Tennis-X Weekend Wrap: ATP in Court; Serena Off Court at IW

“In a final that will never make the cover of a women’s fitness magazine, Canadian qualifier Aleksandra Wozniak upset No. 6 seed Marion Bartoli 7-5, 6-3.”

Gee – who on ‘staff’ is feeling bitchy today?

Wozniak goes on a tear – never looking tired, and wins 8 matches in 8 days. In her final set she drops a total of 5 points on her serve. This woman is quite fit. Is it that because she honestly lists her weight at 140 lbs she somehow is not entitled to a trophy without someone wanting them to be stunningly slim as well as powerful hitters? Please – give credit where credit is due. Serena graciously did, as before her injury Wozniak was completely outplaying her.

However, on another item arising from this tournament – I have a question that I would love to know the answer to. Wozniak in the third day of the qualifying round defeated the Australian Samantha Stosur. Stosur then was inserted into the main draw as a ‘lucky loser’ after Lindsay Davenport withdrew. Wozniak met her again and beat her a second time.

The question is, can anyone recall a player beating the same player twice in the same tournament? And Shanghai or other round robins do not count.

July 21st, 2008 at 12:21 am

The writer seems to have a weight(y) problem, Maybe anorexia is the name of the game, and what’s with all of the handles for the athletes. Another dish …

July 21st, 2008 at 12:52 am

It was a good barb. Wozniak is fat. I don’t care if she competed in triathlons during her spare time at the tournament. She’s still fat. Hence the barb.

Players beating the same player twice at the same tournament happens more than you think. I bet that was not the first time it happened this year.

July 21st, 2008 at 12:53 am

I just re-read the column and found only one handle, “hot sauce.” Unless von is referring to the love handles on Bartoli and Wozniak. In that case, there were three.

July 21st, 2008 at 12:58 am

funches Says:
“It was a good barb. Wozniak is fat.”

Gee – if Canada’s #1 is “fat,” then you must classify 7/8 of all North American women as fat.

Just for the sake of comparison – any men on the tour you wish to classify as “fat?”

July 21st, 2008 at 1:40 am

Funches –

And just so I can see where your mind is set at – both Wozniak and Serena Williams are 5’9″. Wozniak is 140 lbs, Williams is 150 lbs. Are you going to tell us that Serena is “fat” also?

July 21st, 2008 at 1:50 am

The inference is there — stating Wozniak and Bartoli played “In a final that will never make the cover of a women’s fitness magazine”, is inferring that they are both fat. The other barb/handle, “how big is Serena Williams (figuratively) This writer is addicted to handles and dishes. Is it ny wonder no one bothers to comment on the majority of her articles? I’m slim, thankfully, but I know women who are a bit on the plump side, and I see their pain when others make comments on obesity in their presence. It’s in poor taste for a writer to expound on such imperfections — it’s indicative of a cold, cruel heart. I hope middle-age spread never afficts this woman.

July 21st, 2008 at 2:46 am

good blog !
I like

July 21st, 2008 at 4:10 am

“In a final that will never make the cover of a women’s fitness magazine…”

Haha. I love it.

Maybe it’s not exactly a weight issue. Both the flat face Canadian and the bulky Bartoli are both strikingly unattractive. An even better and more blunt analogy may just be the cover of Vogue or something. They’re not exactly “fat”, but seriously, out of the Top 50 ranked women, those two would belong in the bottom in terms of looks. Add that Zheng Jie as well now that she’s in the Top 50.

July 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm

Who are at the “bottom in terms of looks” on the men’s side I wonder?

Or perhaps more apt – who cares? Isn’t this about tennis, after all?

July 21st, 2008 at 2:17 pm

those are harse comments. fat you can control, but hammering players for being ugly is harsh.

July 21st, 2008 at 2:40 pm

jane:

“Who are at the “bottom in terms of looks” on the men’s side I wonder?”

I can name a few, and if looks were the determining factor for winning, then quite a few of the male players would be struggling big time to win anything.

I think it’s unfair that the women players are dumped on regarding weight and looks. Bartoli might not be in the same looks category as some of the other skin and bones female players, but she’s not a spoilt brat or prima donna as some of the anorexic types.

July 21st, 2008 at 2:48 pm

“those are harse comments. fat you can control, but hammering players for being ugly is harsh.”

In some cases fat can be controllable, but when it’s a genetic or thyroid problem, it’s a losing battle. Why overshadow Wozniak/ Bartoli’s success with fat comments. Where does it state that a female player needs to be a skeleton and/or a beauty queen in order to be successful?

