#he hated nadal he was a federer guy all through

[effervescentdragon]

my thing for spanish guys shouldve probably stayed in my mind given that ive watched that shakira video with rafa more times than any sane person ever would watch anything

[artmd]

“When people didn’t have my nuanced take on him they just represented him as abusive. But my dad was clear. He said: ‘Andre, I know how I’ve lived and I know who I am and who I’m not. If I could do everything all over again I would change only one thing – I wouldn’t let you play tennis.’ I’d pulled the car over when he said: ‘I would only change one thing.’ I said, ‘Wow, why’s that Dad?’ He said: ‘Because I’d make you play baseball or golf so you can do it longer and make more money.’ I got back on the freeway with a chuckle.”

“I don’t think anyone who cares about tennis could have missed that match. I was as neutral as possible because they’ve both given so much and have great stories. Of course seeing Roger win at that age was special. He never ceases to impress me but he’s stopped amazing me. I expect it from him. And Nadal persevered through so much adversity and with people writing him off. I didn’t believe that with the amount of physicality he’s put into his career he’d ever get his game back to that level. He certainly proved me wrong. It was a beautiful match and one of those times you truly wish there wasn’t a loser.”

Did Agassi also wish he could be on court playing Federer or Nadal? “No. You can’t believe you once were at that level – and, even if I could do it, I think of my life now and ask: ‘Why do they do it?’ Steffi said: ‘Can you believe what these guys are still willing to put themselves through?’ It’s remarkable but if I went back in time I would probably retire sooner.”

Surely he misses the intensity? “I miss that the least. That was always the tough part for me. I enjoyed the work that went into making yourself the best you can be but I hated what the scoreboard doesn’t say. It just tells you if you won or lost. But the biggest issue for most athletes is you spend a third of your life not preparing for the next two-thirds. One day your entire way of life comes to an end. It’s a kind of death. You just have to go through it and figure it out. In her own quiet way Steffi feels stronger than me. She’s pretty linear in how she lives. I probably do a little more reminiscing than she does – which says a lot.”

Agassi pauses when asked if he and his wife sometimes hit a few balls in Vegas – for old time’s sake? “No. It sounds a nice idea but as soon as you hit the first couple of balls you remember you can do this but you’re also reminded of what you can’t do. I just thank God I played the game long enough to enjoy lots of good moments. It gave a lot and it took a lot. I think me and tennis are about even now.”

[bobbystompy]

64 Quotes I Enjoyed From 2017

Below are my favorite quotes from 2017. Though most occurred throughout the year, some took place before but were encountered during.

(Allison Greene)

The irony and thematic implication of this first quote -- transcribed in January -- is not lost on me.

1) “I wish you all a Happy New Year. Meaning that I wish for your New Years Eve to be happy. It’s hard to wish hundreds of thousands of people to have an entire happy year. That’s a lot. That feels greedy and hopeless and also some of you might not deserve a happy year. Everyone deserves a happy moment or day now and again but a whole happy year I would wish on maybe eight people and four of them are terminally ill children.

Also please remember that the turning over of one year to another is a mental construct that bears no more weight than the things that keep us apart and in competitive categories as human beings. Time is not moving. You’re not losing or gaining ground. You’re not separate from ‘them’ anymore than you’re separate from your own umbrella. It’s now, we’re us and this is here. If you’re in pain, this too shall pass. If you’re in luxury, this too shall pass. Ask an old lady how she’s doing. The internet is not real. Draw a picture on a napkin.” - Louis C.K.

2) “Flowers cost money you could spend on alcohol.” - Tracy Cunningham

3) "Never make fun of people for mispronouncing a word. It means they learned it by reading."

[that one felt profound when I first read it, but there are probably holes you can poke]

4) “Middle America does not have a monopoly on tough times.” - Drew Magary

5) “The whole point of going to a wedding is to complain about it.” - Drew Magary

6) “The world is too noisy and distracted to probably ultimately survive. Everyone needs to shut the fuck up. The answers are in the silence. Monks set themselves on fire to protest and make this point.

Just consider it.” - Garry Shandling

7) “The fact that Chargers fans get to live in San Diego isn’t as much of a solace as you think, either. When you’re unhappy, Southern California can be the loneliest fucking place in the world. Everywhere you look, you are surrounded by people whose lives are seemingly more perfect than your own. And the fantastic weather acts a kind of lingering nag... an irritating reminder that you SHOULD be happy even if you’re not. When you live somewhere miserable, at least you have an excuse for it. People leave you alone, or they help you drink the pain away indoors. You’re not surrounded by a bunch of fucking Jack LaLannes and Navy steakheads making it worse.

[...]

This is how the San Diego Chargers ended, and their fans deserved better. There won’t even be rain to help water the team’s grave.” - Drew Magary

8) There is no meeting without a Gentry story. He tells the story of Doug Collins’s college coach at Illinois State, Will Robinson, putting Collins in front of a mirror and saying, “Now, that’s an ugly motherfucker.” Then Robinson gets a basketball, hands it to Collins, and says, “Now you’re a handsome motherfucker.”

-- “Seven Seconds or Less” by Jack McCallum

9) "This is gonna be bad. So be good." - Patton Oswalt, on the next four years

10) REPORTER: You always hear about guys in the zone. What’s it like to be in that zone and have that moment two games in a row?

DION WAITERS: Oh man, I love that moment. I mean, you can never shy away from that. I just feel—one of my favorite quotes is, uh ... I forgot it already. One of my favorite quotes. But yeah, can’t be afraid of taking them shots.

