Forty Deuce

You Can't Be The Last Man Standing If You Can't Stand.

Jo was forced to retire down 2-5 in the first set to Mischa, due to a hip injury.  He'll get an MRI in the next few days to figure out what the deal is but early word is that it may be lesions in his hip. 

Quarterfinals?  You don't say.

Compete.

Congrats, Justine.  You flat out won that one.  Well earned.  Or whatever classy fans are supposed to say when they're favorites get beat.

But thanks, Maria, for reminding me why I'm a fan.  Yes, everyone will point to the fact that Masha had triple break point to go up a a double break.  But other than that one shot that clipped the tape, Justine dug herself out of that game more than Masha choked it.  And it's a credit to Masha that even until the last point, I genuinely believed she could pull it out.  Why?  Because I believed that *she* believed she could.

If Maria plays this game across the channel in a few weeks, look out.  And I almost pray that these two meet again in London.  If Justine's going to ruin Masha's chances at a career Slam, I sure as hell hope Masha ruins hers.

As per usual, Steve Tignor eloquently says what I'd want to say about this match.  Fight on, Masha.

"This is what you do at the player party in Dubai."

Holy crap, we actually kept a promise.  On this week's podcast the FD Podcast Team recaps the first week of Roland Garros, fawn inappropriately over Andrea Petkovic, unanimously agree on the worst match of the week (guess...), and vent about Gael Monfils.

And we talk about how repulsively obese Dinara is.

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).

FD Podcast #18_ Sleepytime in the Western World 05_30_10

Eurovision + Tennis = Sveta Rapping In Russian Wearing A Hoodie.

Let's be real, you guys. That German song was ass.

RG Day 8 OOP

Davai! Forza! C'mon, Tim!

Well at this point every match on the schedule is a must see.  Even Lena vs. Scheepers.  Because for all we know, Lena might have to wheel herself out in a wheelchair.

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 Start Time
1. Women’s Singles – Fourth Round
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. Chanelle Scheepers (RSA)
Not Before 12:00
2. Women’s Singles – Third Round -- To Finish 2-6 6-3
Maria Sharapova (RUS)[12] v. Justine Henin (BEL)[22]
3. Women’s Singles – Fourth Round
Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19] v. Venus Williams (USA)[2]
4. Men’s Singles – Fourth Round
Roger Federer (SUI)[1] v. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)[20]
5. Men’s Singles – Fourth Round
Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[11] v. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[8]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 Start Time
1. Women’s Singles – Fourth Round
Maria Kirilenko (RUS)[30] v. Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[17]
2. Women’s Singles – Fourth Round
Flavia Pennetta (ITA)[14] v. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[3]
3. Men’s Singles – Fourth Round
Marin Cilic (CRO)[10] v. Robin Soderling (SWE)[5]
4. Men’s Singles – Fourth Round
Andy Murray (GBR)[4] v. Tomas Berdych (CZE)[15]

RG Day 7 Results

Suspended due to darkness
(12) Maria Sharapova (RUS) vs. (22) Justine Henin (BEL) 26 63

Women's Singles - Third Round
(1) Serena Williams (USA) d. (29) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) 61 16 62
(4) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) d. (27) Alona Bondarenko (UKR) 64 76(3)
(7) Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. (Q) Anastasia Pivovarova (RUS) 63 62
(18) Shahar Peer (ISR) d. (13) Marion Bartoli (FRA) 76(7) 62
(19) Nadia Petrova (RUS) d. (15) Aravane Rezai (FRA) 67(2) 64 108
(23) Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) d. (16) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) 75 63
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) d. (28) Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) 62 46 60
(WC) Jarmila Groth (AUS) d. Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) 63 57 62

Women's Doubles - Second Round
(1) Williams/Williams (USA/USA) d. Hantuchova/Wozniacki (SVK/DEN) w/o (right shoulder injury)
(2) Llagostera Vives/Martínez Sánchez (ESP/ESP) d. Jurak/Martic (CRO/CRO) 62 63
(5) Dulko/Pennetta (ARG/ITA) d. Brianti/Dulgheru (ITA/ROU) 75 76(2)
(9) Mattek-Sands/Yan (USA/CHN) d. Errani/Vinci (ITA/ITA) 64 75
(11) Kirilenko/Radwanska (RUS/POL) d. Kvitova/Voegele (CZE/SUI) 61 57 63
(13) Benesova/Zahlavova Strycova (CZE/CZE) d. Safarova/Wozniak (CZE/CAN) 61 61
(16) Hlavackova/Hradecka (CZE/CZE) d. Cibulkova/Goerges (SVK/GER) 62 67(8) 60

Men's Singles - Third Round
[2] R Nadal (ESP) d [28] L Hewitt (AUS) 63 64 63
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) d [31] V Hanescu (ROU) 63 36 63 62
T Gabashvili (RUS) d [6] A Roddick (USA) 64 64 62
[7] F Verdasco (ESP) d [30] P Kohlschreiber (GER) 26 63 63 67(1) 64
[22] J Melzer (AUT) d [9] D Ferrer (ESP) 64 60 76(1)
[11] M Youzhny (RUS) d V Troicki (SRB) 26 76(4) 62 63
[24] T Bellucci (BRA) d [14] I Ljubicic (CRO) 76(4) 62 64
R Ginepri (USA) d [16] J Ferrero (ESP) 75 63 36 26 64 
[19] N Almagro (ESP) d O Dolgopolov Jr (UKR) 63 63 64

