Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Andre Agassi: Imperfect Perfection
By Sandra Harwitt
I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting when I headed south on Florida’s boring turnpike towards Miami to go to an Andre Agassi book event on Monday, November 16th, 2009.
Actually, that’s not true.
It was a ticketed event (buy a ticket, here Agassi, receive a book and a guarantee it would be signed by AA) being held by Books & Books (if you’re a book lover and long for the days of independent bookstores then this mini-chain with three stores in Miami and one in Grand Cayman is a must stop if you’re in South Florida). I knew it would be a larger crowd than the store could hold as they moved it off-site to Temple Judea in Coral Gables, where Books & Books chief guru, Mitch Kaplan, is a member.
As I started to get closer to Granada Blvd where the temple is located, I got the full picture. People – a lot of people – were more than willing to pay advance entry to see Andre. Cars were parked all over the upscale Coral Gables neighborhood and people, many with kids in tow urging their parents to walk faster, were anxiously hustling into Temple Judea to see the tennis great.
Agassi did not disappoint.
There were 850 or so people who crowded the room – there were seats for 800 and people standing around the perimeter – all wanting a glance, to hear a word, to have a book signed.
Throughout his career, whether in his punky teen stage, or his mature philosopher stage, or anything in-between stage, Agassi was a dynamic personality. He draws people to him and he knows how to keep them captivated. Flawed or not, Andre is the type of guy who sells tennis, a sport that’s had difficulties in recent years drawing a strong, and consistent, fan base. (No matter what surveys tell you, tennis is not flourishing like it did in the past and at many events there are empty seats and that’s a shame).
Edwin Pope, considered the “Dean” of South Florida sports journalists, was the moderator of the event. An octogenarian, Pope, who still writes columns for The Miami Herald, admitted to Agassi that his forthright autobiography is the greatest sports memoir he’s read in at least 50 years! Seriously! And after their q & a session, Pope told Andre how impressive he finds him as a person.
Anyone who knows Edwin Pope knows he’s a no-nonsense, old-fashioned journalist, who doesn’t offer compliments freely if not warranted.
Agassi received constant applause for the answers he gave, including his thoughts on the use of Crystal Meth. When Pope suggested that he could’ve written the book without the mention and no one would’ve ever known, Agassi said he felt he had to put the whole story out there. That’s what he wanted to do, and he had the support of his wife, tennis great Steffi Graf, who he always refers to as Stefanie or Stef.
The hour-or-so event concluded with some questions from the audience – a few people didn’t have questions, but for some reason felt it necessary to just compliment Andre, or say they or their children or someone was inspired by him, which honestly could’ve been left unsaid and seemed to make Andre a bit uncomfortable. Afterwards, Andre took a brief few respite in the rabbi’s office before heading out to sign books for everyone in attendance. His publicist, Sonia, had a few of us (Pope, his lovely wife, (Ilene or Eileen, I apologize as I don’t know the correct spelling), Miami Herald writer Michelle Kaufman, who interviewed him earlier in the day, and her husband, humorist Dave Barry, and myself, back to say hello. When Andre came into the foyer area, he seemed happy to see friendly faces, had a hug for all his media colleagues, but clearly was exhausted from the full day of media responsibilities and the book event.
There are those who see Agassi’s admission to using drugs as sad, but most of us feel it is part of a book that honestly exposes Andre’s demons and warts – he made it quite clear that he wasn’t going to do a book if it was a glossed over, unrevealing tome. There are those who believe he should have to give back his prize money for 1997 (does anyone remember the name Marat Safin, the guy who wasted years by not being focused on his game, although many thought he was the most talented guy to give Roger Federer a run for his money early on in their careers). Crystal Meth did not enhance Agassi’s performance on court. Crystal Meth is an upper and being fidgety did not add up to success – between 1987 and 2005, Agassi won at least one title at least one title, while in 1997, his Crystal Meth haze year, he neither won nor reached a final.
The bottom line is while taking Crystal Meth is NEVER a wise choice, it’s a place a depressed Agassi felt he needed to go (as low as possible) to attempt to dull the pain of dissatisfaction for his living life for someone else’s dream (that would be dad, Mike Agassi) instead of making his own choice as to what path to journey. Sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to dig yourself out – a cliché, but one that seems to be true.
I’ve known Andre since he was 16 – he’s had many imperfect moments because, well, like most people, he is imperfect. I remember him calling former ITF President Philippe Chartrier a bozo, spitting in the direction of a linesperson, and all that jazz. But he’s matured, has work to self-educate himself, and he’s made peace with tennis, the sport he hated, but has given him so much, most notably a family to adore.
I can say that Andre is one of the truly special people out there and it’s great that he’s found his place and his peace with Stefanie, the kids, and his incredible charitable endeavors. Last year his charter high school successfully graduated its first class of kids who were considered at-risk youth. Agassi, who is no stranger to showing up at the school throughout the school year, said he chose education as a cause because he left school in 9th grade and that left him with fewer choices in life. The first Agassi Charter School graduating class – 100 percent of the class are now students in college today.
Agassi is “good people” and if tennis had more Andre’s it would enjoy a higher profile than it does today. Anyone who watched how 850 people listened intently to what he said on a mild, Monday night in Miami would know that was the truth.
I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting when I headed south on Florida’s boring turnpike towards Miami to go to an Andre Agassi book event on Monday, November 16th, 2009.
Actually, that’s not true.
It was a ticketed event (buy a ticket, here Agassi, receive a book and a guarantee it would be signed by AA) being held by Books & Books (if you’re a book lover and long for the days of independent bookstores then this mini-chain with three stores in Miami and one in Grand Cayman is a must stop if you’re in South Florida). I knew it would be a larger crowd than the store could hold as they moved it off-site to Temple Judea in Coral Gables, where Books & Books chief guru, Mitch Kaplan, is a member.
As I started to get closer to Granada Blvd where the temple is located, I got the full picture. People – a lot of people – were more than willing to pay advance entry to see Andre. Cars were parked all over the upscale Coral Gables neighborhood and people, many with kids in tow urging their parents to walk faster, were anxiously hustling into Temple Judea to see the tennis great.
Agassi did not disappoint.
There were 850 or so people who crowded the room – there were seats for 800 and people standing around the perimeter – all wanting a glance, to hear a word, to have a book signed.
