Legs to Stand On

Growing up, I regularly attended high school basketball games. My four older siblings all played the winter sport, and it was a great distraction from the frighteningly cold winter weather in Montana. My sisters' teams were consistently bad - real bad. Year after year I would watch them have losing seasons, winning just a handful of games in each. I wondered what the problem was: the coaching? The players? The game plans?

As I got older and started to play basketball myself, I began to see that a good team took all of the aforementioned ingredients. You couldn't have a great team without good players, a knowledgeable coach and a solid game plan - it all had to come together at once. Great teams just didn't happen, they had to be carefully orchestrated. But above anything else, the talent had to be there. Talent is the legs that greatness stands on.

As the Tremendous Two has grown into the Ferocious Four, it's safe to say that the ATP has legs to stand on for the next few years - four pairs of sturdy, terribly talented legs.

(Photo by billybuck via flickr.)

Watching Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray (as they're ranked) each have their own, separate bursts of greatness this year has been nothing short of spectacular. These four men have captured my attention in a way like never before, and I've become interested in men's tennis on a genuine, true-fan level. I'm guessing that they - and I - will be sticking around for a while.

The frightening thing is that there are three more pairs of talented legs - Juan Martin del Potro, Gilles Simon and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - that are threatening to turn the Ferocious Four into the Scintillating Seven. These are all gentlemen who have shown flashes of their own brilliance this season (throughout the calendar year), and a group that the tour can look to in week two of Grand Slams not as darkhorses or outsiders, but actually as legitimate heavy weights who just haven't had their breakthrough yet.

Last week, I wrote about how increasingly interesting the men's tour was becoming, and how the women's tour was lacking any true rivalries or distinction. The thing is, even if the women's tour was bursting with talent and attracting me with new and different stars, it would take nothing away from the legitimacy of what a great group of men sit atop the ATP rankings.

For tennis to be interesting on both sides is nearly impossible. Very often, in fact, it's difficult for even one tour to be compelling. But we are ending a year on the ATP that showed us what brilliance can do when it's pitted again other brilliance, and that bodes well for 2009, even if their is off-court drama.

You can ask for well-rounded, attractive champions, but it's not often that you get a group of truly talented, just-short-of-spectacular champions all at once. Now that's a talent any season can build on.

A Change of Scenery

A few years ago, when Serena was making her way through the Serena Slam, Jennifer Capriati was still re-surging, the Belgium duo was just making their way up while the likes of Venus, Lindsay and Mary Pierce were a weekly tour of Big Babe tennis and a Swiss Miss named Martina was still a Top 5 power, women's tennis was riding high.

2008 has painted quite a different picture for the WTA: Capriati, Pierce, both Belgium girls and (mostly) Davenport are absent from the game, while the world's Number 1, Jelena Jankovic, has never won a slam, and half-hearted champion Maria Sharapova, topsy-turvy Ana Ivanovic and other newcomers make up what USA Today writer Doug Robson calls "the weakest top-10 ever".

Meanwhile, across the aisle in the Men's Room, the ATP (despite its internal conflicts) is on fire. The Big Two (Roger and Rafa) was extended to the Big Three after Novak Djokovic won the Australian Open to open the year, and rumors are now swirling about "the Big Four" following Andy Murray's run to the US Open final and his win at the Madrid Masters. Perhaps after this week in Paris, it may be considered the Big Five - we'll just have to see what Jo-Wilfried Tsonga does in Shanghai.

The thing is, the tours have done something of a flip-flop. Following 2003, Magnus Norman's career went to the crapper, but as he and other faux champions (see: "Andy Roddick" or "Juan Carlos Ferrero") have been pushed aside, a great wave of bona-fide champions has emerged. Federer has been the foremost of these, while Nadal is on his heels (and ahead of him, in some aspects) and players like Djokovic, Murray, Tsonga and others including Gilles Simon and Juan Martin del Potro are attempting to make this the hay-day of tennis (once again).

While players like Djokovic, Murray and Tsonga have proved their staying power, the WTA has little strength to rest on outside of the House of Williams. Ana Ivanovic was a dismal 5-6 in the four months following her maiden slam win in Paris, and Jankovic has yet to win a slam, herself. Up-and-comers like Nicole Vaidisova, Maria Kirilenko, Marion Bartoli, Sania Mirza and others have been much talked-about, but have yet to come up with the goods. Others like Alize Cornet and Caroline Wozniacki have appealing games, but have yet to prove themselves in the upper echelon of the game.

Recently, I can't help but follow the men a little more than the women. The rivalries are there, the passion is tangible, and the drama is saved for the court. The girls always provide the drama, but perhaps they need to change the scenery to between the lines to make things a little more appealing... or can we just never have the best of both worlds?

The Next Big Thing

There have been plenty of tennis players that I've wished, dreamed and predicted big things of and for.

There was the resilient Mexican Melissa Torres who made noise at her home tournament over 18 months ago. Then there was Michelle Larcher de Brito, the young Portuguese star who was Jennifer Capriati, reincarnated at the Sony Ericcson Open last March.