Men's Doubles - Second Round
M Melo (BRA) / B Soares (BRA) d [1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) 63 76(6) 
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d S Greul (GER) / P Luczak (AUS) 61 64
[3] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) d Y Allegro (SUI) / A Beck (GER) 64 36 63
[4] W Moodie (RSA) / D Norman (BEL) d G Garcia-Lopez (ESP) / A Montanes (ESP) 63 63
M Lopez (ESP) / P Riba (ESP) d [5] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Mirnyi (BLR) 64 76(4)
[9] F Cermak (CZE) / M Mertinak (SVK) d S Stakhovsky (UKR) / M Youzhy (RUS) 63 62
[10] J Knowle (AUT) / A Ram (ISR) d G Monfils (FRA) / J Ouanna (FRA) 63 76(4)
G Rufin (FRA) / A Sidorenko (FRA) d [13] M Fish / M Knowles (BAH) 06 62 61
T Ascione (FRA) / L Recouderc (FRA) d A Golubev (KAZ) / P Lorenzi (ITA) 46 63 64
N Almagro (ESP) / S Ventura (ESP) d M Gicquel (FRA) / E Roger-Vasselin (FRA) 61 76(4)
S Gonzalez (MEX) / T RettenMayer (USA) d V Troicki (SRB) / D Vemic (SRB) 46 75 64
S Huss (AUS) / A Sa (BRA) d J Erlich (ISR) / D Sela (ISR) 64 64 

Men's Doubles - First Round
[6] L Kubot (POL) / O Marach (AUT) d T de Bakker (NED) / R Wassen (NED) 64 63
R Bopanna (IND) / A Qureshi (PAK) d F Fognini (ITA) / M Russell (USA) 62 63
 

Well How 'Bout That.

Justine hadn't lost a set at Roland Garros since 2005.  That's 40 straight sets.  Somehow, inexplicably really, Masha broke that streak on a cold, wet, dark evening.  For all the upsets on the men's side today, this actually might be the most shocking development of the day.

It's a shame the match had to be called for light.  Masha was hitting out, Justine lost all rhythm on her forehand, and the momentum was clearly on the Screamer's side.  I was a little surprised that Mike Joyce wanted the match suspended after Maria won that second set.  They could have gone for another 10-15 minutes and given their respective forms, Maria could have gone into tomorrow with a break lead in the last set.  But no matter.

One set for the fourth round.  I think Justine will come out having righted her shambolic groundies and getting her gameplan back together.  To top it all off, it's forecasted to rain all day tomorrow so if they do take the court, the conditions could be even slower.  I reluctantly have to tip it to Justine.  But this was a great set of tennis for Maria.  Davai!

Something In The Air...

Q: Did you think at one stage that she might quit the match?

ANASTASIA PAVYLUCHENKOVA: No, I mean, I really wished so. I was like, Please. No, I'm just kidding, of course.

Oh, Pavs.

Serena was absolutely lights out in the first set, winning easily at 61 and playing in a T-Gab like zone.  But she got woozy in the second set and had to call the trainer, who took her temperature and checked her pulse.  She complained of dizziness, took a pill, lost the second set 16, and then came back to take the third 62.  Serena said after the match the doctor said a bug was going around and that she needed to eat and rest to avoid getting a cold.

Stress if if you're a ReRe fan.  Just as she was hitting her stride she hits this bump in the road.  The next bump in the road?  Shahar.

Air Quotes: Rafa Will Not Play Your Little Game.

Q. I have a different question for you. Everyone in tennis loves Roger, respects Roger. He is said to be the best of all time. Yet two out of every three times you play him, you win. You've won six of the last seven times. Who's a better player?
RAFAEL NADAL: You like this. You are focused on the Roger thing, eh? (laughter.)
Yesterday with the clay. Today with the if somebody says I am better than Roger, I think this person don't know nothing about tennis. That's my answer.

Q. How so?
RAFAEL NADAL: Why?

Q. Yeah.
RAFAEL NADAL: So you don't know nothing about tennis.
You see the titles of him and you see the titles of me? It's no comparison. So that's the answer. Is difficult to compare Roger with me now, because he has 16 Grand Slams; I have 6. Masters 1000, yeah, I have more than him. But for the rest of the things the records of Roger is very, very almost impossible to improve.

Q. The question is: Still, for the fans, it is interesting when you step on the court with him, you usually win.
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I am No. 2 in the world for five years, so I think I am a good player, too. Sure, I can beat him. No. 2 can beat No. 1. That's the thing. It's not a lot of difference between No. 2 and No. 1 or between No. 1 and No. 10. That's the tennis, and the tennis very close, the level, all the time.
But I can beat him, yes. The same time, the thing is I beat him a lot of times on clay. I beat him on other surfaces, too. But the most of the times I beat him on clay, so I played with him more times on clay than on the rest of the surfaces.

Nutella Crepes, Breakfast of Fourth Rounders.

Q. You've lost four times against her. Would you say that she has a difficult game for you?
YANINA WICKMAYER: No, not really.

Q. Isn't she a player you wish you can avoid in the draw, for instance?
YANINA WICKMAYER: No, not really.

Q. Nothing which is disturbing you in her game?
YANINA WICKMAYER: No.

Ooookay.

Congrats to Dani!  She's quietly made it into the 4th Round, beating Wicky in straight sets.  She'll play JJ next, which is kind of funny because apparently, Dani's packing on the muscle with the architect of JJ discontent, Pat Etcheberry:

Q. You played very well, and I'm very happy for you. How can you explain this moment of your career? You are coming back so good. What do you change in your something, I don't know, in technical things, in your mind, in your physical, in what?
DANIELA HANTUCHOVA: Thank you. I think it's because the motivation is a still so big for me. There are still so many goals that I haven't achieved, and I'm doing anything I can to be able to get them one day.
I'm working hard on and off the court, especially fitness wise. I've been working with Pat Etcheberry. It's been a great success for me being able to have him on the team.
I think that transforms to the tennis court as well. I'm more confident and I know I can last in the long points. Yeah, I feel like I'm doing the right things.