11) "No person can be explained in one trait." - Jason Benetti

12) That Federer could dig so deep without losing the spirit of grace and generosity he has carried for much of his career--amazingly, it didn't sound insincere when he told the crowd in Melbourne that he would've been happy if Nadal had won--was enough to make Agassi introspective. He fired off a text to a friend, fellow American ex-pro James Blake. Watching Federer, Agassi wrote, "makes me feel like I was much more of a broken person than I even realized."

-- the 2017 Australian Open

13) “Do you, because everyone else is taken.” - Uber driver

14) Federer's physical skills have tended to obscure just how he resilient he has been throughout his career--a point not lost on him. "My mental toughness has always been overshadowed by my virtuosity, my shotmaking, my technique, my grace," says Federer. "That's why when I lose, it seems like, 'Oh, he didn't play so well.' And when I win, it looks so easy." He says it has been that way since he was young. "Just because I don't sweat like crazy and I don't grunt, I don't have this face on when I hit the shot like I'm in pain, doesn't mean I'm not trying hard," he says. "It's just how I play. Sorry."

15) "I’ve always said the only way to change anyone’s opinion is to make him laugh first. It still is." - John Waters

16) “Women like babies. Men like their sons and daughters.” - Kevin Haack

17) “At once, Federer would triumph over his two greatest rivals: Nadal and Hawk-Eye.” - Chris Almeida, on Roger Federer’s 2017 Aussie Open win

18) “Brady did everything in Super Bowl 51 short of fertilizing crops with his own feces to feed his teammates.” - Bill Simmons

19) “It's still hard to believe the Falcons actually lost this game. They're the first team in Super Bowl history to lose with a pick-six in its pocket, one that felt like an unlikely gift given that it came from Brady. Some will throw around the "choker" label, which is inelegant at best and condescendingly incurious at worst. If choking means running after a quarterback on 68 dropbacks until there's hardly any air left in your lungs, the Falcons choked.” - Bill Barnwell

20) “Keep in mind: Plenty of people already think Chance The Rapper is corny. Plenty of people have been thinking it for years. Plenty of people who now love Chance The Rapper had to get over the corniness threshold, to train themselves to love the yawpy ad-libs an the voice-cracks and the general hyperactive teenage energy. When Chance won Best New Artist and howled the word 'God' in his acceptance speech about 32 times, I saw plenty of grumbling — We get it, dude, you believe in God — in my Twitter timeline. Someone even said that the music industry had figured out how to manufacture a marketable version of Christian-rap figurehead Lecrae. And that gets at another common complaint about Chance: that he’s an 'industry plant,' a creature created by the music business, one who uses 'independent' as a buzzword rather than as any kind of unifying philosophy. Those of us who love Chance, that line of thinking goes, have been somehow hoodwinked or manipulated into it. And there have been plenty of other perceived sins over the years: the overalls, the KitKat commercial, the constant references to Nickelodeon cartoons, the persistent smiling. Whether or not you love Chance, there is a strong possibility that he’s annoyed you once or twice.” - Tom Breihan

21) “Traveling is the antidote to ignorance.” - Trevor Noah

22) "But mostly, it's in how Celebration Rock treats every day like the last day of school, raising a glass to the past, living in the moment and going into the future feeling fucking invincible." - Ian Cohen

23) “In fact, it turned out that there was nothing ‘dangerous’ at all in picking on women and refugees. People will pay you good money for that. The dangerous ideas are the ones they don’t pay you for, the ones that don’t get you on HBO. You’re actually dangerous when you do what Yiannopoulos did in the ‘pedophile’ tapes: defend society’s most hated outcasts, and tell the truth about the complexities of gay men’s sexuality. You’re dangerous when you stick up for those on the fringes rather than kicking them. There’s nothing courageous or edgy in bullying the despised and excluded. But it might be dangerous if you dared to empathize with them.” - Nathan J. Robinson

24) [Taj] Gibson was asked if his dunk over Dwyane Wade was his favorite moment as a Bull. "It really wasn't. That was just a dunk. It really wasn't one of my favorite moments of my career, to be honest with you. I had a lot of shining moments in my career. Just being around Thibs, he taught me that people don't look at, some of the games, most of the games, they look at the bright spots. I have a lot of different bright spots in my career. The biggest one in my career would have to be just being on the team when guys were down and having a coach look at me and know that he can count on me. No matter what position, no matter what time in the game. And he would trust some of the most important plays for me to do. Those were the most important moments of my life, just having a guy between Fred and coach Thibs, knowing guys that are ahead of me, making twice as much money as me, and he's still calling my name through crunch time. Those were the best moments of my life."

[have some, Carlos Boozer]

25) “You can't let politics dictate what you read or who you fuck.” - Chuck, “Girls”

26) “Watching Kawhi Leonard play basketball is like when you get the email you’ve been waiting for and it says all of the things you were hoping it was going to say.” - Shea Serrano

27) “This isn't a choice, like my diet. This is a necessity, like my drinking.” - Ben, “Veep”

28) “It's like how love songs never go out of style because no one's ever written one that's closed the book on the subject.” - Brian King, Japandroids

29) Pitchfork: A lot of the lyrics on the album take advantage of this universal, mythic rock'n'roll language, like on "Fire's Highway": "Hearts from hell collide/ On fire's highway tonight/ We dreamed it, now we know."

