EARTHQUAKE NEW ZEALAND AND DAY 6 US OPEN!

I won't forget the match between Daniela Hantuchova Vs Elena Dementieva for a long time not because of the great tennis but because that's when the earthquake hit during the match!First of all I thought it was wind, then after ten seconds I knew it was a quake,now I'm Australian and I have never experienced a tremor let alone a quake , since I've been in New Zealand there has been earthquakes but never near me or have never felt the ones that have occurred.Boy did I feel this one! The whole house started shaking and swaying and I could hear a rumbling noise, I stood not quite knowing what to do as other members of the household made their way to the lounge room where I was.It shook and swayed for a minute which seemed like eternity, I thought oh yeh 15 sec and its finished..........hahah it kept going on an on.Even some 12 hours as I write this post an aftershock just occurred and trembled my house a little!I am in Timaru but have coached in Darfield where the quake was centered!Wow its not something I thought I would experience and its something I don't want to again.I actually feel like I am sea sick and any slight movement or bump startles me! Anyhow above is some pictures of Christchurch where a lot of the damage occurred.We are all ok in Timaru but definitely shaken. 

Well ok here are my selections for play today.Hope watching is less eventful!


Jelena Jankovic Vs Kaia Kanepi - Jelena Jelly bean for the win.
Beatrice Capra Vs Maria Sharapova- The courts are alive with the sound of Maria
Paul-Henri Mathieu Vs Roger Federer-Will be a good test for Rodger!
James Blake Vs Novak Djokovic - The Djoker is playing with us he will let us think he is a contender then have a dizzy spell and lose! But not this round.


Svetlana Kutnetsova Vs Maria Kirilenko - Its Russian roulette 
Robert Soderling Vs Thiemo De Bakker -Soderling has not really impressed me so far but should get the job done.
Caroline Wozniacki Vs Yung Jan Cheng - The top seed to get through.
Arnaud Clement Vs Mardy Fish - The Frenchman wont be catching any Fish here.


Alexandra Dulgheru Vs Vera Zvonareva - Vera to get there may be tight.
Gail Monfils Vs Janko Tipsaravic- I would never put money on either of these in a grandslam tournament.Monfils just.
Patty Schnyder Vs Yanina Wickmayer - So Long Patty
Jurgen Melzer Vs Juan Carlos Ferrero - I'm think Juan Carlos


Albert Montanes Vs Kei Nishikori- Could go either way. Will go with the higher seed.
Richard Gasquet Vs Kevin Anderson - The Frenchman
Shuai Peng Vs Andrea Petkovik - Peng maybe
Dominika Cibulkova Vs Lourdes Lino - Anyone's guess


Competition players still needing to pick for Round 3 use this post.


Finally Venus Williams Outfit of the round

WIMBLEDON DAY 9

Kvitova,Pironkova,Zvonareva not household names you would expect appearing in a Grand Slam semi final.Serena Williams is the only high ranked seed to appear in the Wimbledon Ladies semi's.Serena was pre tournament favourite and is now virtually unbackable and no doubt will defend her title unless she gets the Venus "shakes".Below are our winners from Day 8 .Ladies Day at Wimbledon!

Today is Men's Quarter Final Day and there are some great matches as we get closer to the Main event.Below are my selections and previews .

MEN'S 

Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych

Head to Head Federer leads Berdych 8-2.Berdych has struggled so far against less accomplished players than the "King of the grass".Federer has showed in his last two matches why he is the GOAT (greatest of all time.)Berdych is in with an outside chance after all he has nothing to lose and can throw everything he has at Federer.And this is what happens in situations like these players lift their game to above expectations eg Lu against Roddick.Federer should prevail and anything below his best Berdych will take advantage.This year a guy with a Big game serve and solid ground strokes have done very well.

