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U.S. Open: Andy Murray has a lot to prove in New York

If Novak Djokovic fails to win the 2015 U.S. Open, he still has two majors in the bag this year; more Masters 1000 titles than anyone else; and the year-end No. 1 ranking. He successfully defended a major title outside Australia for the first time in his career. He is, by any measure, the best […]

U.S. Open Men’s Draw Analysis

The U.S. Open men’s draw is out. Here’s your bracket sheet. * See the cover image above? That’s the new look this year for Arthur Ashe Stadium. The roof which will cover the court in future years is not in place, but the outer portion of the structure has been erected. This points to the […]

Federer and Serena Win Cincinnati, But There’s More To The Stories

Before telling you about tennis over the past few weeks in North America, take just two minutes to appreciate the site of Roger Federer’s and Serena Williams’s victories on Sunday afternoon. * Cincinnati, for the international readers in the crowd, is an American sports city starving for a professional sports success story. The Reds are […]

Djokovic, Federer, Nadal, and Prime Times: Fresh Evaluations Of The Big 3

On an immediate level, the Wimbledon men’s final between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer marked an occasion to salute Djokovic for the greatness he has achieved.  When you pass Andre Agassi, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Ken Rosewall, and Fred Perry on the all-time majors list, with a few prime years left in your career, you deserve […]

5 Takeaways: The ATP At Wimbledon

The ATP side of the Wimbledon divide offered plenty of fascinating stories. Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer will get their own stand-alone treatment, so here are the five big non-final observations from the past two weeks at SW19: * 5 – CANADIAN SUNRISE  There was no Canadian Sunset at Wimbledon — not when one realizes […]

Novak Djokovic Displays a Greater Greatness, And Could Become Even Greater

In the 2009 Wimbledon final, Roger Federer — down a set — fell behind in the second-set tiebreaker, 6-2. He improbably won a point on his opponent’s serve at 6-5 in that tiebreaker and eventually won the tiebreaker. Federer won the third set and then outlasted Andy Roddick in one of Wimbledon’s greatest championship matches. […]

Ken Rosewall: Supreme Longevity, Quiet Greatness

When he attends the Australian Open, Ken Rosewall is a distinguished guest. He is a global legend, one especially cherished in Australia. He’s part of the phenomenal golden generation of Australian male tennis players, the group of marvelously skilled wizards who — from 1950 through 1967 — won 14 of 18 Davis Cup championships, part […]

Roger Federer Isn’t God, But He Played One On TV

In January of 2003, another old man — in tennis terms — won a major title. Andre Agassi, three months short of his 33rd birthday, became one of the oldest ATP major champions in the Open Era of professional tennis. His opponent in the final of the 2003 Australian Open, though, was not Andy Murray, […]

Wimbledon 2015 And A Timeless Sports Lesson

A timeless lesson is something which exists in any point of human history. However, when talking about tennis or baseball or a few other sports, the idea of “timelessness” is more specific, since those sports aren’t played against the backdrop of a clock. Baseball players and solo-sport athletes — and any other athletes in sports […]

The Way Forward For Rafael Nadal: Respecting Limits

Those who watched Pancho Gonzales, at age 41, win a Wimbledon match in 1969 with sets of 46 (!), 30, and 20 games might regard him as the greatest fighter men’s tennis has ever known. (That 1969 match with Charlie Pasarell helped usher in the era of the tiebreaker one year later, an interesting side […]

Nadal Loses: Storm Clouds Gather, But Will They Give Way To Sunlight?

When the story of this resplendent and unforgettable era of men’s tennis is written, the footsteps of Rafael Nadal will never stray that far from the footprints left by Roger Federer, and vice-versa. When this era is recalled 30, 50, or 75 years from now, any mention of one man will invariably bring the other […]

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