Swiss Wooing.

As most of you will already know, a seemingly casual, hypothetical question posed by DailyForehand to Martina Hingis just over a week ago had the entire tennis world weeing their pants in excitement at the possibility of a Federer/Hingis mixed doubles team at the London Olympics. 

Picspam: I’m not saying *anything*. Okay?

So … the Swiss Miss recently trained with Camille Pin at Roland Garros.

Did I mention she’s not getting married anymore? As I write this, Patty Schnyder, 31 years of age, just took out Aga Radwanska – a top 10 player – in Madrid.

It’s not like I’m suggesting anything here.

Credit: Tennis Grand Stand

Picket Fence Vids: Beat that, Carol.

No WTA tournaments on this week, so I thought this would be the perfect time to have a stroll down memory lane with a youtube video “marathon”! Hurrah!

Monica not your cuppa? She wasn’t mine either. I liked the other one, you know, German, fearsome forehand, won a few slams …

Of course, Fraulein Forehand featured in one of my favourite matches against … who else but the Swiss Miss!

Okay girl, since you’re not getting married anymore, how about a comeback?

Of course, Hingis wasn’t always the easiest little lady to like.

Zing.

While good ol’ Pat Rafter was every fangirl’s first crush, Gabby Sabatweeni was probably the one for the boys.

And then, there was this lady.

We miss you, Momo. 😦

xx doots

Picspam: My love for you is a stampede of horses.

Since quitting tennis, Martina Hingis has devoted her time to her other passion in life, one that probably suits her petite stature a lot more – horses. 

Rocking a pair of hot riding boots that I would very much like to steal, Martina competed in the Gucci Masters, an international show-jumping competition in Paris. 

 

One moment, we were all gravy …

 

 

The next, Hingis was seen dangling off her horse’s reigns.

 

The horse, Whisky’s Bon Ami, continued to drag Hingis along … 

 

At one point, coming dangerously close to trampling on her. 

 

No reports of any injuries, but this is just one of the many reasons I prefer animals in still-pictures or on my plate. 

Oh sue me, why don’t cha. Yer vegan-fair-trade-coffee-drinking-tree-hugging-commies,

xx doots

He’s so lucky. He’s a star. But he cry-cry-cries in his lonely heart thinkin’

What can I say? Andre Agassi was an idiot, and he got lucky. 

He got SO. FEEKING. LUCKY.

 

In 1997, Agassi was struggling with his game and with his decision to marry actress Brooke Shields. His assistant, identified as Slim, introduced him to the drug, according to the excerpt.

“Slim is stressed too … He says, You want to get high with me? On what? Gack. What the hell’s gack? Crystal meth,” Agassi recounts in the book. “Why do they call it gack? Because that’s the sound you make when you’re high … Make you feel like Superman, dude.

“As if they’re coming out of someone else’s mouth, I hear these words: You know what? F*** it. Yeah. Let’s get high.

“Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table. He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some. I ease back on the couch and consider the Rubicon I’ve just crossed.

“There is a moment of regret, followed by vast sadness. Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I’ve never felt so alive, so hopeful — and I’ve never felt such energy,” Agassi says.

“I’m seized by a desperate desire to clean. I go tearing around my house, cleaning it from top to bottom. I dust the furniture. I scour the tub. I make the beds.”

Later, according to The Times, Agassi receives a call from a doctor working with the ATP, telling him that he has failed a drug test.

“My name, my career, everything is now on the line,” Agassi recounts in the book. “Whatever I’ve achieved, whatever I’ve worked for, might soon mean nothing. Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. It’s filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth.

“I say Slim, whom I’ve since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth — which is true. Then I come to the central lie of the letter. I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim’s spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely.

“I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it.”

The ATP threw out the positive drug test and it did not surface until now.

…

In a story posted on People magazine’s Web site Tuesday, Agassi says: “I can’t speak to addiction, but a lot of people would say that if you’re using anything as an escape, you have a problem.”

In the posting on People’s Web site, Agassi says he “was worried for a moment, but not for long,” about how fans would react if they found out he used drugs.

“I wore my heart on my sleeve and my emotions were always written on my face. I was actually excited about telling the world the whole story,” Agassi says.

Source: ABC

 

CRYSTAL METH?!  

He could’ve been suspended. The second half of his career could have never happened. He could’ve ended up with an addiction, behind bars. He could’ve ended his life. This shit is nasty, horrible stuff, and I hope that font colour conveys my general feelings towards it.

But instead, AA went on win 5 more slams, marry a goddess named Steffi Graf and steer clear of an addiction.

All this only came out voluntarily, 12 years down the track, when not even an act of supreme idiocy can destroy the respect and affections I have for this man.