Brian King (Japandroids): Personally, I really like the concepts of good and evil, heaven and hell-- the extreme boundaries of how people can feel and how fast things can change. I like that that language. I'm not talking about just some night you felt a certain way, I'm talking about the night you felt that way-- that one time. People have always alluded to those extremes as a way of characterizing the most intense feelings since blues and the early days of rock. A blues singer won't be like, "We broke up." He'll say, "Satan stole my baby from me." You just pick it up.

30) “Friends of mine, hitting partners, are Federer fans for real. They own his racket, his sneakers, the hat with his RF logo. When he loses, they're wrecked; when he wins, it's only slightly less painful, because it's one fewer win they get to witness.” - Rosecrans Baldwin

31) “Bad ideas rarely spread when the population is educated about better alternatives.” - Greg Graffin

32) This entire story (9:47 to 10:15)

RIP, Don Rickles (1926-2017)

33) “Being pregnant is cool and weird: Your bones ache, your gums bleed, your ligaments basically just start giving up. (A hormone called ‘relaxin’ is involved.) You plan decades ahead, then worry you’re jinxing it all. You’ve got a decreasingly nebulous imaginary friend there to listen to your hopes and fears at all hours and you occasionally get the hiccups. But the strangest thing about being with child is the way your body becomes not yours, and not even the baby’s, but the world’s. Complete strangers reach out and touch. Internet commenters opine. Photos of yourself splayed postpartum on a gurney, hair matted to the side of your face, one boob swung free, are triumphantly text-messaged to fathers-in-law without your express written consent.

It’s not fair, it’s never fair, but it’s nevertheless the shared experience of so many women during a powerful, vulnerable time.” - Katie Baker

34) "I just watched Deadheads spin around for three hours looking for miracles." - Brad Back

35) “Comparison is the thief of joy.” - Theodore Roosevelt

36) "The Spurs’ run of NBA success is now old enough to vote, and in a couple of years it will be legally old enough to share finely aged red wines with Popovich, although I suspect he’s been slipping it glasses at home for a few years now. One of the cornerstones of that success has been an ability to find talent where nobody else looked." - Rodger Sherman

37) "Cutting at the right time is more important than being fast." - Bill Belichick

38) “You run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. You run into assholes all day, you’re the asshole.” - “Justified”

39) “An asshole is not a brilliant visionary just because a toilet has a bottomless appetite for what comes out of it.” - Albert Burneko, on the passing of Roger Ailes

40) "He would’ve been a rock star no matter where he’d been born, or when." - Rob Harvilla on Chris Cornell

41) "Instead of getting married again, I'm going to find a woman I don't like and just give her a house." - Rod Stewart

42) “I have never regretted taking a walk. Every time you walk, a bunch of cool shit happens. You burn calories, for one thing. You think of cool ideas. You also get an immediate sense of the layout and vibe of wherever you happen to be. It’s a cheap shortcut to feeling like a local. I walked around downtown Atlanta for two hours once, which was long enough for me to realize, ‘Oh hey, this is the part of town that sucks!’ Then I went and walked around a cooler part.

Also, walking forces me to pocket my phone and actually look around for a bit (in theory…sometimes I check the phone while walking, which is galactically fucking stupid and could get you killed). I can actually feel GOOD about the world when I walk around, because I’m seeing it as it stands now, instead through the horrifying prism of online news and discourse. The sun still shines out there. People are smiling. It’s not bad. You wouldn’t even know we’re all gonna die soon. Not everything has rotted away just yet. You can leave the shifting sand dunes of the day far behind, to borrow a phrase from Professor Fartsniffer up there.

Also, you don’t have to look for a parking spot.

I walked today. I walked past a school and saw a bunch of kids playing touch football and they accidentally launched the ball over the fence and into the road, where they couldn’t get it. So they asked me to grab it for them. I hucked it back over and one kid shouted ‘YOU DA REAL MVP!’ And you know what? For that one little moment, I was, indeed, da real MVP. Step aside, Kevin Durant’s mom. I saved touch football. What did you ever do?

That kind of experience isn’t really possible when you’re sitting in a car. When you drive, you’re basically in a kind of self-imposed purgatory. The goal is to get wherever you’re headed so that you can resume your life again. I have tried to slow down and savor my surroundings while driving but it rarely works out because A) It’s not safe and B) I want to make good time. I have my eyes on the road and my ears on my SWEET TUNEZ, and I’m only slowing down to gawk at an overturned milk truck. ‘Wow, that looks BAD.’

The most important moments in life usually happen when you’re walking. Ever ask someone you’re dying to go out with if they wanna go for a walk, and they say yes? It feels fucking GREAT. That’s gonna be a good walk. Then maybe you two walk down the aisle after you get married, and then walk through the hospital to see your new baby in the nursery, and then walk with that child as takes its first steps. And then maybe someone close to you dies, and you have to walk with their casket to their gravesite. I’ve made some of these walks. I haven’t forgotten any of them.” - Drew Magary

43) "‘A great nation does not hide its history, it faces its flaws and corrects them.’ - George W. Bush

Let us again state clearly for all to hear. The Confederacy was on the wrong side of history and humanity. It sought to tear apart our nation and subjugate our fellow Americans to slavery. This is a history we should never forget and one that we should never ever again put on a pedestal to be revered." - Mitch Landrieu

44) "Just found out Joyce Manor is playing in Bristol on 7/13. When god closes a door, he opens a moshpit." - Chris Trott, after missing the Captain, We're Sinking Show in Chicago on 7/12 due his England trip

45) “The most prestigious honor in music isn't a Grammy. It's ‘I like this band enough to see them at 10:30 p.m. on a Wednesday.’” - Steven Hyden

46) “I think of you every time I speed up my podcasts.” - Christine Jastrow’s 31st birthday tribute to yours truly

47) "A man of genius makes no mistakes; his errors are volitional and are the portals of discovery." - James Joyce

48) “Personally speaking, a millennial is anyone younger than me who gets on my fucking nerves. I don’t think of like, Dak Prescott as a millennial, because he seems cool. But Chris Brown? Fuck him sideways.” - Drew Magary

49) "It's a scientific fact that a beer tastes better when it travels more than 5 feet in the air" - @PFTCommenter

50) Dustin Brown perfectly summed up what it's like to play on Centre Court. "It would be nice if we're playing every match out there. It's very comfortable. Even when things aren't going your way, it relaxed me a bit to say 'this is where you always wanted to be,'" he said after his Wimbledon second round loss to defending champ Andy Murray.

