# Tennis 2013 Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [December 28, 2012, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410 "2012-12-28T18:38:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 20
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/381 "2013-07-07T20:12:54Z")
Who forgot? ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/382 "2013-07-07T20:17:41Z")
Not you (hope you didn’t think that), but British news outlets tend to. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/383 "2013-07-07T21:48:57Z")
Wacky tournament, but I’m glad for both winners. ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/384 "2013-07-07T22:13:00Z")
Wow. Amazing tournament. Landmark tournament. We may have seen a passing of the crown moment on both sides (and you know great I think those are). The ESPN boards, usually fairly lackluster about women’s tennis, were absolutely buzzing about Bartoli’s victory; seeing someone long overdue for something really good to happen finally get it had to be a thrill. She looked _very_ strong in the final; we could be seeing the start of a Martina Hingis-esque breakout. Murray had about as fine and complete a Wimbledon as anything I’ve seen since the glory days of Pete Sampras. Truly an astounding victory for both him and the British empire. I have a pretty good idea of who the cover boy for the next Virtua Tennis game is going to be. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/385 "2013-07-08T01:55:32Z")
Bartoli is almost 29. This isn’t a breakout, it’s a very nice and surprising capstone on her career. Think Francesca Schiavone- although she did manage to make another major final and hang around the top ten for a couple of years. > [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > Not you (hope you didn’t think that), but British news outlets tend to. True. Let’s put it this way: you’re going to hear five times as much about it from now on. Now that they can’t talk about Murray and all the angst related to that, they’ll talk about the almost 40-year drought for British women in singles. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/386 "2013-07-08T07:55:07Z")
The Women’s final was an interesting story but it was very much the best of a bad bunch. Bartoli may go on greater things but I didn’t enjoy the game as a sporting spectacle. The men’s final was a different beast. Certainly Novak dipped below his brilliance and that’s why it was straight sets but Andy was inspired yesterday and I think he may have taken him anyway. The way he chased down everything just kept piling more and more pressure on Novak. He must have been thinking “this has to be perfect” for every single shot whilst Murray kept throwing him back and forth across the court. On a several occasions I saw Novak dink a little drop shot and at the moment he did it there seemed no possible recovery for Murray, however, he seemed to anticipate them and the amount of ground he covered to run them down was amazing. He is some athlete. Two things that struck me most. Murray’s second serve was slow (as it has been throughout) but it seemed more accurate yesterday, far deeper with greater dip and swerve. It meant that Djokovic had very few chances to punish it. Secondly, once into the rally Murray was more than happy to to just keep it going, he seemed confident that Novak would cock it up before he did and sure enough the unforced errors were particularly high for him. Mind you, what do you call an “unforced error” anyway? If you fail because you know you have to hit the sideline or baseline, with pace, time after time because your opponent is getting everything back…is that really unforced? Anyway, a good match and a deserved victory. ---
**Author:** ![eenerms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@eenerms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eenerms)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/387 "2013-07-08T14:21:55Z")
It didn’t go 5, but I’m not disappointed with the outcome. Murray play brilliant tennis. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/388 "2013-07-08T21:20:38Z")
> [@eenerms](#): > > It didn’t go 5, but I’m not disappointed with the outcome. Murray play brilliant tennis. Indeed. And it was a close, long three sets with a ton of thrilling points and ups & downs on both sides up to the very last game. Usually the crowd wants to see an epic 5 set final, but I think in this case, they would have been happy with a 90 minute lopsided 3-setter as long Murray won. Overall, Wacky Wimbledon was great - Murray achieved history and can finally shut the damn English press up and there was a brand new Slam winner on the women’s side. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/389 "2013-07-09T17:24:55Z")
