What is My Game? Muzz, Sodemort, Djoker and Ljubs

Head presents a new series of commercials: What is My Game?

Wobin Sodermort says his game is classical just like his Prestige stick.



But we all know it's pretty simple: see ball, hit ball (as hard as possible).

The Djoker claims running every down ball and accelerating aggressively into his shots like the Speed is his game.



But we all know it's about flirting with the ladies: Caro, Ana, Petko, etc.

Old Man Ljubs claims to like extreme spin and power, but he's anything but that.



Muzz loves to surprise people with the variety of strokes from his Radical.



Yawn! Such a bore!

Australian Open 2011: Semifinals Picks

For the women, I'm calling

1. Nails d. Caro because Nails does everything Caro does but better. She just needs to keep her head together, and all signs point to that


2. Kim d. Bepa because Kim can handle the big moments better and batten down the hatches despite a leg strain


3. Your Aussie Open 2011 Women's Single Champion: Nails! Because it would be awesome for 1.3 billion Chinese

1. Mandy d. Ferru: It's a hard court, it's not in England, and Mandy is playing calmer.


2. Fed d. Djoker: The last time the Djoker beat Fed, the Annacone effect hadn't fully taken, and Fed was looking too far ahead to playing Rafa the next day. He won't make that mistake again.


3. Your Aussie Open 2011 Men's Single Champion: Fed for the 17th time! And we'll see the him try to chase The Mighty Babes across Rod Laver Arena, and he'll turn into a blubbering dorkball that we all know that he is

Australian Open 2011: Bert Wins The Battle of Sesame Street

Bert only seemed to have trouble against Big Berd in the second set, and teased the ball basher into unforced errors. From the score it is pretty easy to see that Big Berd faded quickly in the third (61 76[5] 61). Bert will face Fed in a rematch of their US Open 2010 semis. Beware! The last time they met in an Aussie Open semi, Bert beat Fed and won the whole thing.

Bert had time to add a sponsorship deal for Petkorazzi.



Gotta supplement that meager income from being a professional tennis player.

Australian Open 2011 Prognostications (Men)

The first act of the professional tennis season begins with a bang at the Australian Open, aka the Happy Slam. For years it was neglected because many players such as Borg and Connors refused to make the long trek Down Under in December/January because they wanted a longer off-season. When the event moved to the hard courts of Melbourne Park, it developed its own distinctive identity. For tennis fans in colder climes of the Northern Hemisphere, it reminds us that we can hope for summer where we can get to hit balls. Australia, of course, has a wonderful tennis tradition in birthing the greatest players to play the game in Laver, Rosewall, Newcombe and Court. Australian tennis fans are knowledgeable, and it's always a pleasure to hear Aussie commentators such as Killer or Stubbsie. Most importantly, this is the slam that's in the middle of the Australian Summer. No other major has an extreme-heat policy where play can be suspended because it is too hot. This Slam tests a player's stamina.

Tournament Site: here

Draws: men's singles and women's singles

Injured List: ReRe

1st Quarter:



Everyone, of course, is talking about the player of the year, Rafa, who completed a career slam by winning the US Open. He has also won Wimbledon and Roland Garros. If he wins the Australian Open, he will be the first man since Rod Laver in 1968 to hold all 4 majors at once. The Rocket doesn't think the 'Rafa' Slam should be called a Grand Slam, sticking to the tradition that one must win all 4 in a calendar year. Nevertheless, if Rafa does do this, it is possible that he may be anointed the GOAT despite winning less majors then Federer. Regardless of the GOAT debate, winning 4 consecutive majors says a lot about the peak form of a player over the duration of one year, but not necessarily about how they've done over the entire course of their career.

Rafa's quarter does contain some dangerous players, but none who could challenge him over the course of a five set match. In the 3rd round, he could meet Feli, who did beat him on the grass courts of Queens. Tree and Cilic are seeded to meet in the 3rd round, but any optimistic predictions for Cilic are bound to meet with disappointment. Tree's big serve does have the game to take Rafa out of his rhythm. They met twice this year with both matches in Rafa's favor.