51) "One thing I’ve always found fascinating about Federer (or, rather, the way we talk about Federer) is that there’s never been any backlash. Normally, when an athlete has been around as long as Federer has, and has been as great as Federer has, and is on the receiving end of so much adulation, some sort of noticeable backlash occurs. Never with Fed.

Relatedly, people root for Federer unabashedly, and did so even during that stretch in the 00's when he was as dominant a force as any sport has seen. Casual fans tend to root for the underdog, but Federer was so sublime that he made people root for Goliath." - Andrew, Deadspin reader

52) “‘Federer manages to scamper across himself’ is one of the more Federer tennis calls I've ever heard.” - Brian Phillips

53) “Everything before the word ‘but’ is horseshit.” - Jon Snow

54) “Be present.” - Megan Filip

55) "The successful person is one who finds an opportunity in every problem. Unsuccessful people find a problem in every opportunity." - Lou Holtz

56) “It ain’t a hit till Nate Dogg spit.” - Mack 10

57) "Nobody goes to work tomorrow. General strike, fuck this country." - some of Blake Schwarzenbach first words at the Jawbreaker reunion

58) “It’s hard getting good news -- you don’t know what to do with it.” - Blake Schwarzenbach, at the first Jawbreaker show in forever

59) “When I was a child, I spoke like a child.” - Davis,“Treme”

60) “In one sense, the story of human history is just people inventing progressively more advanced ways in which to be awful idiots, in groups.” - David Roth

61) "Reality gives nothing back and nor should you." - Kobe Bryant

62) “Show me a hero and I'll write you a tragedy.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald

63) "Brevity is the soul of wit" - William Shakespeare

64) "If I shoot an airball, call the foul." - Dirk Nowitzki

[torentialtribute]

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal relishing chance to renew legendary rivalry in French Open semi-final

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal feast on the chance to renew legendary rivalry in the French Open semifinals

Roger Federer overlooks to the challenge of being left

& I really expect him to play aggressive, changing rhythms, & he said

Elanor Crooks, Press Association

Published: ] 21:23 BST, June 6, 2019 |

Recent form will compete with historic domination when and Roger Federer renew their rivalry in the French Open semi-final on Friday

Nadal has won 23 of their 38 previous games, including all five at Roland Garros and 13 of 15 at clay, but Federer has the reached their summit in their most recent five meetings, all on hard court.

After not beating his great rival during a grand slam since Wimbledon 2007, Federer demanded a hugely important contribution

<img id = "i-413737b2a83c9589" src = "https://dailym.ai/2Xr5QwS" height = "422" width = "634" alt = "Roger Federer takes on Rafael Nadal at the French Open for a place in the Sunday finals" Nadal at the French Open for a place in the Sunday finals

Roger Federer takes on Rafael Nadal at the French Open for a place in the Sunday finals

<img id = "i-b695b9b9d1ac902d" src = "https://dailym.ai/2wEOXmD" height = "447" width = "634" alt = "The Spaniard expects Federer to be aggressive and tries to shorten the points "Federer is aggressive and tries to shorten the points "

The Spaniard expects Federer to be aggressive and tries to shorten the points

Now 37, Federer has to hope that confidence of those victories and his impressive return to clay can enable him to take the

& # 39; it's never natural against any left wing & quot ;, said Federer. & # 39; It's just everything changes. We play against 80 percent of the time (right-handed players). And when we play lefty, it's just another match. It is an interesting match.

& # 39; I always hated it. Now I love it because it's a huge challenge against those guys, and it's the best I've ever seen. I look forward to the test. & # 39;

Federer survived a real investigation of his gravel game in his quarterfinals against good friend Stan Wawrinka, dropping his first set of the tournament, but coming through in four

<img id = "i-86509db2f017f0aa" src = "https://dailym.ai/2XxFbyC. jpg "height =" 451 "width =" 634 "alt =" Federer is looking forward to the challenge of seeing the best left-hander he has played "the challenge of undergoing the best left-handed player has been played

Federer looks forward to the challenge of seeing the best left-hander he has played

& # 39; I really expect him to play aggressively. & # 39;

I spent a lot of time on the net because he has the entire tournament, and Nadal does not expect any surprises from his old enemy. , changing rhythms, going to the net, & said the Spaniard. & # 39; That is my feeling that he will try to play like this, because he plays well and he did the tennis thing.

& # 39; I have to be solid. I have to hit the ball hard enough not to allow him to do things from good positions. I have to let him play from difficult positions, so from there he will have fewer chances of going to the net or playing his aggressive game.