Throughout his career, whether in his punky teen stage, or his mature philosopher stage, or anything in-between stage, Agassi was a dynamic personality. He draws people to him and he knows how to keep them captivated. Flawed or not, Andre is the type of guy who sells tennis, a sport that’s had difficulties in recent years drawing a strong, and consistent, fan base. (No matter what surveys tell you, tennis is not flourishing like it did in the past and at many events there are empty seats and that’s a shame).
Edwin Pope, considered the “Dean” of South Florida sports journalists, was the moderator of the event. An octogenarian, Pope, who still writes columns for The Miami Herald, admitted to Agassi that his forthright autobiography is the greatest sports memoir he’s read in at least 50 years! Seriously! And after their q & a session, Pope told Andre how impressive he finds him as a person.
Anyone who knows Edwin Pope knows he’s a no-nonsense, old-fashioned journalist, who doesn’t offer compliments freely if not warranted.
Agassi received constant applause for the answers he gave, including his thoughts on the use of Crystal Meth. When Pope suggested that he could’ve written the book without the mention and no one would’ve ever known, Agassi said he felt he had to put the whole story out there. That’s what he wanted to do, and he had the support of his wife, tennis great Steffi Graf, who he always refers to as Stefanie or Stef.
The hour-or-so event concluded with some questions from the audience – a few people didn’t have questions, but for some reason felt it necessary to just compliment Andre, or say they or their children or someone was inspired by him, which honestly could’ve been left unsaid and seemed to make Andre a bit uncomfortable. Afterwards, Andre took a brief few respite in the rabbi’s office before heading out to sign books for everyone in attendance. His publicist, Sonia, had a few of us (Pope, his lovely wife, (Ilene or Eileen, I apologize as I don’t know the correct spelling), Miami Herald writer Michelle Kaufman, who interviewed him earlier in the day, and her husband, humorist Dave Barry, and myself, back to say hello. When Andre came into the foyer area, he seemed happy to see friendly faces, had a hug for all his media colleagues, but clearly was exhausted from the full day of media responsibilities and the book event.
There are those who see Agassi’s admission to using drugs as sad, but most of us feel it is part of a book that honestly exposes Andre’s demons and warts – he made it quite clear that he wasn’t going to do a book if it was a glossed over, unrevealing tome. There are those who believe he should have to give back his prize money for 1997 (does anyone remember the name Marat Safin, the guy who wasted years by not being focused on his game, although many thought he was the most talented guy to give Roger Federer a run for his money early on in their careers). Crystal Meth did not enhance Agassi’s performance on court. Crystal Meth is an upper and being fidgety did not add up to success – between 1987 and 2005, Agassi won at least one title at least one title, while in 1997, his Crystal Meth haze year, he neither won nor reached a final.
The bottom line is while taking Crystal Meth is NEVER a wise choice, it’s a place a depressed Agassi felt he needed to go (as low as possible) to attempt to dull the pain of dissatisfaction for his living life for someone else’s dream (that would be dad, Mike Agassi) instead of making his own choice as to what path to journey. Sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to dig yourself out – a cliché, but one that seems to be true.
I’ve known Andre since he was 16 – he’s had many imperfect moments because, well, like most people, he is imperfect. I remember him calling former ITF President Philippe Chartrier a bozo, spitting in the direction of a linesperson, and all that jazz. But he’s matured, has work to self-educate himself, and he’s made peace with tennis, the sport he hated, but has given him so much, most notably a family to adore.
I can say that Andre is one of the truly special people out there and it’s great that he’s found his place and his peace with Stefanie, the kids, and his incredible charitable endeavors. Last year his charter high school successfully graduated its first class of kids who were considered at-risk youth. Agassi, who is no stranger to showing up at the school throughout the school year, said he chose education as a cause because he left school in 9th grade and that left him with fewer choices in life. The first Agassi Charter School graduating class – 100 percent of the class are now students in college today.
Agassi is “good people” and if tennis had more Andre’s it would enjoy a higher profile than it does today. Anyone who watched how 850 people listened intently to what he said on a mild, Monday night in Miami would know that was the truth.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Federer's Approach To Davis Cup Is Odd!
By Sandra Harwitt
What’s with Roger Federer and some of his baffling decision-making when it comes to Davis Cup?
Yes, I know that this year he had initially intended on representing Switzerland in the Davis Cup first round before a back injury cancelled the outing. But it would be foolhardy not to believe that at the time his demoralizing five-set loss to Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final, which left him in tears, didn’t weigh in on the decision.
History has shown that for the most part Roger hasn’t been there at the beginning of the year to help his county try to win the Davis Cup crown. This would not be an outrageous possibility as Roger has great back-up in Stanislas Wawrinka, who not only has ranked top 10 in singles, but has a distinguished record with Roger in doubles, as in picking up the 2008 Olympic gold medal together.
Instead, Roger shows up every year like clockwork after the U.S. Open to help Switzerland keep their spot in the World Group.
Sure, it’s not surprising to understand Roger’s rationale for typically not coming around for the first round as he’s gotten where he is by being a bit selfish. One would have to be to self-oriented to achieve the greatness he’s realized. At the beginning of the year, Roger’s got winning big titles – Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, even the U.S. Open, on his mind. It’s hard to interrupt that single-minded thinking to fit in Davis Cup.
That point taken, it’s hard not to think that Roger’s making a big mistake on this front.
Switzerland reached the final in 1992 where they fell to the United States 3-1 in Fort Worth, Texas. At the time, they had an eager team of Jakob Hlasek and Marc Rosset. But eager wasn’t enough to get past the dream team of Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, with John McEnroe and Pete Sampras taking on the doubles duty.
The great players win Grand Slams and they also have their names etched on the Davis Cup trophies. Roger should have his name on the Davis Cup champion’s roster. Now that Roger has his French Open and has his record 15th Grand Slam titles I am predicting that we will be seeing him play the Davis Cup first-round next year.
Roger’s always been a tennis historian and not putting his best foot forward to represent Switzerland and bring the Cup home would leave something very special off of his resume.
_______________________________________________________________________
Word is that we will be hearing from Justine Henin tomorrow that she’s following in Kim Clijsters footsteps and planning to rejoin the tour.