In the other half of the quarter, Head Banger is seeded to meet the Mika Llodra, and Nalby to meet Daveed. There can be real surprises in this part of the draw. Kevin Anderson plays a very big game, and looks to be maturing. For another, the first-rounder between Rusty and Nalby will be a real cracker for sure. Rusty looks ready to make a late career push and claims to be in great shape.

Lurker: Rusty.

Semifinalist: Rafa


2nd Quarter:




Sod blasted through ARod this past weekend to win Brisbane, and won his first Master's 1000 last year in Paris. He is also a two time Roland Garros finalist. Most importantly, he is not overawed playing either Fed or Nadal. There aren't many guys who the ball as hard as he does. In his half of the quarter, it's doubtful whether Belluci or Curls can get past someone as confident as Sod. Belluci tends to do better on a clay, and it is always a question whether Curls will be mentally prepared, as he underachieved last year in the majors. Though Tsonga had the best result of his career in 2008 making the final, I wouldn't pick him to go further than the 4th round.

Delpo is making his return to the tour, and opens his AO campaign against Sela. If he gets past Sela, he is likely to face bags. But there seeded players are certainly in better form than Delpo. Melzer had the best year of his career (Wimbledon doubles champion, RG semi-finalist). Bags committed to dropping weight in the off-season, and loves playing in Oz. GGL beat Rafa down in Thailand. But most importantly, Muzz the great Scottish hope of the UK is looking to get past the finish line, and finally win a major. Muzz beat Soderling handily in the WTF in London. I think his rope-a-dope game, and his retrieving skills should be enough to frustrate Soderling should they meet in the quarterfinals.


Lurker: Melzer, Bags

Semifinalist: Muzz


3rd Quarter:



The man to beat in this quarter is the Djoker, who won the only major of his career here in 2008. With the Djoker, one always wonder how the heat will affect his stamina or his asthma. But he's bringing in a lot of confidence from winning the Davis Cup for Serbia, and he beat Fed at the US Open in a tough semifinal. The best years of his career are ahead of him. He could face compatriot Troicki in the 3rd round; and then Nico or Ljubs. I doubt any of these guys can beat the Djoker, so I'm counting on him at least making the quarters.

The opposite half of Nole's quarter is full of dangerous players. Big Berd had a break out year, making the finals of Wimbledon and semis of RG. Unfortunately he didn't do great since as he has admitted to struggling with being the hunted scalp. Reeshard might be returning to form that matches the hype of his early career, but he still looks like he plays too much defensive tennis. Playstation struggled last year with a wrist injury. His recent semi-final appearance in Doha may signal a return to the form that made him a dark horse last year. Nando, of course, had the best result of his career in 2009, taking Nadal to an epic 5-setter. The young American, Ryan Harrison, has an impressive all-court game, and is capable of winning 3 or 4 matches in a row at this level. But Harrison doesn't like like the only dark horse in the draw. One should also watch out for Kohly and Kei.


Lurker: Kohly, Harrison, Kei

Semifinalist: Djoker


4th Quarter:



Fed, of course, won his 16th major here last year. Two weeks with the flu in February led to a mid-season dip in form that saw his streak of 23 consecutive semi-finals appearances in majors ended at RG, and then a very disappointing lost to Big Berd in the quarters of Wimbledon. In the summer, Fed knew it was time to make a change by adding Paul Annacone to his team. The results speak for themselves. He has won 5 out of the last 9 tournaments he has entered (Cincy, Stockholm, Basel, WTF and Doha), and made the semifinals or better of the rest (US Open, Montreal, Shanghai, Paris). Even folks who are not Fed fans admit that he is the player that is currently in the best form.

In terms of his quarter, Fed doesn't face anyone that can probably threaten him. Opposite him in this quarter is his pigeon ARod. His compatriot Wawa looks to have more hunger to advance farther than the great French counterpuncher, La Monf. Fish and Samurai are likely to take each other out. Montanes could take out Fed in a clay court event like Estoril but not on an Australian hard court.


Let's face it. In the men's game for the last 5-6 years, it has been about Federer or Nadal in the majors. Only Delpo, Nole and Safin have managed to pry away a major championship from these two. And the rivalry between these friends looks to be swinging in favor of Federer. Some of the important adjustsments Fed seems to be making is implementing a rip and charge off of backhand returns, which helps his ability to handle the high kicking heavy topspin of Nadal's forehand to his backhand. He is also looking to hit the set-up shot to get the short ball so that he can take the net earlier. If Fed continues to earn a high percentage of his points off of first serves, he is the man to beat in Melbourne.


