Davis Cup: Come on Baby, Light My Fire…

5-0?

Could you not find it within yourselves to concede even a single rubber to the hapless Czechs?

Not even a dead one?

I guess not, if you’re in the business of celebrating with this much fire.

(Getty)

Daveed Ferrer is not normally a player I get terribly excited about.

I admire his work ethic. Am officially in awe of his fitness which is probably only a peg or two under Rafa’s (if that). Loved the story about his coach Javier Piles locking him in a closet in order to light his fire, as well as that fabulous run he had in 07. And I find his resemblance to the Jack of Diamonds both jarring and entertaining.

But that is all.

(Getty)

Lest anyone still be in doubt though, Daveed owns this win, and was far more the ‘man of the moment’ this weekend than Rafaelites might have thunk possible.

1-6 2-6 6-4 6-4 8-6 is an intimidating scoreline.

The like of which you need not know the particulars of to infer that great things happened out there.

That said, it’s also exactly the kind of result Daveed seems uniquely placed to pull off. As is Davydenko.

For Rafa, this marks a long awaited return to winning a match or two again, this time with that familiar, rust coloured grain under his feet.

Not going to venture much more than that. Spiffing as it is, it’s probably safer to wait until January -- when both climate and surface will change -- to speculate on whether or not he’s “back”.

Would someone mind telling me exactly what that is? I've been struggling with it for little over a year.

Not sure Nole is “back” either. And from where precisely?

Did shanky Fed ever actually leave us? Or was he just kept at bay for a couple of months with a cattle prod and the threat of an Ivo-Djoko-Rap, while he bagged himself numbers 14 and 15?

No, pontificating on the inscrutable nature of being “back” is hereby suspended until the immediate aftermath of Oz.

For what it’s worth though, I’ll really stick my neck out and postulate that Rafa won’t have as successful a first few months as he did in 09. How daring is that?

For that, he might need to get back on that slidey, rust-coloured stuff again.

Amelie Calls Time…

You know what?

I’m gonna play it selfless this time and proclaim my support for Amelie’s decision to retire. Good on her.

(Photo: Reuters)

Sure, it’s another axe wound for single-handed backhand Revivalists worldwide, and I don’t think we’re destined to see that much elegance at the net again for a very long time (no, not even Justine matched Amelie in the forecourt).

As for serve/volley, well that died many years ago – a sharp thrust delivered to the ribs that, happily for all concerned, didn’t last very long.

From where I stand however, she’s given her dues to the game, behaved impeccably both on and off the court and perhaps most important of all, answered the doubters with that Wimbledon Title – if she thinks it’s the right time to clear out that locker, I wish her well.

That said, I understand there were tears – and I understand why there were tears:

"I don't want to train any more. As you grew older, it's more difficult to stay at the top," said a tearful Mauresmo.

…

"I had to make a decision, which became evident in the last few months and weeks," added Mauresmo.

"It's a bit sad, but this is the right decision. I was lucky enough to have an exceptional career and to experience very strong feelings on the court."

…

"It became very hard in build-up to the US Open," said Mauresmo, who won the silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

"If I were able to enter the court, play and shine, of course I could continue, but to achieve this you need to put in such hard work. And I'm not capable of that.

"I dreamt of this career, I dreamt of winning a Grand Slam title. I lifted trophies in every city in the world and I had 10 magical and unbelievable years."

(BBC)

I just don’t take any pleasure at all from seeing my faves, fighting desperate battles they’re so obviously destined to lose - aimed at recreating just a modicum of glory from a career that now spans, mostly backwards.

For all the big rewards and associated glim-glam, an enormous amount of work and discipline are required to bring about even a fraction of what Amelie achieved – a discussion from which travel often gets unfairly overlooked.

Frequent, lengthy travel usually leaves me feeling dazed, confused and mentally unhinged.

Oh, and my Circadian Rhythms? NOT so rhythmic anymore.

To say nothing of the effects that poor reaction times, and an inability to concentrate have on a player’s game – problems an unsurprisingly large number of them counter with sleeping pills.

Sounds great.

Why on earth would she want to continue putting herself through that, now that she’s no longer, to use her own words, “experiencing those strong feelings on court” ?

So adieu Amelie. It’s been grand.

Watching you was like taking a poorly-organised trip on the Orient Express – stylish, nostalgic, though somewhat nervy and uncertain of whether or not you’ll reach your destination.

I’ll remember you for your SHB and play at the net of course, but most of all, for that nervous little shuffle you’d do before stepping up to serve, your marbley eyes almost imploring the ball kids for that miracle ball that would stop the pain.