<img id = "i-80a3100f6d9d234f" src = "https://dailym.ai/2wF0sua -0-image-a-46_1559852267341.jpg "height =" 423 "width =" 634 "alt =" Nadal is the king of clay and will be the heavy favorite in the semifinals to triumph "the king of clay and will in the semi-final become the heavy favorite to triumph "

Nadal is the king of clay and will enter the semi-final final the heavy favorite to triumph

& # 39; If I can play good tennis and play well with my forehand and hindquarters, I hope to get him into trouble. If not, then I'm in trouble. "

It would be one of The greatest successes of Federer & # 39; s career would be if he could beat Nadal and reach the final finish since 2011 after four years away from the Paris clay.

Federer made the final here five times, lost to Nadal four times and in 2009 won his only title with victory over conqueror Robin Soderling of the Spaniard.

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[investmart007]

NEW YORK | Djokovic reaches 8th US Open final; will face del Potro

New Post has been published on https://is.gd/1VlybP

NEW YORK | Djokovic reaches 8th US Open final; will face del Potro

NEW YORK— Rafael Nadal felt the pain sear into his right knee early in his U.S. Open semifinal, on what he called “a bad movement.” It was a familiar pain, one that he’s dealt with off-and-on for years.

The defending champion looked up at his guest box and indicated something was wrong. He tried to continue. Eventually, he could not. Nadal stopped playing after dropping the opening two sets Friday night, putting Juan Martin del Potro back in a Grand Slam final for the first time since winning the 2009 title at Flushing Meadows.

“That was not a tennis match at the end. Just one player playing, the other staying on one side of the court,” Nadal said. “I hate to retire, but staying one more set out there, playing like this, would be too much for me.”

On Sunday, No. 3 del Potro will face No. 6 Novak Djokovic, who advanced with an emphatic 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over No. 21 Kei Nishikori in the second semifinal.

“I don’t know how it looked, but it felt really good,” said Djokovic, who reached his record-tying eighth final in New York as he aims for a third U.S. Open championship and 14th major title. “Great intensity, great focus, good game plan. Obviously easier said than done. You have to execute the shots.”

Del Potro was leading 7-6 (3), 6-2 after two hours of play when Nadal shook his head and said he had to retire, becoming the first man in the half-century professional era to do so during a semifinal or final at the U.S. Open.

“Of course, it’s not the best way to win a match,” said del Potro, who hugged Nadal when it was over. “I don’t like to see him suffering on court today. So I’m sad for him.”

The No. 1-ranked Nadal has a history of tendinitis in his knees, and he’s often cited that when withdrawing from tournaments. He was visited by a trainer at the changeover after the match’s seventh game and tape was applied below the joint.

At the next changeover, though, Nadal pulled off the tape.

After the third game of the second set, he had a medical timeout so the trainer could massage his right leg and once again apply tape. Nothing helped.

Nadal’s movement was clearly limited, and by the end, he was walking with a bit of a hitch in his gait between points. At one juncture, he approached the chair umpire to complain about a late call from a line judge and mentioned in passing that he was going to have to quit. Soon enough, he did just that.

Nadal said he didn’t know what kind of effects might have been lingering from his quarterfinal victory over Dominic Thiem, which lasted five sets and nearly five hours. He did have some knee issues earlier in the tournament, when he had it taped during his win against Karen Khachanov in the third round.

For del Potro, it was an odd way to return to an important summit. Nine years ago, he stunned Nadal in the semifinals, then Roger Federer in the final, to win the U.S. Open at age 20. He was considered a rising star at the time, but a series of wrist operations — one on his dominant right arm, and three on his left — slowed his career and kept him out of 2½ years’ worth of major tournaments. He has returned to the height of his powers and the height of his sport, up to a career-best No. 3 in the rankings.

“It means a lot to me,” del Potro said. “I didn’t expect to get (to) another Grand Slam final.”

After nearly two weeks of heat in the 90s, it cooled to the 70s, although the humidity was still at about 70 percent. The lights in Arthur Ashe Stadium were on for the start of Nadal vs. del Potro, and they engaged in some terrific shotmaking during the first set.

A group of about a dozen of del Potro’s friends from Argentina would salute important points won by their guy, often breaking into choruses of “Ole, ole, ole, ole, del Po, del Po!” Thousands in the crowd would lend their voices to the song; yet others would try to drown them out with support for Nadal.

Those pals helped del Potro get through the toughest times, as he would need to repeatedly return to have surgery. He dealt with depression. He considered quitting his sport.

“I didn’t know,” he said, “if I will be a tennis player again or not.” When Nadal missed a forehand wide, then put a backhand into the net, the opening set belonged to del Potro, who shook his fist and yelled, “Vamos!”

As del Potro continued forehands at more than 100 mph (160 kph) and serves at more than 130 mph (210 kph), and even making hay with his much-improved two-handed backhand, Nadal offered less and less resistance. It was clear something was wrong. He barely took any time between points while serving — and he’s known as one of the slowest guys on tour.

Afterward, he couldn’t say for sure how long he might be sidelined. Could be a week. Could be months. No way to know yet.

All that was certain at that point was that his bid for a fourth U.S. Open title, and second in a row, was gone. As was his try for an 18th Grand Slam trophy overall as he tries to catch up to Federer’s 20, the record for men.

This one goes into the books as a loss, only his fourth in 49 matches in 2018. As Nadal himself noted during a news conference that closed as he began to choke up, this was the second of those defeats that involved him quitting during a Grand Slam match because of an injury; the other was in the fifth set of his Australian Open quarterfinal.

To be sure, del Potro knows that sort of setback, given all of his own health woes. So, too, does Djokovic.

“I’ve been fighting with many, many problems to get (to) this moment,” del Potro said. “I’m here now.”

