Tennis

Yen_Aireena · Post time 14-7-2014 01:54 PM

Mulan posted on 10-7-2014 02:00 PM
itulah masalahnya.. taktau Maria turun hari apa.. kena g 2-3 hari kot yg 1st RR tu sbb nak tgk sem ...

ada geng teringin gak pegi...

Yen_Aireena · Post time 14-7-2014 02:05 PM

Yen_Aireena · Post time 14-7-2014 02:15 PM

Welcome back to USA;)

*balik dari bercuti dari Mexico bersama Dimitrov..

Yen_Aireena · Post time 14-7-2014 02:17 PM

Congrats Djoker!

Yen_Aireena · Post time 14-7-2014 02:18 PM

Tommy Haas ‏@TommyHaas13

Always a great time with this cute couple.

Last edited by Yen_Aireena on 14-7-2014 02:20 PM

Mulan · Post time 15-7-2014 12:11 AM

Yen_Aireena posted on 14-7-2014 02:17 PM
Congrats Djoker!

uuu.. tq for posting the pic. i mmg nk tgk wedding pic derang nih. congrats to the beautiful couple.

Mulan · Post time 15-7-2014 12:12 AM

Yen_Aireena posted on 14-7-2014 01:54 PM
ada geng teringin gak pegi...

jom laa.. stay jb jek.. g sana tgk tennis semata. tix nak tgk maria kena tgu schedule la kan?

Mulan · Post time 15-7-2014 12:13 AM

Yen_Aireena posted on 14-7-2014 02:05 PM

real men wear pink... khennnz?

Mulan · Post time 16-7-2014 08:43 AM

this is a really nice topic to spin off our recent 'discussion' (more like a spat, really) ...

@ashburn
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Chalk and Cheese
Tuesday, July 15, 2014 /by Peter Bodo

Bouchard bested Halep in their most recent meeting, in the Wimbledon semifinals. (Photo by Anita Aguilar)

The WTA is so attractive and strong these days that when I see of those “Strong is Beautiful” images appear in the background of the tour’s website, I can only wince. Will someone please tell these ladies they don’t have to bend over backwards to impress anyone?

Right now, the WTA boasts a cornucopia of talent. We’re in the midst of a major transition, as some of the most revered female players—women who are also, not coincidentally, vital to the high global profile of the WTA—are aging. They may be aging as gracefully as Tina Turner, but they are getting older. Thankfully, fresh talent is picking up the slack, none more quickly and artfully than Simona Halep and Eugenie Bouchard, who have emerged this year as the twin faces of a WTA youth movement.

Other extremely talented girls, including Garbine Muguruza, Belinda Bencic, Donna Vekic, and Madison Keys, have also announced themselves this season, but none of them has enjoyed anything like the recent success of Halep and Bouchard. It doesn’t hurt that these two are chalk and cheese, despite sharing some similarities in style and critical statistical details.

Halep is a 22-year-old Romanian, two-and-a-half years older than Canada’s Bouchard but still part of the same generation. Bouchard is striking and supremely marketable—which, through no fault of her own, will rub many people the wrong way. Halep is in some ways the anti-Bouchard, but not to the point that it creates an image rivalry. With these two, everybody wins.

Halep started the year with a ranking of No. 11 and bolted to No. 3 after her run to the French Open final. Bouchard, who began the season ranked No. 31, is now just four ticks of the computer behind Halep. She’s the only WTA player to have made the semifinals at every Grand Slam played so far this year, and was last seen taking a beating from Petra Kvitova with grace and composure on Wimbledon’s Centre Court—after dismissing Halep in the semis.

Halep has won two titles so far this year, Bouchard one. Their win-loss record is remarkably close: Halep was 36-10 after winning Bucharest on Sunday; Bouchard is 36-14. Halep is just 5’6” compared to Bouchard’s 5’10”, at nearly identical weights. However accurate those numbers, Halep obviously has a compact but solid, well-muscled body, while Bouchard skews more to the long and lean, like the woman to whom she is frequently compared every which way from Sunday, Maria Sharapova. They have split their two matches, with Halep winning at Indian Wells and Bouchard getting revenge at Wimbledon.