Q. It looks like with your arms that you put a lot of muscle on. Can you talk about some of the things that you've been doing?
DANIELA HANTUCHOVA: Yeah, we're doing a lot of strength work basically almost every day, even during the tournaments. It just gives me so much confidence, not only physically, but mentally too, that I know I'm working harder probably than anybody.
When it's important times in the points, in the matches, you remember those things you do outside the court. That definitely transfers to the court as well.

Q. So movement wise do you feel faster than you've been?
DANIELA HANTUCHOVA: Yeah, definitely. I think it comes hand in hand with being stronger. You automatically gonna feel also faster as well. I think that's what's helping me a lot, that in the points I don't rush anymore going for the winners like before, and being able to cut unforced errors because of that, because I know that I can lat in the points and I don't have to rush for the big shots.

Buff!  Ish.

"Oh my God, so slow."

No introduction necessary. He seems so relaxed and...happy. And still in need of therapy. Boy and his sister have some parental issues.

Take It To The Parking Lot, Ladies.

Au revoir.

After Nads took care of Rezai in like, 15 minutes, Mono became the last French woman standing.  Shahar put an end to that.  You have to love Shahar.  Not only is she a no-nonsense professional in how she approaches the game but she always brings the fight.  She may get outplayed or fail to execute, but you know she's always fired up and bringing it.  And I'm pretty sure I'd pick her to have my back if I ever got into a back alley brawl.  You do *not* fuck with the Mossad.  All that is to say, regardless of her results, it's really easy to be a Peer fan.

Especially when Tennis Channel airs shit like this:

Good on you, girl. She's had a great season and is into the fourth round to face Serena. That one could be very interesting depending on how Serena's feeling (word is she's coming down with something).

ArmaDuh 2.0

A really rough day for the Armada, as JCF lost in five to Robbie "Wait, You're American?" Ginepri, and Daveed bounced in straights by DoucheStamp, who makes the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time of his 10-year career.  And Fernando was pushed to five sets for four hours by PEHK. 

I mean...JCF and Daveed are out?  OUT??? 

But...WHY???

A-Rod must be ordering a hit at T-Gabs seeing a how his portion of the draw just got ridiculously cake.

Pic This: Bye, Bros.

This picture is your parting gift.  And for that, I say thanks.

Air Quotes: Insane In the Membrane

Q. You have the reputation to be a little bit crazy. Does that bother you, or...
TEIMURAZ GABASHVILI: No, I like it. Why not? If nobody say nothing against me, it's bad. If somebody say against me, they very interested in me, so I like it.

Q. So it's true?
TEIMURAZ GABASHVILI: Yes, it's true.

Q. For those of us who don't know you, congratulations, first of all. What is the cause of this crazy reputation?
TEIMURAZ GABASHVILI: Thank you. I'm really aggressive. I was born in Georgia, so I have south blood mixed with north. They say it's very aggressive blood. Sometimes I go out of my mind even in the match, start screaming, you know, up and down always.

This my biggest problem, you know. That's why I know I can play very well tennis, but it was bothering me, you know. So maybe I was winning 3 1, and then it depends. I miss one crazy shot, Oh, shit. Then I lose it. That's why they call me crazy because of this.

Q. Have you ever been defaulted from a match for your behavior?
TEIMURAZ GABASHVILI: No, no, no. I don't behave bad. I mean crazy in the game, you know. Crazy way I play, not how I behave. I behave good. No, don't worry.

Q. Do you take advice from Marat Safin? Because you play a lot like him.
TEIMURAZ GABASHVILI: Oh, really? I didn't serve that much aces like him, no? I didn't make that much backhand winners like him, no?

I don't know. He had one of the best games if he was fit, you know. So it's very flattering to him. I wish to play like him, but I don't know. Not yet.

GabbaGabbaHey!

 

Oompa Loompa Doopity Do
I have another puzzle for you
Oompa Loompa Doopitee Dee
If you are wise you'll listen to me

What do you do if you can't play on clay
Try every year and pretend that you may
American hope as the others all flee
You will go down to Gabashvili

He's a fucking qualifier.

Hee.  That was fun.  Sometimes you just have to amuse yourself.  I amuse myself by eating Twinkies at 5am and writing juvenile song parodies.  Teimuraz Gabashvili (ranked #114) amuses himself by qualifying for a Slam, completely zoning out and making Andy Roddick look like a chump on clay (64 64 62), and progressing to the fourth round of Roland Garros.  

I didn't see much of this match but from what I did see, YoGabbaGabba was off the chain and Andy just couldn't find the court or get any rhythm.  Gabs plays a hard hitting, low margin game, which really shouldn't work over the course of two sets let alone three (his match record for the year: 1-6).  But today it worked and the cold weather didn't help Andy either.

But super duper congrats to T-Gabs!  He seems like a genuinely nice guy and his celebration was adorable.

"Monica Bellucci. Because she's beautiful."

Before you leave to sit in Memorial Day traffic, please go here and watch the "And the Oscar goes to" and "In the locker room" vidoes on the RG site.  Fuckin' hilarious, adorable, cringeworthy, and awesome.

RG Day 6 Results

Man.  That's one fired up Croat.