By HOWARD FENDRICH , Associated Press

[spintrebuchet-blog]

Wimbledon is here.

 An emerald swale exists in London where dukes would play in the past, and immortals dominate it in the present. I bring you – Wimbledon. This is the holy grail of tennis.

(Center court with the roof closed. That’s Nigel, by the way. My espionage sensei. He used to work in the Mi6. Great guy. Although, he cheats at canasta).

There is a whiff of sentimentality and wistfulness to this place. As a staunch romantic, I am averse to both, but here...I make an exception. Let me prove it to you. In 1880, it started as the ‘Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’. Over the passing years, croquet lost fashion (unsurprisingly) and its name was omitted from the front billboard. This did not last long as nostalgia kicked in and brought back the word.

I’ve been to the Center Court many times. It is especially beautiful after the rain. Water droplets bring out a sparkle from the grass. The burst of zest is overpowering and all one has to do is just surrender to them. Astronomers say that the Earth was once bathed in stardust, but I wonder if this place got a little more than others. Everything about Wimbledon is just right. . There is not a single sponsorship label to be seen. No pump-up music. Not one cheerleader. And, the result? Dogmatic commitment from players that churn out matches that are both gritty and sublime.

Plus, how good these strawberries and cream look? 

Wimbledon use to have a pigeon problem until 2002. Then MTB, sent in one of my colleagues - Rufus. 

Now. It is time for me to address the Big 4. 

Andy Murray - the Dreadnought of Dunblane - (Slam Count: 3. Rank: #1). 

Yeah, it’s been that kind of year for Murray. He came as the top seed at the Australian Open, for the first time in his entire career. Everyone expected him to storm his way to the finals. Instead, he lost to a crafty Misha Zverev in the fourth round. 

Murray...what happened, man? Just overnight, you lost your mojo. Last year, by this point, you had reached two slam finals and were coming into Wimbledon as the second favorite, to Djokovic. 

Recently, McEnroe commented that you were “a distant fourth” among the others of the Big 4. This is your chance to prove him wrong. Wimbledon is the starry diamond of all the jewels of the ATP treasure trove.

Remember this: you’re number one. You have got the ranking and the seeding. Sure, the rhythm hasn’t been great from the last six months. But, keep in mind, how many more years do you see ahead? You’re already 30. This might be the last time you’ll have the number one seeding at Wimbledon. Winning this title would put ahead of Wawrinka, in the slam count, and rightfully so.  

I am reminded of a passage from Paradise Lost. 

“In dubious Battel on the Plains of Heav’n, And shook his throne. What though the field be lost?  All is not lost; the unconquerable Will; And study of revenge, immortal hate,  And courage never to submit or yield: And what is else not to be overcome?”

When looking at Murray’s most recent highlights, notably from his semi-finals in Paris, against Stan Wawrinka - where he was up two sets to one, you just notice the sense that he is playing too passively. 

There is a Scottish saying which I wonder has gone to Murray’s heart:

 "Whit's fur ye'll no go past ye”. This basically means, ‘What will happen, will happen”. 

Andy, you need to drill that cynicism out of your cranium. I want to see Andy play with the same fervency, that he used to. I am talking about Braveheart times Nessie. I want to see that same demented perfectionist blast scorching aces down the tee. Remember, the same weapon that you destroyed Federer with, back in the finals of the Olympics back in 2012.

Nevertheless, Murray, I shall leave you be and wish you luck with a saying from your Native Scotland - Long may your chimney smoke. 

(Oh, and when you do get on a roll, and steam your way through the first week, which I’m sure you will; after demolishing your opponents, quote the great Demoman, “Oh, they’re going to have to glue you back together...in Hell!”. 

Novak Djokovic - the Djoker - (Slam Count: 12. Rank - #4). 

Nole has been rusty all season. He looked decent in Madrid, but losing in the finals of a Masters 1000 to a rookie, shows that he hasn’t gotten his clutch gene back. 

(Doesn’t Eastbourne sound like a cool name for a spy? Oh, just give it a though. M summons Bond into her office and says, “007, allow me to introduce your new partner. Meet Eastbourne”.). 

Anyways, back to tennis. Playing at Eastbourne would have meant that he would not have any rest before Wimbledon, unlike his rivals who had time to recharge their batteries. But, Nole’s main concern is rhythm. It reminds of me a Smithsonian documentary that I once watched. A cheetah, living in the sandy dunes of Namibia, was at risk of starvation. Just to keep it’s heart pumping, it chased down a measly rat and ate it. Eastbourne is a tiny tournament, with a mere 250 ranking points on offer, yet his decision to play there shows us that the Serb is still hungry. 

Roger Federer - the Maestro - (Slam Count: 18. Rank - #5). 

One wonders what Roger did during his six month sabbatical. Did his team make him drink daily smoothies made out of rare healing fruit, slabbed with ice from the Swiss Alps? Whatever they did, it has certainly worked wonders. He has returned – rejuvenated and motivated as ever.

Don’t forget - he is 35.

At this age, players have usually retired. If they are itching to compete then they do so on the senior tour.

But, Federer remains a true freak of nature. Watching him sweep past twenty year olds, one wonders how many years he has in the tank.

This year already, he has won the Australian Open, completed the Sunshine double with crowns from Miami and California, and remains odds makers second favorite to win here.

There is Sherlock Holmes line that I am reminded of when I watched Federer play his second round match yesterday.

“A man is no happier than doing what he does best”.

