Well, I was happy to see that the mentioned the French Open on Pardon The Interruption.

Michael asked if Nadal could become a star for tennis and Tony said not at this point and he needs to win more GS tournaments –in particular on another surface. Tony then also implied that Kuertan has just won one Grand Slam title. (When corrected at the end of the show that Guga won 3 Tony said that didn’t matter anyway, no one knows who Guga is anyway….aargh). But still, Tony wasn’t saying that Nadal couldn’t become a star in the future- just that he needs to win more GS tournaments on non-clay.

Which begs the question, doesn’t there seem to be a big double standard? Maria has only one GS and is a huge star…not even to go into Anna. Roddick only has one GS title, but since he is from the US, of course there would be great buzz here….I’m more talking about the gender double standard.

Michael seemed to think that Nadal could indeed become a star.

Tony then ranted about Nadal’s “girly pants.’ I really wish that Nike didn’t want to clothe Rafael in those pants. (From what I have read Nike suggested that Nadal wear the pants; Nadal did not request them on his own.) The pants are overshadowing the tennis and other things about Rafael, and making some sportswriters/commentators dismiss Nadal as a girly man. Nike, if you love someone set them free and please free Nadal from the commitment of wearing the pants.



Yeah, it is sad what happend to Medvedev.

Thanks for the assist on the Swedish tennis player. After doing some more blind research, I think I was probably thinking of both Thomas Enqvist (who about five years ago was #4 and seems to have peaked) and Thomas Johansson (who won the Australian Open and then has pretty much disappeared).

I'm hoping we see Monica again. I hope during her long lay off from tennis that she has made some attempt to lose weight. Face it, back when she was at her peak, she was great. But since then, the women on the tour have gotten stronger and faster. Monica needs to be in better shape.

It's funny for me, I never like the players who dominate until they are no longer the favorite. I hated Martina Navratilova when she was always taking down Chris Evert Lloyd, but then when she was at the twilight of her singles career I really pulled for her. To this day I despise that cow Conchita Martinez for defeating Martina's attempt at the Wimbledon record singles title in 1994. I still root for the great Martina in doubles.

Loathed the gruntfest that is Monica Seles when she first hit the scene and steamrolled everyone, especially my then fav Steffi Graf. But after the stabbing, she's never been the same, and I rooted for her ever since.

I didn't really care for either of the Williamses (especially the nastier and more arrogant Venus) when they first hit the scene, but now that they regularly lose (especially Venus), I find myself liking them more (especially Venus). Venus' story is particularly sad. She found early success and then was overshadowed by her younger and more talented sister. I hope Venus finds her confidence again some day.

On the other hand, I despised Martina Hingis from start to finish and I wouldn't care to never see her (and her horrific mother) ever again. Never cared for Pete Sampras either. I still can't believe that in the week that the Detroit Red Wings won their first Stanley Cup in decades that Sports Illustrated ran a cover with Pete and his eye-gouging hairy stomach with his umpteenth Wimbledon.

I don't like Justine Henin either. I always have liked Kim Clijsters though. Hope her comeback is complete and that she will be a force this year.

I really hope Seles can come back and make a good showing at the U.S. Open.

Remember a few years ago when she played her first match (against Navratilova, I believe) after coming back from the stabbing? Hopefully she'll be in better shape than she was then -- I was really shocked to see that flabby gut. (I mean flabby for a tennis player, since I'm not exactly the queen of lean.)

No! No! Serena is the snooty, bitchy one! Venus is the quiet nice one.

Count me in too. I know I don't post too much in this forum, but I lurk all the time and have on occassion posted in support of Lleyton. Having been a fan of his tennis since 2000 and later a fan of his beligerant personality, I was kind of surprised to find myself getting annoyed with him in the early rounds of this year's Australian Open. Then of course, after he gutted out tough matches and defeated Roddick somewhat handily, he won me over again.



Wasn't that Malisse in the semi-finals of Wimbledon 2002? Although I thought that it was a case of a mild panic attack / major nerves as opposed to a congenitive heart condition. I think Magus Norman's career was derailed by significant, recurring hip problems (or was it his back?).

It was his hip.

blackwing

Oh, but Pete deserved his SI cover! He didn't get one when he won his 14th Slam. Stupid SI chose Jason Giambi instead- THAT, I'll never understand.