> [@Mauvaise](#): > > Overall, Wacky Wimbledon was great - Murray achieved history and can finally shut the damn English press up… All I can say is poor Laura Robson. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/390 "2013-07-09T20:44:34Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > OK, listen to this guy’s impression of 6 of the top 10 players. His Rafa is spot on, especially the blasts of nose air, so to speak. > > [Very funny.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIzJmV3geDU&feature=youtu.be) Did you see this: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be) I still think his Roger is a bit weak, but Rafa doesn’t! ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/391 "2013-07-09T20:59:22Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > OK, listen to this guy’s impression of 6 of the top 10 players. His Rafa is spot on, especially the blasts of nose air, so to speak. > > [Very funny.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIzJmV3geDU&feature=youtu.be) > [@Mauvaise](#): > > Did you see this: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be) > I still think his Roger is a bit weak, but Rafa doesn’t! These are good. His Federer is higher pitched and a bit more nasal that the real thing, but I thought he had the accent down. He struggled a little with Murray’s accent, maybe. In the segment with Nadal his word choices were pretty realistic- I wasn’t sure if he was quoting the players or not. ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/392 "2013-07-09T21:09:27Z")
BBC coverage gets an almighty kicking (1000 comments), quite rightly imo - worst combination ever: jingoism and sentimentality: > **[Wimbledon 2013: how the BBC got its coverage wrong](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2013/jul/08/wimbledon-2013-bbc-coverage-wrong)** > > John Crace: It wasn't just John Inverdale's bizarre Bartoli gaffe – this year's tournament was a mess of lackadaisical presenting and sentimentality that made the event feel like a garden party I suppose at least it’s advert free … ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/393 "2013-07-09T23:18:20Z")
> [@BrokenBriton](#): > > BBC coverage gets an almighty kicking (1000 comments), quite rightly imo - worst combination ever: jingoism and sentimentality: > > [Wimbledon 2013: how the BBC got its coverage wrong | Television | The Guardian](http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2013/jul/08/wimbledon-2013-bbc-coverage-wrong) I agree about poor Laura Robson. (although at least there is a second decent British female in Heather Watson, so that must take a little of the pressure off ) & I don’t know who supplied the coverage for over here, but the constant shots of Andy’s girlfriend got pretty tiresome. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/394 "2013-07-10T00:17:37Z")
> [@Mauvaise](#): > > Did you see this: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7rFpwdI7w&feature=youtu.be) Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/395 "2013-07-10T18:37:27Z")
[Mardy Fish opens up a little about his absence from the tour.](http://espn.go.com/tennis/story/_/id/9463447/mardy-fish-says-mentally-physically-set-return) He doesn’t say when he’ll be back, and he doesn’t give a lot of specifics in general. He does say he thought very hard about retiring and suggests, no surprise, that it’s hard to get back on the court when you’ve had heart problems and (probably) find yourself wondering if you’re taking your life in your hands by playing a full match. Since there’s still stuff he won’t talk about I wondered if maybe he struggled with drinking or drugs for a while when he couldn’t play. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2013, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/396 "2013-07-15T15:30:20Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I meant to say something about this last week, but I didn’t get a chance. Guess who finally won his first career title? Nicolas Mahut! He’s 31 and was overdue for a big win: he built up a lot of karma in that Isner match and more recently he lost in the doubles final in Paris. His only career singles finals were in June and July 2007, both on grass. He upset Stan Wawrinka in the final at 's-Hertogenbosch, and good for him. [Mahut wins his second title!](http://espn.go.com/tennis/story/_/id/9476926/nicolas-mahut-wins-newport-title-john-isner-falls-semis) And he had to win two matches on the same day to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/397 "2013-07-25T17:37:19Z")
Uh, and now Federer has lost to the 55th ranked player in the world. Dude, what is up? > [@](#): > > Upset at Hamburg by Federico Delbonis on Saturday, he entered Gstaad (also on clay, also unexpectedly). There, he was upset today in the second round in an hour and five minutes by Daniel Brands, 6-3, 6-4. Before you fling yourself off some towering parapet, be advised that Brands has knocked on this door before; in fact, he took the first set off Federer just a week ago when they met in the round-of-32 in Hamburg. [Panic time?](http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2013/07/gstaad-brands-d-federer/48503/#.UfFh5m0phn8) ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/398 "2013-07-25T18:21:31Z")
Federer switched to a new, bigger racquet a couple of weeks ago. I don’t know how much that explains the problem he’s been having lately, but it has to be a part of it. He’s also struggling with a sore back. I think he’ll adjust in time. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/399 "2013-07-25T21:30:30Z")
[Victor Troicki was just banned 18 months for refusing to provide a blood sample for drug testing.](http://www.itftennis.com/antidoping/news/decisions/decision-in-the-case-of-viktor-troicki.aspx) Troicki wasn’t feeling well and gave a urine sample on the day he was tested, but says he was told he didn’t have to do the blood test that day. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410/400 "2013-07-27T19:42:41Z")
There are also reports that Marin Cilic failed a doping test, but that hasn’t been confirmed. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410.md?page=19) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tennis-2013-thread/645410.md?page=21)