tennis Tag

Novak Djokovic won the Miami Open over the weekend, breaking all kinds of records in the process. His 6th Miami Open title, 27th Masters title, and dangerously close to earning more prize money than the untouchable one… Roger Federer. Nobody can beat him, or even win a set off of him. He’s won 22 sets in a row without much resistance, and has rendered even the best servers unable to hold serve. What is he doing that’s so special? It begins and ends with the brain, duh. Mental tennis DuringRead More
SAN DIEGO, CA – If I’m sitting at my desk at 1am, clutching a coffee mug, it has to be January, and it has to be a night session match of the Australian Open. Indeed, it’s Federer against Djokovic, for the 45th time. #UpAllNight has become an annual tradition for me since I began following tennis in 2011. For two weeks out of the year, I forgo conventional Pacific Time Zone hours to indulge in all of the action of the tournament I love. But for the first week of thisRead More
Tennis is a young person’s sport. A player’s prime is normally between the ages of 23-27. But the average age of this year’s top 8 men is 29.6 years old. In fact, there’s only a single man under the age of 28. So with the 2015 race to London featuring so many veterans, does the tournament really mean anything for the younger players of the ATP as we move towards next season? The answer is a resounding no. Instead, it’s for the fans. Perspective When you think about this year’sRead More

Posted On September 18, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Tennis Fans: Why Novak Deserves More Love

It’s January of 2009, and 21 year old Novak Djokovic has just retired from his 4th Grand Slam match in only his 17th appearance. While trailing American Andy Roddick in the 4th set, Djokovic complained of sickness due to the sweltering Australian heat. Were used to this sort of thing by now. Novak is not a fighter… yet. Many fans sadistically viewed this Aussie retirement as karma after an ugly verbal incident between the two men at the previous year’s U.S. Open. Roddick had flippantly remarked that Novak was alwaysRead More

Posted On September 9, 2015By StaffIn Girls, Manzone

#WCW: Eugenie Bouchard

-Eugenie Bouchard- Instagram: geniebouchard Twitter: @geniebouchard Known for: Playing professional tennis; winning the WTA Most Improved Player award for the 2014 season. – If you follow tennis, you may have already heard of 21 year-old Canadian phenom Eugenie Bouchard. Genie attracts many headlines both for her play – winning the WTA Most Improved Player award last year – and for her stunning looks. The Canadian tennis star has steadily improved since turning pro a few years ago, and reached a ranking as high as fifth in the world last year. Unfortunately, EugenieRead More

Posted On September 8, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Ramblings of a Tennis Nerd: U.S. Open Edition

When you watch a lot of tennis, and are opinionated, it only makes sense that you need to document your enthusiasm. During the U.S. Open Men’s 4th round match between Roger Federer and John Isner, I got a little excited, and decided to do just that. Here’s how it went down: FIRST SET: Wow, John Isner, what a fine serve you have. Can you teach me bro? Federer, you just returned a 138mph serve, how does it feel? It looks really humid in New York. I’m glad I’m in SanRead More
Boys will be boys, and sometimes men will still act as boys. This sociological truth transcends even the most gentlemanly of sports, including tennis. But the altercation involving Nick Kyrgios and Stan Wawrinka was different than most on-court arguments, even by tennis standards. The personal nature of the infamous sledge wasn’t the first of its kind, and it won’t be the last. In case you missed it, Aussie Nick Kyrgios made a comment during his match against Wawrinka that “Kokkinakis banged [Wawrinka’s] girlfriend.” He muttered it under his breath, butRead More

Posted On August 10, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

ATP World Tour: Late Summer Preview

With the American hard court season upon us (the men take over Montreal this week), all eyes will be on Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. The former will begin a quest to win his second U.S. Open title after 3 consecutive years of earlier losses. Meanwhile, the world number 9, Nadal will aim to re-establish himself as a grand slam threat. But these two are not the only top stories as we sail into the North American hard courts… Where is Dimi? At this time last year, the tennis universeRead More
It isn’t any secret that Novak Djokovic is a fun dude, or at least he seems that way on TV. But I often think, “what would it be like to hang out with him?” Not in a weird way. I don’t lie awake thinking about it, but it would be an interesting sort of bro gathering if one day it were to happen. Just in case it does happen, here are the 5 things we would definitely have to do: Singing In The Car It could be Britney Spears, TaylorRead More
Jump around! The NCAA tournament may be back this week, but march madness really began this past weekend, in the tennis world. First it’s Indian Wells, then onto Miami to account for an exciting month of outdoor sports in this early spring. It’s become a ritual of sorts for many fans of the sport. People make the annual pilgrimage to these warm destinations from all over the country to escape the frigidness of northern cities. But it’s more than just the weather. For people who love the majors, I canRead More
The tennis grand slam calendar starts today, and there is reason to be pumped up. The men’s draw is interesting to say the least, so without further adieu, let’s break it down… 2014 Will Not Be Repeated I love Stan Wawrinka (recall my man crush article “How Stan Became Stan the Man”), but he will not win another Australian Open title this year. He made his breakthrough last year, played the tournament of his life, and accrued a major title. But this year, look for someone else to win. ItRead More

Posted On November 20, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Roger: The Quitter?

The finale of the 2014 Barclays World Tour Finals was won by Novak Djokovic. But there was no match, as Roger Federer dropped out of the tournament one hour before he was set to take the court. He made the announcement in an arena filled with stunned and disappointed tennis fans. People who had paid hundreds of dollars to see him play, and had traveled half way around the world. I was almost one of those people. I had traveled to London last week to see some of the tournament,Read More

Posted On November 11, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

ATP World Tour Finals: The Quest for #1

Technically, there are no playoffs in tennis. But this week is as close as it gets. There is reason to be excited with the best 8 players in the world competing against one another in a round robin format.   Who looks poised to win? Thus far, everyone has played 1 match. And they have been quite underwhelming. Milos Raonic has yet to show up to his first career World Tour Finals, falling hard in his opening match. And Marin Cilic didn’t perform terribly against Novak Djokovic but Djoko is too hotRead More

Posted On September 8, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

US Open Final: A Landmark Occasion

Few things are completely certain, but the exception lies in the world of tennis. Fans have become accustomed to Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal participating in every grand slam final. Well the waves of change are a flowin’. Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic will face off in Flushing Meadows today.     Significance This 2014 US Open Final will be a landmark occasion. Since the 2005 French Open, every grand slam final has included at least one of the big 3 (Fed, Djok, Nadal). That’s 9 1/2 yearsRead More

Posted On September 5, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

US Open: A Lesson In Physical Toughness

Yesterday’s men’s quarterfinals featured unbelievable displays of physical ability by Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori. Djokovic notched a big win last night with his victory over Andy Murray. While earlier in the day, Nishikori defeated favorite Stanislas Wawrinka in 5 sets. But the score lines don’t explain these results very accurately. Anyone who saw last night’s match can attest to the obvious difference in physicality between Djokovic and Murray. By the fourth set, it was becoming pronounced. Murray opened his service game with a strange, 70 mph first serve usingRead More