The Tennis Thread #2 - Page 19

**Scott** · 23-01-2013

i'm hoping li na snaps that losing streak today. she's looked mighty impressive so far and maria has not been tested hardly at all. i know that li na out of the three matches they played against one another last year two were totally one-sided contests but i see a different li na now.....more determined and focused. if she can do what she did against all that radwanska throws at a player the pace of maria shouldn't be too much of a problem for her as she reacts to pace even better. she's certainly out of all of them on this side of the draw the one that could honestly disrupt maria's rhythm.

**Scott** · 23-01-2013

yeaaa li na!!! she outclassed maria in almost every department today. her forehand which used to breakdown was indomitable. another improvement of carlos being in her camp,i think. and steady and composed. awesome performance. i think li na could very well win this whole thing. although not a wta event,she did beat vika at the start of the season at an exhibition so she knows what she needs to do against her.

Chaky · 24-01-2013

Never much liked Azarenka. Always found her screeching really off-putting for starters. I was maybe coming to appreciate her more as a player in the last year as she developed. And she seems nice off court.

But today's episode just adds to a catalogue of PR disasters for her in the last few weeks (remember the pedicure excuse). That to me looked like gamesmanship yesterday. She maybe misheard the question about her MTO in the on-court post-match interview but the crowd were clearly having none of it and maintained a stony silence followed by polite applause.

Li Na on the other hand is doing everything right. She's playing well and she's engaging the spectators with her personality in the interviews. It's excellent news for the WTA, who are investing so heavily in East Asia, that Li has made it to another final. I think the crowd will be really behind her. I hope she can take the title.

**Scott** · 24-01-2013

i was in the middle of watching that as soon as i posted about li na and i'm disappointed with vika more than anything. i was liking her a lot....i mean her attitude has done a complete 360 and she's cut down her antics but that just depreciated by respect for her. it was so egregiously transparent what she did. time-outs are time-outs and they get abused by a lot of the players but i have never seen anything like that especially in light of the subsequent contrary remarks she made at the end of that match. regardless if it affected the outcome or not,it was a classless gesture and i didn't buy it one bit of that injury nonsense. first of all,why that moment if her knee was bothering her,why not one of the two or three changeovers beforehand when we saw her come up off that leg?

**Scott** · 26-01-2013

well congrats to vika but i'll tell you one thing....vika has a lot of redeeming to do to win back my support again. it's just like that nonsense justine henin pulled against amelie mauresmo.....it just was never the same again for me. maybe now the way vika reacted in the end and the way the crowds treated her throughout the match,she realizes the full consequence of her behaviour. and although the criticism was justified the level of vitriol probably went a bit overboard and i do feel bad for her in that.....because she isn't the first and only and people have forgiven worse. and like she's been able to do very admirably the last two years,hopefully she will evolve and become a better competitor and a better person out of this because what i saw happen on court is not the same woman i've come to actually like as a personality. and i think that's what disappointed me the most.

as for li na,i feel utterly heartbroken for her. to not only deal with the ankle early on and then to fall and hit her head,i've never seen her unbalanced before. and i know she wanted this so badly....she was hungry. but you gotta love her attitude in the end....she said although sad in this moment she already has her sights on repeating her 2011 season. meaning she lost here that year and then went on to win RG. i hope she does it.

Chaky · 27-01-2013

Felt bad for Li Na. Falling on her ankle twice and banging her head. That's some bad luck. Well at least Vika got the taste of her own medicine a little with Na's MTOs.

The men's final was a little disappointing as well. I would rather watch Federer versus either of those two. And I'm not just saying that as a Roger fan. It's nice to have someone a little more aggressive to mix up the play with the counterpunchers. It was two hours before we got a break of serve. I just didn't find this match that compelling.

Chaky · 27-01-2013

Press cc button for English subtitles.

**Scott** · 27-01-2013

awww...i know she wanted this. she certainly deserved it because she had the tougher path ultimately getting through aga then maria but alas.....it might end up being a blessing in disguise.

**Scott** · 07-02-2013

fed cup this weekend and big news for france and new captain amelie mauresmo.....she finally got marion bartoli back on the team. bartoli has credited mauresmo with being open with her by creating a dialogue with her instead of sending out very obnoxious comments in the press. she's been to a lot of marion's matches since being named the new captain and said that was her primary goal to get bartoli on the squad again. and i say kudos to momo on that.

Chaky · 09-02-2013

In Europe/Africa Zone I play-off Croatia just lost the decisive doubles rubber to Poland's Radwanska sisters. But what an impressive week by the Croatian youngsters Donna Vekic and Ana Konjuh.