It’s not surprising that Henin might be moved by what Clijsters achieved – two months back on the tour and she beats Venus and Serena Williams to capture her second Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open.
Sometimes a vacation away from the game helps someone realize how much they miss the competition and performing in front of audiences. Although I wouldn’t know myself, I suspect it’s a rush that is hard to duplicate in “real” life.
As the tennis world did with Kim, they will welcome Justine back with warm open arms if she chooses to return to the game.
But I do wonder what Venus and Serena Williams, in particular La Serena with her 10 Grand Slam trophies, are thinking about this turn of events. Let’s face it, in the last year or so, if one or the other of the sisters showed up with winning on their mind, they were not deterred from their goal. The competition just wasn’t strong enough to waylay a determined Serena or Venus.
Will they like that two fabulous athletes who have no fear of them are back on the scene? That’s an interesting question to ponder.
____________________________________________________________________________
Note to tennis players” It doesn’t seem prudent to put on your dancing shoes to try and tap your way through reality dance shows.
We now have two former players – Monica Seles went on Dancing With The Stars and was the first voted off, and Martina Hingis just got dumped off of the British version of the show. They tried to tango, but turned out to be flat-footed.
Are tennis players inherently not graceful or is there a tennis star out there that can foxtrot and waltz as well as they dash around tennis courts? I’m thinking that Seles and Hingis are not the end of tennis players taking a turn at a dancing show. Maybe a male tennis player should be a dancing reality shows next option!
What’s with Roger Federer and some of his baffling decision-making when it comes to Davis Cup?
Yes, I know that this year he had initially intended on representing Switzerland in the Davis Cup first round before a back injury cancelled the outing. But it would be foolhardy not to believe that at the time his demoralizing five-set loss to Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final, which left him in tears, didn’t weigh in on the decision.
History has shown that for the most part Roger hasn’t been there at the beginning of the year to help his county try to win the Davis Cup crown. This would not be an outrageous possibility as Roger has great back-up in Stanislas Wawrinka, who not only has ranked top 10 in singles, but has a distinguished record with Roger in doubles, as in picking up the 2008 Olympic gold medal together.
Instead, Roger shows up every year like clockwork after the U.S. Open to help Switzerland keep their spot in the World Group.
Sure, it’s not surprising to understand Roger’s rationale for typically not coming around for the first round as he’s gotten where he is by being a bit selfish. One would have to be to self-oriented to achieve the greatness he’s realized. At the beginning of the year, Roger’s got winning big titles – Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, even the U.S. Open, on his mind. It’s hard to interrupt that single-minded thinking to fit in Davis Cup.
That point taken, it’s hard not to think that Roger’s making a big mistake on this front.
Switzerland reached the final in 1992 where they fell to the United States 3-1 in Fort Worth, Texas. At the time, they had an eager team of Jakob Hlasek and Marc Rosset. But eager wasn’t enough to get past the dream team of Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, with John McEnroe and Pete Sampras taking on the doubles duty.
The great players win Grand Slams and they also have their names etched on the Davis Cup trophies. Roger should have his name on the Davis Cup champion’s roster. Now that Roger has his French Open and has his record 15th Grand Slam titles I am predicting that we will be seeing him play the Davis Cup first-round next year.
Roger’s always been a tennis historian and not putting his best foot forward to represent Switzerland and bring the Cup home would leave something very special off of his resume.
_______________________________________________________________________
Word is that we will be hearing from Justine Henin tomorrow that she’s following in Kim Clijsters footsteps and planning to rejoin the tour.
It’s not surprising that Henin might be moved by what Clijsters achieved – two months back on the tour and she beats Venus and Serena Williams to capture her second Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open.
Sometimes a vacation away from the game helps someone realize how much they miss the competition and performing in front of audiences. Although I wouldn’t know myself, I suspect it’s a rush that is hard to duplicate in “real” life.
As the tennis world did with Kim, they will welcome Justine back with warm open arms if she chooses to return to the game.
But I do wonder what Venus and Serena Williams, in particular La Serena with her 10 Grand Slam trophies, are thinking about this turn of events. Let’s face it, in the last year or so, if one or the other of the sisters showed up with winning on their mind, they were not deterred from their goal. The competition just wasn’t strong enough to waylay a determined Serena or Venus.
Will they like that two fabulous athletes who have no fear of them are back on the scene? That’s an interesting question to ponder.
____________________________________________________________________________
Note to tennis players” It doesn’t seem prudent to put on your dancing shoes to try and tap your way through reality dance shows.
We now have two former players – Monica Seles went on Dancing With The Stars and was the first voted off, and Martina Hingis just got dumped off of the British version of the show. They tried to tango, but turned out to be flat-footed.
Are tennis players inherently not graceful or is there a tennis star out there that can foxtrot and waltz as well as they dash around tennis courts? I’m thinking that Seles and Hingis are not the end of tennis players taking a turn at a dancing show. Maybe a male tennis player should be a dancing reality shows next option!
Friday, September 18, 2009
Where's Melanie Oudin? Should We Fine Just To Fine?
By Sandra Harwitt
Looking for where you can find Melanie Oudin next?
I can help you out with that information.
Melanie’s swapping her tennis racket and tennis balls on Saturday night to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Braves game at Turner Field. For those interested in the game, the Braves will be taking on Phillies. For those interested in Melanie, the Braves press release refers to her as “the pride of Atlanta” and that’s certainly an apt description. Forget the Real Housewives of Atlanta to publicize the Georgia city, rely on the Braves and Oudin to keep the town on the map.
Oudin is set to do some media during batting practice on the field. And the teen tennis star will meet-and-greet fans and sign autographs at Fan Plaza.
What I’m hoping for Oudin is that everybody doesn’t climb on the bandwagon and put too much pressure on her to do too much, too soon. We’ve seen how that enthusiasm has proven to be a curse to some players, certainly at a young age, in the past. To the powers that be, Melanie’s got a lot of game and has shown the potential to become a star. Let her do it at her own pace – encouragement is good, but make sure not to cross the line where she starts to feel suffocated and anxious as if people are demanding great things ASAP.
Oudin started to show promise at Wimbledon this year and pushed the envelope with a remarkable run to the U.S. Open quarterfinal the past couple of weeks. Undoubtedly, there’s the feeling out there that the player waiting-in-the-wings to take over from Venus and Serena Williams has arrived. Maybe she is the heiress apparent, but that’s not set in stone, so let’s not have the coronation party yet.