It was a panic/anxiety attack, but he had an irregular heartbeat so that's why the doctor took him into the locker room. Or something of the sort.

You know, I hadn't realized how incredibly close together the clay season ends and the grass season starts. I know, it's a big "duh" but I think I never really noticed because my favorite players don't tend to do that well RG, and the clay courters that I love (JCF, Guga) don't make a lot of noise in the grass season.

D'oh! I meant to write "congenital heart condition", not "conditional". I didn't know about Malisse, but I looked it up: Norman had to take a medical break during his Wimbledon debut in 1997 after suffering heart pains, then later had to undergo an operation.

Looks like Malisse is in trouble with the ATP again after yesterday's match with Hewitt at Queen's. From Tennis-X:

You know, this pisses me off. After the US Open last year, Tony went on a tirade about how tennis was dead and who really cares about tennis, while Michael meekly said that apparently Federer was a very good player.

And now they're talking about Nadal becoming a star. And Sharapova is a star. And it's, again, all about the image and selling a product and not really about the tennis.

Oh, they make me so angry. Stupid Tony more than Michael. But still I hate PTI.

And that's why I never watch PTI anymore - their total lack of respect of tennis as a sport. All they can talk about is how good looking Sharapova is (vomit motion goes here). The problem is, the show is designed to be a "Crossfire"-type shout and mock-fest, and sadly, tennis always gets relegated to the laugh-bin. Unfortunate.



Not true Blackwing, Thomas J. is still alive and kicking at age 30 and has returned to the top 20 of the ATP Entry Ranking.

Pete deserves all respect for his tennis accomplishments - unfortunately, his extremely low-key personality and demeanour throughout his career has made him only a tiny blip in the pop culture consciousness, compared to Johnny Mac, Bjorn Borg, Ilie Nastase, Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Chrissie, Steffi, Martina X 2, Williams X 2etc. I fear 20 years from now, Pete will get an "oh yeah, him" kind of response.

You know, I've always felt bad that I'm so not a general sports fan - well, not a general American sports fan. I don't think I could stand to hear constantly how mainstream American sports "experts" (are they experts? - I've never even seen the damn show, so I don't know....) view the athletic skills I admire and hold so dear.

But when I see the ratings, as Chesty posted, I just feel sad. It's not like I need to be affirmed or anything, but I just find it hard to process that so few people (well, YOU people!) feel as strongly as I do about tennis, etc.

Anyway, I think Pete's place in the American consciousness is secured despite his low profile mostly because he's American. And even the never-watched-tennis fan might hold on to the recollection that he was the once "best ever", etc.

Agree that there is an unfair double standard, but this is how the world works. If you are pretty/hot/good-looking, you've got an advantage when it comes to almost anything. That's the whole basis for the entertainment industry. I used to think Sharapova wasn't that pretty, but after seeing that camera commerical of hers, I've changed my tune. Roddick is supposedly handsome and has dated Mandy Moore, but he also happens to be a decent tennis player, so he's this country's brightest star.

There are a lot of one-hit wonders that won early and never fulfilled the potential they showed. Michael Chang was the most frustrating example for me. Every year, I was waiting for him to capture another Grand Slam to go with his early French win. He was always a major disappointment, although I still laugh remembering how he underhanded served Ivan Lendl one time.

I think that's the concern about Nadl. If he doesn't win again, will people remember him? I don't find him particularly handsome or very marketable. I think that's the problem with the men's game. There's so many players that unless you win on a consistent basis, you're kind of forgotten. Women will be remembered if they're attractive, regardless of whether or not they've won anything (i.e. Anna). It's the same reason why women's soccer was more appealing than men's.

I agree completely. I think especially for non-American men, they are forgotten quite easily. Albert Costa won the French a few years ago, and I can't even remember what he looks like or how he has done in recent tournaments. Malivai Washington was a Wimbledon runner up, and I barely remember that.

Women are more readily remembered, especially if they are attractive. Yet if Svetlana Kuznetsova never wins anything ever again, I probably will still remember her, because of her unfortunate Frankenstein-looking face. One of the most hideous women ever to play the game.

I think Nadal has a bright future, but I'm curious to see how he will do at Wimbledon.

Boy, blackwing, you definitely have a mean streak!



Well, he was just beaten at Halle. I certainly don't think he'll make that much of a splash. That said, it really depends on his draw.