Federer’s back on grass. He’s in his element. A crocodile in saltwater. The entire grass court season is three weeks. And, perhaps because of that, only the best of the best have taken home the golden trophy. (That isn’t a figure of speech. The Wimbledon trophy is actually golden).

The famed Carthaginian general – Hannibal, once proclaimed, “God has given to man no sharper spur to victory than contempt of death”.

When you look at the veterans from the Big 4, compared to the youngsters like Tomic who recently said he felt bored – at Wimbledon, you can’t help but think that they greater motivation, the closer they reach to the end.

Agassi recently said that Federer could possibly play for another five years. That would make him forty. Never done before in the Open Era. But, I have come to learn that with the Maestro, you never make the error of betting against him.

Numerous champions across the years had publicly expressed their belief that he would retire soon. From, Borg, to McEnroe, to Wilander. They all expressed their love for the champion but also conceded that father-time remained undefeated.

What I love the most about Federer is that he is an expert tactician. One who is never shy to re-examine and be adaptable. This psychological agility saw him snap up Stefan Edberg as his coach in 2014, who encouraged him to employ the vintage technique of serve and volley into his game. This, combined with a new, larger racquet, saw him return to the finals of Wimbledon, where he waged an epic five-set battle against Djokovic, which he narrowly lost, and improved his ranking from sixth to second.

In 2015, he parted ways with Edberg and brought in Ivan Lbijucic – a veteran player (albeit slamless), to bring a gutsy, streetfighter mentality into his game. He made it two grand slam finals and saw him dominate the North American hard court season with a technique called the SABR. (An acronym for ‘Sneak Attack By Roger’).

Roger’s main goal, ever since 2014, has been to win another Wimbledon. It reminds me of when Hannibal’s generals told him that it was suicide to cross the Alps. 

His response was, ““I will either find a way, or make one”.

Rafael Nadal - El Matador - (Slam Count: 15. Rank - #2). 

Chop. Chop. Boom! 

That was the sound of Nadal dellvering a supermax masterclass in Roland Garros to win his tenth title. I thought Stan played as well as he could, for a mere mortal. But, Nadal at the French Open is a force of nature. It’s as if he has metaphysical allies. The rules of gravity and magnetism bent towards his favor and helped him rout out his veteran opponent. Such was the toll of the match, Stan lost in the very first round at Wimbledon. 

He lost in the fourth round to Dennis Muller. A disappointing result, especially given that he came back from two sets down to level the match. It’ll hurt him for a while, especially given that this might have been his last best chance to win Wimbledon. But, this should fuel his fire for the US Open and finish this year as number one. 

All white uniforms and nothing but brilliance to blight out the competition. For glory! Onward!  

[spintrebuchet-blog]

The Djokovic Paradox: Reigniting a burnt out comet and the super Serb’s new nemesis

Legionnaires and Centurions! Gather around! The Finals of the Rome Masters we just finished and now we have arrived at the French Open. The Clay Slam. 

Back in Rome, Zverev faced off against Djokovic...and won. I’ll let that sink in for a moment. The master of masters 1000′s was beaten, in straight sets, by a talented rookie playing his first final at that level? Yup. That actually happened. 

“Poor is the pupil who does not surpass the master”

A famous quote attributed to the most storied polymath of all time – Da Vinci. Remember this.

Djokovic hasn’t been playing great this year. Everyone’s been reported on this and unfortunately if you were to google the words, ‘Slump’ and ‘Djokovic’, it would appear a million times (309,000, to be precise).

I’ll confess to you: I’m a Rafa fan and from 2015-2016, my sister (who is probably the biggest Novak fan) tormented me with texts, dripping with sarcasm after every one of Rafa’s seven losses against the mighty Serb.

Flashback

Location: Caja Magica. Also known as the Magic Box.

The sun blazed above the Caja Magica stadium. Clad in my burgundy suit and tie, I was in attendance. My Beretta was holstered, just in case I received the text from the mysterious tennis benefactors (also known as the MTB) to shoot Ille Natase. Far too magnanimous, she was and called off the hit (That was an insiders joke that only tennis junkies would understand). Anyways, no point letting a good ticket go to waste, so my bottom eagerly clung onto the comfortable seating, and I sipped my lemonade. 

Nadal, came onto the court first, because he was the lower seed; but most odds makers favored the Spaniard because of his good form. The Spanish crowd cheered him on fervently. I’m not going to make this about the King of Clay. (Don’t complain now. I’m writing a separate piece on him).

There’s something about the sight and feel of red clay that reminds me of the gladiators of the Roman Empire. Sipping my drink, I surveyed both of them. Nadal looked determined to snap his seven match losing streak against the mighty Serb. That fervent obsessiveness was in his eyes and you could see it. (On related news, my tour guide, got me some roasted cod. Quite scrumptious). 

Then came Djokovic. The higher seed. There were some cheers for him, but he was hardly the crowd favourite in the strongly partisan crowd. Don’t expect that to faze him. He managed to feed off the hate that spilled from the American crowd when he played against Roger in New York in 2015. But, he wasn’t in that same rhythm anymore. His box lacked his old-time backbone – Marian Vajda. The match ended after two hours. There was no sarcastic text from my sister. Nadal had finally snapped is seven match losing streak against Novak and has galvanized his status as the undisputed favorite for the French Open. 

(Head’s up: I’ll be tangoing between the second and third person. I’d like to address Novak directly here). 

