news. That's like Montreal announcing "Maria Sharapova's playing our tournament!!!" Fucking, duh, it's a mandatory tournament, dingleberries. This isn't newsworthy.
Of course, the USTA smells blood in the water and starts running it's mouth. Not only is he confirmed for the USO, HE'S HITTING AGAIN! You know, because the first organization JMDP's gonna call when he swings a racquet is the USTA. And then other reporters were like, "Bitch, please. I talked to his camp and they say he isn't."
What the fuck ever. The upshot: No one knows when Delpo's coming back. So...nothing's changed. But he tweeted. So don't worry, you guys. He's still alive.
July 22, 2010
Bad, Gastein. Bad.
See, this is why you can't have nice things, Bad Gastein.
Kudos for all the ladies for being game.
You are so not in the trust tree right now, Cone. I can't even look at you.
Deeeeeam, girl. Self tanner!
These are tennis players. I think.
That's either Kader Nouni or Apolo Anton Ohno.
Or Prince Gerhard Messerschmidt Rammstein von Haupt.
See the full gallery here.
Turn and Burn.
Here I was, all ready to anoint JJ the frontrunner for the USO Series. And then she goes and turns her ankle in Portoroz against Yakimova. The good news is that after turning the ankle she was able to hobble around and play on it for a bit before finally retiring. What I'm saying is that it's no Bepa in Charleston situation.
So...silver lining. See you in San Diego, JJ. I'll be the one not holding that sign.
July 21, 2010
Geez, Nike. Why Didn't You Just Use Penrose Stairs And Be Done With It?
Halpert wore that eyesore of a shirt and gave the fans in Atlanta what they wanted: A go-the-distance three set win over Gilles Muller.
So is Gael going to wear the sleeveless version of that thing? With all of his deking and jooking I'm going to need to take some Dramamine to get through a set of his matches.
Four Americans won in Atlanta today (Halpert, Mardy, Dent, Ginepri). God Bless America, and the like.
Crowdsourcing. Because I'm Lazy.
Alright guys, here's your chance. I want to try to give you what you want. So here we go.
What questions do you want me to ask the players at Stanford. And I'm actually being serious here.
No, Curtis, I won't be asking Ana if she'll marry you.
I'll be attending the All-Access hour with Sam, Lena, Bepa, and A-Rad on Sunday. I'll also be around for pressers and may get a chance to request one-on-one interviews with some of the players. I'll also put some calls out on Twitter as the tournament progresses.
Let's use our powers for good, this time. Leave your suggestions in the comments or feel free to email them to me.
Pic This: Beached Bull.
Rafa goes shirtless and shows off his Abercrombie hips.
Thanks, Rafa. You're the best.
More pics here.
24601
Interesting article on J-Cap with lots of quotage from Chrissie, Pam, and Gimeldouche. I'm not even going attempt to both psychoanalyze her or sketch out what I think she needs to do get back on track. That would be completely uncalled for and atrociously arrogant. All I will say is this: It would be a tremendous act of luck if she had endured the career that she had and came out "normal". I mean, it's nice that Chris Evert acknowledges that she let her down, but that apology and $.25 will get you a gumball.
J-Cap has always been a fighter. I hope she's able to channel that tenacity positively. Because from personal experience I know that life pretty much blows when you spend all your energy fighting yourself and everyone else. Best of luck to her. It ain't easy and it ain't an overnight process.
Blah Keeps Blahing, And Other Things I Have No Interest In.
The James Blake Pre-Retirement tour continues. Lost to Dent in three.
And Andy and Sunburst beat Tey-Tey and friends.
Movingrightalong.