Or more recently, Marina Erakovic, Laura Robson, Ernests Gulbis and a host of others.

So don't be surprised that I'm writing about a brand-new up-and-comer. And don't be surprised if she doesn't exactly win the US Open in the next two years, either. But the thing about sports writing is this: you must take chances on certain players. There will be future champions, there will be breakthrough stories. Perhaps today's qualifier is tomorrow's champion... you just never know.

The girl is Melanie Oudin. She's not much different from the rest of the players I've written about on here, except one minor detail: she's American. Actually, let's call that detail major, not minor. Why? You ask. This is why: separate from the Williams sisters, there have been zero American grand slam champions in the last five years. Yes, zero.

Oudin may not be Venus or Serena, but this past week she had her first big pro breakthrough, winning two matches at the Tier III Bell Challenge in Quebec City, which comes at the tail-end of a successful year for the 17-year-old.

(Oudin has a powerful baseline game. But what junior player doesn't these day? Photo by kpessa via Flickr.)

Successful may be an understatement, winning 28 matches - mostly at small, American challenger tournaments - and losing in the first round of just two pro events: Miami and the US Open. In this year, she's also won this country's most prestigious junior tournament, the Easter Bowl, and recorded wins over eight Top 200 players.

But what does all mean for Oudin? It means that she, along with US Open junior champion Coco Vandeweghe are the future of American girls tennis, at least for now. ESPN The Magazine made her a part of their NEXT campaign this past year, and she's one of a handful of players that the USTA has put mega bucks behind to help further her individual career.

But considering the Monique Vieles, Ashley Harkleroads, and Bethanie Matteks (who beat her this week) before her, it's unlikely that Oudin will have any sort of a lasting career - much less reach the No. 1 world ranking as she hopes to do. Sans the Williams sisters and Lindsay Davenport, just three Americans stand inside the Top 100 on this week's rankings, and at the US Open, (without the Williams and Davenport) the group of starts and stripes went a dismal 1-12.

So what makes Oudin different? Different than Alexa Glatch or Vania King or Ashe Rolle or Mashona Washington, you might wonder. It's her slow, steady, mature and calculated rise to the pro tennis ranks that gives her an edge. At the age of 17, she hasn't been catapulted onto the international stage, but rather allowed to take on each level of tennis - from regional to national to international - and let her game adjust. It's not a guarantee by any means, but it's an approach that could benefit in the long run.

You might call it the Anti-Williams approach, and though there have been endless critics of what the two sisters have done, they've made it all right. So is Oudin destined for a crash?

Or is she the next big thing?

The Almost Club

I started to write a post yesterday about two girls that I'm really excited about on the WTA Tour: Laura Robson and Marina Erakovic.

Each of these two young women have showed great promise and poise in the last six months as they've made their own inroads on the pro tour, but I can't help but think of them as part of a club that I feel is growing and growing: The Almost Club.

The Almost Club grows in membership each year, but in the last two years I've noticed that the application process has sped up and the applicant line never gets too deep - they just hop right in. Over at On the Baseline, Aaress did a great post on "The Most Frustrating WTA Players" on tour right now.

For me, the list could go on and on, but more than anything, I worry for the next generation - for girls like Robson and Erakovic - that they'll always be Almosters... that they'll never achieve greatness.

Perhaps it's something that I shouldn't lose sleep over. Fact is, there are few Venus Williams-like players in the world, and not everyone is destined for greatness. While working with the Easter Bowl, I'm learning how far tennis can reach (over 600 American kids play this tournament every year!) and how selective it truly is.

When it comes to team sports, greatness can be passed around from position to position. But in tennis, there is only one position: on the court. If you're not on it, you're off it. And if you're off it, you're probably not winning very much.

It would take me weeks to talk about all the Almosters on the WTA Tour, so I'll just stick with Robson and Erakovic. For now, they both have their careers ahead of them, so it's unfair to put them in one category or another.

But truth is, they probably will become a part of the Club, because we all know how hard it is to get into that other one club: the Club of Champions.

An Ernests Effort

You may be surprised to learn that one of the ATP's hottest up-and-comers, Ernests Gulbis, has a losing career record. At 34-36 (and 20-18 this season), Gulbis' record wouldn't necessarily impress anyone, but the just-turned 20-year-old from Latvia is turning plenty of heads in the world of tennis as of late, and impressing plenty.

After making noise at this year's French by flying into the quarterfinals before falling to Novak Djokovic, Gulbis has had disappointing draws at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, facing Rafael Nadal and Andy Roddick in the second round of each tournament, respectively.

But just this week Gulbis has continued his meteoric rise in tennis, beating seeded Mario Ancic in Metz. His win over Ancic adds to the already long list of top players that Gulbis has conquered in his young career which includes James Blake (twice), Janko Tipsarevic, Tommy Robredo and Tim Henman, just to name a few.

(Photo by Web Del Tenis La Amistad via Flickr.com.)

Gulbis first garnered attention at the 2007 edition of the U.S. Open, when he advanced to the fourth round in his first Open appearance and third Grand Slam tournament. The run came after the Latvian had been winless all summer long (0-7), not winning a match since the first round at Roland Garros.

