Backhand Compliment
The Aussie Open is heading into the quarters, with the following matches scheduled to take place today:
Andy Roddick v. Mardy Fish
Roger Federer v. Tommy Robredo
Serena Williams v. Shahar Peer
Nicole Vaidisova v. Lucie Safarova
The winners of these matches will meet in their respective semis, and obviously for ARod, this potentially will bring the white whale back into his sights. I give the Rod a lot of shit because he's just such an all-around ponce, but based on what I've seen of him in this tournament, particularly in the Safin match, I have to say he's looking pretty lethal. Finally, he seems to have a backhand that isn't a liability, and is in fact at times a weapon. I've been noticing him taking the two-hander hard and early, and this from someone who used to rely on a weak slice from the backhand side.
But look, what do I know? For an expert opinion on Rod's backhand situation and how it might help him fare against Moby Fed, I turned to my man Steve Tignor, a writer over at Tennis magazine. Steve is an old friend of mine from college, where he was a four-year All-American tennis player (Large - zero-year All-American). I once challenged Steve to a tennis match for money with the provisions that:
Here's what Steve had to say about the Rod's backhand:
One thing Roddick has said is that he's hit a ton of backhands in the last year and has grooved it to the point where he no longer "worries about it" (he used to get nervous with it). As far as improving it, he's taking the ball earlier, farther up in the court, and on the rise (heavy Connors influence) and extending through the hitting zone more (also a Connors specialty). The combination has made it a weapon.
It has to help him against Federer. The only guys to beat Federer in the last couple years are Nadal, Gasquet, Nalbandian, Safin, and Murray. What do these guys have in common? They're all very strong from their left sides—Nadal with his forehand, the rest with their backhands. That way they can fend off, at least some of the time, Federer's inside-out forehand.
But the main key for Roddick will still be serving the highest percentage of first serves possible and getting to the net a lot, before Federer has time to take over a point. No matter how good Roddick's backhand is, he'll always be scrambling in baseline rallies against The Fed.
Check out Steve's column, The Wrap, at Tennis.com, ESPN.com, and hopefully now and then right here at No Mas central. I'm putting together an incentive package right now, frontloaded with bitches and money. Expert analysis don't come cheap, let me tell you.
Andy Roddick v. Mardy Fish
Roger Federer v. Tommy Robredo
Serena Williams v. Shahar Peer
Nicole Vaidisova v. Lucie Safarova
The winners of these matches will meet in their respective semis, and obviously for ARod, this potentially will bring the white whale back into his sights. I give the Rod a lot of shit because he's just such an all-around ponce, but based on what I've seen of him in this tournament, particularly in the Safin match, I have to say he's looking pretty lethal. Finally, he seems to have a backhand that isn't a liability, and is in fact at times a weapon. I've been noticing him taking the two-hander hard and early, and this from someone who used to rely on a weak slice from the backhand side.
But look, what do I know? For an expert opinion on Rod's backhand situation and how it might help him fare against Moby Fed, I turned to my man Steve Tignor, a writer over at Tennis magazine. Steve is an old friend of mine from college, where he was a four-year All-American tennis player (Large - zero-year All-American). I once challenged Steve to a tennis match for money with the provisions that:
- He got one serve per point, I got as many as I needed
- He had to wear a pair of leather oxfords on the court
- He smoked cigarettes continuously throughout the entire match
Here's what Steve had to say about the Rod's backhand:
One thing Roddick has said is that he's hit a ton of backhands in the last year and has grooved it to the point where he no longer "worries about it" (he used to get nervous with it). As far as improving it, he's taking the ball earlier, farther up in the court, and on the rise (heavy Connors influence) and extending through the hitting zone more (also a Connors specialty). The combination has made it a weapon.
It has to help him against Federer. The only guys to beat Federer in the last couple years are Nadal, Gasquet, Nalbandian, Safin, and Murray. What do these guys have in common? They're all very strong from their left sides—Nadal with his forehand, the rest with their backhands. That way they can fend off, at least some of the time, Federer's inside-out forehand.
But the main key for Roddick will still be serving the highest percentage of first serves possible and getting to the net a lot, before Federer has time to take over a point. No matter how good Roddick's backhand is, he'll always be scrambling in baseline rallies against The Fed.
Check out Steve's column, The Wrap, at Tennis.com, ESPN.com, and hopefully now and then right here at No Mas central. I'm putting together an incentive package right now, frontloaded with bitches and money. Expert analysis don't come cheap, let me tell you.
2 Comments:
peyton mannning vs the pats.
destiny vs dynasty.
great drama, a duel.
a dogfight.
won on the last drive.
and you speak of tennis.
vince lombardi weeps.
The NFL jumped the shark.
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