Probably not the behaviour you’d expect from a two-time Slam Champion; then again, I’m almost certain I never saw her dismissively throw a sweaty towel at a ball kid either.

Nice girls don’t always finish last.

SerenaGate: Closure.

(Photo: AP)

"I am thankful that we now have closure on the incident," said Williams.

…

"I need to make it clear to all young people that I handled myself inappropriately," she said.

"It's not the way to act - win or lose, good call or bad call in any sport, in any manner."

(BBC)

Closure.

Or something like it.

If she commits another offence in the next two years, she will incur the full wrath of the law and serve out the remainder of her ban in a State-approved County Correctional Facility.

I’m sorry.

But this all has a very “penal” feel to it and I simply don’t believe in treating athletes like common criminals.

She didn’t, as I understand it, threaten to “kill” anyone, as still continues to be misreported by some – though I do believe the meeting of “tennis balls” and “throats” was mentioned.

Just to be clear, I’m all for the fine – the initial levy of $10K or whatever it was, was small change indeed, or not even that.

Whilst it’s true she’s not the first athlete in any sport, to have a go at the officials, it’s also true that times have changed.

Tennis had a very raw, underdeveloped feel to it during the 70s and early 80s, when such behaviour might have been considered the acceptable underbelly of tennis conduct: fined, frowned upon, but otherwise overlooked.

Modern tennis, with it’s unremitting emphasis on nutrition, fitness, excellence both on and off the court, and yes conduct, takes a rather more dim view of things.

But the ITF’s statement reads like a prisoner’s conditions of release.

PRESS RELEASE: SERENA WILLIAMS DECISION

30 November 2009

On 9 November 2009, the Grand Slam Committee Administrator determined that Ms. Serena Williams had committed the Grand Slam Major Offence of Aggravated Behaviour for her misconduct at the 2009 US Open.

The Decision and Penalties were as follows:

1. Ms. Williams is guilty of the Major Offense of Aggravated Behaviour (Article V.A);

2. Ms. Williams is hereby fined $175,000 (including the $10,000 penalty alreadypaid) which will be reduced to $82,500 if no further Grand Slam Major Offence conviction occurs through and including 2011;

3. Ms. Williams is hereby suspended from participation in either the 2010, 2011 or 2012 US Open, as the case may be, except that any such suspension will not be imposed if no further Grand Slam Major Offence conviction occurs through and including 2011;

4. If a further Grand Slam Major Offence is committed during the period, the full penalties will be re-instated in addition to any other penalties imposed for the subsequent Grand Slam Major Offence;

5. As always, all financial penalties arising from misconduct at Grand Slam tournaments are donated by the Grand Slam tournaments to the Grand Slam Development Fund.

On 28 November 2009, the Grand Slam Committee affirmed the Decision and Penalties of the Administrator and Ms. Williams was so advised.

The Grand Slam Committee is the independent governing body responsible for, among other duties and functions, the establishment and enforcement of the Grand Slam Rules, Regulations and Code of Conduct.

I don’t like conspiracy theories, but I can’t help but feel that the tennis establishment is out to make an example of Serena for all the wrong reasons, and using measures that seem to have rather more to do with suppression than correction.

Her swagger is not always to everyone’s taste -- sometimes it's not to anyone's -- but she is what she is.

Maybe that’s what’s getting up their nose.

WTF: Wrap Up, Vol. 3

This Wrap-Up has gone on for longer than I had expected – mental note to self on the benefits of thought distillation – but the funny thing is I was largely uninspired by post-USO tennis, and didn’t expect the WTF to lift my spirits.

They did.

For all the reasons I’ve already mentioned but also because they showed us that there’s life beyond Fedal, indeed beyond the top four.

So forgive a tendency to prattle. It probably won’t last very long.

Roger Federer

All the focus this week has been on Roger’s new found love of Japanese Paper Folding.

I prefer to look at the positives.

(Photo: Reuters)

Whilst I concede that Fed’s tendency to fold his openers with such care and attention might, let’s say, need…..looking at, what’s been overlooked this week is how tight and clinical he’s been once he has found his way.

Something apparently beyond the rest of the top four. No surprise then that he was the only member of that group to make the semis.

Against Murray he was imperious.

Against Dasco he displayed that dependable ability he has for coolly containing an an over-performing player.

And in the two he lost, he was only pipped to the finish line by the slimmest of margins, by the tournament’s eventual runner up and winner.

You simply cannot win them all. Not in today’s market.

This event, and to a lesser extent this year, has also resulted in the overturning of what, to all intents and purposes, has been conventional wisdom over the last four or five years: that Federer deals with flat hitters better than anyone else on the planet.