Gulbis validated his New York run by winning Mons (Switzerland) a few weeks after the Open, beating third-seeded Kristof Vliegen in the finals for his first ever ATP title. What was most impressive was that it was the first tournament he had not only been a seed, but the number one seed at that.

The most surprising and noteworthy, though, hasn't necessarily been Gulbis' wins (though those have helped, too), but instead his losses. Pushing Nadal and Roddick to four sets at the year's last two majors garnered plenty of attention for the world's 50th ranked player, and though he didn't reach the second week at the Open like last year, the Latvian has cemented himself as a part of the new generation of men's tennis.

Different Paths

Who would've have thought, just four short months ago in the French Open final that Dinara Safina and Ana Ivanovic would be in the places they are today? In this week's WTA Tour rankings, Safina sits sweetly at number three in the world, while Ivanovic, so briefly the world's number one, is now at number four.

It's the story of two completely different paths.

Since Ivanovic's maiden slam win over Safina at Roland Garros, the Serb has looked more like the crashing U.S. economy while Russian has likened, well, the petro-fueled Russian economy. Ivanovic is a dismal 5-5, losing in the third round of Wimbledon and the second round of the US Open. The nerves that Ivanovic showed in her first set of a slam final in 2007 against Justine Heninhave resurfaced again, but this time they've lasted for over three months - not just three sets.

A few days ago, Tennis.com's Peter Bodo gave credit where credit is due in writing about the ascension of Safina's star. Safina has, at the age of 22, suddenly placed herself in the upper echelon of the game after dabbling with the mid-majors for several years. Now it's up to Dinara if she can prove herself to be more steady than big brother Marat.

Head to head, Ivanovic still leads Safina in their overall career record. But as the season comes to a close, players around the globe are seeing the Russian as more of a threat for the Season Ending Championships than Ivanovic, and as the Australian Open looms a few months away - could one of them be listed with the favorites and the other not?

The fact is, if Safina were to - dare I say it? - win the SEC, perhaps she would cement her place as a viral threat for the next several years on the women's tour. But it only takes a look at one player to realize that no ranking or talent is safe for very long on the WTA Tour these days. Can you guess who that player is? I think her name might be Ana Ivanovic.

Tennis Chatter: Mid-Week Report

What a difference 10 days makes.

10 days ago Andy Roddick had seemingly already proclaimed himself US Open champion, Roger Federer was about to vault his "comeback" and everyone wanted to see how Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic would play after their polar opposite experiences at the All England Club.

But now:
--Roddick is out with injury... and questionable for the USO? He's also 8-4 in his last twelve matches. Has Andy REALLY lost his mo-jo?

--Federer shocked us all with his implosion again Gilles Simon in Toronto, then almost did the same against American Robby Ginepri in his opener at Cincy. Is the two-points-from-defeat win over Ginepri a sign that he's back in form. Maybe. Or maybe not.

--Novak has been mediocre to say the least, with his departure to Murray in Toronto and he's currently entangled in a first-set breaker with Italian Simone Bolleli.

--And Rafa, well, Rafa is the bomb. He continues to prove us all wrong by winning everything in sight. Is this kid more of a craftsman than we think?

While the women's tour might (emphasis on might) heat up in Montreal this week, one player who has taken to the summer hardcourt season with a fury is up-and-comer Michelle Larcher de Brito. She flew to the second round at the Bank of the West (through qualifying) and gave Serena quite a scare, and now in Montreal has again come through qualifying and won two main draw matches.

Watch out for this girl, she's living up to her (commercial) billing:

Tennis Chatter: The Sunday Scramble

I feel as though I have a lot of catching up to do on here and in the tennis world in general, but as I surfed the web this morning checking out the latest scores and story lines, I realized that I really didn't miss that much over the last ten days.

As I promised, here is the second feature story I've done for our local paper, The Independent Record. It's been quite the learning experience for me over the last week to write these two stories. Though they dealt with the same event, they were vastly different in subject matter and leg work.

The first I had six days to work on, get interviews for, re-think and edit over and over again, but yesterday had me at the pole vault event for four-plus hours before heading home and hunkering down in my basement to crank out an equally-long story. I felt a bit of pressure, but lucky the words came off the keyboard with relative ease, which is always any writer's hope. I could tell you the dozen or so little things I found in the two stories that I was self-critical about, but instead I'm going to see these last seven days as a learning experience. What else could it be?

This next week, I'm doing two pieces (again, one feature, one "game-day") on the Shodair Soccer Classic happening here in Helena. I'm pretty pumped about being a part of the Shodair festivities this summer as my older brother was a participant years ago went the event was just getting off the ground. I know there will be some great stories to tell, I'll just have to dig deep to find them.

Being around pole vault reminded me of one thing yesterday: tennis really is a niche sport. As much as I think we all want tennis to succeed on a global stage, it is, and will always be, for us tennis enthusiasts. Yes, there will be times when the world's eyes are on our sport (think Wimbledon 2008), but for the most part, we bask in the quietness and uniqueness of this sport.