FEDERER FINE
Yes, many of us heard the Fed use bad language when he had a chat with the umpire during the U.S. Open final. You know the word – Forrest Gump used it when he said, “S—t Happens! We heard it over the CBS microphone, and consequently, a fine was assessed for the NO DIRTY WORDS ALLOWED rule.
I don’t have a problem with the rule, although I do think it needs to be used judiciously as some incidents are more serious than other incidents. Do we have to look further than this past U.S. Open and compare La Serena to Le Roger?
But if you’re going to have a fine why not administer a fine where the pain can be felt?
Is Federer really going to notice in the midst of his millions that his U.S. Open check was $1,500 shorter than what he really earned? I doubt it. As those of us on Facebook have been joking about with the most common thread being the twins might not get their first pair of shoes. I suggested that Mirka might have to give up a new Louis Vuitton purse.
I understand that for a lesser player, a $1,500 fine might have an impact. But with Roger, I doubt it. Maybe the fine scale should be amended to a different fine being assessed to different players according to where you rank with all the money collected going into a pot to help grass roots tennis around the world, or for a charity of choice of the player or either of the tours. As it stands, fining a Roger Federer pocket change is pointless, unless the idea is just to go through the official process. I’m betting Roger would find having his mouth washed out with soap less palatable than the $1,500 fine.
FYI: For those who are shocked that Roger went colorful in language selection, my photographer friends tell me they often here him mumbling a cuss word or two. But, overall, Roger is a classy guy and a great representative of the sport, so let’s not be too harsh.
NEWS FOR THE FUTURE
As an early warning to anyone out there who has become a loyal reader to this blog since its inception only a couple of weeks ago, the word on the street is that China has not opened up Facebook and Twitter. I will be going to the Shanghai Masters 1000 tournaments in mid-October and will be doing some blogging from there. I will remind you again, but it’s unlikely I’ll be able to link though those to Facebook and Twitter, so you’ll have to make the effort and go to http://slh28@blogspot.com all on your own
Looking for where you can find Melanie Oudin next?
I can help you out with that information.
Melanie’s swapping her tennis racket and tennis balls on Saturday night to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Braves game at Turner Field. For those interested in the game, the Braves will be taking on Phillies. For those interested in Melanie, the Braves press release refers to her as “the pride of Atlanta” and that’s certainly an apt description. Forget the Real Housewives of Atlanta to publicize the Georgia city, rely on the Braves and Oudin to keep the town on the map.
Oudin is set to do some media during batting practice on the field. And the teen tennis star will meet-and-greet fans and sign autographs at Fan Plaza.
What I’m hoping for Oudin is that everybody doesn’t climb on the bandwagon and put too much pressure on her to do too much, too soon. We’ve seen how that enthusiasm has proven to be a curse to some players, certainly at a young age, in the past. To the powers that be, Melanie’s got a lot of game and has shown the potential to become a star. Let her do it at her own pace – encouragement is good, but make sure not to cross the line where she starts to feel suffocated and anxious as if people are demanding great things ASAP.
Oudin started to show promise at Wimbledon this year and pushed the envelope with a remarkable run to the U.S. Open quarterfinal the past couple of weeks. Undoubtedly, there’s the feeling out there that the player waiting-in-the-wings to take over from Venus and Serena Williams has arrived. Maybe she is the heiress apparent, but that’s not set in stone, so let’s not have the coronation party yet.
FEDERER FINE
Yes, many of us heard the Fed use bad language when he had a chat with the umpire during the U.S. Open final. You know the word – Forrest Gump used it when he said, “S—t Happens! We heard it over the CBS microphone, and consequently, a fine was assessed for the NO DIRTY WORDS ALLOWED rule.
I don’t have a problem with the rule, although I do think it needs to be used judiciously as some incidents are more serious than other incidents. Do we have to look further than this past U.S. Open and compare La Serena to Le Roger?
But if you’re going to have a fine why not administer a fine where the pain can be felt?
Is Federer really going to notice in the midst of his millions that his U.S. Open check was $1,500 shorter than what he really earned? I doubt it. As those of us on Facebook have been joking about with the most common thread being the twins might not get their first pair of shoes. I suggested that Mirka might have to give up a new Louis Vuitton purse.
I understand that for a lesser player, a $1,500 fine might have an impact. But with Roger, I doubt it. Maybe the fine scale should be amended to a different fine being assessed to different players according to where you rank with all the money collected going into a pot to help grass roots tennis around the world, or for a charity of choice of the player or either of the tours. As it stands, fining a Roger Federer pocket change is pointless, unless the idea is just to go through the official process. I’m betting Roger would find having his mouth washed out with soap less palatable than the $1,500 fine.
FYI: For those who are shocked that Roger went colorful in language selection, my photographer friends tell me they often here him mumbling a cuss word or two. But, overall, Roger is a classy guy and a great representative of the sport, so let’s not be too harsh.
NEWS FOR THE FUTURE
As an early warning to anyone out there who has become a loyal reader to this blog since its inception only a couple of weeks ago, the word on the street is that China has not opened up Facebook and Twitter. I will be going to the Shanghai Masters 1000 tournaments in mid-October and will be doing some blogging from there. I will remind you again, but it’s unlikely I’ll be able to link though those to Facebook and Twitter, so you’ll have to make the effort and go to http://slh28@blogspot.com all on your own
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Juan Martin del Potro -- A Deserving Champion!
By Sandra Harwitt
I didn’t want you all to think I’ve just sailed off into the sunset not to be heard from again. This would not be true, although I doubt I will write on this blog every day. But the aim is to keep it alive and fresh as best as a (serious, not street-walking) working girl can do. And as a fair warning, it will not always be about tennis. It’s just that tennis has been the big focus of late.
Anyway, I hated giving short shrift to Juan Martin del Potro in his first Grand Slam victory as he deserves more than a few kudos for the kick-ass job.
Here are the stats on Senor del Potro: He’s the 51st man in the Open Era of tennis to win a Grand Slam title and the 11th to be inaugurated into the Grand Slam Champions Club with a win at the U.S. Open. He became the 22nd different U.S. Open champion since the Open Era commenced in 1968. (Arthur Ashe was the first to win the Open Era title, which was his first Slam title as well).