Novak Djokovic vs Yen -Hsun Lu

I am afraid the fairy tale story of the boy who used to catch chickens will be brought to an end by the Djoker, unless the mystery ailments return to haunt Djokovic.You have always got a chance that the Djoker may retire .... on no less than seven matches previous he has yielded.The Djoker will return serve far better than A ROD and should get the job done here.Keep you shirt on Novak.

Jo-Wilfred Tsonga vs Andy Murray

This will be a big test for Andy Murray.Tsonga can be a spoiler to higher seeds at this end of the tournament.If he has the adrenalin flowing and playing with emotion he will beat Murray,simply he has a bigger game than the "scot".Now England is out of the world cup football then the British sports public are well an truly on Murray's shoulders.Tsonga to cause the upset here.

MATCH OF THE ROUND

 

Looking at Nadal's previous matches he has struggled against Guy's with a big serve and huge ground strokes!Does this sound like Soderling? Nadal will have to be at his best and must fire early! Do not give Soderling a "sniff".Soderling does not have the fight Nadal has and does crack under tight situations.Soderling only won in five against Ferrer and the Spaniard does not have the class on grass as Nadal.Nadal will have to serve at a high level, he has thrown in some very loose service games in previous matches and can not do so here.One slip can mean the set difference with serve being harder to break on grass.Can Soderling get around on his forehand as much as he can on clay will be the Key.Both Players use this ploy a lot.Nadal has the better back hand and can slice so more variety on this side than Soderling.Nadal is also the better mover of the two.And that just might be the difference in what shapes up as Nadal's most important match do date.Nadal in a tight one.

Just an update on the Junior Wimbledon events also that are being played.Both New Zealand representatives Ben Mclachlan and Sebastian Lavie both went out first round. Australia head the round of 16 with four players still left in the draw.Kubler(AUS) the top seed will be tested by promising British player Oliver Golding.In saying the Aussie boys have done well ,Australia had no girls in the Main draw singles..... disappointing to say the least! All eyes will be on Laura Robson(England) who was a late entry in the juniors can she win her second Junior Wimbledon Title?

MINI WIMBLEDON COMPETITION.

Yesterday we lost Kimmy and the Brown eyed Bomb shell from the competition,and those that must make selection for Men's Matches should do so on this post.

Wimbledon Day 4

Yesterday two players etched themselves in Tennis History.Neither Man will win the tournament but John Isner and Nicholas Mahut put on a show of courage and determination to be locked at 59-59 in the 5th Set before bad light stopped play.It set a lot of records and had every tennis player and spectator simply in awe of what was happening on court 18.This is the longest tennis match ever played in time and in games, all 163 of them. The fifth set of 118 games is longer than any previous singles match. Mahut served 95 aces. Isner boomed in 98. Both break the record of aces in one match held by Croat Ivo Karlovic.Federer had this to say "I've been following this as closely as I could. I walked on court at about 11‑all in the fifth, and they're still going. This is absolutely amazing. In a way, I wish I was them, in some ways I wish I wasn't them. This is a very special match. I hope somehow this is going to end. They'll be fresh again tomorrow if they have to come back."Nadal also was glued to the match as no doubt every player left in the locker room watched as history unfolded.Venus Williams had this to say "It's amazing. It's a marathon - longer than a marathon. I don't think I'd move - if you moved, you lose your seat! Around the grounds, there has to be a buzz around that this match is going so far."Tennis is a unique sport and this match will be remembered for a long long time.Records are made to be broken however this match may stand a life time!



Match Selections Day 4.

MEN

As proven yesterday outside the top seeds matches are very hard to pick.