Suspended due to darkness
(15) Aravane Rezai (FRA) vs. (19) Nadia Petrova (RUS) 76(2) 46 77
[11] M Youzhny (RUS) leads V Troicki (SRB) 26 76(4) 62 31

Women's Singles - Third Round
(2) Venus Williams (USA) d. (26) Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) 63 64
(3) Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) d. (31) Alexandra Dulgheru (ROU) 63 64
(5) Elena Dementieva (RUS) d. Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) 67(2) 63 64
(30) Maria Kirilenko (RUS) d. (6) Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 63 26 64
(17) Francesca Schiavone (ITA) d. (11) Li Na (CHN) 64 62
(14) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. Polona Hercog (SLO) 63 60
(Q) Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) d. Akgul Amanmuradova (UZB) 63 63

Women's Singles - Second Round
(1) Serena Williams (USA) d. Julia Goerges (GER) 61 61
(7) Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. Rossana de los Ríos (PAR) 46 61 60
(12) Maria Sharapova (RUS) d. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) 63 63
(13) Marion Bartoli (FRA) d. (WC) Olivia Sanchez (FRA) 75 62
(16) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Sybille Bammer (AUT) 76(4) 16 75
(22) Justine Henin (BEL) d. Klara Zakopalova (CZE) 63 63
(23) Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) d. Olga Govortsova (BLR) 75 63
(Q) Anastasia Pivovarova (RUS) d. (25) Zheng Jie (CHN) 64 63
(29) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) d. Jill Craybas (USA) 64 61

RG Day 7 OOP

Can't wait to see how NBC fucks up this weekend's coverage.  At least I know they love Masha.

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 Start Time

1. Women's Singles - Third Round
Serena Williams (USA)[1] v. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS)[29]
Not Before 12:00
2. Women's Singles - Third Round - To Finish 7-6(2) 4-6 7-7
Aravane Rezai (FRA)[15] v. Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19]
3. Men's Singles - Third Round
Victor Hanescu (ROU)[31] v. Novak Djokovic (SRB)[3]
4. Men's Singles - Third Round
Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)[28] v. Rafael Nadal (ESP)[2]
5. Women's Singles - Third Round
Maria Sharapova (RUS)[12] v. Justine Henin (BEL)[22]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Third Round
Andy Roddick (USA)[6] v. Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS)
2. Women's Singles - Third Round
Shahar Peer (ISR)[18] v. Marion Bartoli (FRA)[13]
3. Men's Singles - Third Round
Fernando Verdasco (ESP)[7] v. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER)[30]
4. Women's Singles - Third Round
Jelena Jankovic (SRB)[4] v. Alona Bondarenko (UKR)[27]

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Third Round
Jarmila Groth (AUS) v. Anastasia Rodionova (AUS)
2. Men's Singles - Third Round
Jurgen Melzer (AUT)[22] v. David Ferrer (ESP)[9]
3. Men's Singles - Third Round
Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)[16] v. Robby Ginepri (USA)
4. Women's Singles - Third Round
Anastasia Pivovarova (RUS) v. Samantha Stosur (AUS)[7]

No, Justine, That Happened.

Q. I remember you talking about Australia, about the last time you had played Maria, which was Australian Open. That was one of the matches when you knew maybe you don't have the motivation to continue anymore. So can you talk about your form now and how you're feeling now versus that time?

JUSTINE HENIN: Yeah, it seems so far away. I mean, even seems like it never existed, that moment.

Q. Justine said that the match you played in Australia seems very distant to her, very far away. Obviously she retired and came back since then. A lot has happened to you, as well. You've had some involuntary time off. Does it also seem distant to you, that whole Australian Open run?

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Actually feels like we never left, or it was just yesterday. (laughter.)

This is easily THE match of the tournament for me.  It's the one that I wanted to see the minute I saw the draw.  I'm fairly sure that Justine will take it straight sets but no one brings out the competitive intensity out of Maria like Justine.  They both want to make a statement here.  

The pressure is all on Justine here so you know Masha will come out and swing freely and swing big and look to crush Justine's serve.  Justine, if she's smart, will play the angles and yank Masha around like a yo-yo.  If she's stupid then she'll try and outhit Masha, just like she tried to outhit Serena in Australia.  I think this match will be a really good barometer as to whether Justine intends to play her classic clay-court game here at RG, or whether she plans to be Kamikaze JuJu, aka, Justine 2.0.

Bring it, Short Round.

Air Quotes: Masha 1, Bud Collins 0.

Q. It was a very attractive outfit you wore today.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: It was the same as the other day.

Q. Well, I didn't watch you the other day.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Oh, come on, Bud.

Limpin' Lena

Lena survives to play another day, fighting through injury to advance with a 67(2) 63 64 win over CanWoz.  Lena called for the trainer in the first set and was clearly struggling with her legs. 

There was a lot of relief from Lena at the end of the match.  Hard to know whether she has enough in the tank to get through the rest of the tournament.

To Be Continued...

Play suspended at 7-7 in the 3rd, with both players blowing three match points each.  Nads double-faulted on one of hers so I'm going to go ahead and give the edge to WeatherVane when they resume tomorrow. 

This match was apparently nutty.  I say "apparently" because ESPN2 refused to air this match live (preferring to show Venus and Fed from earlier in the day) and I'm still waiting to see if they'll show it at all.  But from the pics, it looks like it played out exactly how you think it would:

 

 

And occasionally, they hit tennis balls.  Should be a fun finish.

 

Pic This: The Pains of Being Pretty at Heart.

Oh, hello, BEST PICTURE OF RAFA EVER.

Bye Bye Gonzo

Ok, I'm just gonna say it.  Alexsander Dogopolov Jr., who ousted Gonzo today, is the ATP version of Agkul.  Boom.

Scalped.

Going into a Slam there are very few certainties on the WTA side.  But one of those certainties for 2010 is this: If you're a Russian contender you do not want to face Maria Kirilenko in the early rounds.  The woman is is absolute nails and she has no problem kicking her compatriots out of the tournament. 

In fact, I think she kinda likes it.

While some had Kei/Nole or Domi/Venus as the potential upsets of the day, I had MaKiri/Sveta.  I just can't bet against Li'l Masha in the early rounds.  And she delivered, holding her nerve and stepping up just like she did against Pova in Australia to oust the defending champ, 63 26 64.