But holy shit, how lucky can a person get? 

Just take a look at Hingis and Gasquet.

Kimpossible Comeback and related copycats.

I didn’t actually see the match, but from various reports, it wasn’t Marion Bartoli at her best. Even so, a straight sets win (64 63) over the Stanford champ is pretty impressive from Clijsters.

Since announcing her comeback, Clijsters has played a few exhibitions and won each of them. There seems to be a sense of renewed joy about her that was missing right before she retired.

 

 

Wasn’t a fan of her the first time round, but you know what they say about absence and fond hearts, if she keeps playing solid tennis like this, I might just hop on that bandwagon of niceness. 

 

I guess the level of play, yes, it’s inside the top 10 already, I can tell you that. The way she was moving and hitting, and her physical strength after two years without playing, it’s just amazing.” – Marion Bartoli.
Source: BBC

 

And talk about copycats: the recent rants in the media about the WTA’s “weak field” seem to have sparked a spate of comeback whispers. 

As I posted last week, Alicia Molik has announced plans for a singles comeback. Evidently, Mary Pierce hasn’t given up on the idea of returning to tennis either. (Clickey) 

 

“Playing professionally is something I still want to do and something that I think I still can do,” Pierce said. “I just love competing at the highest level.”

At 34 years old, Pierce still holds out hope of making a comeback, with grueling on- and off-court workouts a daily routine. Monitored by IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy’s Director of Tennis Performance, Yutaka Nakamura, Pierce still struggles agilitiy-wise at times with her surgically repaired left knee. Her tennis stroke, though, is still as pure as ever.

“I feel like I’m hitting it as well as I ever have,” she said.

Source: Nick’s Picks

 

All we need now is for Henin and Davenport to return. Then we can party like it’s 2005!

Picket Fence Picspam: the Baby Quiz

With so little tennis to inspire me, it’s time for a bit of fluff with some baby photos I’ve collected over the years of tennis players. Sorry about the size and quality of some of these, baby photos are hard to come by! 

Guess who these cuties grew up to be? Go on! You know you want to.

Answers at the bottom 😀

 

1. (Left)

2. (Right)

 

3. 

 

 

4. the left hand kinda gives it away.

 

 

5. 

 

 

6. she looks the same, no?

 

 

7.

 

8. sorry about the size of this

 

9. … and this too

 

 

10. You know who this is. Sure you do. 

 

 

11. Mommy gave me a bowl cut …

 

 

12.

 

 

13. tongue in cheek! 

 

 

14.

 

 

15. (Left)

16. (Right)

 

 

17. (Left)

18. (Right)

 

19. cutiepatootie

 

 

20. Oh, you dork. 

 

 

21. Is it a little mean to follow the photo above with this photo?

 

22. Guess who looks exactly the same?

 

 

23. 

 

 

24.

 

 

25.

 

26. the most photogenic kid EVER? 

 

 

A few more of him, because I love this little guy. He makes me want to get preggers right now, and have super-gorgeous kids just like him. 

 

 

 

 

So how many did you guess right? The answers: 

1 + 2: Safin and Safina;
3: Cibulkova
4: Federer
5: del Potro
6: Hingis
7: Ivanovic
8: Wozniacki
9: Soderling
10: Nadal
11:  Roddick
12: Fish
13: Djokovic
14: Jankovic
15 + 16: Andy and Jamie Murray
17 + 18: Nalbandian and Coria
19: Blake
20: Henin
21: Dementieva
22: Clijsters
23: Gasquet
24: Zheng Jie
25: Bartoli
26: Wawrinka

 

Did you suck as much as I did? Or do you have a good eye for these kinds of things? Did cutiepie Stan make you fall in love with him just a little more? Admit it! You totally want to pinch his cheeks until they look like two swollen tomatoes. 

 

Ridiculously cute.

xx dootsie

 

Credit to the women’s tennis blog for some of the girls’ photos

The Swiss Miss speaks.

For sliceofwatermelon, and every other Hingis fan in our generation. 

 

I’m going to sound a little hypocritical here. Just a few posts ago, I ranted on about JJ’s stupidity in dissing women’s tennis, yet I’m going to let Martina Hingis get away with essentially the same gist. If anyone has the right to criticise the current generation of WTA players for being a bunch of headless ballbashers, it’s their antithesis – Martina Hingis.

 

In fact, I think Hingis’ right on the money in this recent interview with René Stauffer in the Sonntagszeitung, where she talks about the state of women’s tennis, Federer, and her own career. 

 

And you know what? I kinda miss Hingis. Is there anyone currently on the WTA tour as  sharp, eloquent and controversial as Hingis was? Serena comes close, but her dramas are somewhat different. 