Fognini (ITA) v Russell (USA)- This could be close , I would like to see Fognini carry on from his great win First Round.FOGNINI

Beck (GER) v Benneteau (FRA)-Another Match that could go either way! Will go for the German.BECK

Seppi (ITA) v Kamke (GER)- This section shows anyone can get through, Kamke is a lucky loser so Seppi on paper should win.Lets throw caution to the wind and go with KAMKE

Dolgopolov (UKR) v Tsonga (FRA)- Tsonga should get this one.TSONGA

Malisse (BEL) v Reister (GER)- Malisse likes the grass so its MALISSE for me

Dodig (CRO) v Querrey (USA)- On his way for a Murray Showdown.QUERREY

Simon (FRA) v Marchenko (UKR)- Simon in another close fought match SIMON

Nieminen (FIN) v Murray (GBR)- I would think Murray for sure unless playing under the watchfull eye of the Queen scares him.MURRAY

Soderling (SWE) v Granollers (ESP)- Soderling for sure. A real contender! SODERLING

Fischer (AUT) v Bellucci (BRA)- Fischer another qualifier ha had a win over Bellucci, will stay with the seed here BELLUCCI another match that could go either way!

Lacko (SVK) v Chardy (FRA)- What with these match ups! so close Lacko just.

Serra (FRA) v Ferrer (ESP)- way too many clay courters still in the draw Ferrer just.

Youzhny (RUS) v Mathieu (FRA)- Youzhny again wil be close.YOUZHNY

Petzschner (GER) v Kubot (POL)- Should be the German! PETZSCHNER

de Bakker (NED) v THE WINNER OF YOU KNOW WHO!!!!

Haase (NED) v Nadal (ESP)- Rafa Vamos!

LADIES

S Williams (USA) v Chakvetadze (RUS) - Serena must be so pissed off not to get Center Court and the Queen ......watch out the Russian. SERENA

Morita (JPN) v Cibulkova (SVK)- Sayornara.......CIBULKOVA

Hantuchova (SVK) v Zahlavova Stryc (CZE)- stryc

Olaru (ROU) v Sharapova (RUS)-Maria is looking good!.SHARAPOVA


Li (CHN) v Nara (JPN)- Li will get this one!

Rodionova (AUS) v Kuznetsova (RUS)- Rodionava has the worst court manners especially to the opponents. Teach her a lesson KUTZNETSOVA

Errani (ITA) v Parra Santonja (ESP) - You would think ERRANI

Brianti (ITA) v A Radwanska (POL)- Surely the 7th seed will get the money RADWANSKA


Wozniacki (DEN) v Chang (TPE) - Wozniaki gets the Queen! Hopefully she will get the win.....Poor Serena WOZNIACKI

Vinci (ITA) v Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) - This could go either way,the russian leads 2-1 head to head so I think its time the Italian won again. VINCI

Zheng (CHN) v Kvitova (CZE) - ZHENG

Jovanovski (SRB) v Azarenka (BLR)- Not much to say AZARENKA


Pennetta (ITA) v Niculescu (ROU)- PENNETTA looks a good bet here.

Zakopalova (CZE) v Rezai (FRA)- REZAI

Dulgheru (ROU) v Oprandi (ITA) - DULGHERU

Gallovits (ROU) v Kanepi (EST)- gallovits

MINI WIMBLEDON COMPETION
Those that went through to the third round from yesterdays round

The Eye- Hewitt
Willy - Monfils
LuLu- Petrova
Thirsty- Jankovic
Kimmy- Zvonareva

Others are pending matches tonight. Unfortunatley we lost Broz yesterday with the choice of Molik!!!

So well done to those that are through and selections for 3rd round will be due from tomorrow.

Below is a little tongue in cheek picture on the eve of the Queen visiting Wimbledon.

Wimbledon -Day 1 Picks and News and a little Gossip

The grandest grandslam of them all kicks off today.I'll be keeping Daily posts over the fortnight .I'm sure as the championship unfolds we are in for high drama, laughs and tears.May the best Male or Female win!

Today's Picks

MEN
Roger Federer(SUI)[1] vs. Alejandro Falla(COL) -Roger will kick off the tournament and also kick Falla out of the tournament. Dam! someone has to play Roger 1st Round.

Novak Djokovic(SRB)[3] vs. Olivier Rochus(BEL) - Now this will be a good Match.Rochus has had a win recently over Djoker( hardcourt)....If hes in one of those moods Rochus can win.

