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Post by falafaclese on Oct 23, 2009 20:48:40 GMT
I hope this leads to the WTA scuttling the on-court coaching altogether. I hate it.
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Mpol
3rd Round
Posts: 444
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Post by Mpol on Oct 23, 2009 23:57:06 GMT
YES! PLEASE! It is the lamest shit ever.
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Post by falafaclese on Oct 25, 2009 22:01:53 GMT
They just published the draws for the women's YECs here. Here are the groups: WHITE GROUP 1-Dinara Safina (RUS #1) 4-Caroline Wozniacki (DEN #4) 6-Victoria Azarenka (BLR #7) 8-Jelena Jankovic (SRB #9) MAROON GROUP 2-Serena Williams (USA #2) 3-Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #3) 5-Elena Dementieva (RUS #5) 7-Venus Williams (USA #8) |
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Post by oopssorry on Oct 27, 2009 2:24:39 GMT
How many grand slams (and finalists) difference between the groups? Someone with better math than I.
That seems crazy, but anything can happen in the WTA, I s'pose.
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Post by breezybee on Oct 28, 2009 0:00:51 GMT
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Post by Jer2002 on Oct 28, 2009 16:20:59 GMT
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Post by breezybee on Oct 28, 2009 16:43:50 GMT
Not sure how I feel about Agassi's admission. I don't really care that he did crystal meth. It's a shame but it's his life and it doesn't change what he's done for the sport since. On the other hand the dismissal of the case makes me feel even worse for people like Hingis and Gasquet who had every little fact of their case paraded for all to see while Agassi's just got swept under the rug.
The worst part is that every player is going to be asked their thoughts about it in their pressers.
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Post by falafaclese on Oct 28, 2009 17:21:15 GMT
I'm surprised. I wasn't really paying close attention to tennis when Agassi was in the midst of his mullet period, so I've never really been fully affected by that persona. All I have in my head is the way he was after he calmed down, and that person doesn't seem like the type of person who would do drugs (whatever that means, after all, what is "the type" anyway?). I agree though that it doesn't really bother me that he's made mistakes. Who hasn't? The false excuse does throw yet another weird twist into my feelings about Gasquet and Hingis though. I'd just as soon have all of the wrangling and punishment for these non-performance-enhancing drugs go down behind closed doors in every case.
Victoria Azarenka just pulverized a racquet in the next to last game in her match against Woz. I have no dog in this fight though. I like Woz, and for some reason, Azarenka has grown on me in the past few months in spite of her meltdowns.
Woz just won 7-5 in the third. Kind of a dramatic match. There were a slew of breaks in the third set.
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Post by falafaclese on Oct 28, 2009 17:55:03 GMT
Dinara just withdrew from her match against JJ after only 2 games. It looks like it might be lower back, although it's not clear. She was really sobbing as she walked from her baseline back to her chair and then off the court. I've never seen her like that.
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lt
Semi Finals
Posts: 3,223
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Post by lt on Oct 28, 2009 18:18:45 GMT
Wow, away from the computer for one day and look at what I miss. Well, talk about a way to get a book sold. . .
I love Andre. Always have. Always will, so I'm no good at saying what this means in that respect but:
this will bring up interesting discussions in the anti-WADA/pro-WADA battle. Since it was pre-WADA the pro-WADA folks can look at this as proof that something strong is needed to police the drug testing since a failed drug test shouldn't have been thrown out because of a letter from the player. Man, 1997 was one messed up year for drug testing. . .
Interesting that this all happened in 1997--the year of the 141 ranking, the Challenger events, all that weight gain. It was a bad year for Andre and it sounds like more than just his playing was going horribly wrong. I wonder who "Slim" really is.
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Post by vallegirl on Oct 29, 2009 2:45:27 GMT
I couldn't care less that he did meth as much as a) he lied when he tested positive and b) the ATP let him get away with it. As much as I love the game, it's also very classist and I always figured the true top names in the sport could get away with murder while the middling S. American players can't take over the counter cough medication without a nine-month suspension.
And sure enough, here comes the biggest name in the men's game was a drug user, tested positive said "I took all that meth accidentally" and the tour is like "Okley dokley, Andre," and let it end there. Part of the consequences of being a drug user is that you lose your good name, your career and your reputation, but the ATP helped him cover it up. So he's a liar and they're enablers.