Such is the same in pole vault, which in and of itself is its own sport within track and field, but inspires such a niche and often cult-like following that it's pointless to ever try to make pole vault mainstream. You can't kick around the pole vault in the back yard or hit it against the wall, can you? It's always going to exist as it does: a sport that few love and are passionate about, but most have no idea what the hell is going on.

That's the thing I get most often when talking about tennis to others: I just don't get how it works. Yes, tennis scoring is beyond confusing, which I think plays a big role in why we will never be a football, soccer or basketball. And I'm not saying tennis should just hang out with its five fans and be happy for the rest of its existence, but there needs to be a realization on a bigger level that this kind of sport can only be so big, just like pole vault.

Perhaps I am speaking from a naive point of view. No, I wasn't alive when John McEnroe was America's bad boy and tennis stars were like rock stars. But our world has vastly changed since then ... it's hard to think tennis could ever have that status again.

With all that said, I think what Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have done for the sport is spectacular. As we head into the meat of the US Open Series schedule, I will be interested to watch just how things shape up. This past weekend was a blow to American tennis: Serena pulled out at the BOTW, Blake and Querrey both lost their semis at Indy, and Venus and Lindsay both pulled out of LA before they even hit a ball. Will these American tournaments live and die by the American participation? It's hard to tell.

It isn't hard to tell, however, that the entire tennis world - not just Americans - will be a little less interested in the Simon-Tursonov and Wozniak-Bartoli finals than had those aforementioned players won their matches yesterday. Will it be another USOS plagued by injuries and pull outs? I sure hope not.

But then, there's those things call the Olympics, too...

Wimbledon: My Favorite Things

Random musings from a Wimbledon we won't soon forget:

As I mentioned in the video post, Alexandra Stevenson has a new blog up on ESPN.com. Is this finally her time to come back? Or was she ever really a legitimate player to begin with? It'll be interesting to see just how far she goes (and how healthy she stays).

Laura Robson is the FairyTale Princess of The Championships 2008. This is a story I just can't resist, especially because growing up, I would play tennis in my back alley and always concoct some sort of darkhorse who at the French was French or at Wimbledon was British and he or should would caption the nation's heart with out-of-this-world tennis.

Robson certainly did that in the last two weeks, winning her home title as a darkhouse and as a player who really played like she was from a different world. Robson's win was a legitimate one, beating the 1st, 9th and 3rd seeds along her way.

How special would it be to see this girl in the main draw next year? Only the next 12 months can show us what she's learned at the Girl's Champion.

Marina Erakovic is my new favorite women's player. Don't know her? Read up!

What a tournament for Andy Murray (and Jie Zheng and Marat Safin and Elena Dementieva, too!)! Murray's fourth-round conquering of Richard Gasquet was his proclamation to the tennis world: I have arrived.

Murray was overwhelmed in the quarters by Kingdom of Clay-Grass King Rafael Nadal, but his consistent effort at the All England Club show me that he is making headway each year, and continuing to improve in surprising ways. This kid will win WImbledon some day, that is no doubt. Even Tim Henman thinks so.

And, before I pay homage to Mr. Nadal himself, I want to thank William C. Rhoden of The New York Times for his thoughtful and dead-on column on the legacy of the Williams sisters. They certainly don't get enough credit for what they've done for the game, and Saturday's final is another example.

So at last we come to Rafa. This is what I'll say: the kid didn't miss. All in all, he dug deep, ran everything down, hit the ball as hard as he could, and - most importantly - didn't miss. Yes, Federer made a few errors, but it was all about the human boomerang on Sunday: everything Fed threw at Nadal, the Spaniard threw right back, and with a little more zip and curve than the five-time champ.

The Williams Way

Watching Venus take out Serena this morning was quite enjoyable. It was tennis' ultimate stage hosting the game's ultimate women competitors of the last decade in a battle that may have only been two sets, but was all the makings of a Wimbledon classic.

When I wrote yesterday about being plain excited for this weekend, my focus was on the personalities featured over these two days, but this morning Venus and Serena reminded me: it's all about the tennis.

The two women produced tremendous tennis this morning, especially Venus, who belted away and capitalized on her opportunities to win the match 7-5 6-4.

While Mary Carillo blabbed away during the match, what transpired on my TV screen was a high-quality game of grass court tennis that featured strong serving, incredible baseline exchanges, terrific net play and tremendous movement. Venus proved - surprisingly - to be the more consistent sister and to capitalize on her chances. That stat, break point conversions, proved to be the title clincher.

On the girl's side of things, it was no epic sister battle, but instead, a bright 14-year-old British girl winning the title. Laura Robson beat Thailand's Noppawan Lertcheewakarn 6-3 3-6 6-1. Robson, unseeded and ranked 36th, beat the girl's number one seed in the second round of this tournament, hadn't played a junior grand slam draw ever, as far as I can tell.

More on that story as it develops. But England may have just found its counterpart to Andy Murray in the next generation of British tennis.