Not even the power of Momo's scrunchie could save Sveta today. 

See you on Twitter!

Nole: Shaky On Court, Nails It Off Court

Nole got through in straights over Project 45, but he's still not playing in any form that gives anyone confidence.  He was breathing heavily in that last set and his serve is still giving everyone palpitations.  

But, as usual, he was awesome in his presser:

Q. How much did you enjoy your karaoke with your buddy? I was wondering who came up with that idea to sing like a gypsy?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Gypsy. Oh, my God. I’ve seen it. My brother sent me. I’ve seen it last night, or it was this morning before the match. It make me relax a little bit. You know, I was nervous before the match, and then I was laughing unbelievable for two minutes.

What we have done? It’s just crazy. Sometimes I’m not aware of the things that I’m doing. I think you have to ask Troicki, as well, my partner in that video.

We are very proud. I haven’t spoken to Nadal still what he thinks about it. I think he would be proud of my performance of Shakira. I really put a lot of energy and effort into that. I’ve tried to, you know, impress my partner who was sitting on the chair and playing a little guitar. I was shaking whatever I had in there.

Yeah, it was fun.

Q. I just want to know, what do you need to do after a long match on the clay to take care of your body? I mean, maybe with your physio or…

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I prefer woman, but unfortunately I have to stay with physio (laughter) for two hours. 

"When you go on the court you know you can lose, you can win, and you have to accept both things."

Great interview by Chris Fowler. Love the parallels between Rafa's perspective on his own game and how that reflects on his views of Spain's chances at the World Cup.

"We have to be humble. The players, sure, are humble, but the crowds, too. We have to know how difficult it is to win this trophy."

So you don't view it as anything less than a World Cup title is a disappointment?

"For me, no. Because I see how difficult it is to win this title. The important thing I think is play well, play to have a good three matches in the group, be there, and later we have a good potential to win. But, remains a lot."

The kid is just amazing.

Drop 'em

Nice article in the NY Times about the increased use of the drop shot on clay.  Nice quotes from a bunch of players.

Fernando Wants To Be In The Hole.

FeVer talks non-American football. 

And something about holes, feeding things, being behind, I don't know. 

I got distracted and confused.

Dude has a potentially tricky match tomorrow against Frenchie Florent Serra.  As some know, Fer got into a little dust-up with the French crowd during the Nice final, yelling some things he probably should not have been yelling.  Basically he lost his cool and popped off at the probably very rude crowd.  Understandable?  Yes.  Entertaining?  Yes.  Defensible? Nope.

So of course, the FFT has scheduled his match in the ever so intimate Bullring.  We all know Fer will be on lockdown.  But what of the French?

Shit Just Got Awkward.

So...who wants to break the news?

You Like Tennis? ME TOO!

Awesome stuff once against from Steve Tignor, who writes a piece on what it's like to watch matches courtside in the Bullring.  Not only does he do a fantastic job transporting you there, but he adds some interesting insight into the two matches he watched: Sveta vs. Petko and Muzz vs. Chela:

What was the difference watching this match from here instead of on TV? From my pressroom monitor, errors appeared to have been produced by mental lapses or stupid risks. “How could Petkovic hit that into the net? She must be choking. Kuzzie, will you ever learn?” But when you get on the court, you can see that while there are pointless misses, the majority of them come because each player feels that she must live with a certain amount risk in her game—Petkovic aims for the baseline; Kuznetsova swings from the heels—because if they play it safe, they’re going to get killed on the next ball. Women’s tennis 2010: Don’t call it a bash fest; call it an arms race. For better and worse, hitting the hell out of the ball is playing percentage tennis. Only seeing it up close, closing the distance between yourself and the players, will let you appreciate this. Stylistic variety? That's an aesthetic element of the sport which is emphasized by the colder, distanced view of the TV camera. Here you feel the sparks of the athletic combat that goes on beneath.

...

From an emotional standpoint, you might see Murray as a whiner, a guy who’s always got some niggling complaint about something. Up close you can hear him mumble to himself, take deep breaths, get annoyed at an invisible person in the audience. Taken together, these little tics and gestures begin to seem like Murray’s method of competing, of bracing himself, bit by bit, moment by moment, for the psychological strains of a match. It’s the pep talk of a fundamentally pessimistic person, and it doesn’t look like an easy act to pull off. When Murray tells the crowd to shut up a few inches from me, it isn’t anger that I see in his face. It’s embarrassment over his missed shot, over his small failure. Every tennis match is a performance where flubbed lines are a given. But that doesn't make flubbing a shot in public any easier.

Read the whole piece.  It's fantastic.  What I love about Steve's writing, aside from his eloquence, is the clear passion for the game.  A lot of tennis writers, I won't name names, sound like writing about tennis is a chore, an annoyance, a thorn in their side.  You finish reading their pieces and regardless of the quality of their analysis (to the extent there is *any* analysis at all) you don't feel like they even enjoy the sport they cover.  I never get that sense with Tignor's writing, which is why I always look forward to reading whatever he posts. 

RG Day 6 OOP: Time For A Rain Dance

I'll be shocked if they get through this OOP.  Shocked.  Please let the Moose/Marcos match get pushed to Saturday.  That should be a good match and it would be better match if they both got an extra day's rest after having to play today.  And look out for Isner/Tomas, a rematch of their World Team Cup match that Halpert lost by the narrowest of tiebreak margins.