Lurker: Stakhovsky, Wawa

Semifinalist: Fed



Semifinals: Rafa d. Muzz, Fed d. Djoker

Finals: Fed d. Rafa

London: WTF Semis

The top 4 players in the world squared off in the O2 Arena in London.


These two boys trained in the physical and mentally grinding Spanish style sure do love each other.

Ahndee Muurrey played the aggressive tennis that we know he's capable of, and had the match on his racket until he played two loose drop shots on his serve early in the 3rd set to let Rafa back in the match.

Mandy this is why you need to show no mercy when you have a short ball from Rafa. Rip a forehand instead of going for too much drop shit. Because eventually he'll wrong foot you and you could hurt yourself slamming on the brakes.

Then again maybe the reasons Mandy can't win the big matches are his facial expressions.

TMF was in full Jedi mode playing fantastic defense to frustrate Nole to a 61 64 victory. Fed has not dropped a set in London.



Frankly Nole didn't look mentally sharp and seemed to miss that extra bit of determination to dig out a win. My guess is that he was looking at a once-in-a-lifetime chance to win the Davis Cup at home in Serbia.

On Sunday, whose box does Maradona choose to sit in?

Oh, BTW, I'm cheering for Barca in El Classico tomorrow to beat Real Madrid with two most hated men in soccer: the Special One and Ronaldo (sorry Rafa). For you philistines about soccer, it's the biggest rivalry match in Spain's premier league.

London: WTF ... Cheesy Rock Star Entrances

As the season winds up, the World Tour Finals in London need to hype up the matches by introducing the players with cheesy rock star entrances.

You can almost hear Rafa saying "What's happening here? Why do they make me walk through this smoke?"

TMF is looking pretty sultry here.

The Djoker is a man of the people making fun of his eye troubles from the previous night.

Sod looks awkward.

Ferru is trying to enjoy his chance to hang out in the pantheon.

Chin up, Murray, you're playing in front of your home crowd.

At least your terrier Maggie enjoys the media attention.

Beijing 2010 Preview

It's been quiet here since the US Open, and now with the season ending, the pros are no longer preparing for Grand Slams (so don't be surprised if ReeRee doesn't come back until next year).

That said, the top men and women are trying to collect ranking points to qualify for the year end championships in Asia. The men and ladies are together in Beijing to play at the site of the 2008 Olympics.



Site: here

Draw: women's singles and women's singles


Men's top seeds: Nole, Muzz, Sod, Play Station

It's a coin flip at this point of the season. Nole had a great run at the US Open. Muzz had a great hard court season, but had a disappointing US Open loss to Wawa. Sod can always bash his way through folks. Play Station looks like he's still finding his game after a wrist injury kept him out from Indian Wells to Wimbledon, and I would be surprised if he made it past Nando in the 2nd round.



Women's top seeds: Caro, Bepa, Lady JaJa, Sam

The big news is that Caro only needs to win two matches in order to become the world #1 due to ReeRee's strike injuries keeping her off the tour. This is emminently likely as here potential opponents are Errani/Peng and then Flavs/Kvitova/Kanepri/Pavs. If Caro becomes the world #1, then she joins Lady JaJa and Dina as women who have been #1 without winning a slam. While her game is similar to Lady JaJa (beat your opponent by consistency), she has the mental game to eventually win a slam as she never gives up, applies a strategy and is constantly trying to improve (e.g. her serve this year). I hope she takes over the world #1, so that the obvious retort to ReeRee doing this is that you can't play 6 tournaments in the year and expect to stay #1.



That said, I'd like Nails to win to give the Chinese something to go bananas about.

US Open 2010: Champions

Caro showed that her game still needs development to win a slam as Bepa was able to keep her off balance with variety.

Vee's power and athleticism was not enough to overcome her inconsistency or Kimpressive's defensive.

Bepa felt like hiding after getting manhandled by Kimpressive.

The Mum Train paraded Jada out for another year.