I always felt Agassi was the biggest narcissist on the tour and once people started hating on the "bad boy of tennis" image he had originally he developed the new and improved, and now we know post-tweaker, Andre Agassi with the shaved head and the "humility." But he's always wanted to be adored. And now that he's last year's news he comes out with a memoir guaranteed to make him the talk of the town again. And now that he's retired, what does it matter that he's hurting the game that made him so rich and famous?
He's the prodigal son so everyone will forgive his sins because he'll probably cry to Oprah about them, but the men's game will be tainted by what the ATP allowed him to get away with. He loses nothing, maybe gains a few new fans because of his "honesty" and "integrity" and America loves nothing more than reformed sinners, but I'm more pissed that he's just crapping all over the sport that gave him so much. He should have come clean while he was still playing, and not when he has a book to sell, like the LV showman that he is.
The ATP brought this on themselves by accepting a self-serving letter rather than investigating their biggest star. They deserve whatever negative publicity they get because Andre needed to be adored some more. But still, I remember how so many people came down on Pete Sampras for not being a better "role model" or "ambassador" for tennis, but at least he managed to disappear into retirement without besmirching the game that gave him so much.
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Post by tikigirl on Oct 30, 2009 18:28:16 GMT
Very well said, vallegirl. Agassi always bugged me, and you summed up the narcissism angle perfectly. Anyway, I see a huge difference between PEDs and recreational drugs. They should stop testing for the fucking recreational drugs; people who use those are only harming their careers, and that's punishment enough. I don't see the need for morals police in any sport. The reaction from current players is pretty over-the-top too. Serena says she's never heard of crystal meth (really? is she that totally uninformed and out of touch?) but does mention she herself has a book coming out. That's the Serena we all know and love. Or hate. Or whatever. And Nadal harps on about what a cheater Agassi was, so I guess he doesn't know what the hell crystal meth is either. I vote for him and Serena as dumbasses of the year. Also, Navratilova compares Agassi to Roger Clemens, one of the big steroid/HGH cheats of baseball. So she's a dumbass too. PEDs versus recreational drugs, Martina. So, what a bunch of fucking idiots. I guess it's a good thing I don't watch tennis for the players' intellects. |
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Post by curlywhirly on Oct 30, 2009 19:25:12 GMT
It wouldn't surprise me if Serena really didn't know what crystal meth was...she and Venus have always struck me as a little sheltered and out of it when it comes to certain topics, maybe because of their Jehovah's Witness upbringing. I've heard then both state that they do not drink alcohol either. Gotta love that unrelated book plug, lol.
Is anyone following the YEC? It has been mighty entertaining and the qualifications for the semifinal berths are coming right down to the wire-- I got a real chuckle out of the fact that Venus has made it to the semis despite playing pretty badly...she qualified because Kuzzie, who was already out of contention, took Demented to the woodshed in two sets and spoiled Dem's chances to get through. All three have 1-3 records, but the percentage of sets won favors Venus.
Same thing is happening with the other group-- Azarenka needs to win her match against Radwanska to make the semis. Rad has taken the second set. Lol. Maybe Rad is working her tail off for her BFF Wozniacki. I'm hoping Azarenka loses because Woz has really impressed me with her gutsy play and I want her to qualify (Jankovic has made the semis basically due to a walkover against Safina! She's playing the worst out of everyone).
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Post by falafaclese on Oct 30, 2009 19:49:02 GMT
I'm watching Vickie and Agi, and it's excruciating. Azarenka is in tears right now with what I think is cramps, plus she already had to have her left thigh taped up. It looked like Azarenka was going to cruise through right up until 5-3 in the second. I'm a little annoyed that after Woz and Azarenka have been playing their hearts out all week, JJ basically stumbled backwards into the semis. It should really be the other two making it into the semis if you want to base it on who had to fight for it. Somehow Venus' situation doesn't bother me. I'm sure part of it is because I like her, but it's also because she didn't have the benefit of a walkover and then a match against someone who had played two long painful matches in a row. Venus at least fought through two close losses and then beat someone who was fully healthy.
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Post by breezybee on Oct 30, 2009 20:49:33 GMT
Tikigirl - to me that is the worst part. The press will be asking the players their opinions for months. Personally I don't care what they think although I did admire Roddick's twitter which basically said - "so what?".
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