tennis gut

The press have not been this united in condemning a player, in this case the unvaccinated Novak Djokovic, since Naomi Osaka announced she wouldn’t be doing press at the last French Open.  In that case, they’ve since largely recanted, pretending they weren’t outraged, as evidence of Osaka’s mental health struggles surfaced.  It will be interesting to see how minor a footnote Djokovic’s possible deportation will seem in two weeks time, let alone in a year.  If Djokovic should miss this slam he’ll join a long list of very good players who are not playing, including Federer, Wawrinka, Thiem, Del Potro, Tsonga, Nishikori, and Raonic – all of whom are at least slam finalists.   First Quarter Temporarily, Djokovic (seeded 1) is the top seed, but he could be replaced by either Rublev or a lucky loser depending on the timing of his probable withdrawal.   But assuming he plays, will he be at his best in front of a likely hostile crowd?   The nine-time champion...

  The real injustice of this Australian Open has nothing to do with Djokovic, but is that Peng Shuai is not playing.  She has been silenced for speaking out in China and we should not abandon or forget her. Ashleigh Barty is the clear #1.   Naomi Osaka is the defending champ and has won four slams.   But are these two the clear favourites?   Who could have imagined a slam final between Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez?   Or between Barbora Krejcikova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova?   The only thing certain about women’s tennis these days is that it’s unpredictable. Which is kind of exciting…   First Quarter This is the loaded quarter.   Both Osaka (seeded 13) and Barty (1), the two favourites, are in the top eighth of the draw. Also here are Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic (32), and Amanda Anisimova who showed off her devastating game by taking the 250 title in Melbourne last week. The lower half is slightly less packed wit...

It was an epic year for Novak Djokovic.  He claimed the first three legs of the Grand Slam – only the second time in the Open Era (since 1968) it has been accomplished.  It was also an epic year for Daniil Medvedev who made two slam finals, winning one – comprehensively dismantling the invincible Djokovic.  Alexander Zverev won an Olympic gold medal in singles and the ATP Finals.  This was also a breakout year for Jannik Sinner, Aslan Karatsev, Carlos Alcaraz, and Hubert Hurkacz.  But perhaps the biggest news of all is that the stranglehold of the Big Three (or Big Four?) on the top has finally been broken.   Can they retrench in 2022?   Or will the floodwaters of new talent usher in a new era at the pinnacle of men’s tennis?   Players Novak Djokovic – It’s hard to find sufficient superlatives to describe what he has accomplished in 2021.   In addition to the mind-boggling 27 straight match wins at the slams, he is the seven-time yea...