Halep still lives in the town of her birth, Constanta. It seems appropriate, because Halep certainly is the “constant” type—reliable, hard-working, and modest, she’s a thorough professional who also uses her tennis to express an abiding passion for her homeland. She has become something of an icon in Romania, where her father, Stere, a former minor-league football player, owns a dairy-products factory.

The most improved WTA pro in 2013, Halep first came to notice for an unusual reason: At almost 18 years of age, she underwent breast-reduction surgery. It ultimately led to a jump of more than 450 places in the rankings. (dang, that is so worth it

)

The biographical detail is worth mentioning because it’s been critical to Halep’s success, and it flies in the face of the omnipresent theories that there is a specific body type most suited to tennis. So much for the relentless drum of the idea that tennis will evolve to the point where most of the players have comparable physiques.

As Serena Williams has said of Halep, “She serves so well for her height. She has so much power on her serve. That’s actually awesome.”

Halep is nimble and has quick reflexes. She reads the game as if it were a Dick and Jane book, and that enables her to exploit her chief asset, a gift for opening up the court by changing the direction of the ball. Following the quarterfinal win that brought Halep opposite Bouchard in the Wimbledon draw, there was much discussion of the way Bouchard likes to crowd the baseline. Halep felt obliged to remind her interlocutors, “But I play close to the baseline as well, and I'm aggressive. So we'll see tomorrow.”

While that aggression has an enormous amount to do with Halep’s success, she is still most dangerous when she is counterpunching. In that sense, she’s a bit like a WTA version of Lleyton Hewitt, but without the in-your-face theatrics. In fact, Halep is so self-controlled and calm on the court that in this day of shrieking WTA banshees, she seems a throwback to quieter if not better times. (well, whatever rocks your boat

)

Bouchard, by contrast, is the daughter of a successful investment banker. She and her twin sister Beatrice were named after British royals, although they are native to Francophone Montreal. Canada has produced plenty of heroes, but none in tennis. Bouchard, and her ATP comrade-in-arms Milos Raonic, are taking care of that nowadays in a big way.

The greatest of Bouchard’s talents just might be her nose for the victory. Despite her youth, she’s fearless. Combine that with her knack for doing exactly the right thing at the exactly the right time (with the exception of the Wimbledon final, when Kvitova would shoot out all the lights), and you have a player taking the express lane to the top. In all the brief time that Bouchard has been a title contender, we’ve rarely heard her, or anyone talking about her, utter that ultimate cop-out word, “experience.”

Ironically, it was Halep who paid Bouchard one of the greatest compliments she has yet received. Right after Bouchard won their semifinal match at Wimbledon, Halep was asked if Bouchard looked “bigger” than other opponents on the court owing to her height.

“She (Bouchard) is tall,” Halep replied. “When she stays close to the baseline it’s like you see just her on the court.”

That impression, backed up by Bouchard’s embrace of first-strike tennis, is a formidable combination, supported in Bouchard’s case by capable defense and an excellent serve. “She’s hitting the ball very early and very fast,” Halep acknowledged.

It would be interesting to report what Bouchard said about Halep’s game before their Wimbledon encounter. Alas, Bouchard press conferences drift relentlessly toward naff questions about Justin Bieber, royals Will and Kate (who attended the match), and double-entendre references to pop culture. Commercial rewards and success will be as much of a threat to Bouchard’s career and character as any woman swinging a racquet. There was just one question about Halep put to Bouchard in her presser. And, being the last question posed during a long and tedious session, nobody, including Bouchard, particularly cared about the answer.

Of course, Halep was peppered with questions about Bouchard, as well as the match she had played before against Sabine Lisicki. There was not a word about William and Kate. But if you feel bad for Halep, hold your horses. She was spared having to expound, as Bouchard did, on Bieber’s chances of getting into Wimbledon’s Royal Box.

Sometimes, it’s good to be a Simona rather than a Eugenie. Last edited by Mulan on 16-7-2014 09:43 AM

ashburn · Post time 16-7-2014 11:18 AM

Mulan posted on 16-7-2014 08:43 AM
this is a really nice topic to spin off our recent 'discussion' (more like a spat, really) ... @a ...