Head Banger came out flat, and could only sustain the intensity he knew he needed to beat the Rafinator for only one game.

Federror struggled with his forehand and first serve, and could not convert two MPs on the Djoker's serve.

When you face the wall that is called the Rafinator, you'd crack your rackets too.

Rafa took him the trophy to bite, and join the rarefied air of men who have won a Career Slam in singles (Federer, Agassi, Laver, Perry, Budge, Emerson). Like Rafa did, let's hold off on GOAT debates and just enjoy the moment.

Courtesy of Forty Deuce, here's the trophy ceremony which was interrupted by ESPN2's rush to get to football.

US Open 2010 Fashion Grades (Men)

The US Open's liberal dress code with its night matches set in fashionable Gotham has given wide parameters for what can be worn on court. New Yorkers know their style, and the sponsors for the pros have got to raise the bar. With matches at night for the top seeds and grueling day matches in humid heat, this means some folks have a night kit and a day kit. So here come fashion grades which are below their respective pictures.

Fed's night kit stays conservative: navy blue with button placket and white trim on the collar. The only major change (gasp) is that his logo is on the chest and the swoosh is on the sleeves. See his day kit below.

Grade: B+

Just another day at the office for TMF with a "football blue" polo and khaki shorts. The polo is a lighter blue version of his night polo. It certainly suits the middle-age set of men who play tennis on weekends to relive their youth.

Grade: A-

Rafa, could you ever see your Swiss friend wearing neon yellow? True story: I've already seen one of the regulars at my local tennis courts wear this. We all had to put on sunglasses.

Grade: B-

The Rafinator has decided to copy the Sith Lord look pioneered by his BFF. With the damage he's been doing this year, it works. Watch out for Darth Nadal!

Grade: A

Djoker survived a meltdown in his first round. His kit is two-sided as his personality: on the one hand, his Sergio Tacchini is classic a la McEnroe; on the other hand, the dragon print really suits his fiery personality. You cannot be serious if you think he is fit enough to actually make it to the finals.

Grade: B

ARod has switched kits from his tri-colored collar. His day polo is white with checkered piping. Yeah, I know tennis clothes and whites are a natural, but it's the New York, where white ain't mandatory. Show some creativity, LaCoste.

Grade: B

ARod's night polo is ... uh ... blue with white checkers. Not bad. It matches his racquet. I'm sure your fans felt the way you did watching Tipsy hit you off the court in that.

Grade: B

For Adidas creativity means using three colors instead of two: purple, navy blue and white on Nando.

Grade: B

In the case of Muzz, creativity means removing the neon yellow from the polo he wore in Oz. His polo is as bright and cheery as he.

Grade: B

US Open 2010: They're Melting

With temperatures soaring into the 100s on the blue griddle that is the US Open hard courts (with humidity to boot), yesterday's first round action was a physical and mental test for many. Sure it ain't Pennsylvania, but trust me, the weather ain't that different here in New York.

In a total surprise, the Djoker passed the test due to the mercy of shade in the 5th set and actually outlasted his fellow countrymen Viktor

I won't comment on his on-court interview as others already have (here and here).

Nails had the match under her control after the 1st set, but couldn't adjust to KBond cleaning up her game. According to Virginia Wade who was commenting the match, Nails just brain farted and couldn't back away brainless ball bashing. Even a hacker like me knows that the ball will fly in hot and humid conditions, and that you have to play patient tennis in those conditions. I hate you Nails; you were supposed to make the semis to take out Caro.



Bags shouldn't have played New Haven despite his promise to return them a favor.



Lady JaJa survived and didn't look all glittery against Breast Reduction Gal.



The Force is with young Gulbis but he is not a Jedi yet.

Benneteau evoked Sampras, splling his guts in the midst of the match but closed it out to beat the Sex.

US Open 2010 Prognostications

The final act of the professional tennis season climaxes at US Open, the Loud Slam. Why the Loud Slam? As one observer put it, it rightfully claims all the cliches about New York.

The Open, on the other hand, is brash New York: all that concrete and hardcourts and loud music pumped into Ashe Stadium between games and the hot dogs and beer, and the late nights. The tournament that never sleeps. They’re both wonderful events in different ways, with Wimbledon more like a classical music festival and and the Open more like a state fair.