Del Potro went home with $1.6 million as prize money and $250,000 for the U.S. Open Series bonus pool for a grand total of $1.85 million to bank back in Buenos Aires. (And no, my paycheck for the U.S. Open will not rival Juan Martin’s, which leaves me very disturbed as you can imagine.)
The Argentine was the third consecutive player to reach their first Grand Slam final at the U.S. Open – Novak Djokovic (2007) and Andy Murray (2008) failed to pick up their first Grand Slam trophies on the occasion. Djoker won his months later at the 2008 Australian Open and Murray, who has been talked up way more than del Potro is still waiting.
Del Potro, who moved from No. 6 to No. 5 in the world, picked up his seventh career title with the victory and expect him to see that tally increase dramatically.
The big question is will that tally increase in Grand Slam prizes or will he be a one-slam wonder?
I think at only 20 this guy exudes a lot of talent and is destined to win more majors in his career. What makes the 6-foot-6 Argentine intriguing is he’s not your typical clay court comfortable South American player. The Grand Slam he’s least likely to win is the French – it’s hard for a giant to get that slide on slippery dirt down. But I can see him winning in Australia, and I can see him working his way to a Wimbledon title.
His tactic at Wimbledon would likely have to be different than at the U.S. Open where after two double faults to hand Federer the third set, he became gun shy and pulled back on his serve. He was able to rely on his lethal forehand to fulfill his dream of winning the U.S. Open. At Wimbledon, I think he will need to keep that serve going on the grass. And there is the issue that the ball bounces lower as it skids off the turf, so he might have to be practicing his bending down to the ball ability.
In the Open Era, the only definite One-Slam-Wonder winner from the U.S. Open was Manuel Orantes in 1975, which bodes well for del Potro coming up with at least another major title in his career.
For those of you who are just about now screeching the name of 2003 U.S. Open ANDY RODDICK – hang on a minute. He’s still playing, so while I think his chances to win another Slam are diminishing – he did have the Wimbledon trophy on his strings this year – I’m not ready to count him out yet. Remember: If you’re in it, you can still win it!
As mentioned above, the big watch was on Andy Murray – Mr. Number Three in the World. He was going to be the next outsider breaking into the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal hold over the Grand Slams. Sometimes the expected doesn’t pan out as in this case.
Murray needs to find a way to last through the maze of a Grand Slam – seven matches in 14 days. This is proving to be a struggle. As talented as he is, he just doesn’t seem to yet have the mental and physical strength to put it together over such a long period of time.
Maybe now the country around him can't cutback on the pressure they put on him. My advice to all the well-meaning Brtions is to lay off a bit and let him work it out without the constant fanfare that doesn’t appear to ever die down. It’s not always good to come from an eager, desperate-for-a-champion country.
But for now, it's all about Juan Martin del Potro!
I didn’t want you all to think I’ve just sailed off into the sunset not to be heard from again. This would not be true, although I doubt I will write on this blog every day. But the aim is to keep it alive and fresh as best as a (serious, not street-walking) working girl can do. And as a fair warning, it will not always be about tennis. It’s just that tennis has been the big focus of late.
Anyway, I hated giving short shrift to Juan Martin del Potro in his first Grand Slam victory as he deserves more than a few kudos for the kick-ass job.
Here are the stats on Senor del Potro: He’s the 51st man in the Open Era of tennis to win a Grand Slam title and the 11th to be inaugurated into the Grand Slam Champions Club with a win at the U.S. Open. He became the 22nd different U.S. Open champion since the Open Era commenced in 1968. (Arthur Ashe was the first to win the Open Era title, which was his first Slam title as well).
Del Potro went home with $1.6 million as prize money and $250,000 for the U.S. Open Series bonus pool for a grand total of $1.85 million to bank back in Buenos Aires. (And no, my paycheck for the U.S. Open will not rival Juan Martin’s, which leaves me very disturbed as you can imagine.)
The Argentine was the third consecutive player to reach their first Grand Slam final at the U.S. Open – Novak Djokovic (2007) and Andy Murray (2008) failed to pick up their first Grand Slam trophies on the occasion. Djoker won his months later at the 2008 Australian Open and Murray, who has been talked up way more than del Potro is still waiting.
Del Potro, who moved from No. 6 to No. 5 in the world, picked up his seventh career title with the victory and expect him to see that tally increase dramatically.
The big question is will that tally increase in Grand Slam prizes or will he be a one-slam wonder?
I think at only 20 this guy exudes a lot of talent and is destined to win more majors in his career. What makes the 6-foot-6 Argentine intriguing is he’s not your typical clay court comfortable South American player. The Grand Slam he’s least likely to win is the French – it’s hard for a giant to get that slide on slippery dirt down. But I can see him winning in Australia, and I can see him working his way to a Wimbledon title.
His tactic at Wimbledon would likely have to be different than at the U.S. Open where after two double faults to hand Federer the third set, he became gun shy and pulled back on his serve. He was able to rely on his lethal forehand to fulfill his dream of winning the U.S. Open. At Wimbledon, I think he will need to keep that serve going on the grass. And there is the issue that the ball bounces lower as it skids off the turf, so he might have to be practicing his bending down to the ball ability.
In the Open Era, the only definite One-Slam-Wonder winner from the U.S. Open was Manuel Orantes in 1975, which bodes well for del Potro coming up with at least another major title in his career.
For those of you who are just about now screeching the name of 2003 U.S. Open ANDY RODDICK – hang on a minute. He’s still playing, so while I think his chances to win another Slam are diminishing – he did have the Wimbledon trophy on his strings this year – I’m not ready to count him out yet. Remember: If you’re in it, you can still win it!
As mentioned above, the big watch was on Andy Murray – Mr. Number Three in the World. He was going to be the next outsider breaking into the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal hold over the Grand Slams. Sometimes the expected doesn’t pan out as in this case.
Murray needs to find a way to last through the maze of a Grand Slam – seven matches in 14 days. This is proving to be a struggle. As talented as he is, he just doesn’t seem to yet have the mental and physical strength to put it together over such a long period of time.
Maybe now the country around him can't cutback on the pressure they put on him. My advice to all the well-meaning Brtions is to lay off a bit and let him work it out without the constant fanfare that doesn’t appear to ever die down. It’s not always good to come from an eager, desperate-for-a-champion country.