Cordless in (Almost) Canada

Well, I'm just a few miles from the Canada border this weekend spending time with family celebrating the 4th. Meanwhile, I was all excited to get out of the hot weather and do a video for you guys in some AC this afternoon when I realized the cord I use to hook up my camera to my laptop somehow didn't make the trip to Northeastern Montana. Therefore, no video post tonight.

But, I would like to write a bit on what an inspiring weekend this promises to be for tennis. Seeing champions like Venus, Serena, Roger and Rafa come through upset-laden draws was really impressive, and it'll be fun to see them on tennis' biggest stage no matter how they play. Sure, it would be great if the tennis was competitive, but we have four future Hall of Famers playing for the greatest title in tennis - that has to make a lot of people pretty happy.

One tournament that always comes to mind when the domino effect starts rolling through a draw is the 2004 women's French Open. Mauresmo, Davenport and the Williams sisters all crashed out in the quarterfinals, leaving a resurgent Jennifer Capriati to hold up the trophy. But alas, Jenny came out flat, and that soon-forgotten (and now mother?!?) Anastasia Myskina was crowned champion.

To many of you, that may seem like an obscure recollection, but my point is that Slams can become Slums in just a matter of a couple of days. Day three of this Championships we lost Roddick, Sharapova and Djokovic; soon thereafter Jankovic and Ivanovic were out, too. However, these four champions that have maintained their grit and game through it all deserve to be rewarded this weekend whether they produce the top of their games or not.

Too much the big names in tennis are celebrated, making it hard for new stars to breakthrough. For the next 48 hours, however, I see it entirely appropriate to celebrate these big names and to make sure that they stay engaged in the game that we love watching them play. They certainly owe it to the sport, and in a lot of ways, the sport owes it to them.

LFAH? Not Me

OK, enough nakedness for now, at least until a streaker makes an appearance on Centre Court.

Here are my thoughts from Day 2 at The Championships:



In other news, the new "Looking for a Hero?" advertising campaign put out by the WTA Tour has made its debut and is so terribly bad that instead of having 23 people in the stands for the Tour Championships in Doha this fall, there will probably be 14 or 15, instead.

Here's my problem: the WTA just doesn't get it. There's nothing appealing about these women just running around the streets of Rome that makes me more interested in them. If you want me to think they're ordinary, make them ordinary. If you want me to think they're superheroes, make them superheroes. But watching Jelena Jankovic run through a rotating door looking awkward and almost smiling into a "this-is-ridiculous" laughter is flat out boring.

It will, however, be interesting to see how this campaign does for the tour. They are spending millions of dollars on it, and hope to reach new corners of the globe. But, I wonder how much people who haven't been attracted to tennis beforehand will really be drawn in by these commercials?

And, finally, shouldn't the WTA be focusing on the tennis that these women play? Instead of trying to build up these stars as bigger than life off the court, shouldn't the tour showcase how they play on it? To spend $75 million marketing women as individuals instead of the game that they play? I guess to me it just shows how much weight the WTA has thrown behind its "stars." Which, in looking at the recent past (Justine, Martina, Jennifer, Kim anyone?), is a dangerous move.

"Looking for a Hero?" 60-second TVC



"Looking for a Hero?" 30-second TVC #1



"Looking for a Hero?" 30-second TVC #2

Tennis Chatter

Well, this post has been a long time coming... as has the retirement of Monica Seles.

The delay of my post is many tiered: the retreat I work on for Campus Ministry happened this last weekend (it was a big success) while I had three midterms in the last eight days not to mention helping Conscious Choice (where I'm interning) getting ready to go to print for their March issue.

Seles' delay, however, has been something she relied on for much of her career - an intangible. She hoped for so long that her foot would heal and a comeback might spark something deep down inside of her tennis soul that sprung her tennis body into action. But no such luck would come upon Seles, who won nine grand slam titles.

She'll be sorely missed. But, tennis fans, Monica's foot might not be good enough for the pro tour, but she'll be gracing a competitive surface with her shoes anyway... her dancing shoes, that is.

Below, my favorite Monica match of the thousands: a thrilling victory over Venus Williams at the 2002 Australian Open. Pay attention to the clip around 6:45, where she and Venus are wrapped in a heavy exchange that ends up with Monica scrambling and Venus netting a forehand. At that point, the camera pans to the crowd where two women are up on their feet, pumping their fists, engulfed in Seles' emotion.

That moment shows what Monica meant to fans, and she'll surely be missed on the tour.



Meanwhile, Kei Nishikori spoiled an all-American final at Delray Beach last weekend by beating Sam Querrey in the semifinals. If that wasn't shocking enough, the 18-year-old Japanese player went on to triumph over James Blake in three sets in the finals.

What's up with these young guys making noise early in the year? Are they random flashes of brilliance... or are they a sign of more of what's to come?

In case you missed the action at Delray, Erwin over at Tennis Served Fresh has posted some really cool pictures of the awesome artwork done on center court.

Erwin's post got me thinking about how tennis can start branching out and being a more inclusive sport. Why not recruit more artists to do the backdrop on the walls, or designs on the court? Music has become a staple at the Australian Open, and perhaps other forms of art at tournaments can start becoming more of a common sight.