It was of some comfort to know that whatever ups and downs he might encounter with his game, his record against flatties would remain largely blemish free. Can we kindly ignore the loss incurred James Blake last year, and bear with me on this?

Nor should it surprise us that, with Rafa seemingly custom-built to expose Federer’s vulnerabilities, that he himself should appear so uniquely vulnerable to the flatty.

There’s more to this though – cross a certain boundary and another universal law comes into play: flat-hitters that manage to combine the highest levels of pace and accuracy render the skill of their opponent irrelevant.

This should not be that difficult to accept – if someone repeatedly bludgeons the baseline with a level of accuracy that is as unwavering as it is unnerving, it doesn’t matter who’s on the other side of the net, the flatty will win.

The trouble with such determinism is, those properties of pace and accuracy don’t usually coexist. Or put another way, they operate under Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle (HUP): the more you have of one, the less defined or fuzzier the state of the other becomes.

HUP occurs in another field of tennis too: the more potential or talent a player possesses, the less easier they will find it to realise it. You only need take a look at Marat, Svetlana or French Tennis in it’s entirety. But that’s another story.

There have however, been a few magical moments in the past, when pace and accuracy have been miraculously reconciled; and it usually results in fireworks.

One such occasion was the 2005 Aussie Open Semi Final contested between Marat Safin and Roger Federer. Federer was at the top of his game, yet Safin brought him to his knees. Literally, as it turned out on match point.

Looked at another way, though continuing with the Physics analogies, if Fed’s abilities to contain flatties are viewed within the context of a black hole, players like Kolya and Blake hover on the periphery of the event horizon, whilst Safin, and to a lesser extent del Potro, push Fed beyond the point of no return, circulating inwards at the speed of light towards a singularity where unimaginable levels of pace and accuracy converge towards an infinity.

Andy Murray

Not a great week for the homeboy.

Not one to completely write off either.

I liked it that towards the end of his stay here, he looked to be experimenting with more aggression, but it was too little too late.

And the less said about his match against Federer the better.

Oh and that second serve, like Federer’s predilection for Origami, might need….looking at.

Fernando Verdasco

Overperformed; and should in all fairness have won at least one match.

Invested himself fully in every encounter, and then punked out at the moments it mattered most.

The less dependable Yin to del Potro’s more impregnable Yang

And despite a career-defining start to the year, I still believe his days in the top ten are numbered.

Novak Djokovic

Not an entirely unsuccessful week.

In fact his opening encounter with Davydenko was probably the match of the week; but having barely recovered, he had the misfortune to run into his would-be Saviour in the form of Big Rob, who just happened to be firing on five out of four cylinders.

It’s not generally a pretty sight when that happens: Djoko coped by more or less throwing in the towel and ceding that last set.

No matter. He lifted his form and won his first and only Masters event, when the year looked to be about done and dusted; then he gave us 'Sir' Robin.

Can't ask for more than that.

Rafael Nadal

I don’t want to do a “me too” post about how I believe Rafa will bounce back strongly next year. Most reasonable minded people appear to recognise that.

Can we at least wait until the clay court season next year before we begin the obituaries?

WTF: Wrap Up, Vol. 2

I left a lot unsaid in my last post, mainly because I didn’t want to miss out on perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at giving Davy the attention and recognition he deserves.

But this has been the best TMC, sorry WTF, I remember seeing for years, notable not only for the new fangled facilities, but also for the high quality of play and only a single injury timeout administered to Nadal’s back.

Seven other players were responsible for that.

Juan Martin del Potro

In my WTF Preview I gave Juan Marteen little more than a broken wing and a prayer that looked like it might have been composed and delivered by the very devil himself.

I was wrong; and it’s not the first time this year either.

(GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images)

Juan’s maturity and mental fortitude are off the charts in a way that might return to bite me time after time. At least until I make a more concerted effort to stop misjudging him so.

After his shadowy opener against Murray, remembered more for his nasal emissions than anything that happened on court, Juan-Marteen lifted his game in a way which has become something of a hallmark of his year.

During his semi final against Soderling, which was perhaps the tightest (as well as the punchiest) match of the week, I actually felt Robin was more reliant on his big-serving than those titanic groundies of his, which for the first two sets, had the feel of a minor skirmish at a Greenpeace Rally, rather than the front line of that proverbial riot.

Only in that final set (where amongst other things, Soderling somewhat bizarrely began to read Delpo’s serve better than anyone else this week), did Robin reacquire that depth and pace to his shots once again, and suddenly it felt like the bar-room brawl from hell so many of Sir Robin’s fans had paid good money to see.

Somewhat ironic then, that he went on to lose the match? Not in my book.