But for now, it's all about Juan Martin del Potro!
Monday, September 14, 2009
Last Ramblings From The U.S. Open
By Sandra Harwitt
This is going to be one of those brief posts because I need to get up and go really early and it’s already after midnight and have to file to Australian Tennis Mag with my men’s piece.
My impressions of this U.S. Open – one of the most interesting Grand Slams with intriguing stories all the way through – that I can remember.
Juan Martin del Potro was a Grand Slam champion-in-waiting and the way he won his first Grand Slam title will be one remembered for the ages. He upset the great Roger Federer to become one of only two guys, Rafael Nadal being the other, to beat the Swiss genius in a Grand Slam final.
Federer was composed in defeat unlike how he lost it and cried after his loss to Rafa at the Australian Open. But that was before he won his first French Open and grabbed the Grand Slam record from Pete Sampras with 15 major trophies to his credit.
Biggest shame of the day was that Dick Enberg seemed hell-bent on not giving Juan Martin del Potro the microphone to say something in Spanish. Hey, the guy just won the U.S. Open and he deserved the right to make his speech. An embarrassing moment that put a little damper on the victory for del Potrom who eventually prevailed and had his say in his native language. But in the big picture, he won’t remember that as much as that he beat No. 1 Roger Federer in the final and No. 2 Rafa Nadal in the semifinals to take home the U.S. Open title.
And let’s not forget that Caroline Wozniacki, who lost the final to Kim Clijsters, got in her speech in English, Danish and Polish!
I guess we can’t ignore Serena Williams, who sent out an amended statement today saying she apologizes to the lineswoman and did not behave “appropriately” as a role model for youngster the other night in her semifinal match against Clijsters.
I guess that’s better late than never.
Serena actually handled herself well in the post-match press conference after picking up the doubles trophy on Monday with sis, Venus. The PR person tried to shut down questions regarding the incident – we don’t know if the Williams camp initially requested he do so or if he took that decision himself. To her credit, Serena spoke up and said that she would answer all questions. She also said that she’d like to give the linesperson “A big old hug.” No word from the lineswoman that remains nameless as to whether she’s amenable to a bear hug from La Serena.
As an aside, Fed Cup captain Mary Joe Fernandez tells me that Venus and Serena have committed to travel to Italy in November to play in the Fed Cup final. The sisters have not played the first two rounds, which gave young Melanie Oudin and Alexa Glatch a chance to lead the U.S. into the final. If Serena and Venus show, the Fed Cup team will round out with Melanie and doubles star Liezel Huber. Fernandez hopes to bring Alexa along on the trip as she was instrumental in the team making the final. It’s a pretty impressive effort for Mary Joe to lead the U.S. to the final in her first year as captain.
The U.S. has won the Fed Cup title 17 times, but has not captured the title since 2000 when Billie Jean King was the captain. The last time the U.S. was in the final was in 2003 when they played France – the semifinals and finals were held at the same time and the venue was Moscow and that was my first trip to Russia.
Clearly the U.S. Open is all over American Idol contestants to sing before the final. Yesterday, David Archuletta sang God Bless America before the women’s final and Constatine Maroulis, who is now on Broadway, is singing the same before the men’s final.
U.S. OPEN HISTORY FOR September 14
In 1929, Bill Tilden won his seventh U.S. title in a five-set final against Francis Hunter. I must admit I don’t know who Francis Hunter was so I can’t offer any details.
In 1987, Ivan Lendl takes a four-set final match on Monday over Mats Wilander after rain delayed the match on Sunday.
So we bid adieu to the U.S. Open for another year and we're thankful that the event gave us some great memories to look back on.
I'll continue this blog but will probably not post everyday. At least I won't this week as a well-deserved break is needed.
This is going to be one of those brief posts because I need to get up and go really early and it’s already after midnight and have to file to Australian Tennis Mag with my men’s piece.
My impressions of this U.S. Open – one of the most interesting Grand Slams with intriguing stories all the way through – that I can remember.
Juan Martin del Potro was a Grand Slam champion-in-waiting and the way he won his first Grand Slam title will be one remembered for the ages. He upset the great Roger Federer to become one of only two guys, Rafael Nadal being the other, to beat the Swiss genius in a Grand Slam final.
Federer was composed in defeat unlike how he lost it and cried after his loss to Rafa at the Australian Open. But that was before he won his first French Open and grabbed the Grand Slam record from Pete Sampras with 15 major trophies to his credit.
Biggest shame of the day was that Dick Enberg seemed hell-bent on not giving Juan Martin del Potro the microphone to say something in Spanish. Hey, the guy just won the U.S. Open and he deserved the right to make his speech. An embarrassing moment that put a little damper on the victory for del Potrom who eventually prevailed and had his say in his native language. But in the big picture, he won’t remember that as much as that he beat No. 1 Roger Federer in the final and No. 2 Rafa Nadal in the semifinals to take home the U.S. Open title.
And let’s not forget that Caroline Wozniacki, who lost the final to Kim Clijsters, got in her speech in English, Danish and Polish!
I guess we can’t ignore Serena Williams, who sent out an amended statement today saying she apologizes to the lineswoman and did not behave “appropriately” as a role model for youngster the other night in her semifinal match against Clijsters.
I guess that’s better late than never.
Serena actually handled herself well in the post-match press conference after picking up the doubles trophy on Monday with sis, Venus. The PR person tried to shut down questions regarding the incident – we don’t know if the Williams camp initially requested he do so or if he took that decision himself. To her credit, Serena spoke up and said that she would answer all questions. She also said that she’d like to give the linesperson “A big old hug.” No word from the lineswoman that remains nameless as to whether she’s amenable to a bear hug from La Serena.
As an aside, Fed Cup captain Mary Joe Fernandez tells me that Venus and Serena have committed to travel to Italy in November to play in the Fed Cup final. The sisters have not played the first two rounds, which gave young Melanie Oudin and Alexa Glatch a chance to lead the U.S. into the final. If Serena and Venus show, the Fed Cup team will round out with Melanie and doubles star Liezel Huber. Fernandez hopes to bring Alexa along on the trip as she was instrumental in the team making the final. It’s a pretty impressive effort for Mary Joe to lead the U.S. to the final in her first year as captain.