You have a winning record against Federer and Nadal. (23-22 & 26-24). History can never be erased. Numbers are objective. Muscle memory can kick in anytime. It just takes six matches. Every supernova needs just one spark. All know this. Nadal, of all people, dismissed Spanish reporters of your so-called slump. No one expected the bombastic vintage throwback to 2007. Federer and Nadal are on your tail again. You thrive off rivalries. They’re back. Becker said it himself last year that one of the reasons you cooled during the second half of 2016, was because “your rivals were not there”. 

If it weren’t you, Nadal probably would have passed Federer’s Slam total by now. But, you took this game to a new level. Even a diehard Nadal fan would concede that. You’re one of the Big 4! Tennis’s equivalent of the Justice League! (That reminds me, why don’t more tennis players get into movies? Am I the only one who would love to see a buddy cop franchise with any one of the Big 4, alongside Shaq? It’d be ridiculously fun). 

And, now let us get to the matter of your new nemesis. It isn’t Federer. You haven’t faced him this year, and he is miles ahead of you in the Barclays Race to London. Nor is it Nadal, who is noisily gunning for the number one ranking again. You faced him this year just once…and lost. But, it’s not him either. You were beaten twice this year…by…Nick. I suppose on court, you could consider him to be a rival. He has beaten you on the tangible tennis court. Nevertheless, tennis is a psychological sport - so it’s not him either. (Has my preamble gone longer than needed? Almost there).

It’s Boris Becker.

Yes. You read correctly. A six time grand slam winner. Former world number one. The Baron Von Slam from Germany. The old mentor. He’s gotten inside your head. With not-so cryptic tweets directed towards to you after your defeats, he really does take extra relish in rubbing salt in your wounds.

The silent message: You were a winner when I coached you; and a loser without me.

(During happier times)

And, the thing is…don’t hate me for it, but I do find all this drama to be…deliciously entertaining.

Becker once famously said, “I am not God. I am far from perfect”. Tennis players, retired and current, tend to be extremely diplomatic in their opinions. Even politicians are rarely as politically correct. Not Becker though. Right from the start of this year, he has dropped such shade on his former protégé, that Regina George would have been impressed.

Becker expected Djokovic to keep him by his side as they chased Federer’s slam total. Becker’s vindictiveness probably was no more reflective when he praised Novak’s dethroner at Indian Wells, Nick, with the following tweet:

“Hope my man, Novak, is watching”.

(In my mind, that’s Becker’s expression through that match in California. I love the fact that Becker has such an appetite for melodrama. It doesn’t surprise me that he’s fond of Shakespeare. He’s openly admitted that he never wants anyone to surpass his prodigal breakthrough at Wimbledon at the age of 17). 

I wonder if on some level, Becker wants to motivate him, to use his criticisms to spur him to his old self. Or, maybe, it is coming from his Id and not his SuperEgo. I am reminded by a line by the great Augustus, “I found Rome a city of bricks, and left it a city of marble”.

If you think my theory is too far-fetched, then wait. I have proof. It was reported in numerous sources that Djokovic’s new super coach is going to be Agassi. Becker’s old nemesis. The guy who managed to read his Blitzkrieg serve by the way he would stick his tongue out on each ball serve. Has he found an ally in this psychological war against his former mentor? 

You brought Becker to help deal with your tangible nemesis – Nadal. And, this time another super coach. Your silence to Becker’s quotes could be interpreted as magnanimity. But, I’d like to quote one of my favorite video game characters, GlaDOS,

“We have both said a lot of things that you are going to regret”. That’s GlaDOS laying it down to Wheatley in Portal 2, and then proceeds to banish him to the Moon. 

The silent message he has sent: ‘Time for an upgrade’. Open Era experts would all concede that Agassi had a better career than Becker, being one of only two individuals with a career golden slam (Nadal, being the other).

Imagine if you made to the finals at Roland Garros. I know, I know. There are many obstacles ahead. Besides, Nadal, there’s Thiem, who is showing good form, plus the likes of Zverev, Wawrinka and Dmitrov. Plus, there’s Krygios. But, a key part of sport psychology is visualization. Just imagine if you were there again. Wouldn’t it be quite satisfying to repeat the Guga heart across the Phillipe Chartier Stadium again?

Becker’s going to be watching. 

Surprisingly, Becker sent out a tweet, praising Novak’s move to hire Agassi. A diplomatic touch, perhaps?

There is a Spanish song by the band – Gotan Project – Epoca; this springs to mind, particularly the first verse. 

“Si desapareció

en mi aparecerá

creyeron que murió

pero renacerá

(which translates to)

If he disappeared

I would believe

That he died

but will revive.

There’s more history to be written. There are more memories ahead. Do me a favor and just don’t lose to Krygios because then both me and my sister are going to be bummed out. Nadal’s ranked fourth and he just missed out on being the third seed (to Wawrinka, by a hundred points). 

This means the two of you could possibly face each other in the semi-finals. Just like the good old days of 2013, when the two of you dueled in what many regard to be the greatest clay-court match, ever. 

The legendary skier - Shane McConkey, once said that “there’s no better feeling than that moment before you take off”. It’s time to hit the ignition again. Slap that crosscourt sliding backhand – a thousand times if you have to. You destroyed Thiem in less than an hour at Rome. Zverev’s serve left you undone in the finals at Rome. But, that’s not a Grand Slam. In a best of five setter, I’d say experience trumps exuberance. 

I can understand the hiring of Pepe Imaz, with his quasi mantra of ‘Love & Hugs’. And, Becker’s strict coaching regime reminds me of J.K Simmons from Whiplash. But, we have months of hindsight now and lets admit it together, that Pepe’s nuttier than a squirrel’s snack box. Anyways, good luck with Agassi. Idemo!