Tennisnowornever

Having talked of injury in my last post , there were also a few players that were hit particularly hard by exactly this and it has left fans in doubt of whether we will see them at the upcoming US Open. It’s one thing for Wimbledon to be annoyed with player withdrawals, but if one player can justifiably be angry with the tournament then it would be Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Grass courts are always injury central as they retain natural moisture which sends players sliding and slipping all over the place: it’s the nature of the beast. The transition from clay to grass can be hard on the body and is often the reason behind injuries that players carry into Wimbledon. The later in the day you are scheduled, the more aware you should be of this fact as the surface is at its most treacherous after a couple of matches have already been played on it. As the tournament progresses the courts get steadily worse, especially around the baseline, as the grass gets damaged and churned up. This has a...

There was a running theme throughout this year’s Wimbledon and unfortunately it was not a positive one. We have become accustomed to talking about the impact of the weather at Wimbledon over the years and the impact it can have as a third player, but this year the spotlight was on a different issue: injury! Indeed, it was the talk of the first round as the centre court crowd saw two consecutive mid-match retirements when both Klizan and Dolgopolov succumbed to injuries they had carried into the tournament. Under current rules a player may not take a medical time out in circumstances where the issue already existed before the match. Hence, they had no option but to concede defeat….. Or did they? I only ask because the decision sparked a lot of controversy! For those that didn’t hear the discussions, a first round Wimbledon loser gets around £30,000 (maybe as much as £35,000- I honestly don’t remember) for participating in the tournament: regardless of the score-line. This, o...

“Grass is just for cows” that old quote that someone said once and people like me haven’t stopped using in articles since. Who was it again? Certainly wasn’t 8 time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer: that’s for sure! Okay, so I know it was Manuel Santana but one would be forgiven for mistaking the origin on someone like….Rafael Nadal? Now, I’m not saying that Nadal is bad on grass! Partially because I fear the backlash from the millions of Rafans worldwide but mainly because it would be unfair and simply untrue….however….. I think at this stage of his career even Rafa himself would be happy to admit that it is the surface he feels the least comfortable on. I mean, as uncomfortable as someone who has won it twice (one of which required him to beat the great Federer) could ever feel! But we must acknowledge that since that fateful 2012 Nadal on grass has been more woe than whoa. It all started with a Czech player by the name of Lukas Rosol who came from nowhere to upset Nadal i...

Mid-Season Roundup Yes folks, it really is over for another year! The summer festivities we know as Wimbledon reached completion yesterday and with this the tennis season reached its mid-point…..roughly. That’s the perfect excuse to take stock of the stories the two week fiesta brought us and discuss the answers and questions it gave the tennis world. So, in the next few days to wave off the grass courts I will be summarising what I thinks have been most interesting plots and I might even risk a few predictions along the way… As always, Wimbledon has raised as many questions as answers! Garbine Going Up? So we all know that Garbine Muguruza lifted the Wimbledon ladies singles trophy for the first time (and if you don’t then I’m surprised you’re reading this), but it wasn’t the result that most expected. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a shock victory! Especially as most pundits agreed that in the absence of Serena Williams there were around 15 different women that were i...

Here we are again folks: it’s that time of year. Excitement and anticipation is bubbling up within you, simmering under your skin as you try to sleep until it reaches boiling point and you can physically wait no longer. Like a child desperate to unwrap their gifts and hoping to sneak a peak of the man himself. Twas the night before….the Championships Wimbledon?!? Yes, it’s Wimbledon Eve everyone and that means one thing only! It is time for unnecessary pre-tournament analysis and predictions that will most likely not come true!! Yay!!!                                 But we do it anyway because somehow to just watch and enjoy the matches for what they are would be too simple….so let’s start! There is no better place to start than with this year’s top seed, defending champion and world number 1: Andy Murray . Sorry, Sir...

How many times, tennis fans, have you heard commentators, journalists and now retired legends of the game squawk enthusiastically about the quality of play we have been spoiled with in the era of the big 4? Tournament after tournament they chant:  ‘The physicality is remarkable!!’  ‘These guys are just superhuman!!!’  ‘Will we ever see such greatness on court again?!!?!?’ ……Sound familiar? But before we accuse the hypothetical record of needing to be changed we should realise the band responsible for releasing it have recently launched a new album. That’s right, the smash hit of the moment: it’s the #nextgen!! All of a sudden EVERYTHING is about Zverev, Kyrgios, Thiem and the gang. What a boyband that would be. And don’t get me wrong, this is completely justifiable. No one would be talking about them if they didn’t have results and talents to back it up. Meanwhile that ‘classic album’ is still selling really well. You know, that one that brought the band to...

Just a short round up this evening of the day’s action from day 2 of the Aegon Championships at Queen’s club. If you read my earlier series '5 things we learned from the French Open 2017' then you will know that lesson 5 highlighted the unpredictable nature of the men’s and woman’s games so far this year. Today’s results have only strengthened this belief. All started innocently enough as third seed Milos Raonic took to the centre court to face world number 698 Thanasi Kokkinakis. Although these stats make it sound like a demolition should have ensued the encounter was never going to be that straight forward. Raonic has not had a particularly convincing 2017 season so far. He has struggled with injury and is currently ranked number 16 in the ATP race to London. Opponent Kokkinakis had been ranked as highly as world number 69 back in June 2015 and is only 21 years old so clearly has talent well above what recent form would suggest. Still, with Kokkinakis low on match pl...