July 21st, 2008 at 2:59 pm

Wow, utterly classless comments from the blogger and some of the people on here. I thought Wozniak had won a tennis match not a beauty contest. She actually played quite a few three-setters on the way to her title so she has to be physically fit. Wozniak and Bartoli are probably fitter than many of the people commenting on here.

Excellent comments Gordo, Von and jane.

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July 22nd, 2008 at 7:06 am

“Who are at the “bottom in terms of looks” on the men’s side I wonder?

Or perhaps more apt – who cares? Isn’t this about tennis, after all?”

Without tennis as entertainment, without commercial value, there would be no tennis. Visual appeal has to be part of the entertainment factor, whether court color, clothing style and color, beauty, or hot body, it’s all eye candy. You have to know that people will have thoughts and opinions about those factors. Why is it politically incorrect to be candid? We can find the boundary of good taste in our comments, but denying interest in player’s looks is simply not honest.

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:45 am

Bob Lewis,

“We can find the boundary of good taste in our comments, but denying interest in player’s looks is simply not honest.”

Fair enough – I’ve defended the entertainment aspect of tennis on these boards before, and have also defended the “play” with fashion, within reason. But when it comes to insulting a person by calling them fat or whatever, it just seems harsh – and there is definitely a double standard still where women are concerned. Why do we hear/read no barbs on the male players who won’t make the cover of a certain magazine, or who will be posing nude? There was an enitre piece devoted to Harkle…somebody or other who was to pose in playboy but no one wrote anything about Tommy Robredo or Verdasco’s nude posing (for charity, not profit, in their cases).

Anyhow, not to belabor it; I agree with your statement copied above – re the boundaries of good taste, and I am all for candidness (I consistently defend this trait in Novak) and candy. But insults i could do with out. Guess I’ll have to suck it up. That, or add my two cents.

July 22nd, 2008 at 10:36 am

On the subject of knee injuries, Roddick’s shoulder and timely return, et al., it is difficult to take injury reports seriously. Players obviously pace themselves for the tournaments with big prize money and those which aren’t too far away. Some were supposedly out indefinitely and miraculously reappapear with no complaints all. Remeber Venus out indefinitely in early May, reasons unknown. Give us a break. I understand that maintaining rankings requires that they show up but only for majors. What you have is a bunch of part time players and smaller tournamants that have difficulty drawing the media and a crowd.

July 22nd, 2008 at 11:47 am

Roddick’s shoulder and alleged timely return, et al.,was not a made up injury. It happened back in May in Rome. He missed Indy where he had SF points to defend, and I doubt that he would deliberately cry injury knowing how much he needs those points. He should not be lumped under the umbrella of a “part-time player” as he has consistently played at all of the large tournaments and US Open Series hardcourt tournaments for the past 5-6 years. It’s alright not to like a player but when we label them, we should ensure our facts back up what we say or that of which we accuse them.

July 22nd, 2008 at 2:50 pm

I can’t fathom how some people believe Serena is 150 lbs.

July 22nd, 2008 at 4:14 pm

Von – Roddick had a bit of a slip there, but he’s through! I hope we get to see another Roddick vs. Federer match up. Their matches are often exciting and tight.

Roddick may end up facing Cillic before then, which would be an interesting match up – two big servers. And Fed may have to get by Gonzalez who looked very effective in his first round match.

July 22nd, 2008 at 4:41 pm

jane:

“Von – Roddick had a bit of a slip there, but he’s through!”

I think Andy got miffed at the umpire/linesman because of a ball that was called out, on which he had a play and could have returned it quite easily. We both know how that kind of discrepancy could affect his concentration and cause him to become disjointed. He was playing rther tentatively today — I don’t know if it was his back acting up.

I don’t recall Andy ever playing against Cilic, if that is in the affirmative, then we’ll just have to wait and see how they match up against each other. I hope the Gonzo that shows up is not the one with a white flag.

July 22nd, 2008 at 4:58 pm

Von,

Just watched the Roddick match (recorded); I could only follow scores at work.

Andy played well I thought – nice serves, good backhands, some great passers. He was correctly riled by that shot he had a play on; he was right to be. And then there was another one that Mahut challenged and it was in by a just hair, but Andy had hit a winner on it. He didn’t get all out of joint in a bad way; I thought he was pretty humorous about the bad calls really. Mahut just stayed with him better in the second set because he volleyed and took a lot more chances than in the first set. In the tiebreaker, he rushed the net and made some great volleys there too. So all-in-all, it was a good win for Andy, imo, a nice test.

July 22nd, 2008 at 11:08 pm

Holy God-Fed Almighty,

Yes, it is generally bad taste and sexist to mention women being fat, but these are professional athletes. Their conditioning is fair game for comment in my view, and clearly none of you were around this site when Labadze made a run to the fourth round of Wimbledon two years ago. He received a barb every day for his big gut. The thing is, not nearly as many of the men are out of shape as the women.