Court Philippe Chatrier – 11:00 Start
Men’s Singles – Second Round
Horacio Zeballos(ARG) vs. Rafael Nadal(ESP)[2]
Not Before 12:00
Women’s Singles – Second Round
Justine Henin(BEL)[22] vs. Klara Zakopalova(CZE) To Finish 6-3 3-2
Women’s Singles – Third Round
Dominika Cibulkova(SVK)[26] vs. Venus Williams(USA)[2]
Men’s Singles – Third Round
Thiemo De Bakker(NED) vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga(FRA)[8]
Women’s Singles – Third Round
Aravane Rezai(FRA)[15] vs. Nadia Petrova(RUS)[19]

Court Suzanne Lenglen – 11:00 Start
Women’s Singles – Second Round
Serena Williams(USA)[1] vs. Julia Goerges(GER)
Not Before 12:00
Women’s Singles – Second Round
Olivia Sanchez(FRA) vs. Marion Bartoli(FRA)[13] To Finish 5-4
Men’s Singles – Third Round
Roger Federer(SUI)[1] vs. Julian Reister(GER)
Men’s Singles – Third Round
Andy Murray(GBR)[4] vs. Marcos Baghdatis(CYP)[25]
Women’s Singles – Third Round
Elena Dementieva(RUS)[5] vs. Aleksandra Wozniak(CAN)

Court 1 – Start at 11:00
Men’s Singles – Second Round
Kei Nishikori(JPN) vs. Novak Djokovic(SRB)[3]
Men’s Singles – Second Round
Fernando Verdasco(ESP)[7] vs. Florent Serra(FRA)
Women’s Singles – Third Round
Caroline Wozniacki(DEN)[3] vs. Alexandra Dulgheru(ROU)[31]
Women’s Singles – Third Round
Svetlana Kuznetsova(RUS)[6] vs. Maria Kirilenko(RUS)[30]

RG Day 5 Results

Play did not get underway until about 3:30pm local time, meaning a number of "second on" matches were suspended and a crapload were pushed off, including Rafa, Nole, FeVer, and Serena.  The tournament will now have to try and play catch-up in the face of weather that, immediately, isn't looking so sunny.  The good news?  The delays are surely helping any player who had to finish their second round matches today *cough*Andy*cough*Halpert*cough*. The impacted schedule could push their matches off a day to give them some extra rest.

Matches suspended due to darkness

(12) Maria Sharapova (RUS) vs. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) 63 22
(WC) Olivia Sanchez (FRA) vs. (13) Marion Bartoli (FRA) 54
(22) Justine Henin (BEL) vs. Klara Zakopalova (CZE) 63 32
P Andujar (ESP) level with [24] T Bellucci (BRA) 61 36
[14] I Ljubicic (CRO) level with M Fish (USA) 62 67(8)

Men's Singles - Second Round 
[4] A Murray (GBR) d J Chela (ARG) 62 67(5) 63 62
[6] A Roddick (USA) d B Kavcic (SLO) 63 57 64 62
F Fognini (ITA) d [13] G Monfils (FRA) 26 46 75 64 97
[17] J Isner (USA) d M Chuidinelli (SUI) 67(3) 76(3) 76(7) 64
[25] M Baghdatis (CYP) d M Granollers (ESP) 46 61 75 62
T Gabashvili (RUS) d G Zemlja (SLO) 63 61 61

Men's Doubles - First Round
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) d J Hajek (CZE) / L Lacko (SVK) 63 61
[3] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) d J Brunstrom (SWE) / J Rojer (AHO) 63 67(6) 75
[15] J Benneteau (FRA) / M Llodra (FRA) d L Friedl (CZE) / D Skoch (CZE) 75 62
S Stakhovsky (UKR) / M Youzhny (RUS) d D Marrero (ESP) / S Robert (FRA) 36 76(5) 64 
T Ascione (FRA) / L Recouderc (FRA) d J Delgado (GBR) / E Korolev (KAZ) 63 75  

Women's Singles - Second Round

(4) Jelena Jankovic (SRB) d. (Q) Kaia Kanepi (EST) 62 36 64
(5) Elena Dementieva (RUS) d. Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) 62 76(3)
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) d. (8) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) 75 63
(11) Li Na (CHN) d. (WC) Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro (FRA) 62 62 
(17) Francesca Schiavone (ITA) d. (Q) Sophie Ferguson (AUS) 62 62
(18) Shahar Peer (ISR) d. (LL) Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) 36 60 61
Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) d. (21) Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 64 64
(28) Alisa Kleybanova (RUS) d. Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 63 60
Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) d. (32) Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) 64 61
(WC) Jarmila Groth (AUS) d. Kimiko Date Krumm (JPN) 60 63

Women's Doubles - Second Round
(7) Raymond/Stubbs (USA/AUS) d. Cornet/Rezai (FRA/FRA) 62 62

Air Quotes: Just Because You *Are* a Character, Doesn't Mean You *Have* Character.

God bless the journo who asked about Pump-Gate.  That said, I felt bad for Ana.  She clearly tried to duck the question.  But not without getting in a zinger...

Ana was all...

Q. This is going back a little bit, but you lost to Jelena in Madrid. I was wondering when you heard about that fist pump imitation she did after the match and just what your reaction was.

ANA IVANOVIC: You know, it's very, very hard for me to comment on that, you know. You know how they say: Sport doesn't build character. It shows it.

Yeah, it's very hard for me to say.

---

And then JJ was all...

Q. So apparently Ana was talking about what happened in Madrid after the match with you and the fist pump. You want to talk about, you know, your version of that? I know it was a big win for you, but why you decided...

JELENA JANKOVIC: What was her version?

Q. Well, she basically said that, you know, sports reveals character. That's what she was saying.

JELENA JANKOVIC: For me, you know, I don't need really to comment on that, you know. I don't think it's a right time to comment on this kind of thing.

