French Open '10: Point by point coverage

[vallegirl]

Yeah, just commenting on something. Not taking it personally, since I don't know Nadal and never will. But none of them are perfect, they all fall short of the glory, and when I see someone teetering on his pedestal, I'm just bitchy enough to want to give him a push. It's no fun living up on a pedestal, anyway. All the fun's down in the gutter.

[lt]

I'm such a big softy. Yes, I teared up when Schiavone won.

I was firmly rooting for Sam but not only did I well up when Francie won, the tears came when she went into her camp and they buried her in hugs and kisses and full on crying for her most adorable speech--especially when she re-grabbed the mic to tell Mary how happy she was that Mary gave her the trophy. Oh, and when she gave the ball kid who was taking her to the trophy a big hug and kiss was ridiculously sweet.

It was a fun match to watch. Some really good points and, like John said, how wonderful was it to have so few breaks in the woman's game? Also, as he said, both coaches obviously set game plans that worked against the opponent across the net, which made it a far more competitive final than we've seen for a while in Paris. I really did think Sam was going to come back in the 2nd when she went up the break and never really thought she was out of it until late in the tiebreak.

John and Ted talked way too much but I didn't mind so much because John so obviously really likes the play of both Sam and Francie and he wasn't bemoaning what they should have done--he was talking more about how their gameplans were effective.

Also, should we send a graduation present to Mary's daughter for keeping her away from Paris this weekend?

I spent the end of my work day yesterday telling everyone to watch the men's final tomorrow. It better be good or I'm going to hear about it Monday.

[tikigirl]

All the fun's down in the gutter.

You can sit by me, valle. I've got some cheap wine in a paper bag.

[mooncreek]

It was nice to see someone in a final who actually rose to the occasion. Sam didn't play badly but, in the tiebreak especially, Francie was fierce. I do agree with the Olympics analogy when it comes to her - especially since the only other time she's really stood out was playing for her country in Fed Cup.

My mom happened to walk past as I watched the final and remarked about how Francie looked just like an aunt of hers she hadn't seen in thirty years. Before that point, I was happy for a competitive match but the Italian in me (my grandparents are from Italy) loved the end result. There was something about that massive group hug that really got to me.

[chestylarue]

All the fun's down in the gutter.

Sorry for ruining the fun today folks.

Didn't mean to crap this board up for everyone. It was just if someone is being called for a jerk for remarks and I don't think they were awful- gotta defend. In particular if I follow a player and know the context that to me requires some defending (I know not everyone will agree with me) . Sorry for ruining the spirit here. Can't help it....maybe this is a sign...lol.

It was nice to see someone in a final who actually rose to the occasion.

Today's match was great- somone won it.

[lt]

Today's match was great- somone won it.

That's it. I realized this tournament that, while she seems like a very nice young lady, I'm not a fan of Wozniacki. Her matches are long and boring because she stands back there and waits for her opponent to mess up. Good strategy in the WTA but no fun to watch. I want more like this! Okay, Sam was nervous and maybe a touch mentally fragile in spots but she in no way gave the match to Francie. Francie (or is it Franci like the flag in her crowd said?) went out and grabbed it. But neither Sam nor Francie overpowered the other with brute force. There was touch and good shot making.

John said something early on about the racquets and string that Sam (and Rafa and others) has that is so popular that I found really interesting--that if you are thinking about going out and buying the Babolat and string either make sure you spend time in the weight room or buy a bag of ice. Definitely not the racquet/string for everyone. Very stiff stick and no give to the string (hmmmm, that reads differently than I meant it to. . . Must be the influence of leaving NBC on after the match and watching rugby. This is a very sexual sport).

[GrandSlamGuru]

Greetings, folks. I've had a crazy a day and am just now getting online.

I love the FO because it's often where the most unexpected happens. Although I often root for the underdog, I was certain that Stosur was going to spank Francesca off the court. SURPRISE!

You have to love a player with such a long commitment to the game prevailing on such a grand stage. Love her! But also enjoy Sam and look forward to seeing her in many more finals.

As for tomorrow: I'll be watching from a friend's house and probably won't be online. I hope it's a great match even though, in the end, I'm rooting for Rafa. Enjoy all!

[apocalipstick]

I figured out what I dislike about Sam Stosur. She's the anti-personality. It's not that she's particularly likable or dislikable. It's that there's just nothing there. The contrast between her and Schiavone on the court was amazing. One player full of joy or regret about a shot. The other..just there. I inherently dislike players who bore the crap out of me and in the WTA, Stosur just skyrocketed to that position.

So thrilled for Schiavone. Such utter joy at winning. She seems utterly charming.

On the Nadal interview, earlier I picked a part of a Federer interview to show how it could be viewed as him being a raging dick. You can do that with every single player during every single interview. We all do it to validate our personal opinions about players. I'm sure I'll do it with Stosur soon. It's fun to do, so let's just enjoy it.

And remember, all of these guys, even lanky drips like Querry, are professional athletes making piles of money, traveling the world and playing tennis for money. It's hard to imagine they'd really be damaged by someone disliking them from afar on the internet. I've been hating on Nickelback for like a DECADE and it hasn't hurt them one bit. Dammit. Fucking Nickelback. Shitty crappy music that makes my ears bleed. Hate those guys.

[boringmember]

LOL, Querry really IS a lanky drip, isn't he?

[francienolan]

Jun 5, 2010 23:02:34 GMT apocalipstick said:

I've been hating on Nickelback for like a DECADE and it hasn't hurt them one bit. Dammit. Fucking Nickelback. Shitty crappy music that makes my ears bleed. Hate those guys.

What you weren't jealous that Tiger Woods was partying with NB a few months back ?

It would be a shame if yesterday's match was ratings failure as it was the best women's final in a while.

[breezybee]

It would be a shame if yesterday's match was ratings failure as it was the best women's final in a while

.

Were ratings down? I was excited for it because it had two women that had no slam titles. Such an excellent match too.

I can't believe I scheduled a match this morning. I'll only be home for the first hour and a half of the match. I don't think it will wrap up in that time. Even though I don't like Soderling I do like watching his game and I think it will be a good match.

[oopssorry]

I really appreciate your post, apocalipstick, because - while I think we have different lenses on the players - it helps me to see the players I like from that point of view. I often wondered why Roger was so boring to you, or Sam, or my other staid favorites. For me I have an inherent dislike (Schiavone excepted; she's such a unique bird!) for those who are too expressive on court. It's like I feel I have to balance it out and not cheer for them. And I love the steely players whose emotions I have to guess beneath the efforts to stay composed... I love knowing that there are tempests not too far down that they've had to work to control for whatever individual reasons there might be. And I'm riveted by that much more so than with the emoters, but I really like seeing it all from the other side. I think we'll both get some of what we look for today.

Looks pretty cool (temps) there today, but I'm not turning up the volume to find out!

[breezybee]

Soderling is not looking too comfortable out there. Hopefully he settles in soon because I'm hoping for a good match. Still want Rafa to win though.

Oops - I'm similar to you. I like, for the most part, calm players on the court. I think it stems from my love of Borg.

[oopssorry]

Me, too breezy - and Steffi - though I think I have always wanted this same profile, even in other sports.

[boringmember]

My NBC affiliate is showing a stupid telethon. Argh!