While Wimbledon's lawns mute the sound of the ball as it bounces, the asphalt in Flushing Meadow amplifies it and concrete stands amplify the crack of the ball as it collides with the strings and the courts. While Wimbledon mutes commercialism, the US Open embraces it to the max. While the Australian Open crowds are known for their laid back and happy feel, the crowds at the US Open are what you expect New Yorkers to be like: intense and rowdy. It embraces all the cliches of American culture: the surface is on fast hard court (Deco Turf II) which favors aggressive play, strokes that hit through the ball, and big serves.

Of course, crowds have a good reason to cheer when they see shots like this:



Tournament Site: here

Draws: men's singles and women's singles

Unfortunately due to wrist injury, Delpo won't be able to defend his title.

Add ReeRee, Allez Bitch, Ali and Tommy Haas to the injury list.

With the form that Mum Train has been showing over the summer, she has a good chance of parading Jada around Arthur Ashe Stadium again.

Men

1st Quarter: When Rafa won at Roland Garros, practically the first words out of his mouth was that he wanted to win the US Open to complete a career slam. A lot has been said about why Rafa has had a tougher time at the US Open, but observing Rafa's game in the last year, he's been making the adjustments necessary to make it more likely that he'll win. His serve has more pop; he's flattening out his forehand more (more windshield wipers over the reverses); he's approaching the net more.

Rafa should like his draw. Assuming he gets past Gabashvilli and Istomin, he could face Kohli in the 3rd round, who gave him a close match in Toronto but then faded away. He could then face either Feli or Mr. Clean who have beaten Rafa this year (Queens and Indian Wells). However, beating Rafa in a 5-setter is a different proposition, even if it is on a fast surface.

Many of the dangerous players are in the opposite side of Rafa's quarter. Nando and Daveed are the highest seeds due to their great results during the clay season, but could definitely have the games to do well on hard courts. Curls and Fat Dave are the sleepers, and could do some serious damage.

In the end, Rafa looks to be well rested, and hungry to win the US Open, even if he could have done better in Cincy and Toronto. I would expect him to shape up his serve and backhand even if a few guys give him a scare on his path to the semis.

Lurker: Fat Dave, Curls

Semifinalist: Rafa

2nd Quarter: Muzz appears to have gotten out of the funk that began after he lost to Fed in Oz. After appearing in the Wimbly semifinal, he fired his coach Miles MacLagan, and has been relying upon his mum in the coaches box. More importantly, he seems to have taken to heart the constant advice that he needs to play more aggressively in order to win a slam. In Toronto he showed great form. Aggressive tennis a la Muzzard means hitting his forehand with more authority to either angle his opponents off court or to put them away on short balls by flattening it out. When he gets his first serve in, he can get free points. His backhand will always be a dangerous weapon. And his excellent movement means he will always be able to get back more balls than his opponent, and he has always been capable of putting himself in better court position.

He could face either Samurai in the 4th round, who wouldn't commit seppuku in the finals at UCLA or Nico, who has done better on clay than asphalt. I would expect Samurai to make a break through to challenge Muzz. In the bottom half of Muzz' quarter, Big Berd will have to hit great passing shots to get past Llodra in the first round. I wouldn't expect him to have to deal with Tree, whose ankle ligament injury looks serious. Head Banger or X-Man could block Big Berd's trip into the quarters.

In the end, Muzz is playing with lots of confidence. I doubt Big Berd's ball bashing will be able to overcome Muzz's defense.

Lurker: Samurai, X Man

Semifinalist: Muzz

3rd Quarter: Big questions hang over the Djoker's game this year: his serve lost consistency in the spring when Todd Martin unwisely tried to change it, and more importantly, his asthma/breathing problems have a tendency to flare up during tight matches. He's an easy target, but probably not in the first round as he plays fellow countrymen (and skit co-conspirator) Troicki. However he faces dangerous challenges in Bags or Fish. Even if he gets to the 4th round, he could be challenged by Play Station who is finding his form after a long injury layoff or ARod who beat him in Cincy. The cooler weather in New York won't drain the Djoker, but guys this year know that he's eminently beatable.