Mulan · Post time 16-7-2014 11:27 AM

ashburn posted on 16-7-2014 11:18 AM

baca jgn tak baca...

takyah nak pekup2 tinga pejam2 mata laaa....

Mulan · Post time 16-7-2014 12:57 PM

Yen_Aireena posted on 15-6-2014 08:46 AM
iolss try upload yg 15G.. tp cam x gerak2 je walau dah sehari menunggu..
last2 iolss upload yg ...

peh.. sebulan baru abis d/load yg 15GB tu..

tapi.. berbaloi aa tunggu...

Mulan · Post time 17-7-2014 08:48 AM

Rafa Nadal
11 hours ago
De vuelta a los entrenamientos con mucha ilusión!

Back to training with great enthusiasm!
See translation

Mulan · Post time 17-7-2014 08:56 AM

lovely article...

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Remembering Federer v Nadal 2008 - the umpire's view
Wednesday 16 July 2014
By Mark Hodgkinson

2008 Federer Nadal final

Umpire Pascal Maria re-lives the 2008 Wimbledon final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal...

For all Roger Federers grass-court glories seven times he has been the champion of the All England Club its his two defeats in Wimbledon finals that have touched the heights.

So, in the days after this summers Championships, one compelling Federer defeat was being compared with another. The entertainment provided by this summers mens final was such that some seated around the Centre Court lawn regarded Novak Djokovics five-set victory as being one of the five greatest matches every played. Had Federer, who had saved a match point in the fourth set, gone on to win the trophy that would have given him a record eighth Wimbledon title it may well have turned out to be the finest match in history. As it was, Djokovic held on, and Rafa Nadals victory over Federer in the 2008 final is still almost universally regarded as the greatest match ever contested.

Frenchman Pascal Maria, who was in the chair for that final, relived the match in conversation with Wimbledon.com:

Many people regard the 2008 final as the greatest match ever played whats your take?

"Wimbledon is the mecca of tennis. It's where all the traditions of tennis come from. The place is just unbelievable. And then this match was between such great players, who were ranked numbers one and two at the time. And, more than anything, the tennis that was played was incredible. Plus, there was a little bit of darkness, and rain, and drama. And Federer had saved that match point in the fourth set to take it into a fifth set."

What was it like having the best seat in the house?

"You shouldn't forget that, before being an official, I'm a tennis fan. And to be assigned a Wimbledon final, regardless of which Wimbledon final you do, that's a privilege. Normally you do just one Wimbledon final in your lifetime, and the one I was assigned to turned out to be an exceptional match, with people saying it was one of the biggest matches ever in tennis. And it's great if people don't remember that I was the umpire for that match - that's the biggest compliment that you can pay an official.

At what point did you realise that it was a special match?

"Nadal was trying to win Wimbledon for the first time, so when he went two sets to love up, I realised that it was going to be a good match. And then when Nadal had his match point in fourth set, and Federer won the point with a backhand winner, I realised this was pretty big. The crowd went ballistic. And that's when I thought to myself, 'bloody hell, what luck that I had this match'."

Was it possible for you to enjoy it at the time?

"Obviously I was concentrating very hard on what was happening, but if you don't get the vibes from the match, you might not do such a good job. You need to get a feel for it. You have to remember where you are and what's happening."

How much longer would you have allowed the match to continue for if Nadal hadn't closed it out?

"I believe we would have stopped at 8-8, and Nadal took the fifth set 9-7."

How did you feel after you came off court?

"It was mentally exhausting. I felt empty after that match. Looking back, it's difficult to imagine how focused I was. But that's good, that why I do this. I loved it."

Since that final, have you spoken to Nadal or Federer to compare memories?

"No, it's funny, but no. I think we will have those conversations when their careers are over. I think that they dont want to look back so much - they are so ambitious that they always wanted to look forward. I believe that when they have both retired we can have a chat about the match. And you have to remember that an official has to stay in the shadows rather than making stories with the players. I havent watched a video of the match, though I might do that after I have retired as an umpire.

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kena cari masa la tgk balik Wimbledon final 2008 ni..