There's been quite a lot of chatter about Pete Sampras returning to the tennis tour. My gut feeling is that it wouldn't happen... but the way he played against Tommy Haas in their exhibition, he might as well. Right?

Joachim Johansson Retires

Joachim Johansson handed over the reigns of Most Misspelled ATP Name to Philipp Kohlschreiber this week as he officially retired at the tender age of 25.

Johansson had been struggling with shoulder injuries for the last couple of years and couldn't string more of a few weeks together on the tennis court.

Johansson is most famous for this match win over Andy Roddick at the 2004 US Open. Roddick was the no. 2 seed and defending champ. This was just at the beginning of the Rise of Roger, when Roddick was still considered one of the games elite five.



The next year at the Open, Roddick flopped again when he lost early and was heavily scrutinized by his sponsor American Express after they had built a massive ad campaign around him.

Underdogs Version: Men and Women

Now that the tennis year is in full swing, I thought it might be time to do something a little less predictable; something other than the top 10. 2007 was full of breakout artists: Ivanovic, Jankovic, Djokovic...and those are just the Serbs that caught our attention!

Here's a short list of players I think will make big noise in '08:
Lindsay Davenport
World rank: 72 '07 record: 13-1 Highlight: Winning two of three tournaments in her baby-in-tow return.
Lindsay Davenport was the feel-good story of the fall while the tennis world was engulfed in a storm of scandal that included the on-going betting scandal, Martina Hingis' bizarre re-retirement and speculation of a fixed exhibition series between the two GOATs.

Davenport's return isn't all about feeling good, however, it's about feeling great. The new mother blazed to a 13-1 record while collecting two titles and announcing a powerful return to the tour. The Californian has already committed to a full slam schedule (minus the French, of course) and has opened '08 with two wins already.

Prediction: It's hard to put Davenport up there with Henin (who she always struggled against), the Williamses and others. I think she'll no doubt make some noise at the slams, and may garner a runner-up trophy or two...but nothing more.

Tamira Pazsek
World rank: 41 '07 record: 33-18 Highlight: Making the 4th round at the USO (and beating Schnyder along the way).
Tamira Pazsek is the full package. The 17-year-old Austrian made the 4th round at both Wimbledon and the US Open on her way to finishing the year ranked 41st in the world. Her strong backcourt game was groomed for much of the year by Larry Passos, the former coach of Gustavo Kuerten. Though Passos and Pazsek have gone separate ways, the teen will certainly be a top 20 player by the end of the year.

Prediction: Top 20 by year's end along with a grand slam quarterfinal appearance (or two). In '09 she'll join Ivanovic, Jankovic and company in the "Slam Contender" category.

Agnes Szavay
World rank: 20 '07 record: 56-14 Highlight: Rising nearly 200 spots in the rankings in one calendar year.
Szavay won her first WTA title in Beijing this past fall, beating Jankovic in the final as the sixth seed. Her victory capped off what was an extremely impressive year for the Hungarian, who finished the year at No. 20 in the rankings following an impressive run to the quarters at the US Open.

Prediction: Szavay will continue her run up the rankings, but not quite at the pace she did in 2007. She doesn't have many points to defend early in the year, and could climb into the top 15 before the French. Expect her to hover there for the next year or so, before breaking in to the top 10 in '09 or '10.

Julie Ditty
World rank: 101 '07 record: 49-25 Highlight: Winning six matches at Quebec and making her first ever WTA semifinal.
Vanderbilt grad Julie Ditty continued her steady rise up the rankings in 2007 with a flurry of wins on the ITF tour. Her best results, however, came on the WTA circuit in late fall, when she qualified for four straight tournaments including Quebec, where she made the semifinals.

Prediction: The lefty has the chance to climb up the rankings (much like Szavay) early in the year. She'll be top 80 by the end of the year.

Janko Tipsarevic
World rank: 52 '07 record: 19-22 Highlight: His 8-6 in-the-fifth win over Fernando Gonzalez at Wimbledon.
Tipsarevic, the Prince of Serbian Tennis, made his mark on the ATP Tour last year by going 6-4 in the majors, including a dazzling performance at the All England Club. He won three straight five-set matches to advance to the 4th round before falling to a red-hot Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Prediction: Janko's cooky playing style, partnered with his speed and grit, will keep him in the top 50 this year. If he can stay healthy, and continue to feed off the positive energy of countryman Novak Djokovic, we could see him as a seeded player at Wimbledon and the USO.

Frank Dancevic
World rank: 72 '07 record: 18-19 Highlight: The quarterfinals at AMS Canada.
Frank Dancevic had quite the summer, where he went 7-2 and scored wins over Andy Roddick and Fernando Verdasco. After making the finals at Indianapolis, Dancevic wowed his hometown crowd in Canada by taking Rafael Nadal to three sets in the quarterfinals.

Prediction: The Canadian will continue to win matches with his rifle serve and dangerous one-handed backhand. He'll be top 50 by year's end, if not before.