The U.S. has won the Fed Cup title 17 times, but has not captured the title since 2000 when Billie Jean King was the captain. The last time the U.S. was in the final was in 2003 when they played France – the semifinals and finals were held at the same time and the venue was Moscow and that was my first trip to Russia.
Clearly the U.S. Open is all over American Idol contestants to sing before the final. Yesterday, David Archuletta sang God Bless America before the women’s final and Constatine Maroulis, who is now on Broadway, is singing the same before the men’s final.
U.S. OPEN HISTORY FOR September 14
In 1929, Bill Tilden won his seventh U.S. title in a five-set final against Francis Hunter. I must admit I don’t know who Francis Hunter was so I can’t offer any details.
In 1987, Ivan Lendl takes a four-set final match on Monday over Mats Wilander after rain delayed the match on Sunday.
So we bid adieu to the U.S. Open for another year and we're thankful that the event gave us some great memories to look back on.
I'll continue this blog but will probably not post everyday. At least I won't this week as a well-deserved break is needed.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Kim, Not Serena, Is The Real Story
By Sandra Harwitt
I’m guessing there’s no choice but to discuss the Serena Williams tirade from last night because it is all the news today. In fact, the men’s semifinals have taken place and all anyone is talking about, writing about, is the Serena incident.
In case someone has been out-of-touch the last 24 hours, a brief synopsis.
Serena is serving at 5-6 in the second set when at 15-30 she was called for a second serve double fault, which put the score at 15-40. Ouch! Serena, who had already been called out for racket abuse in the first set, went off on the linesperson, yet to be identified by anyone. She got into it, cursing at the lineswoman, telling her she’d like to put the ball down her throat with the use of a few f-bombs along the way. Tournament referee Brian Earley came on the court, Serena was assessed a penalty point – the next step after her warning for the racket abuse – and since the score was 15-40 the loss of the point put the match in Kim Clijsters hands.
There are those who say she did foot fault, others who say she didn’t. I was sitting in the front row right behind umpire Louise Engzell with a few colleagues and we could not see it clearly. The footage was somewhat inconclusive. Some would say that the lineswoman shouldn’t call a foot fault at such a stage in the match, especially if it’s a second serve. Others would say, the rules are the rules and if she foot faulted she should be called on it.
All of that are somewhat irrelevant points when it comes down to whether Serena handled herself appropriately during the incident. The answer is clear, she did not. She used abusive language towards an official. She was in the lineswoman’s face with the ball. She was waving her racket at the woman. This is unacceptable and unprofessional behavior and should not be allowed. Period!
As I said earlier today when the BBC World Service Radio, who’ve I’ve worked with in the past, contacted me for an interview, Serena went on damage control immediately in the post-match press conference, saying she accepts playing by the rules, Kim was playing better, and that’s the way it went. She wouldn’t say that she believes an apology was in order to the lineswoman.
Here’s the lowdown result of the incident. Serena’s been fined $10,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct and $500 for racket abuse – that’s a grand total of $10,500. That’s just about petty cash for Serena, who earned $350.000 here at the U.S. Open, and will also post still to be determined earnings in the doubles – she’ll pair with sister, Venus, for the doubles crown on Monday.
“That’s a joke, it’s an embarrassment,” said Mary Carillo, on air as a comment to the levied fine.
Here is the statement that Serena released this afternoon about the incident.
“Last night everyone could truly see the passion I have for my job. Now that I have had time to gain my composure, I can see that while I don't agree with the unfair line call, in the heat of battle I let my passion and emotion get the better of me and as a result handled the situation poorly. I would like to thank my fans and supporters for understanding that I am human and I look forward to continuing the journey, both professionally and personally, with you all as I move forward and grow from this experience.”
How about a more pointed mention of the lineswoman that she was freaking out on – that would have gone down a little better was the general sentiment here in the press room.
The one I felt for at the time was Kim Clijsters, who was confused by the whole scene and just wanted to win the match by playing all the points necessary.
In the end, though, it is the remarkable Kim Clijsters who was the real story and that's the way it should be.
Nothing should and will change that from being the truth, but it would’ve been so much nicer for her if Serena held her cool and she could’ve won the semifinal the old-fashioned way. She did win the title the old-fashioned way when she outplayed first-time Grand Slam finalist Caroline Wozniacki 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday night.
The victory brought tears to her Clijsters eyes along with a smile of disbelief.
While it wasn’t a great final in terms of quality of tennis, the fact that Clijsters, who is only playing in her third tournament back since she retired in 2007 to get married and have a family, and needed a wildcard to get into the main draw, is incredible. The last time Clijsters played at the U.S. Open was in 2005 when she won a Grand Slam title for the only time in the first stage of her career. And to think she doesn't even have a ranking yet because she hasn't played enough tournaments, but should be ranked around the top 20 when the new rankings emerged.
Interestingly, it took Clijsters four tries in Grand Slam finals before she won her first U.S. Open crown. Now it’s taken her only three tournaments back after two years away to win her second major. I say, incredible again!
That’s the only way to describe what the Belgian’s achieved.
Clijsters always loved competing, but she almost approached her first career as if it was a hobby. Now she has it all – the husband, the baby, and can play tennis with passion and abandon.
Kim’s the first mother since Evonne Goolagong Cawley to win a Grand Slam title – the Aussie did the deed a long time ago at Wimbledon in 1980. It’s like Clijsters is telling women around the world who want everything, that it is possible.
Clijsters made the award ceremony a family affair when hubby, Brian Lynch, who played basketball at Villanova, and 18-month-old daughter, Jada, held court on the court. The photographers loved it -- a family portrait and a adorable toddler toddling about,grabbing at the trophy, and putting on a show.
A story like this only comes around so often. I absolutely couldn’t imagine it happening to a more warm and wonderful person. The tennis world will benefit by having such a sensational athlete back in their midst.
FORMER CHAMPION JACK KRAMER PASSES AWAY
The tennis world bids good-bye to 1968 Hall of Famer Jack Kramer, 88, who passed away last night at his home in Los Angeles. Kramer, a Wimbledon and U.S. National champion in his day, was the top-ranked player in the world in the late 1940s. Kramer was a founder of the Association of Tennis Professionals, which is the forerunner of today’s ATP Tour. Kramer’s son, Bob, runs the men’s summer tournament in Los Angeles.