I like to believe that Svetlana will only grow into her looks, while Maria S simply gets less attractive as time goes on. I feel that Lindsay, for one, has really grown more attractive with every year, and while Jennifer C started out cute (to some), life has taken its toll on her for sure, and it shows.



Poor guy must be wiped - because it was a Lucky Loser that beat him, right? It will be interesting to see how much of today's match was the result of fatigue, and how much is him needing more experience on the grass. Or maybe even a combination of the two.

I'm interested in the gender double standard, and have been thinking back to past female champions. Were looks even a factor back then, and I was just too young to recognize it? Certainly Chrissy and Tracy A were played up as the all american girls, but was there any attention ever overtly given to Steffi or Monica based purely on this, or did it still mostly involve their superior performance in the game? Just curious and trying to think back....

Disappointed but not shocked with the loss today. Nadal started out well, but as Waske's serve got better in the second things changed. From the sounds of it, Nadal had tons of blisters on his hands. After the match he told Becker that he was exhuasted and looking forward to going home for a bit.

I imagine that it may take Nadal some time to get his feet on grass. Would love it for him to reach the second week of Wimbledon but I am not holding my breath.

I do, however, think that he will be a factor along with the usual suspects on the hard courts later in the summer. And that would thrill me, because I'm already tired of some people on other boards saying that Nadal's year is over and he won't do anything of merit the rest of the year. He was coming off his injury last hard court season so I look forward to seeing how he will be this year- his performance at the Aus Open gives me hope.



Since I think she's a sweetie I hope so too. Maybe after the braces are off.



Well, I was a young one back then but I don't really remember there being nearly the emphasis that there is now. I do remember hearing comments about it has too bad Steffi's nose was so large because she had a great body, but that's about it.

My mom, who was always a big Martina N fan, always said that she thought that Martina did not get the media push she deserved because she was not cute or pretty. (This was before Matina came out so the issue of homophobia had nothing to do with it.)



It is still my hope that men's soccer will be more popular here. I really like the sport and watch it when I can (Thanks Fox Soccer Channel!) Had a blast following the World Cup in 2002 and can't wait for 2006.

And also, must admit, love the eye candy factor. There are some haawwwt players.

It can be hard being a tennis and soccer fan in the US. I like a ton of other sports as well but the get all the press buzz. Tennis is the sport that is dearest to my heart and I so want it to be a bigger presence here, as it is big in other countries and even growing in popularity in areas..

I think looks have always to some degree been part of the women's game. Remember the uproar caused by Anne White when she wore white Spandex at Wimbledon? People still talk about it.

During the Martina v. Chrissy matches it was always the cold stern Eastern European against the all American girl. I remember hearing it remarked that Martina looked and played like a man. (This was before it was officially revealed that she was a lesbian, which had that been public knowledge, probably would be considered in bad taste.) I never found Steffi all that attractive (couldn't get past the nose) but I know that many others did because she got offers to pose in Playboy. Monica isn't the most attractive girl but I think her grunts always got the most attention more so than her looks.

Serena Williams has made no secret about her interest in fashion and design. Her black Catwoman style outfit made waves. People always notice what she wears, and I believe some of her more unfortunate choices have graced the pages of the uber hilarious fashion disaster website, gofugyourself.com.

I guess my whole point is that looks always have played some part in the women's game. Is that a double standard? Probably. But then it's a double standard that has existed since the dawn of creation, and not just in tennis. Even in 16th century England, much was made about the comparisons between the dour and dumpy Queen "Bloody" Mary and her tall, beautiful and elegant half-sister, the Princess Elizabeth. In some way, women, no matter how talented or smart or powerful, have always been judged by their looks. Tennis players are not exempt.

I commend Anna K for being able to build a career and becoming a success despite her apparent lack of any actual tennis skills. I commend Maria Sharapova for capitalizing on her looks and talent and landing endorsement deals. I don't recall any male tennis players (other than the Americans Sampras, Agassi and Roddick) getting any kind of commercials.

Not in the US, but in Europe they're all over the place. And didn't Roger have a pretty bad Wilson commercial with the Williams sisters?



He hasn't played on grass for two years so it's going to take him a while to get used to it. Again, it depends on his draw. I think he'll do OK in hardcourts the rest of the year. Indoors might be a bit more difficult.