July 22nd, 2008 at 11:43 pm

“Holy God-Fed Almighty,”

Almighty God, but No holy Fed. Federer is now parallel to God? sorry, but my christian beliefs finds this statement to be blasphemous. Feel free to blast me but that’s my upbringing.

The word athlete means “a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.”

I don’t see anything in the above definition which states that a woman has to be “sexy, beautiful, or skinny to be an athlete. These are standards that the fashion industry has projected upon sports. As long as an athlete possesses the necessary skills to win in the their chosen field of sport, then beauty and skinny are ancillary to their game. conditioning and size are poles apart. Some of the most unhealthy people are skinny, and some of the beautiful ones can be piranhas. Sometimes what you see is not what you get. :)

July 23rd, 2008 at 12:18 am

Carson [First Round]:

(10) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) 61 60

Yeah, so much for being fit. There are fitter player able to string wins in back to back tournaments.

Also, I’m sure the Stanford tournament organizers were distraught at the final.

Women’s tennis is boring unless the girls are pretty, or if it involves the Williams. Sorry, but that’s just true. Why watch some ugly girls attempt silly “rallies” when you have men’s tennis? If the girls are pretty or have some talent, or both (which is quite rare these days) then fine. But did anyone actually WATCH that Stanford final? Ugh. At least there is a cure for insomnia now.

July 23rd, 2008 at 1:50 am

Von – did Roddick withdraw from Indianapolis? Proof? I do not believe he did. He was never signed up. It was a simple case of Andy not interested in partaking. Nothing to do with any injury.

July 23rd, 2008 at 1:52 am

DJ:

I don’t have any proof one way or the other of Andy’s injury, or whether he did not sign up for Indy. He pulled out of WTT which was a week ago citing his back injury that he was rehabbing from May, as the reason. That’s what I read. If his injury is fake then he’s the only one that has the answer.

_________________
Richard:

I’m a woman, but I don’t like to watch the women’s matches either. I have zero interest and tolerance fror their shrieking and on-court semantics. as I find their matches lack depth and it’s just a skin and fashion parade. However, it’s a matter of preference. For me, the men’s matches are more entertaining, but I still feel that a female athlete should not be criticized or judged on her physical attributes.

July 23rd, 2008 at 2:23 am

let’s ban the srieking, yes !

July 23rd, 2008 at 10:06 am

After all these years, we still don’t know who “staff” or “X-bot” is. Still, I like his (or her) caustic wit.

July 23rd, 2008 at 9:10 pm

Btw, has anyone seen Ana Ivanovic’s latest spread in Ralph? Woof!

I’m waiting for Ashley’s, but I’m too embarassed to ever pick up a Playboy. Believe it or not, I’ve never had the courage to touch a mag like that at the newsagents… Someone tell me if she goes all the way, or if there are objects strategically placed.

Von, I totally agree on women’s tennis. I used to watch it but gradually lost interest. Henin was my favorite player, and she retired. Sad. I can’t stand watching Sharapova or the Williams. Not because they are bad players, but the grunting is excessive. I always wish they lost early so I might be able to see some latter matches. It’s nothing personal. After Henin left the game, there just isn’t anyone else around that is comparable in consistency and talent. She was like the Federer of the WTA tour. Except, at least Fed has two rivals in the same tier.

Ana Ivanovic is good, but she won’t dominate. She didn’t look too comfortable on Wimby’s grass either. The Williams don’t play that much. Sharapova seems to have been hot and cold this year. Kuzy and Janks are perennial semi finalists or finalists. I’m waiting for the next Henin to take her place before I bother watching again.

July 23rd, 2008 at 9:28 pm

JCF:

“Von, I totally agree on women’s tennis. I used to watch it but gradually lost interest. Henin was my favorite player, and she retired. Sad. I can’t stand watching Sharapova or the Williams. Not because they are bad players, but the grunting is excessive.”

My favourite was/is Amelie Mauresmo. She’s got a lot of class, doesn’t grunt, has excellent serve and volley skills, and a great one-handed backhand. Her nervousness is her downfall — she seems to choke serving out the match. I was so upset with Henin when she refused to play out the match at the AO to let Amelie win instead of getting a retirement win. To me that was pretty shoddy coming from Henin.

I’m amazed that a young man such as yourself, has never bought a Playboy magazine, but I admire that, especially in today’s world where the emphasis is on indecent exposure.

I think I have an idea of who is the “Staff’ responsible for writing this article. I think it’s the “dish” girl — but I could be mistaken. Too many handles and dishes.

July 24th, 2008 at 2:43 am