Kevin Anderson(RSA) vs. Nikolay Davydenko(RUS)[7] - Never back Davydenko at Wimbledon! He has not been back that long and Anderson is 6'7 and built for grass.!However last event Anderson retired with a shoulder injury. Heads or Tails!

Rajeev Ram(USA) vs. Andy Roddick(USA)[5] - Roddick all the way ,will be interested to see his form.

Mardy Fish(USA) vs. Bernard Tomic(AUS) - Another great match up will the experience of Fish be too good for Tomic the youngster.You would think Fish but will go with the Aussie.

Maximo Gonzalez(ARG) vs. Lleyton Hewitt(AUS)[15] -C'MON!!!! I know he pixxxs a few off especially New Zealanders but there will be more C'MON'S to come.

Gael Monfils(FRA)[21] vs. Leonardo Mayer(ARG) Who knows with Monfils , fitness cloud but should get through.

Peter Luczak(AUS) vs. Tommy Robredo(ESP)[30] - I think Luczak will take out the 30th seed.Robredo as been terrible in his past few matches.

Ilija Bozoljac(SRB) vs. Nicolas Massu(CHI) - I am going for the qualifyer he has won three matches to get here and Massu hasnt played any of the Grass court lead ups.


Ramon Delgado(PAR) vs. Teimuraz Gabashvili(RUS) -This will be close , Delgado lost 2nd round of qualy's ....Gabashvili coming off a great Roland Garros but no Grass court Form.The russian to come out on top.

Igor Kunitsyn(RUS) vs. Viktor Troicki(SRB) -Troiki leads head to head so will go with that.

Juan Ignacio Chela(ARG) vs. Taylor Dent(USA)- A few years ago I would have no hesitation picking Dent. He has come through qualifying so should have the edge on grass.

Michal Przysiezny(POL) vs. Ivan Ljubicic(CRO)[17] - Ljubicic!

Michael Llodra(FRA) vs. Jesse Witten(USA) - With Mauresmo in his corner Llodra.

Karol Beck(SVK) vs. Santiago Ventura(ESP) -Beck

Igor Andreev(RUS) vs. Daniel Brands(GER) - Going for the German has some grass court form.

Eduardo Schwank(ARG) vs. Evgeny Korolev(KAZ) - Korolev

Horacio Zeballos(ARG) vs. Yen-Hsun Lu(TPE)

Dmitry Tursunov(RUS) vs. Rainer Schuettler(GER) - Another good match up .Could go either way.

Marin Cilic(CRO)[11] vs. Florian Mayer(GER) - You would think Cilic

Tomas Berdych(CZE)[12] vs. Andrey Golubev(KAZ) - Berdych ....he beat Hewitt in an exhibition last week so I think form is good.

Feliciano Lopez(ESP)[22] vs. Jesse Levine(USA) - Lopez , but wont
be easy

Philipp Kohlschreiber(GER)[29] vs. Potito Starace(ITA)

Paolo Lorenzi(ITA) vs. Albert Montanes(ESP)[28] - Going to be brave here Lorenzi and he leads Head to Head 1-0 and at least has played a lead up event.

Ryan Sweeting(USA) vs. Benjamin Becker(GER)

Brendan Evans(USA) vs. Jesse Huta Galung(NED)

Janko Tipsarevic(SRB) vs. Arnaud Clement(FRA) Never bet on Tipsarevic ...but seeing Im not betting money on him will pick him to win.

Ricardas Berankis(LTU) vs. Carsten Ball(AUS) - go the Aussie

Marsel Ilhan(TUR) vs. Marcos Daniel(BRA)

Dustin Brown(JAM) vs. Jurgen Melzer(AUT)[16]

Denis Istomin(UZB) vs. Stanislas Wawrinka(SUI)[20] - Could be an upset here but will go with the seed.

Victor Hanescu(ROU)[31] vs. Andrey Kuznetsov(RUS) Will go for another upset here.

