The Barty Party is still on
The invitations haven’t actually been sent out yet but the world number one is looking good heading into the second week. The hip has held up and the grass court tennis of slices, big forehands and crisp volleys is flowing nicely. Continue reading Wimbledon Thoughts Week 1 – 2021
How great will it be to see tennis at the All England Club again? The pandemic forced the cancellation of Wimbledon last year, the first time since World War 2, but now 12 months later organizers are hoping for a full 15,000 Centre Court on finals weekend, barring government intervention. Continue reading Wimbledon Preview 2021
Here we have a player who is in the GOAT conversation against a player looking for their first Grand Slam title. It’s Novak Djokovic v Stefanos Tsitsipas for all the glory at Roland Garros A Sunday final on the red dirt of Paris without Rafa Nadal is talk of heresy, but here we are after Novak played one of the best matches of his career in defeating the 13 time French Open Champion. Continue reading French Open Mens Final Preview 2021
The 33rd ranked Barbora Krejcikova has spent much of her Grand Slam tennis life stuck in qualifying, barely making the main draw. The 32nd ranked Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has had a career of upset wins mixed in with early round losses. Now, they are in the French Open final and one will emerge a Grand Slam Champion. Continue reading French Open Womens Final Preview 2021
Tennis and drama are the marriage partners that keep on giving. Just when you think the status quo can become monotonous, drama says ‘just wait, let me drop this bombshell’, and that’s what Naomi Osaka did this week. In a social media post the Japanese superstar stated “I’m not going to do any press during Roland Garros”. Continue reading Naomi Osaka wants no part of the media
The second Grand Slam of the year begins next week, when qualifying matches will get underway at Roland Garros, with main draw starting May 30th. Summer in Paris is the pinnacle of the dirty, dusty clay court season. The French covid cases have dipped from 35,000 per day a month ago to 14,000, which will allow more fans into the stands. Continue reading French Open Preview 2021
This is the marquee final the tennis world wanted to see. It’s Rafa vs Novak, two heavyweights of the game who are chasing history. They’ve played so many big matches throughout the years including eight Grand Slam finals. That record stands at 4-4. Nadal skipped the US Open due to virus concerns, Novak was famously defaulted from it, now they both have a chance to close in on Federer’s 20 Slams. Novak is on 17; Rafa is at 19, whoever wins tonight are one step closer to tennis immortality. Continue reading French Open Mens Final Preview 2020
This match will be in terms of combined age the youngest Grand Slam final in twelve years. Iga Swiatek is a 19-year-old Polish player who has never made it further than a quarter final in any tour level event. These two weeks she’s been on the run of a lifetime, coming in unseeded she has ripped through the draw without losing a set. Continue reading French Open Women’s Final Preview 2020
Roland Garros is finally here, albeit five months late. It’s weird it will be the final Slam played this year, but this is 2020 so everything is weird. The rising number of Covid cases in recent weeks has forced the organizers to cap spectator numbers to 1,000 on site, from a proposed 20,000 at one point. Continue reading French Open Preview 2020
This should be a repeat of the Australian Open final eight months ago. Thiem vs Djokovic, but Novak’s moment of madness ended that possibility, which must make the 27-year-old Austrian somewhat more comfortable going into this US Open final. It will be his third Slam final, only this time there’s no Rafa or Novak across the net. Continue reading US Open Mens Final Preview 2020