U.S. OPEN HISTORY FOR SEPTEMBER 13
In 1981, Bjorg Borg plays his last ever U.S. Open match, in which he lost a four-set final to John McEnroe. He never wins the U.S. Open and that match result basically drove the Swede from the game.
In 1998, Patrick Rafter wins his second consecutive U.S. Open title over fellow Aussie Mark Philippousis. Rafter would never win another Grand Slam title, although he was a finalist at Wimbledon.
I’m guessing there’s no choice but to discuss the Serena Williams tirade from last night because it is all the news today. In fact, the men’s semifinals have taken place and all anyone is talking about, writing about, is the Serena incident.
In case someone has been out-of-touch the last 24 hours, a brief synopsis.
Serena is serving at 5-6 in the second set when at 15-30 she was called for a second serve double fault, which put the score at 15-40. Ouch! Serena, who had already been called out for racket abuse in the first set, went off on the linesperson, yet to be identified by anyone. She got into it, cursing at the lineswoman, telling her she’d like to put the ball down her throat with the use of a few f-bombs along the way. Tournament referee Brian Earley came on the court, Serena was assessed a penalty point – the next step after her warning for the racket abuse – and since the score was 15-40 the loss of the point put the match in Kim Clijsters hands.
There are those who say she did foot fault, others who say she didn’t. I was sitting in the front row right behind umpire Louise Engzell with a few colleagues and we could not see it clearly. The footage was somewhat inconclusive. Some would say that the lineswoman shouldn’t call a foot fault at such a stage in the match, especially if it’s a second serve. Others would say, the rules are the rules and if she foot faulted she should be called on it.
All of that are somewhat irrelevant points when it comes down to whether Serena handled herself appropriately during the incident. The answer is clear, she did not. She used abusive language towards an official. She was in the lineswoman’s face with the ball. She was waving her racket at the woman. This is unacceptable and unprofessional behavior and should not be allowed. Period!
As I said earlier today when the BBC World Service Radio, who’ve I’ve worked with in the past, contacted me for an interview, Serena went on damage control immediately in the post-match press conference, saying she accepts playing by the rules, Kim was playing better, and that’s the way it went. She wouldn’t say that she believes an apology was in order to the lineswoman.
Here’s the lowdown result of the incident. Serena’s been fined $10,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct and $500 for racket abuse – that’s a grand total of $10,500. That’s just about petty cash for Serena, who earned $350.000 here at the U.S. Open, and will also post still to be determined earnings in the doubles – she’ll pair with sister, Venus, for the doubles crown on Monday.
“That’s a joke, it’s an embarrassment,” said Mary Carillo, on air as a comment to the levied fine.
Here is the statement that Serena released this afternoon about the incident.
“Last night everyone could truly see the passion I have for my job. Now that I have had time to gain my composure, I can see that while I don't agree with the unfair line call, in the heat of battle I let my passion and emotion get the better of me and as a result handled the situation poorly. I would like to thank my fans and supporters for understanding that I am human and I look forward to continuing the journey, both professionally and personally, with you all as I move forward and grow from this experience.”
How about a more pointed mention of the lineswoman that she was freaking out on – that would have gone down a little better was the general sentiment here in the press room.
The one I felt for at the time was Kim Clijsters, who was confused by the whole scene and just wanted to win the match by playing all the points necessary.
In the end, though, it is the remarkable Kim Clijsters who was the real story and that's the way it should be.
Nothing should and will change that from being the truth, but it would’ve been so much nicer for her if Serena held her cool and she could’ve won the semifinal the old-fashioned way. She did win the title the old-fashioned way when she outplayed first-time Grand Slam finalist Caroline Wozniacki 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday night.
The victory brought tears to her Clijsters eyes along with a smile of disbelief.
While it wasn’t a great final in terms of quality of tennis, the fact that Clijsters, who is only playing in her third tournament back since she retired in 2007 to get married and have a family, and needed a wildcard to get into the main draw, is incredible. The last time Clijsters played at the U.S. Open was in 2005 when she won a Grand Slam title for the only time in the first stage of her career. And to think she doesn't even have a ranking yet because she hasn't played enough tournaments, but should be ranked around the top 20 when the new rankings emerged.
Interestingly, it took Clijsters four tries in Grand Slam finals before she won her first U.S. Open crown. Now it’s taken her only three tournaments back after two years away to win her second major. I say, incredible again!
That’s the only way to describe what the Belgian’s achieved.
Clijsters always loved competing, but she almost approached her first career as if it was a hobby. Now she has it all – the husband, the baby, and can play tennis with passion and abandon.
Kim’s the first mother since Evonne Goolagong Cawley to win a Grand Slam title – the Aussie did the deed a long time ago at Wimbledon in 1980. It’s like Clijsters is telling women around the world who want everything, that it is possible.
Clijsters made the award ceremony a family affair when hubby, Brian Lynch, who played basketball at Villanova, and 18-month-old daughter, Jada, held court on the court. The photographers loved it -- a family portrait and a adorable toddler toddling about,grabbing at the trophy, and putting on a show.
A story like this only comes around so often. I absolutely couldn’t imagine it happening to a more warm and wonderful person. The tennis world will benefit by having such a sensational athlete back in their midst.
FORMER CHAMPION JACK KRAMER PASSES AWAY
The tennis world bids good-bye to 1968 Hall of Famer Jack Kramer, 88, who passed away last night at his home in Los Angeles. Kramer, a Wimbledon and U.S. National champion in his day, was the top-ranked player in the world in the late 1940s. Kramer was a founder of the Association of Tennis Professionals, which is the forerunner of today’s ATP Tour. Kramer’s son, Bob, runs the men’s summer tournament in Los Angeles.
U.S. OPEN HISTORY FOR SEPTEMBER 13
In 1981, Bjorg Borg plays his last ever U.S. Open match, in which he lost a four-set final to John McEnroe. He never wins the U.S. Open and that match result basically drove the Swede from the game.
In 1998, Patrick Rafter wins his second consecutive U.S. Open title over fellow Aussie Mark Philippousis. Rafter would never win another Grand Slam title, although he was a finalist at Wimbledon.
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