But for me, as a player, it's ‑‑ every player has their way of, you know, motivating themselves and pumping themselves up, you know, if you win a point or you didn't win a point. But I don't think it's nice to put it, you know, the fist in their face. That's what can be a little irritating. That's the only ‑‑ but all the players, they do, you know, different kind of gestures, you know, with their hands.

But, you know, it's a little bit ‑‑ when you do that in the player's face, and especially after not winning a point after your opponent missed an easy ball, I don't think it's ‑‑ I don't think that's fair play.

That's just my opinion, and that's what I, as a player, don't like to do to other players. If I'm ‑‑ if I win a point or something, I do it, but I don't go like that in your face (holds up fist). That was only ‑‑ and especially when it comes to maybe me and Ana, we are two girls from the same country, and it's nice to have a nice relationship and play a normal match. Somebody has to win, and that's normal.

We're both professionals. We want to do our best on the court, and I think we should play fair. That's just my opinion. I have nothing, you know, against her or fist pumps or whatever. I play my game. I have my personality. I'm myself, and it's none of my business what Ana does or all these other girls on the court. But for me, I prefer to this kind of way like I already explained.

---

And then I was all...

Is It Just Me Or Does Viktor Seem Turned On?

Nole wins. He always wins.

Hey Now, Hey Now, Don't Dream It's Ov-- No, Actually It Is Over.

Kimiko couldn't follow-up her first round win, falling easily to Jarmila Groth, 60 63.  But that's ok.  We'll always have Paris, Kimiko-Tan.

A-Rad continues to make us scratch our heads by losing in straights to Shvedova.  If you'll recall, Shvedova beat JJ at the USO last year.

 

And Bepa drops to Rodionova.  I think she was distracted by the tanktop.  You would be be too.

All this is to say, JJ, this is all on you.  There's cake, and then there's what your quarter is.  Get it done or forever shut your hole.

Idiocracy.

So I guess that didn't exactly work out the way you planned, huh?

Credit to Fognini for fighting off a few break points and coming out of the gate ready to play a "who can win two straight games?" ordeal and both players stepped up to the line with an immense amount of pressure.  Of course, if you're the higher seed who's gracing magazine covers. playing at home in front of a home crowd, and who should have wrapped this match up over 24 hours ago, I'm going to go out on a limb and say your shoulders are a little heavier. 

Gael was ridiculous.  I honestly didn't know who I was rooting for in this match going into it.  On one hand, Gumby needed to be taught a lesson.  On the other hand, I kinda want Gael to play Fed.  And on that same hand, Fabio is uber gross.  Augh! [/katie]

And then, 3 points into the match, Gael was hunched over gasping for air.  And that's when I was like "Fuck, you, Gumby.  You're THREE POINTS IN."  If you want to play your ridiculous "style" of retrieving/pusher type game then don't fucking start wheezing THREE POINTS IN.  So weak.

And thus, I found myself in the really unenviable position of rooting for Eyebrows.  Ugh.  I gotta go take a shower.

 

Yeah, no shit, you crazy idiot.

No, I said KLEYBS Go Away, Not You, Ana.

I think I'm a pretty good tennis fan.  I kill my sleep schedule, roll in late to work, watch tennis on streams from my office when I should be working, cancel plans with friends and family in order to watch tennis.  It doesn't make me a good human being, employee, or, you know, person in general, but I think I've earned some cache with the Tennis Gods.  I don't want to be cocky or anything, but I'm fairly confident that when I get to the white pearly gates of Tennis Heaven, the gods will run to hug me, say "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness! Now, about that Dildo post...", and usher me into the the Kingdom of Tennis Heaven.

Shit.  Humility, C Note.  Humility.  And maybe less cussing.

So, I come now and humbly offer my gratitude to the Tennis Gods for not only delaying play for much of the morning, but then convincing me to have some tea, curl up with some YouTube videos, AND CONK ME THE FUCK OUT so I didn't have to watch Ana lose 63 60 to Kleybs.  This was a solid, Tennis Gods, and I won't forget it.

Afterwards, Ana was surprisingly positive, though it was clear that she had been crying her eyes out.  Poor puppy.  Hang in there!

But, you know, congrats to Kleybs.  That's quite a drubbing in the slow wet conditions. 

Pic This: Crips or Bloods?

Cute pic of the player's lounge posted at Tennis Forum.

Boo.

It's raining in Paris.  It's also 3:30am for me.  If I go to sleep I'll likely sleep through Ana's match.  Frackity Frack!

So anyone have any interesting videos, articles, anything to keep the mind occupied?  Feel free to post your finds in the comments. 

Air Quotes: Call Me, Ishmael.

In the past, I read that you watched series of Lost or Prison Break. What are you currently watching at the moment?
Kim, London

Rafa: I am watching the movie Moby Dick, a classic.

Ummm...ok. 

But more importantly, can we get some Rafa on Jake action?

Pic This: Day 4

Day 4 was wet 'n wild, but let's kick this off, Awesome Style.

You're too cute to play in the dark.  Thank God for suspended play.

Man, Flavia does not cheat on those net kisses.

That is a damn lot of limb.  

In Mother Russia, rain falls on you.  No, wait, that's the same.  Nevermind.

Balls of Steel: Mayer For a Day

Leonardo Mayer.

The unknown-to-most from Argentine came back from a set down to take out the hometown fave, Apricot Bars.  That's a pretty solid takedown.

You really didn't think I was going to give it to this guy, did you?  Though really, Sod looks fuckin' scary right now.  I don't like it.  I don't like it at all.

RG Day 5 OOP: GO AWAY, KLEYBS.

The three big Serbs are in action (pleasewinanapleasewinanapleasewinana), Fernando goes up against all of France, Fabio tries to finish off what he started, and K-Zak tries to take another scalp.

And can Kimiko do it again?  FRAZZLE!