 

 

 

 

Q: Martina Hingis, how are you following tennis during your suspension?

A: I still love tennis and I like to watch matches. I am quite well-informed.

Q: What are your impressions on women’s tennis?

A: It happens that whenever I start to watch a match I soon turn away. In principle I enjoy men’s tennis much more. Women’s tennis is very monotonous at the moment. I agree with my mother, who said, “if you cut off the heads of all the players, they would all look the same.” If you didn’t look closely, many matches look alike. They all bash at the balls. You cannot see any variations and crafty play.

Q: You would also include Dinara Safina in such a circle?

A: She plays very powerful tennis. You can also tell that she trained very hard. Formerly she was sometimes a bit mentally unstable. Now she is at the top and I don’t mind. But it is not the tennis that makes me say: “Wow, cool, I must watch Safina’s matches.”

Q: Do you think that women’s tennis used to be more attractive?

A: I played at a time when women’s tennis was highly popular. It was super for the public to see how tennis was played. Both Williams were at a good age, Davenport was present, Seles made her come-back, Capriati was the darling of the USA…

Q: But on the other hand the women get sometimes more prizemoney than the men. 

A: They owe it mainly to the players of that time. It is the effect of the remains of this time. Today the women play often in empty stadiums. (dootsie: hell yeah)

Q: What’s your opinion about the rivalry between Federer and Nadal?

A: It’s good for tennis. It is simply good tennis: Two totally different characters, who play diversely – one very physical, the other with more technique. These are really good matches, which I never miss watching.

Q: Many doubt that Federer will win more grand slams. Do you as well?

A: You should not write him off. When the circumstances are in his favour, like in Madrid, he can still win a Grand-Slam. Nowadays he must really fight his way through. Formerly there was no one around, his opponents were beaten in the locker room.

 

Q: Did you hear anything from Roger since your suspension began?

A: In the last one or two years, no. I follow his career. Why not? Marriage, pregnancy. The private life is important so you can play good tennis and be happy.

Q: You had your five Grand Slam titles already at the age of 19. The last five finals you lost. How do you explain that?

A: The Paris final I should have won. So I wouldn’t be always hearing that I have never won the French Open. There were also some narrow losses against Davenport and Williams. With a bit more luck I could have won 6-7 titles. 

Q: The narrowest loss was at the Australian Open 2002 against Jennifer Capriati, when you had four match points. 

A: That match I lost already at the score line of 4:2, 40:0. If I had made it 5:2, probably I could have won the match. At the time when I had match points, she was already again in the match. But Capriati played first class tennis back then.

Q: What achievements are you most proud of?

A: My comeback was not so bad. Very few believed that I would rise to no. 6. Of course the Grand Slam titles, my years as number one. But also the wins against the two Williams’ in Melbourne 2001, although I didn’t win the tournament. Against Serena I barely lost and I beat Venus 6:1, 6:1.

Source/Translation: Hingis.org

Edited by me. 

 

 

 

Seems that Hingis is back in the spotlight in Switzerland. See also her second interview with Shweizer Illustrierte where she talks about her beloved horses, her new lawyer beau and her new found happiness (go to: hingis.org). Nice!

Five Wimbledon Questions Answered

This came from the Wimbledon blog, thought I might give them a crack just for fun. What say you?

 

So here we go… Five Wimbledon Questions

Earliest Wimbledon memory? Oh dear, don’t actually remember … I have a series of vague impressions from 2001 onwards of Wimbledon finals, but can’t tell you much apart from those vague impressions. Ah – those moody teenage days…

The earliest match I could actually recall would be the 2004 Wimbledon women’s final between Serena and Maria. 

Favourite match? These questions are deceivingly hard. In all three of my favourite Wimbledon men’s matches, I was on the losing side of the fence – 2001 Wimbledon final between Rafter and Ivanisevic, 2008 R16 between Murray and Gasquet, and of course the 2008 final between Fed and Rafa.

So I’m going to pick a women’s match – the 2005 final between Venus and Lindsay, the one a decade earlier – the 1995 final between Steffi and ASV ain’t bad either, though I only watched it in hindsight.

Best dressed player? Bethanie Mattek! Okay I kid, I kid… must I answer?

The infinitely dashing Sire Jacket, Mr RFed. Although Andre Agassi would give him a run for his money in the attitude department.

Dream doubles partner? Martina Hingis. There was a time when the best doubles team in the world was Martina Hingis and whoever she was playing with. Pat Rafter for men’s, because he’s Pat Rafter. 

Secret Wimbledon crush? Roger doesn’t count – there’s nothing ‘secret’ about it. That takes Marat out too. So … Goran Ivanisevic? Zheng Jie for the girls. 

What not to wear at Wimbledon

What TO wear instead.