Juan did an excellent job of pacing himself and standing tall in the face of the biggest and most monolithic barrage of serving we had all week, and raised his game at just the right moment. As far as I’m concerned the better player won, even though you all know how heavily I was rooting for Sir Robin.

Pacing appears to be arguably one of Juan’s biggest weapons this season. He can go through an event looking fatigued, disinterested even, but then recognise the need to bring out his best at the moments when it matters most – quite the antithesis of Dasco.

And he saves his best right now, for the very best, in particular one Roger Federer.

If I have but one criticism of such a strategy, it’s that tennis is a constantly evolving sport, and though this approach has worked it’s wonders at the highest levels this year, next year represents a different prospect; one which might benefit from spreading oneself more evenly.

Arise, Sir Robin ‘Rants-a-lot’ Soderling

Despite the eleventh hour switching of my loyalties in favour of Davy, know that I still suffer agonies over Robin.

Delpo was the better player, but it wasn’t inconceivable for Sir Robin to make the finals; and I’m not sure which way my wavering support would have gone had he achieved that.

Before I go on though, I’d better credit Novak Djokovic for his knighting of ‘Sir’ Robin. He came up with the name after playing his last match in the group stages, when told how he was reliant on Big Rob defeating Kolya, to remain in the event.

Alas, it was never meant to be.

(Image Credit: Marria Khan)

Sir Robin fought valiantly under the banner of inelegance and in the cause of unfettered delinquency with all his might, but struck his last blow under a barrage of Argentinian fly-swatters.

So arise Sir Robin, and return to your Swedish Kingdom not in disgrace but as one anointed.

Safe in the knowledge that no one, but no one disturbs the peace quite like you do.

Or something.

Yes, I know there’s nothing idyllic, mythic or remotely Camelot-like about Big Rob dressed as a Centurion, but it’s the most thematically appropriate picture I could find.

I had some concerns about his form coming into this, mostly because of that state of stupor we left him in at Paris.

That he came through against Nadal as easily as he did, didn’t completely banish my fears. The fact that Nadal was out of sorts was more than just common knowledge, and Robin saw him off seemingly without having to change gears.

However after Djoko’s demolition, and with him being the first to make the semis, it was quite clear that Big Rob had arrived.

I could list a bunch of reasons why I celebrate what he’s achieved this year, or why I appreciate his presence at the top of the game so very much.

It mostly all boils down to the fact that no one in the top ten plays quite like him, and the introduction of a force as potent as his can push the game to heights it might not otherwise see.

WTF: Wrap Up, Vol. 1

(GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images)

Davydenko d. del Potro 6-3, 6-4

Not the best match after the week we’ve had, but a fantastic conclusion nonetheless, and the right one I believe.

Nikolay came out playing the tennis, that as far as I’m concerned, he should have done in the three sets he contested against Federer 24 hours earlier.

And big brother Eduardo agrees with me. So there.

del Potro, played well but looked as if fatigue had finally caught up, and lacked the intensity which I’m all but certain he now saves for his bashes with Federer.

There were even a couple of his off-the-cuff, flatter-than-flat “fly swatter” cross courters, usually played on the run stretched out wide, and which might well go down as one my fave newly-introduced strokes of 2009.

Interviewed before and after the final today, Eduardo, Kolya’s brother and coach, didn’t give the impression of being at all overwhelmed by his brother’s big win over Federer the day before, drawing attention instead to the poor opener Fed played.

After today’s win, he said Kolya did what he should have done, by overwhelming Juan with his speed around the court; not that he was much more entranced than before, characterising Nikolay’s play as about “normal”.

Lofty standards yes? But the right attitude to adopt if Nikolay is to take that vital next step and win that elusive Slam, which by the way, is now a realistic question to pose, though still not as easy as it sounds given Kolya has yet to experience the un-watered extremities of playing in a Slam final.

Davydenko d. Federer 6-2, 4-6, 7-5

I’m largely in agreement with Eduardo.

I stand by my assessment yesterday, that if Kolya didn’t serve big, the match would be over in straights. 12-0 is not a H2H to be taken lightly, especially when you take into account that although some of their matches have been close, Kolya’s only ever managed to take a single set from Fed in the last seven years.

And all appeared on course for a 13th win, when Federer opened up by winning the first seven points of the match on the trot.

What I didn’t take into account in my pre-match hype take on things, was the origami-like way in which Fed would fold. He’s lost the opener of every match he played this week, but the three or four games he played after coming out and holding serve here, might well rank amongst his worst.

What has largely been forgotten though, is that Davydenko played one of his poorest matches of the week too.

