Tokyo: It’s ON.

Despite witnessing the WTA shithouse earlier in the tournament, I got the final I wanted.
Glitter Queen v Masha Fierce. It is ON.
 

Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images
 
Although, given their respective semifinals, the match is actually a lot less exciting than it looks on paper.
After licking my lips at the juicy semifinal match-ups, they both turned out [...]

Tokyo: Knowledge and Hope.

It goes without saying, but there’s a difference between knowing you can win and hoping you can win. 
Masha Fierce is a player who knows that she can win. Iveta Benesova merely hopes to win. 
Down a break in each set, Sharapova pulls herself together, takes the freebies she gets and whams the snot of the ball [...]

Wimbledon Day 4 Tidbits: Beat it!

1) I had a bit of a freak out moment when Venus Williams walked out with her knees taped against KBond. 
By “freak out”, I meant something along the lines of – “OMG, VENUS WILLIAMS HAS TAPE ON HER KNEES. OMG! WHAT’S HAPPENING? I NEED EXPLANATIONS!”
Sorry for the caps lock abuse, I just COULDN’T STOP YELLING. Seriously [...]

Order and Chaos: Picking the Impossible.

I just can’t shake of this nasty feeling I have for Roger Federer this Wimbledon. Why? Roger Federer is majorly due for an early round upset, that’s why. That 20 consecutive semifinal streak is just a sitting duck, a gross statistical anomaly waiting to be snapped. It’s not rational of course for me to suppose [...]

Weekly Mosaics: the world without Fedal

As both Rafa and Fed withdrew from their respective grass court warm-ups this week, I was faced with the bleak dystopia that is the world without Fedal, a world dominated by Toothface and Stinkface. 
What? You don’t know what I’m talking about? How about a visual demonstration? 
 
Dystopia = worldly fugliness
 

 
 
Utopia = otherworldly beauty
 

 
 
See? I can be neutral [...]

Passing thoughts: Dignity to be maintained.

… yes you, Lleyton Hewitt. Dignity had to be maintained, and I am at least glad you didn’t get bagelled – you got breadsticked instead. 61 63 61. Mind you, start of the second set looked okay for Lleyton, but the rest of the match … ayee … 
 
Does anyone find it incredibly saddening whenever they watch [...]

Fashionistas in France

I’m never in the mood for much actual tennis in the first few days of a grand slam. And how can I be? I’m too busy checking out what everyone is wearing! In any case, I consider it a better use of time than meaningless analysis over early round matches. And here are some of [...]

Freedom Fighters

Saw this on Yahoo Eurosport and thought I’d repost, as it is a topic close to my heart. China’s sporting system has long been criticised for the same reasons as its political system – it’s authoritarian, overtly controlling, and as much as we hate to admit it, it’s deadly efficient. Be it at talent scouting [...]

Serena Williams and the Three Golden Flowers

No, it’s not the latest J.K. Rowling book. I do believe Zheng Jie, Li Na and Peng Shuai are known as the “three golden flowers” in China, and it just so happens that Serena Williams got stuck with them consecutively in Miami this week.
 
Normally if it’s one of the Chinese girls against the top seed [...]

The Second Coming

I swear this is the last of my WTA rants, as I plan to go on a soul-searching journey for WTA love during the clay season. Oh yeth…  but the girls aren’t making it any easier for me to feel the love. Safina, Zvonareva, JJ and Ivanovic all out by Round 32,  honestly, HONESTLY!
 
Mind you, all of them [...]