Fernando Verdasco
World rank: 26 '07 record: 34-28 Highlight: Advancing to the 4th round at RG after seven straight losses.
This is the year for Fernando Verdasco. At least, that's what I say. After demonstrating so much talent and so little execution over the last few years, Verdasco, now 24, should solidify his place inside the top 20 in 2008. The success of Rafael Nadal has no doubt motivated his fellow Spaniards, and Verdasco, along with Feliciano Lopez should benefit from Nadal's success this year with some of his own.

Prediction: Top 20. Semifinals at the French.

Bhutto Passes the Torch

The last 24 hours have been rather sad for me. At breakfast yesterday (which occurred around 11:30 a.m.), my dad started talking about "Bhutto this; Bhutto that." I didn't pay much attention, mostly because we had just seen Charlie Wilson's War the night before, a movie which talks about former Pakistani president Zulfikar Ali Bhutto quite extensively.

But it was a couple minutes before I realized that my dad wasn't talking about the senior Bhutto, but rather his daughter, Benazir. This past fall I had become quite the fan of Benazir Bhutto. I listened to her interview on the BBC upon returning to Pakistan in October and followed the rocky situation there closely in hopes for a better future.

So when the news of her assassination came yesterday, I was in as much shock as the rest of the western world. I cannot imagine the loss and agony that the people of Pakistan feel after seeing the possibility for a new day come January's parliamentary elections.

In tennis terms, there's only one individual who comes close to being the pioneer that Ms. Bhutto was. That individual would be Sania Mirza, the 21-year-old Indian who has made as many headlines for her fashion as her forehand. If there's one positive that can come from Ms. Bhutto's death, it's that young Muslim girls throughout the world will look to her as a heroine, as someone to be emulated.

I've written quite extensively over that last year or so on Mirza. To me, she's a player with all the right ingredients: a strong build, a fierce groundstroke game, a level head on her shoulders and a nation (and world region) cheering her on. In a lot of ways, Mirza is strikingly similar to Bhutto: both raised in upper-class families that encouraged them to do whatever they pleased.

For Sania, the baseline has been her stage to the world as the podium platform was for Bhutto. Mirza's recent signing with adidas shows that the tennis world believes that the youngster is ready for the big time. And as Tennis Served Fresh blogger Erwin put it, it's time for Mirza to step up, as well.

Like Bhutto's self-imposed exile over much of the last decade, Mirza, too, must manage her schedule wisely. A 13-5 run during the summer showed us just how good Mirza can be, but her 0-3 finish to the season also proves that she just hasn't reached the level of global power that she can.

A new year always brings new challenges, new beginnings. No doubt the new year will hold both of those and more for the country of Pakistan, but so too, will it for Sania Mirza. And if she does her job right, the torch won't be dropped, and both the tennis world and the political world can call her a new heroine.

Bring Me a Trophy, Santa

I love Christmas. Really, I do. I can't help but love it. The romantic idea that this is the season when families come together and share what is most important in their lives: each other. Though I partly believe that Christmas has become anything but that, the few weeks at the end of the year between "Happy Thanksgiving!" and "Happy New Year!" are some of my favorite.

One tennis player that will be celebrating with a larger family this year is Lindsay Davenport, the WTA's new cover girl in its I-Can-Give-Birth-And-Play-Tennis-Too Campaign.

Though some are critical of Davenport and her recent return, I am rather tickled by her decision to return to the tour. Not only does Davenport demonstrate a passion and elegance of an era gone by, but I think she believes - truly believes - that she has some top quality tennis left in her.

That's one thing many players on the woman's tour struggle with today: belief. It was evident in Kim Clijsters, who knew she was good, knew she was great, but couldn't quite muster up the courage to believe in her ability to be the best. The result? A one slam wonder.

And it's the complete opposite problem for Clijsters' countrywoman Justine Henin, who couldn't believe in herself more. Henin not only believes she can conquer the tennis world, she knows that she can. It's this sort of attitude that has gotten Henin in trouble with the press in the past because such a disposition comes off as arrogant and cocky.

But Davenport is anything but arrogant and cocky. For so long, the Girl Next Door has been American tennis' favorite daughter. Sure, there are the Williams sisters, and Jennifer Capriati and Monica Seles. But none of them possess the charm - the "it" factor - that Davenport does.

So last week, when Davenport announced that she was going full-throttle in 2008 by playing at least three of four grand slams (she'll probably skip the French Open) I couldn't help but be overjoyed. The end of '07 proved that Davenport still has that "it" factor everyone - including her - is inspired by.

There are two images seared in my brain of Davenport: the first is the post-pudgy Lindsay, at the 1998 US Open, lumbering towards the net to run down a Martina Hingis drop shot before plowing the ball past her Swiss opponent for her first grand slam title. She raises her arms mostly in triumph, but more in sheer disbelief.

The second is a somewhat unattached Lindsay, rocking back and forth behind the baseline, waiting to return a Venus Williams serve on championship point at Wimbledon in 2005. It was a moment that I wish Davenport would have seized better, and I would guess she feels the same way.