I think the pimping of male players is less visible not for lack of trying but for lack of success. James Blake (before his accident) is an example, compared to Todd Martin, an actual American top 10 player in his day. Roddick's pop status seems to be falling too. Looking back, tennis was (still is) considered a dainty sport that played well for Evert's princess image. It was never regarded as virile except as its players being conceived as pro-shop gigolos, which explained Jimmy Connors' and JMac's milking their manly tantrums to create a new image for tennis. But with the new equipment the men's game is less and less about finesse and is getting more muscular and camera ready.

As for the women's game, Kournikova should be thanked. Of course there's a double standard still, but her zero singles title record curses her and helps the legitimacy of every new attractive star, who now has to prove her stardom on the court as well. Let's not forget that Sharapova isn't just pretty but is a 6' tall Amazon of a tennis player. No one's gonna get a pass like Kournikova did. Not anymore.

This thread is for tennis shows and tennis TV coverage not tennis in general. Please split that hair. Thank you.

Hey. Pssst! You guys, aqui.

Does anyone know if NBC would be carrying the whole of Wimbledon or is coverage to be divided with ESPN, like the French.

Here is the tv schedule for Wimbledon in the USA.

Coverage will be shown on ESPN and NBC. Some will be live and some tape delayed.

oops

I think it is important to note that the ESPN coverage is all ESPN2, not ESPN (for people traveling, like me, to hotels that do not have the Deuce--do they still call it that?--like me). Judging by the TW article with the ESPN programmer, I don't think we'll be seeing tennis on ESPN anytime in the future. Hopefully that will keep ratings desires low.

This morning I got an email from The Tennis Channel stating that they would air an exhibition match between John McEnroe and Boris Becker on Sunday. Then today, on TTC live, they announced that Becker, who is commentating on Queen's today, would not actually play that match because of some injury. So Goran will be in for Becker.

Didn't Becker do this same shit at the U.S. Open a few years ago? I seem to recall Johnny Mac being more than a bit peeved about it.

So Andy is through to the semis and now we are watching Tim. I will be rooting for Henman at Wimbledon but the poor boy seems cursed.

Speaking of John. . . I was watching the ESPN Classic of Borg vs. McEnroe, Wimbledon 1981 for the umpteenth time and I was fascinated by some things I really hadn't paid attention to before: 1) The commentators never even came close to talking during a point 2) John, the ultimate "bad boy" of the tennis world, never pumped himself up/cheered when Borg made an error--and we all know how close that match was and that it was the infamous "You Cannot Be Serious" tournament (although that moment was in, what?, the first round).

So, when did commentators start talking during points? They never shut up now and, as much as he makes noise about not talking during a point, John does as well. I wonder what he thinks when (if) he watches the older matches.

He and Mauresmo need to team up for mixed doubles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

I don't think he thinks.

Is any station showing the Halle tournament? It's Roger vs. Marat tomorrow in the finals, and that's a match we should be able to see... Much more interesting than the Roddick/Karlovic one, at least on paper.

Good God John McEnroe was so annoying during the Roddick/Stepanek semi. He talks too damn much.

I'm sure there was a lot less talking on US coverage of tennis back in '81, but was the classic Borg/McEnroe match taken from NBC or BBC? I'd have to say the talking has become non-stop since the later 80s. It's a combination of having inexperienced broadcasters/former players and the declining ratings of tennis on TV, which no doubt caused some of the higher ups to tell the announcers to 'jazz it up'.

Those matches are usually official Wimbledon films.

Oops, I forgot about that.

For those who missed it, or want to see it again, ESPN Classic is showing the Nadal/Puerta French Open final on Sunday, the 19th. They begin their Wimbledon coverage the next day--but not until 8 am.

*sigh* No Andre at The Championships. Story.

I was just coming to say that! Here are the rest of the folks we won't see.

Juanita, hold on to the hope that he won't retire without playing a better year. I don't think this is it for him.

Quote from link above:
Get out of the 90s Andre - ever hear of email?

Late to the party but wordy mcword. I think it was even more apparent because he is usually paired with equally chatty co-hosts but this time it was a golfesque, hush-voiced librarian type. They had no chemistry whatsoever and their styles were polar opposites. Gah.

Big surprise here, me posting a quote from Jon Wertheim but here's the latest on the tennis TV coverage debacle:

I hope those of you with TTC are enjoying the tennis these two weeks!

I'm counting the days until Monday, myself.... Especially after reading about the draw.

I love the early rounds, and hope some of those pan out really well. And, of course, that we get to see them.