LADIES

Laura Robson(GBR) vs. Jelena Jankovic(SRB)[4] - You have to go with Jelena but the crowd will be pulling for Robson!Will be closer than what Jelena thinks.

Rossana De Los Rios(PAR) vs. Venus Williams(USA)[2]

Kim Clijsters(BEL)[8] vs. Maria Elena Camerin(ITA)

Francesca Schiavone(ITA)[5] vs. Vera Dushevina(RUS)

Tatjana Malek(GER) vs. Nadia Petrova(RUS)[12]


Regina Kulikova(RUS) vs. Melanie South(GBR)

Alisa Kleybanova(RUS)[26] vs. Sandra Zahlavova(CZE)

Tsvetana Pironkova(BUL) vs. Anna Lapushchenkova(RUS) - Pironkova leads head to head 2-0

Stefanie Voegele(SUI) vs. Maria Kirilenko(RUS)[27]

Kateryna Bondarenko(UKR)[34] vs. Greta Arn(HUN)

Polona Hercog(SLO) vs. Yaroslava Shvedova(KAZ)

Sania Mirza(IND) vs. Angelique Kerber(GER) - Another toss of the coin, the Germans have been firing so will go that way.

Yung-Jan Chan(TPE) vs. Patty Schnyder(SUI)

Sofia Arvidsson(SWE) vs. Alla Kudryavtseva(RUS)


Eleni Daniilidou(GRE) vs. Aleksandra Wozniak(CAN)

Ekaterina Makarova(RUS) vs. Agnes Szavay(HUN)

Lucie Hradecka(CZE) vs. Varvara Lepchenko)(USA - Toss the coin again USA

Petra Martic(CRO) vs. Elena Baltacha(GBR)

Justine Henin(BEL)[17] vs. Anastasija Sevastova(LAT)

Noppawan Lertcheewakarn(THA) vs. Andrea Hlavackova(CZE)

Yanina Wickmayer(BEL)[15] vs. Alison Riske(USA)

Shenay Perry(USA) vs. Anastasiya Yakimova(BLR) - what a draw both came through qualifying!.Could go either way .Perry beat Erakovic( nz) 2nd round.

Renata Voracova(CZE) vs. Jarmila Groth(AUS) - hope the Aussie has an on day!

Karolina Sprem(CRO) vs. Bethanie Mattek-Sands(USA) A TOIN COSS FOR SURE!

Zuzana Kucova(SVK) vs. Alicia Molik(AUS) - RETIRE ALICIA

Stephanie Dubois(CAN) vs. Kirsten Flipkens(BEL)

Julia Goerges(GER) vs. Marion Bartoli(FRA)[11]

Anna-Lena Groenefeld(GER) vs. Melanie Oudin(USA)[33]

Nuria Llagostera Vives(ESP) vs. Vera Zvonareva(RUS)[21]

Kristina Barrois(GER) vs. Mariya Koryttseva(UKR)

Shahar Peer(ISR)[13] vs. Ana Ivanovic(SRB) - WILL never tip
Ivanovic!

Alona Bondarenko(UKR)[28] vs. Katie O'Brien(GBR)

Wow thats it!!!!!!

CONTEST!!!!!

Ok readers lets play a Mini Wimbledon . You need to pick a winner in either the Mens or the Womens draw ,you cant swap once you chose the genre in future selections.You need to put forward a winner from the days play!Now to stay in the competition your selection needs to win.The catch is you can not pick that player again if you progress.So choosing Fed or Nadal early for example will probably catch you out in the end! So my pick today is in the Men's and thats where I have to pick from in the future ......is Philipp Kohlschreiber(GER)[29].Now to enter all you have to do is leave your selection in the comment section of this post with a nick next to your selection if you post anonymous like Philipp Kohlschreiber(GER)[29](fed express) and that is to recognize you in future rounds!!Entry's have to be in an hour before 1st matches are scheduled for each day!

Wimbledon Draw - How it shapes up

The draw has come out and how does it shape up for the Main Contenders.