But I think those are the images that keep Davenport herself out on the court everyday, with husband Rick Leach as a hitting partner and son Jagger as a courtside constant. Lindsay still has something to prove of the champion she was in 1998 and 2005, and, hopefully still is in 2008.

So to a Merry Christmas for Lindsay and company, who are no doubt enjoying themselves in Southern California before boarding a plane for Australia, home of the Easter Bunny. If there's another family Lindsay would like to help grow in the year to come, it'd be her grand slam trophy family. That's one Christmas wish Santa (and Lindsay) may deliver on.

Pasta, Pasta, Penalties

A couple weeks ago, the New York Times did a piece on the flagging country that is Italy. Minus the world's adoration for their food and unique not-so-modern way of life, the small boot on the Mediterranean Sea needs a kick in the ass.

So as tennis suffers through one of the most embarrassing and far-reaching scandals its ever known, two Italians have been thrust into the spotlight for their involvement.

Potito Starace and Daniele Bracciali are certainly no household names in America, but their involvement in tennis' betting catastrophe has cost the two men a combined $50,000 and nearly five months off the tour. Italian tennis officials call it "injustice."

Welcome, tennis fans, to the new America.

Following their Davis Cup win earlier this month, the Stateside boys have officials lifted themselves out of the cellar of the tennis world. Yes, the cellar. Who cares that there are two top-ten men in Andy Roddick and James Blake, and that the Bryan brothers are arguable the best doubles team on the tour today. America was in a funk.

But now that funk has been passed on, and while many countries could run and catch the flying piece of embarrassing hardware that such a label might be represented by, Italy has taken the new gold medal: king of crap.

The thing is, it shouldn't be this way. As of late, Italy has experienced something of a tennis renaissance. At year's end, five players are in the top 100 (including Starace) and there are 28 Italian in the top 500.

But, as life and sport go, scandal always overrides achievement.

While a country like Russia may suffer from the centerfold of aforementioned scandal (Nicolay Davydenko), the Russians' ability to boast numerous personalities (Safin, Tursonov, etc.) and produce high-quality tennis exempts them from falling to the depths of tennis hell.

So one question comes about: can tennis (and Italy) escape this sea of ugly with lessons learned? Or will accusations continue to be flung in every direction, fingers thrust at chest after chest and "injustice" claimed with each penalty?

It's hard to say. And as for Italy, their poster boy and a journeyman are rank with wrong doing. Maybe a bath in tomato sauce and some of that pasta will wash them clean? But I highly doubt it.

Still Sad (About Martina)

Ten years ago, Martina Hingis had launched herself to the top of women's tennis. She was a bratty 17-year-old with cat-like quickness and a feline personality to match. She was tennis' ultimate diva arriving at the cusp of the millennium.

For everything that she was, I hated Martina. I thought her game was boring, her attitude disrespectful and her confidence cocky. She epitomized the exact reason I disliked tennis sometimes: arrogance.

But Martina was the best, and above everything else, that's probably why I hated her so. She ruled in '97, and carried her swagger into the '98 and '99 by retaining the world No. 1 ranking, winning two more slams and becoming a dominant force in the doubles game.

Ten years later, however, she's retired a second time - and this one just may be for good.

(Hingis could almost always find a way to win on the court, but finding happiness has been another thing. Photo by anam1973 via flickr.)

No one could have predicted what Hingis would face during the decade after she crashed onto the scene in '97 while winning three of four majors. She was the Queen of Cry at the '99 French, then the Princess of Puff when the Williams sisters arrived with their games of power in the early 2000s.

Martina was always somewhat disinterested in tennis, though her craftiness and passion we just as evident. She was born and bred an athlete, but unsure if that's really what she was supposed to be doing with her life.

But ten years and two retirements down the road, I'm still sad about Martina. I went from hating her, to being indifferent, to wanting her back, loving her return and being frustrated with her lack of results.

Now, I'm just plain sad. Wondering if the woman who looked so comfortable on any spot of a tennis court can figure out where she feels comfortable in life. I hope she does it. She certainly deserves to.

Flawless Federer

Well, Roger Federer won today in Shanghai. No surprise that the Mighty Fed ended his year the way he started (and continued through) it. The question now is, who had the better year: Justine Henin or Roger Federer?

While Federer has been much more of a fan and media favorite, there is no denying that Henin has been as or more dominant than her No. 1 counterpart.

Federer took the title in Australia while Henin settled personal issues after divorcing husband Pierre Yves. Henin caught up at one slam a piece when she won at the French. The Fed would win the next two of the year, while Justine ran into a large-and-in-charge Marion Bartoli to fall short of her maiden title at Wimbledon.

While that one hiccup may have robbed Henin of claiming a better season, the petite Belgium did go 25-0 following that loss, while Federer went a decent 30-4 in the same span.

For me, the verdict is still out. If Henin remains healthy, she may become one of the most dominant player in the sport - male or female - ever. Federer, too, is etching himself into the stone of history with each passing year, as he will be sure to do in 2008, as well.

So, who do you think is better? I'm still undecided.