Sure Fed served a very tacky 40% of first serves in that opener – Davydenko served at 38%. And though Fed lifted his form in the next two sets, Davy continued, much in the same, somewhat listless vein.

His shots, normally the benchmark for ‘early-risers’ (my term of endearment for players that take the ball early), normally so reliable, looked largely tentative and ineffectual out there . And that way it remained, until the awesomeness that ensued in the second half of the final set.

All quite shocking really, when you consider how well he’d been serving all week, but against Big Rob in particular. His serve and net play have been much improved over the last year and a half, and Federer quite rightly drew attention in the pre-match interview to the fact that the last time they played was at Estoril last year – a match they didn’t even get to complete.

All the other losses were accrued at a time when Davy was as metronomic as ever, but maybe a little more thoughtless as regards point construction – not that dissimilar to Dementieva actually, with the amount of balls that landed aimlessly down the middle – and certainly far from the polished article we’ve seen this week.

Fed raised his game in the second and third, just like he has in all his matches this week, and had he not gone origami on us so conspicuously in that first set, maybe it would have been a straights dismissal after all.

I liked it that Davy pulled himself together in those final four or five games, where he, not so much raised his level drastically, as much as he played to the form Eduardo know he’s capable of, and I for one, love to see.

But, like Eduardo, I would have much preferred to have seen the Kolya that raced out of the blocks today, quickly extinguishing any rays of hope Delpo might have entertained.

We may see it yet – he’s not the first and certainly won’t be the last player to have fully blossomed during his last few years on tour.

WTF: Riot Control

(GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images)

Davydenko d. Soderling 7-6, 4-6, 6-3

So Big Rob had his first let down against Nikolay yesterday.

I say let down, it was more a case of playing too tentatively for a set and half in which he still managed to force a tie break in the first.

Then of course, he took that tumble mid way through the second (which looked nastier than it turned out to be), and re-emerged the brash, aggressive figure we’ve become accustomed to seeing this year. Though he had a subsequent dip in form in the final set that ended up costing him the match.

I’ve no idea whether that performance stemmed from a lack of motivation from knowing he’d already qualified, or whether he was simply now ripe for a loss.

Whatever the case he’ll need to revert back to ‘Rioteering Rob’ if he’s to overcome Delpo’s heavy artillery this evening. Argentina’s finest form of riot control.

That said, Nikolay’s play was truly impeccable, using his serve out wide to incredible effect.

Over the course of three sets, his level didn’t drop an inch, and you could argue that it was this more sustained form of ‘riot control’ that resulted in Big Rob’s derailment.

There were reports circulating in advance of the match that Kolya was suffering not only from those breathing problems, but also from a leg injury that – shock of all shocks – might actually result in the reintroduction of Nadal back into the mix of things, should Kolya have pulled out.

I saw no evidence of any such injuries, and neither did the broadcasters who’d been doing their morning rounds of following all the players’ practice sessions.

Kolya’s an incredible athlete, and if there are any problems with his leg, they’re likely of the garden variety, that he’s paced his way through so successfully over his five year tenure in the top ten.

What is less certain, is whether he’ll be as competitive today, having to play his greatest nemesis, not fifteen hours after leaving the court last night.

Meanwhile Roger’s rested up, secure in the knowledge that it’ll be a somewhat well-worn version of a guy against whom he has a 12-0 winning H2H , and not Nole facing him out on court today.

I’m not in the business of conspiracy theories, but I would have liked to have seen a rested up Davy taking to court today.

His game has grown substantially since he accrued many of those losses to Fed, not only at the net, but also as we saw yesterday with that serve.

Such a match would result in a more satisfying event all round, especially now that we’re entering the crescendo stage of what has been an incredibly well-run event (the farce that was Juan’s qualification announcement not withstanding) that has seen record crowds even for doubles matches – surely now the benchmark for a successful event

Switching the matches around doesn’t solve the problem as all the same objections would be raised by Big Rob’s team.

I’m in favour of a solution I heard yesterday: start the event a day earlier on Saturday, and have a break between the last matches in the group stages and the semis.

You could even use the day off to stage a big concert, that wouldn’t seem out of place at an event that is after all, a prestigious send-off to tennis season. Just make sure Cliff Richard is not part of the equation.

Kolya's, perhaps the best timer of the ball in the game today. Comparisions were being made yesterday of whether there's been anyone that has taken the ball any earlier. Only Agassi, in his earlier years, came out on top.

Trouble is, that wonderfully metronomical style of shot making that causes everyone else so many problems, and that is largely behind his five year stay in the top ten, makes no dents whatsoever in Fed's armour - I believe it actually feeds in to his strengths.

If Kolya doesn't make big serving a priority today, the match will be over in straights.