Konjuh barely has a senior tour ranking yet (she's only 15) but is already beating players much more highly ranked and experienced that herself. And Vekic (at 16) is starting to cement her Top 100 position and rising star reputation with some decent wins.

The other big story of the week must be the return to the tour of Rafa Nadal. So far in Chile a successful one.

**Scott** · 10-02-2013

and you know after i posted the news about bartoli,i learned that bartoli had to pull out because she had been ill with the flu all week and she and mauresmo decided it would be better if she sat out the tie. still,you'd have to think despite the unfortunate news for bartoli this tie,this is certainly a step in the right direction in mending some of the contentiousness between she and the FFT.

chaky,vekic is definitely on my radar. konjuh now? she beat ursie,wow. okay we'll probably hear about her more in the coming couple years i bet.

interesting ties this weekend though. the czechs swept the aussies after kvitova clinched it in a hard-fought match between she and sam. maybe this is what could wake kvitova back up again. she even said it was the best match she played all season thus far.

and the russians vs japan....i did not expect that to be as close it turned out but credit ayumi morita on that.

and the italians and the americans.....very commendable performances from varavara lepchenko in her debut. i think mary jo should seriously think about keeping lepchenko when deciding the next squad. she and sloane stephens. of course,with a not so confident liezel huber,the italians pretty much ran away with it in doubles. really tough for the italians having to rely on two players in singles and in doubles....definitely a different kind of circumstance and they prevailed nevertheless.

maxlinden · 10-02-2013

I just can't believe how Rafa has been playing in this Tournament in Chili. I fear he will retire soon which will be a travesty.

paulinab · 10-02-2013

its chile, i dont think he will retire soon ¡¡¡¡¡

**Scott** · 10-02-2013

actually the chilE and brasil events are the only clay tournaments active during this part of the calendar and rafa has decided he wanted to make his comeback on the red clay so it'll be an easier transition into competition after being out with a knee injury. that's all.

**Scott** · 15-02-2013

so utterly heartbreaking to hear that agnes szavay announced her retirement today.

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24-01-2013	274
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	i was in the middle of watching that as soon as i posted about li na and i'm disappointed with vika more than anything. i was liking her a lot....i mean her attitude has done a complete 360 and she's cut down her antics but that just depreciated by respect for her. it was so egregiously transparent what she did. time-outs are time-outs and they get abused by a lot of the players but i have never seen anything like that especially in light of the subsequent contrary remarks she made at the end of that match. regardless if it affected the outcome or not,it was a classless gesture and i didn't buy it one bit of that injury nonsense. first of all,why that moment if her knee was bothering her,why not one of the two or three changeovers beforehand when we saw her come up off that leg? Last edited by Scott; 24-01-2013 at 11:14 PM.

26-01-2013	275
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	well congrats to vika but i'll tell you one thing....vika has a lot of redeeming to do to win back my support again. it's just like that nonsense justine henin pulled against amelie mauresmo.....it just was never the same again for me. maybe now the way vika reacted in the end and the way the crowds treated her throughout the match,she realizes the full consequence of her behaviour. and although the criticism was justified the level of vitriol probably went a bit overboard and i do feel bad for her in that.....because she isn't the first and only and people have forgiven worse. and like she's been able to do very admirably the last two years,hopefully she will evolve and become a better competitor and a better person out of this because what i saw happen on court is not the same woman i've come to actually like as a personality. and i think that's what disappointed me the most. as for li na,i feel utterly heartbroken for her. to not only deal with the ankle early on and then to fall and hit her head,i've never seen her unbalanced before. and i know she wanted this so badly....she was hungry. but you gotta love her attitude in the end....she said although sad in this moment she already has her sights on repeating her 2011 season. meaning she lost here that year and then went on to win RG. i hope she does it. Last edited by Scott; 26-01-2013 at 07:33 PM.

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23-01-2013	271
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	i'm hoping li na snaps that losing streak today. she's looked mighty impressive so far and maria has not been tested hardly at all. i know that li na out of the three matches they played against one another last year two were totally one-sided contests but i see a different li na now.....more determined and focused. if she can do what she did against all that radwanska throws at a player the pace of maria shouldn't be too much of a problem for her as she reacts to pace even better. she's certainly out of all of them on this side of the draw the one that could honestly disrupt maria's rhythm.

23-01-2013	272
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	yeaaa li na!!! she outclassed maria in almost every department today. her forehand which used to breakdown was indomitable. another improvement of carlos being in her camp,i think. and steady and composed. awesome performance. i think li na could very well win this whole thing. although not a wta event,she did beat vika at the start of the season at an exhibition so she knows what she needs to do against her.