THE MEN - FIRST QUARTER

Rodger Federer sits on top in this section and has a pretty good draw.The next-highest seed is Davydenko, who's coming back from a long layoff and has never done much at Wimbledon.Tomas Berdych is also in this section and looks the player that could test Federer.He hasn't had a lot of matches on the Grass so how will that effect him.The other player with some grass court form is Janko Tipsarevic.

SECOND QUARTER

This section is really loaded.Andy Roddick sits in this side of the draw and is seeded to meet Novak Djokovic .Is his form as good as last year. I don't think so!His serve will carry him along but one slip and he's gone.Players he has to watch are Philipp Kohlschreiber and Marin Cilic .Djoker has a minefield ready to explode on him ,Lleyton Hewitt being one.He has to get through his first match against Olivier Rochus who has had a recent win over him.

THIRD QUARTER

Andy Murray could not have wished for a better draw,unless the pressure gets to him he really has a great opportunity to win this section.His main test is Sam Querrey winner of Queens and this will shape up as his key match should they meet.And on the other side, the top two seeds are Verdasco and Tsonga, neither of whom are very good at the majors.Look for a few upsets in this section.

FOURTH QUARTER

The Other hot section has Number two seed Rafael Nadal who opens his campaign against a young Japanese player who is being talked about in some circles as a young player to watch Kei Nishikori . If seeds go according to plan he will meet Robin Soderling in the final round of this section, and that could be a different story on the grass rather than the red clay.Other players to watch out for are Gulbis ,Youzhny .

I'm predicting lots of close matches this year and plenty of upsets!

THE WOMEN - FIRST QUARTER.

Whilst most of the leading players have chose to play warm up events prior to Wimbledon,defending champion Serena Williams has not.One day this is going to bite them on the xxx and this championship could be it.Maria Sharapova is in her section but can she get back the consistency to test Serena or in fact win her rounds before they meet.Serena has Larcher de Brito, a solid hitter , in the first round, and, potentially, Andrea Petkovic in the second. Post Sharapova, Serena might see Li Na, Svetlana Kuznetsova, or Wimbledon adept Aggie Radwanska in the quarters.

SECOND QUARTER

Sam Stosur, Caroline Wozniacki, Victoria Azarenka, Zheng Jie are the name players.Look for a Wimbledon flop from Stosur.Reading a recent press release on her chances for Wimbledon she says she will be happy to reach the quarters.I bet Serena doesn't come out and say she is happy to make the quarters ...these players are in it to win it.

THIRD QUARTER

Its a shame Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin could meet in the third round.Jelena Jankovic is seeded 4th but I mean she has as much chance of winning Wimbledon as me. I'm thinking the winner of Henin and Clijsters will come through.

FOURTH QUARTER

Francesca Schiavone AND Venus Williams seeded to meet in this Quarter,Im tipping one of these players wont be there.Falling by the wayside will be Schiavone.Wonder what Venus has in store fashion wise for Wimbledon.....bet it will be something special..UGH!Other players to watch out for Safina, Kleybanova, Szavay, Kudryavtseva ...did i say Safina!!! I meant to say watch which round she exits.!

You can check full draws HERE

What you say about my Fashion Sense!

As expected the Fed Express won yesterday whilst Venus Williams will just be left to concentrate on the doubles as she lost to Petrova.Tsonga lasted one set and retired,I mean why come out if you are injured play a set call the trainer and then default.Whats with these latest French Players seem to get injured way to much.Soderling I would say after watching him last match is definitely a Contender after some of his Facial expressions showing his fire.He plays Federer next and that wont go all Feds way.Here is a piece from Soderling's interview after beating Cilic.

Q. If I understand you correctly, are you saying that basically the difference between last year and this year and maybe between a top 20 player and a top 3 or 4 player, 5 player, is that you learn how to win without playing at your best level, that is, knowing how to win without being at your top level?
ROBIN SODERLING: Yeah, I'd like to think so. If you look at all the top guys, they're not playing the best tennis every week. Maybe you have three or four, maybe five matches in a year where you feel like you play really, really well.
The other 50 matches you still have to win, and then all the top guys, they win a lot of matches against good players without playing the best tennis. I think that's the biggest difference between a guy ranked in the top 10 and the guy ranked in the top 30, 40.