Lurker: Fish, Anderson

Semifinalist: ARod


4th Quarter: Despite winning his 16th major in January, Fed comes in with doubters, because of the relatively subpar performance (for his standards) at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Making the quarters of a major only to have big tall guys like Big Berd and Sod hit him out of the tournament doesn't cut it for Fed. He could face either Sod or Cilic in the quarters. Cilic has disappointed since Oz. However Sod has had a great year, beating Fed at Roland Garros to eventually make the finals, and appeared in the quarters at Wimbly.

Fed has a fairly easy path to the quarters, where he might face Rusty in the 3rd round and Melzer in the 4th. Although Rusty beat Fed in Halle, Fed has been Rusty's albatross through out his career. And Fed didn't have any trouble handling Melzer in their first meeting in Wimbly. If Fed meets Sod, I wouldn't expect Fed to show any mercy.

Lurker: Rusty

Semifinalist: Fed

Semifinals: Muzz d. Rafa, Fed d. ARod

Finals: Fed d. Muzz

Women

1st Quarter: Caro is the surprise top seed. For all the criticism fired at her game (absence of a put away forehand and net game), she's mentally tougher than many peers in her generation, and constructs points better than the typical WTA ball basher. Life can't be easy for her as she could be hit off the court by Masha or Rezai to even make the the 4th round.

Even if she gets past them, then Nails would be her most dangerous opponent, beating Caro twice this year. On the hand, Nails could hit herself out of the tourney. Sveta is looking to get her game back together, but faces match up problems against MaKiri. Caro is capable of handling either of those two.

Lurker: Rezai, MaKiri

Semifinalist: Nails

2nd Quarter: Lady JaJa spent her junior years training at the Bollitieri Academy and should feel comfortable on the asphalt of New York. Her best showing was a finals appearance in 2008, but overall her best surface is clay as she has made the semis of Roland Garros thrice. This summer has not been her greatest on hard courts. Whoopie is looking to defend her semifinal showing here, but has been lacking consistency this year.

Aggie has been consistent, but doesn't really have the weapons to challenge the big hitters who hit a run of consistency in the majors. Bepa is having a great year, making the finals of Wimbly and Montreal. As long as she keeps her head together, a semifinal appearance is hers for the taking.

Lurkers: Kanepri, Nads

Semifinalist: Bepa

3rd Quarter: At 30, Vee comes in as one of the oldest top seeds amongst the ladies. With her power and speed, she is always a dangerous ball basher to get past. Unfortunately her forehand and serve tend to disappear sometimes because she drops her head, and she tries to blast her way out of a slump. Not only that she faces Pironkova who flummoxed her at Wimbly. Flavs seems to have found her game but doesn't really have the power to beat Vee. Neither does Shahar.

In the top half of this quarter, Franny is tired of living off the afterglow of winning Roland Garros, but it remains to be seen if she will break out of the pattern of getting beaten early in a tourney. Vika, on the other hand, looks to be fully recovered from the injuries that plagued her through the clay/grass season. Not only that she is playing better defense and moving better. She's due for a breakout that was hinted at when she almost beat ReeRee in Oz earlier this year.

Lurker: Pironkova, Flavs

Semifinalist: Vika


4th Quarter: Mum Train has had her best results in New York winning it twice. Can she do it third time? All her victories this year have been on hard courts (Brisbane, Miami and Cincy). As long as she doesn't over rush her pacing through a match, she has the right combo of power and defense to deserve to be called one of the favorites. Mono might block her path to the final, but doesn't have a serve that is not attackable.

Sam has never done well in the US Open. Part of the reason is that the surface softens the bounce of her kick serve, taking away one of her key weapons. Not only that, she's not the greatest mover and lacks the time to run around her backhand. LenaD on the other hand has always been a great mover with legs like a tree trunk, and doesn't need to cover up her backhand as a weakness. While some think she's in the sunset of her career, she looks ready to make a deep run making the semis (as we speak) of New Haven. In the end, Kim is a similar player to Lena D but with a better serve.

Lurker: Dina

Semifinalist: Mum Train

Semifinals: Mum Train d. Vika, Bepa d. Nails

Finals: Mum Train d. Bepa