So Roger fell at the last, the collective will of Middle England being unable to prevent him dashing against the rocks of Djokovik’s awesome groundstrokes, mobility, stamina, iron will and focus and general Real Number One quality. It didn’t quite reach the heights to last year, but the second set tie-break was one for the archives.
So how was your Wimbledon? My personal highlights included Kyrgios v Gasquet – a ridiculously entertaining match, as was the Australian terror’s earlier match against the robotic Raonic. The most thrilling match was a women’s. I caught most of Heather Watson v Serena Williams and she took the American right to the end in a match which swung almost with every ball – again something which when it happens in tennis makes it the best watch in the world. Federer’s dismantling of Murray was also astonishing – epitomised by that 17 minute game – and the fact Federer then held serve 60s later in a blink of an eye to go ahead again. Dustin Brown v Nadal may have been an entirely predictable car-crash, but Brown’s serve and volley was brilliant to watch and there’s always joy in watching a man with such awesome hair play sport. There were other satisfying sub-plots: Gasquet’s run to the semis putting the best backhand in the game on show for an extended period; Venus v Serena; Sharapova being thrashed by Serena AGAIN, the Brits in week one – particularly James Ward.
Off the court we had ‘2daygate’ and Kyrgios’ antics…while not hitting quite the heights of the French a pretty good tournament. Mini mole disappointed to hear that the US Open is on sky and thus no more slams until the new year.
Roger was actually chuntering in the final. I couldn’t believe it. Even yesterday, whenever I watch him playing I’m constantly amazed at how he just seems to stand there while whoever else he’s playing is running about like a blue-arsed fly. He’s the John Entwistle of tennis. I think that’s why I’ve never warmed to him as a player – I don’t think I want it not to look like hard work.
A far better tournament than the singles titles suggest. Kyrgios and Brown – two stars are born, I think, especially the former. I predict tea-time scheduling for his matches next year. Might not be the done thing to be a twerp on the court, but it’s bloody good box office… And wasn’t Heather Watson great?
What did you think of Roddick? I thought he was pretty good, even though he irritated the crap out of me as a player, always picking at his shoulders. I’m always miffed not to hear as much of Johnny Mac as I would like because of his NBC commitments, and I do miss Boris Becker as a pundit because he’s a bit weird and mad. Nice to hear Barry Davies though, very nostalgic. All they need to do is stick Andrew Castle in somebody’s boot for the duration and never speak of Clare Balding’s winebar again.
I first read your first phrase as “Roger was actually chundering in the final.”
Mind you, I suppose that wouldn’t have been too strange: Murray vomited on court at the US Open in 2005, in his match against Andrei Pavel … and went on to win.
Perhaps that’s the secret. If you wanna lift the cup, ya’d better chuck up.
Federer – john entwhistle
Murray – roger Daltrey good bloke, capable of shouting. Bet Murray tackles the scream in wont Get fooled again at the end of tourament karaoke.
Gasquet – Townsend sensitive and misunderstood artist at work
Kyrgios – moon, boorish and charming in equal measure
Mmm. Tennis stars as pop stars.
Maria Sharapova = Foghorn Florence?
I thought it was a good, but not great tournament.
Fed was great in the second set against Djokovic (especially that tie break) but the match was very staccato and there wasn’t the ebb and flow that makes an epic final – the rain break ruined the momentum too. However, it’s a sporting event, not just an entertainment, and it was a spectacular performance from Djokovic.
I’d agree with Watson vs Williams being the most exciting women’s match, while on the Men’s side I’d go for the Wawrinka/Gasquet quarter final.
Kyrgios is a great hope for the future, if he can properly commit & not only play when he feels like it (Junior coaches are worried that his influence will rub off) and the Fanatics were great fun, despite some of the criticism they got – They always shut up while the point was being played.
Andrew Castle was as annoying as ever, Sue Barker still has problems pronouncing players names, but Andy Roddick was very good and concise.
Mr Moles, Eurosport do cover one court at the US open with live coverage until the quarterfinals & delayed coverage from then on (& the app is £3 per month) . They’ve only got the smaller atp events, while BT sport have the WTA matches.
The BBC must surely now be getting some idea that Mr Castle is not universally loved. Every forum that I’ve read absolutely slaughters him, and with good reason; I cannot imagine a more unctuous, smarmy, name-dropping lickspittle this side of Nicholas Wichell. Maybe that’s the idea – they’re training him up to be Royal Toady when that ‘horrible little man’ retires…
I can’t believe nobody’s mentioned Muguruza yet. She’s going to be huge, hopefully. She seems to have something more than a lot of the women who’ve broken through in the past 10 to 15 years, then faded away suddenly or been plagued by inconsistency or imjury – I’m thinking Sharapova, Ivanovic, Kvitova. I thought that, for a very young and relatively inexperienced player, she dealt with her own failures very well and came back from them. Her performance against Radwanska in the semi-final was brilliant. She didn’t have enough to beat the titanic Serena, but I believe she will grow over the next couple of years into a world-beater. I hope she will, anyway. In addition, she seems like a lovely girl, if that doesn’t sound too patronising.
[edit] injury
OOhhh! It’s all Strawberries and Cream & Champagne! Do you really watch this overt display of Elite rubbiness anymore?
What’s wrong with rubbiness? It’s what thighs are for!
I bet Murray felt sick watching the final. Fed was godlike in the semi, if he had kept that up I reckon he would have won the title. If he had played against Murray the way he played in the final, Murray could well have won.
And, as nobody else seems prepared to say it, I will.
Heather Watson. PHOOOAAR!
Agree. Bloody Fed. Unplayable in the semi; tanked in final. Andy would have given Novak a better contest any day of the week. However, as Andy Roddick pointed out, ‘peaking at the right time’ is not a matter of choice.
Muguruza looks a good bet for the top as long as she’s big enough and strong enough to take on Serena. As for the others, could someone please ban Sharapova and Azarenka for the ungodly screaming. I, honestly, cannot watch for more than a couple of minutes before switching off.
I must be the only one who doesn’t dislike Castle. I think he does a good job keeping it flowing- insightful enough and lightly humorous. McEnroe is peerless, though.
I think that you can only play as well as other players let you. Fed was unplayable in the semi partly because Andy let him be. He got it done in three sets – and in the final he was competitive over two and a bit – because Andy couldn’t take him any further. The pressure Novak exerted was just extra-ordinary, and that’s mostly why his first serve percentage was down.
Not sure I wholly buy that. Fed’s first serve was off from the start and his percentages down all through the match. He served 12 aces alone in the first set against Andy, who is acknowledged to be a great returner. He managed 2 in the first set against Novak. Fed’s unforced errors were also incredibly high (35) for a player of his calibre. Very flat performance in a poor, barely contested final. Novak is incredible, granted.
Enough of that, how hot is Heather? I repeat, PHOOOOAAAAR!