24-01-2013	273
Chaky fashion insider Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: UK Gender: homme Posts: 2,057	Never much liked Azarenka. Always found her screeching really off-putting for starters. I was maybe coming to appreciate her more as a player in the last year as she developed. And she seems nice off court. But today's episode just adds to a catalogue of PR disasters for her in the last few weeks (remember the pedicure excuse). That to me looked like gamesmanship yesterday. She maybe misheard the question about her MTO in the on-court post-match interview but the crowd were clearly having none of it and maintained a stony silence followed by polite applause. Li Na on the other hand is doing everything right. She's playing well and she's engaging the spectators with her personality in the interviews. It's excellent news for the WTA, who are investing so heavily in East Asia, that Li has made it to another final. I think the crowd will be really behind her. I hope she can take the title.

27-01-2013	276
Chaky fashion insider Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: UK Gender: homme Posts: 2,057	Felt bad for Li Na. Falling on her ankle twice and banging her head. That's some bad luck. Well at least Vika got the taste of her own medicine a little with Na's MTOs. The men's final was a little disappointing as well. I would rather watch Federer versus either of those two. And I'm not just saying that as a Roger fan. It's nice to have someone a little more aggressive to mix up the play with the counterpunchers. It was two hours before we got a break of serve. I just didn't find this match that compelling.

27-01-2013	277
Chaky fashion insider Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: UK Gender: homme Posts: 2,057	Press cc button for English subtitles.

27-01-2013	278
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	awww...i know she wanted this. she certainly deserved it because she had the tougher path ultimately getting through aga then maria but alas.....it might end up being a blessing in disguise.

07-02-2013	279
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	fed cup this weekend and big news for france and new captain amelie mauresmo.....she finally got marion bartoli back on the team. bartoli has credited mauresmo with being open with her by creating a dialogue with her instead of sending out very obnoxious comments in the press. she's been to a lot of marion's matches since being named the new captain and said that was her primary goal to get bartoli on the squad again. and i say kudos to momo on that.

09-02-2013	280
Chaky fashion insider Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: UK Gender: homme Posts: 2,057	In Europe/Africa Zone I play-off Croatia just lost the decisive doubles rubber to Poland's Radwanska sisters. But what an impressive week by the Croatian youngsters Donna Vekic and Ana Konjuh. Konjuh barely has a senior tour ranking yet (she's only 15) but is already beating players much more highly ranked and experienced that herself. And Vekic (at 16) is starting to cement her Top 100 position and rising star reputation with some decent wins. The other big story of the week must be the return to the tour of Rafa Nadal. So far in Chile a successful one.

10-02-2013	281
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	and you know after i posted the news about bartoli,i learned that bartoli had to pull out because she had been ill with the flu all week and she and mauresmo decided it would be better if she sat out the tie. still,you'd have to think despite the unfortunate news for bartoli this tie,this is certainly a step in the right direction in mending some of the contentiousness between she and the FFT. chaky,vekic is definitely on my radar. konjuh now? she beat ursie,wow. okay we'll probably hear about her more in the coming couple years i bet. interesting ties this weekend though. the czechs swept the aussies after kvitova clinched it in a hard-fought match between she and sam. maybe this is what could wake kvitova back up again. she even said it was the best match she played all season thus far. and the russians vs japan....i did not expect that to be as close it turned out but credit ayumi morita on that. and the italians and the americans.....very commendable performances from varavara lepchenko in her debut. i think mary jo should seriously think about keeping lepchenko when deciding the next squad. she and sloane stephens. of course,with a not so confident liezel huber,the italians pretty much ran away with it in doubles. really tough for the italians having to rely on two players in singles and in doubles....definitely a different kind of circumstance and they prevailed nevertheless.

10-02-2013	282
maxlinden tfs star Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: New York Gender: homme Posts: 1,795	I just can't believe how Rafa has been playing in this Tournament in Chili. I fear he will retire soon which will be a travesty.

10-02-2013	283
paulinab front row Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: in henry cavill´arms Gender: femme Posts: 441	its chile, i dont think he will retire soon ¡¡¡¡¡

10-02-2013	284
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	actually the chilE and brasil events are the only clay tournaments active during this part of the calendar and rafa has decided he wanted to make his comeback on the red clay so it'll be an easier transition into competition after being out with a knee injury. that's all.

15-02-2013	285
Scott Stitch:the Hand Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Among the trees Gender: homme Posts: 12,651	so utterly heartbreaking to hear that agnes szavay announced her retirement today.