Q. You've cracked that secret. Can you tell us how it's done? Can you give us just one example of knowing how to win when you're not...
ROBIN SODERLING: Of course, winning a lot of matches against good players gives you confidence. I think this year and also last year I won a lot of matches against really good players, so my confidence is good.
You know, in matches like this, it's very often it's a couple of points here and there which decides the match. And then the guy who has the best confidence wins the match and the points most of the time.

This is very much a valid point that every time you go onto the court you cant play your best tennis and players that learn how to win matches when they are not playing their best are the ones that come though.A lesson for all you junior players out there.

Other winners Justine Henin,Tomas Berdych ..who sent Andy Murray back across the channel where he can prepare for "Murray Mania" ...Francesca Schiavone,Elena Dementieva and Caroline Wozniacki.

The Roland Garros Diaries

Just a post with a few behind the scenes goings on at the French Open. I have too much time on my hands lately with the wet weather in South Canterbury and hence the above picture is a spoof on the American Hit TV Series the Vampire Diaries.Can you guess the above tennis players all no doubt will be playing a major role in the Finale of Roland Garros( Rafa,Fed ,Justine).

Serena when asked about Fed Cup and her country

Q. And your thinking on Fed Cup? Is that a matter of scheduling? Do you feel that you have any responsibility to the country in terms of getting into the championships? What are your thoughts on that?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, my only responsibility is my two dogs. So I have to make sure they're okay and that I can afford to take care of them. That's the only real responsibility I have.

Interesting response but not surprising.

What is Andy Murray's Favorite Surface

Q. Although you've said consistently that you think the French is the Grand Slam where you've got the least chance of winning, are you sort of actually quietly enjoying this championship and the ups and downs of how you've got this far and relishing the prospect of the second week here?

ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I enjoy it as a tournament. I always loved to play on clay when I was younger. I've said it many times it's my favorite surface to play on, even though my results haven't been as good.
You know, I feel like I can play well on clay, play very well on clay. It just takes me a bit more time to get used to the surface again. You know, I love the tournament. It's probably the hardest physically to win, you know, because obviously a lot of long rallies, long points, and long matches.
Yeah, I enjoy coming here, and it's very different to me than at the other Slams where, you know, I'm a lot more sure of myself there just because I know how to move well and how to play properly on those courts.

Early in the week talk was that the Roland Garros courts where playing as fast as they have for 20 years.John Isner and then Todd Woodbridge telling the Tennis Channel yesterday that this was the fastest the surface has played in 20 years of his experience.Didn't help Isner!

Federer makes an appearance in the Nike football world cup commercial.Here is the commercial.



You may have picked up Nadal is wearing a watch for the first time whilst playing. Its a Richard Mille watch designed specifically for Nadal, with materials used in space exploration. Mille says there are 50 for sale—at a price of about $425,000.Nadal never before has worn a watch while competing.Wonder what the sponsorship deal is ,,,,,I will order 4 :)

Drama at The French Open

What was looking at a straight forward win for Gael Monfils against Italian Fabio Fognini turned into a circus as play was suspended at 5 all in the fifth due to bad light....and I mean bad light it was near dark.Monfils, who took the first two sets 6-2 6-4 ,but Fognini fought back to win the next two.Tempers boiled over at 4-4 in the fifth set when Fognini asked umpire Carlos Bernardes to stop play because of the gloom on Phillipe Chatrier Court.Fognini was given a point penalty at 4-4 won that game and then had match points on Monfils serve.Both players were looking tired especially Monfils who was cramping when he served to level at 5all.The match will resume again today/night depending which country you are living :)

Below is the closing stages commentary is not English but you can certainly see the drama ,the resumption will probably be an anti climax.