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 Start Time
1. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Jelena Jankovic (SRB)[4] v. Kaia Kanepi (EST)
Not Before 12:30pm
2. Men's Singles - Second Round -- To Finish 2-6 4-6 7-5 6-4 5-5
Gael Monfils (FRA) v. Fabio Fognini (ITA)
3. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Klara Zakopalova (CZE) v. Justine Henin (BEL)[22]
4. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Fernando Verdasco (ESP)[7] v. Florent Serra (FRA)
5. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Horacio Zeballos (ARG) v. Rafael Nadal (ESP)[2]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 Start Time
1. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Andy Roddick (USA)[6] v. Blaz Kavcic (SLO)
2. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Olivia Sanchez (FRA) v. Marion Bartoli (FRA)[13]
3. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Kei Nishikori (JPN) v. Novak Djokovic (SRB)[3]
4. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Serena Williams (USA)[1] v. Julia Goerges (GER)

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Alisa Kleybanova (RUS)[28] v. Ana Ivanovic (SRB)
2. Men's Singles - Second Round - To Finish 6-2 3-3
Andy Murray (GBR)[4] v. Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG)
3. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Jurgen Melzer (AUT)[22] v. Nicolas Mahut (FRA)
4. Women’s Singles – Second Round
Maria Sharapova (RUS)[12] v. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL)
5. Men’s Singles – Second Round
Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr (UKR) v. Fernando Gonzalez (CHI)[12]

RG Day 4 Results

Much ado about nothing.  That's how I would describe today's action.  Was there drama?  Totally.  Did it really matter in the end?  No.  The seeds held up, except for a 1 and 2 loss by Lucie at the hands of Percog and Garcia-Lopez (Tignor's semifinalist pick, mind you) out to de Bakker.

Matches suspended due to darkness:

Jurak/Martic (CRO/CRO) vs. (WC) Feuerstein/Foretz (FRA/FRA) 67(6) 62
[4] A Murray (GBR) vs J Chela (ARG) 62 33 - play suspended
F Fognini (ITA) vs [13] G Monfils (FRA) 26 46 75 64 55 - play suspended
[17] J Isner (USA) vs M Chiudinelli (SUI) 67(3) 55 - play suspended
M Granollers (ESP) vs [25] M Baghdatis (CYP) 46 61 75 - play suspended

Previously On Alias: Sydney Bristow Is The Worst Spy Ever.

46 75 64.

Oof.  This was a tough one.  In fact, I don't think I can really relive it by writing it up. 

Thus, I give you this pictorial essay:

Scenes From a Clusterfuck

If you missed the experience of watching this thing go down live, I don't know that I can do it justice.

To be clear, Gumby should have closed this out in three sets.  There's no reason this should have gone five but hey, that's Gael for ya.  He wanted drama and entertainment, so he decided to create it regardless of whether it was in his best interest or not. 

Because Gael is nothing if not a giver.

But we found ourselves in a fifth set.  Because of the numerous rain delays throughout the day darkness began to fall.  At 4-4, after play had been stopped on all other courts, the tournament director came out to suspend play. 

The following is just my reading of what happened next.  Gael wanted to play on.  Fognini kinda didn't really but knew that if he was the one that put the end to it the crowd would go nuts and he would be painted as the bad guy.  After much negotiating, the tourney director let them play on. 

Fognini was peeved and started stalling for a few minutes.  Carlos Bernardes finally gave him a point penalty for delay of game.  So, serving at 0-15, to the sound of whistles and boos, Fognini somehow manages to hold serve after a long-ass game. 
 
The tourney director lets them play on even though, SERIOUSLY IT WAS DARK.  The ESPN commentators couldn't see the court from their booth and the only light on the court was from jumbotron scoreboard looming overhead.  Despite all this, Fognini found himself with immaculately groomed eyebrows AND 3 MATCH POINTS!  WHICH HE COULDN'T CONVERT!  Gael would hold and the match was finally suspended as Fognini stormed off the court screaming at anyone who would listen.

So they'll finish this match tomorrow, but there's enough schadenfreude to go around.  Gael was the one who wanted to keep playing and he found himself on the brink of losing.  Fognini's stall tactic basically wasted 6 minutes of time that might have made a difference in terms of light.  And the tourney director let them play on either at the request of his popular guy or because he wanted to get the match in the books to unburden Thursday's schedule, and now he finds people calling him a bonehead *and* he still has to schedule this for tomorrow.

Oh, France.  You so crazy.

Air Quotes: Little Kitty Grew Claws. Ok, Bigger Claws. More Claws?

Q. Yesterday Marion Bartoli, after she finished her match, she showed some jealousy against you and the interest we, the press, have for you instead of her. What do you think about it?

ARAVANE REZAI: Well, Marion is a difficult girl. She already attacked me two years ago when I reached the final in Istanbul. So it's a bit strange she says that, because okay, if she has a problem with me, I don't know, because I did nothing. That's a bit of a shame, but that's her education. I mean, she attacked me many times in the press. I don't have the same education as the one she has. I think I have respect for players. I do what I have to do. I get on with many people. But with Marion, it's very difficult. She has difficulties getting included with the other girls.

But it's a shame she says that, because I'm a French player, just like her. So that kind of behavior is a bit of a shame, because I never had any bad behavior towards her. I always showed respect for the other players, and I think players that deserve to be spoken about in the media, well, it's because they deserve it.
But today I'm on the Fed Cup team, I'm part of many things. I try and get included to many things, and if she's not happy, she is not that much in the media. I guess she has to make efforts just like I did. Then she has to see what she wants to say.

Thank God For Crotch Cameras

I've always wondered when it'd be like to be in the back seat of a car with Pico. And Gisela's boyfriend, apparently.