The draw will ensure some great matches in the early rounds but I think it's going to be a let down in the final.

Justine/Venus/Serena/Maria are all in the botom half of the draw, great 4th round match-ups (Venus vs Serena) and QF's but I wish they would've been on opposite sides of the draw.

I hate the way tennis sets up its draws in the Slams (or is it just Wimbledon?). The draw should automatically be structured that, if everything were to go with seeding, the semis would be 1v4 and 2v3, the quarters 1v8/2v7/3v6/4v5 etc. The way tennis does it makes no sense and is hugely aggravating. There is no greater advantage to being the No.1 seed than being the No.2 seed, which is stupid. For example, Federer's No.1 seeding ought to keep Hewitt (3) and Roddick (2) away from him until the final, but Federer and Hewitt are in the same half of the draw. Dumb.

And this robs us, the viewers, of the best match-ups at the right stages of tournaments (to get back closer to topic).

Apparently, the chief official at Wimbeldon wants a crackdown on grunting. What I don't get, is that he's specifically targetting female players. Gosh, the men are just as annoying! I wish everyone would stop the grunting!
Yahoo article

From the above-mentioned article:



This made me laugh out loud. It'll be interesting to see what the commentators have to say about all this. If anything....

Did anyone catch NBC's Wimbledon preview Sunday? It was decent. Hosted by Mary Carillo. There was a segment by John McEnroe, which wasn't very good. And I am a fan of Johnny Mac. He just seemed very stilted and didn't really say anything new.

Very confusing about the switch from the Deuce to ESPN Classic today. Chris Fowler just seemed like he was being booted off the network instead of just saying, "now we'll switch over to ESPN Classic", he made it seem like something was wrong with switching networks.

And help us all: Brad Gilbert is back in the booth. I wish Taylor Dent could afford to hire him so he'd get out of broadcasting. It's really not his forte.

ETA: TTC had a great show on yesterday called The Grinders about the men's satellite tours. Maria Ines Llodra (any relation to the men's player?) hosted. They even interviewed a few guys who sponsor players in Florida. It was a good insight to what it takes to grind out a living in tennis when your ranking is below 200 (in some cases, the rankings were 980+).

EATA: Chris Cahill = Football; Chris Fowler = Tennis; this I know. Really.

Brad Gilbert also seemed to blow off comments from Pam Shriver today during the Dent match like she had no right to have an opinion. He seems like a really detestable man.

Yeah, but how weird was it to see the exact same coverage on ESPN2 an hour later hosted by someone else?


Now I really, really wish I had TTC because I love that stuff.

And it is official. I will not have ESPN2 in my hotel where I will be after Thursday for the remainder of Wimbledon. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do. Cry, I guess.

I'm not really up on the latest with all these ex-pros-now-trainers. Isn't Brad Gilbert Agassi's trainer? Or did he only train Sampras and I don't remember? When somebody makes Patrick McEnroe look tolerable to me, then he/she must really suck.


I think there's a double standard. Men grunting in a Neanderthal-type fashion is ok, because men can be pigs and that's what we do. Pretty women grunting (especially Sharapova) is not ladylike at all.

Rainmaker: There has been much discussion about Brad Gilbert on this thread. Brad was a pro. Was Agassi's coach (Agassi's trainer is still Gil Reyes.) When he and Agassi parted ways, he went on to coach Andy Roddick to a U.S. Open title (and a few others) before Roddick and he separated after one year. Now he appears to be a full-time commentator, much to our chagrin.

Monica Seles always got grief for grunting too.

Can someone tell me whatever happened to Srichaphan? It seems like only yesterday that he was ready to put Asia on the tennis map and then today he gets blown out in the first round by Safin. He seemed like a player on the cusp once upon a time and now....nada.

And poor James Blake, my future husband. Last time I saw him, he lost in the 2nd round of the French in a five-setter he should have won. And now today he loses to an absolute nobody in the first round. I hope he gets his shit together because he's so purty.

I agree about both Srichaphan and Blake. *sigh*

I was watching Srichaphan vs. Safin earlier and thinking about Srichaphan knocking Andre out of The Championships a few years ago. Now, he rarely is seeded.

During the match today, I saw Paradorn go for a between the legs shot TWICE and miss BOTH. And one of them was on a Deuce point on Safin's serve! Even PeeMac called him on that shit.