And certainly the Williams sisters are never far from the Fashion news.Venus's underwear is all the talk in Paris and if you had bad eye sight it might be mistaken that there is no underwear !

So You want to be a World Class Tennis Player

This is my first in a series of "So you want to be a World Class Tennis Player".I have been running a poll on what is the key ingredient to make you a top Pro!One of the choices was have a crazy tennis parent.Now History shows that this works so let's look at this , get rid of the "u beaut tennis academies, the high tech training programs ,and replace them with an over the top crazy parent!I mean when you think about it tennis patterns and tactics are reasonably simple,there's a few basic strokes ie serve, forehand and backhand, volleys are not used that much these days and Mum and Dad could pick up one of the many instructional video's available.Ok there's a few tips to get you on the road but one important ingredient is that you need obsessive devotion to getting to the top , you have to eat ,sleep and drink tennis and when your at the bathroom you had better keep your thoughts attuned to when you are going to hit that next tennis ball!And guess what?Someone who can keep you focused on this is Mum Or Dad they are only too willing to lend support and drive the program for you.



Can you have a normal youthful childhood, Birthday parties,going to beach with your friends,proms,parties , family holidays ha ha forget it the closest family holiday your going to get is Mum or Dad entering you in another tournament interstate or overseas.Or maybe if you get lucky they will send you to another country to train and live.Just in New Zealand I have heard from parents how they have taken a second mortgage to pay for their child's tennis.A huge financial investment with no real Statistics for success for a country like New Zealand and nine times out of ten will most likely be a poor investment if you are looking at making money.I will discuss location as an issue in a later post. Now the Williams sister's are a success and its thanks to their father Richard yes the obsessive parent!So as the story goes , their father, Richard, upon learning of the lucre that women's tennis offered, decided to make his next two kids into tennis pros. That his wife, Oracene, didn't want any more children was a minor obstacle—he simply hid her birth-control pills. He taught himself the game, coaching his proteges on rotten courts where their sessions were sometimes interrupted by gunfire before shipping them to a Florida tennis academy for refinement. While his girls racked up Grand Slams (17 singles titles and counting), he made headlines with his histrionic antics at tournaments, erratic ramblings, and general weirdness—he insisted on meeting his daughters' first hitting coach at a public car wash because he believed the FBI had bugged his car and house.And now the rest is history!

It seems that obsessive and demanding parents do come into the news for all the wrong reasons.Dogmatic Damir Dokic ,he himself nearly won a grand slam getting himself ejected from three out of four grand slam tournaments, he's threatened to kidnap daughter Jelena Dokic and drop a nuclear bomb on Australia.But hey come on Jelena Had her best ranking when he was in control!


And what about Yuri Sharapova who had his degree of "craziness" was caught making a throat-slitting gesture from the stand that Anastasia Myskina refused to play in the Federation Cup if her countrywoman was named to the Russian team.Read that story here
And Maria has had grand slam success , so I guess another win,win story for the Crazed parent syndrome.What about Mary Pierce's father Jim Pierce screamed, "Kill the bitch!" during one of his daughter Mary's matches.Stefano Capriati, Mike Agassi, and Roland Jaeger were all trained as boxers and in some instances i guess were "punch drunk" in some of their methods.But again their children met with success!


And the list goes on if you have a crazy tennis parent story please leave as a comment on this article and I will publish it, I could keep going and this is just the international examples , boy have I seen some Parents lose it at a local junior tournaments that have resulted in Car Park showdowns with the opponents parents.

What i guess I'm trying to say is be realistic of course there are many success full parents and players that create little drama , not everyone will go onto win Wimbledon or be ranked in the top 100 even and if your from a country like New Zealand more probably not , however it does take a certain obsessiveness if you like to call it that to become a World Class tennis player. It takes total Focus,sacrifice and dedication from both child and parents.The underlying feature here is that your child has to want it ! if they do then as a parent provide what ever support they need.