Nole, when I get a cardiac arrest (or lung cancer) I'm counting on you to pay for my medical bills. Just so you know. Still, grats boyo. 10-match winning streak!



If anyone's wondering why I'm not blogging about Bercy, I've been busy composing a ginormous piece on Marat which should be published shortly )))

Phew. What a clusterfuck.


Yeah Noley, exactly. Was it just a horrible day at the office, or are you simply exhausted? Bet the latter.

In all seriousness, I was prepared for him to take one for the team today - all for the noble purpose of not allowing the future of tennis into WTF, of course. My hopes lie with Jo now.

ALLEZ ALLEZ ALLEZ JO-WI!

Too good, Kolya D. Just too freaking good. Must qualify for WTF with that win.

Please win it all tomorrow.

Upd. Oh, and Nadal? Please tear Lopez apart. Show no mercy, okay? Thanks.

I love you man, but stop embarrassing yourself. First, if at 30 y.o and after 13 years of pro life you're still getting fooled by that, than you're a tool who deserves no better. Second, I distinctly remember someone taking a mto at RG '04, just as Starace was about to serve for the match. And against Hewitt in the AO '05 final - to get leg massage, of all things? Now who might that have been? Errm... let me remember... you!Everybody does that, just,,, stfu for chrissakes.

On the other hand, was pretty interesting to know at last why he had a spit with Roddick at the Athenes Olympics - because of the schedule, it turned out. I was mildly disappointed tbh hoped for somehing more epic.

On the third hand, DelPo's fall season is really shaping up in the footsteps of Nole's '07 fall season, only with an injury on top of that. No wonder the stands were empty - why would fans go to a tournament if every top player who takes the court just fucking retires?

Nole started his match playing short to Fabio's forehand like a moron, but let's chalk it up for not knowing what the guy's up to. Then lifted up his return game, blasted Fabio's candy-ass. Fabio's really too pretty, almost indecently so.

andyroddick i just dont think it makes sense that we have a year as long as we do, and then people act shocked when injuries play a part

Andy Roddick wrote that on twitter this morning. Five hours later he retired from his match against Stan the Man with knee injury - that's what I call self-jinx (or would that be a self-fulfilling prophesy?) par excellence. Poor A-Rod, tennis's been fucking him sideways since that Wimbly final.

On a separate creepy note, Wawa now has two wins over Andy, both by retirement.

Gulbis returned to his usual stellar form, losing to Fognini on hard in the 1st rd in straights. Cilic also went out in the 1st rd - to Berdych.

Nice job, Gelled Head - a solid entry to the "choke of the year" competition.

And to think, some of the moronic journos were calling this guy "the future of tennis" after the AO. If this is the case, I'm switching to ping-pong.

I can say this in favour of clay: it sure makes for some of the best photos.



( poetry in motion... )

I watch Madrid closely (even the women sometimes), I just can't post anything meaningful about the matches. Call it a fan's block. I'm planning to peak for RG.

How do you win a point off that guy?



Hit three winners? Four? Five?

He won three titles in three weeks: just sick; two titles in a row without losing a set. Clean sweep of the clay tournaments looks in the cards. Just bow down and pray.