Ted Robinson’s Matchpoints

Forty-eight hours later and I’m still in awe over Sunday. A 10-hour plane flight, with time to absorb nearly a dozen London newspapers along with nearly a hundred messages, many from those who would be classified as “casual” fans, has lent to the aura of this match as “the best ever.”

Now I hear today that SI will feature the match on its cover. When Pete Sampras won his record 13th Slam and 7th Wimbledon, we came home to see a muscled and tattooed Jason Giambi on the SI cover. Sampras was appalled. And now we know that tennis fell victim to the BALCO scam.

This was pure.

This was cojones grande, the only way to describe Rafa doing what he could not 12 months earlier, find a way to win the third set from Federer.

This was a champion falling in “brutal gladiatorial combat…but tumbling with valour” in the stirring words of London Daily Mail writer Paul Hayward. And how fine is that description.

In 24 hours back home, there is a talk-show buzz and coffee shop chat about this match that I have not witnessed in many years.

These two made tennis relevant. Now can it sustain what these two have created?

More from the Wimbledon cache:

* The disappointment over early exits by Andy Roddick and James Blake certainly went away. Stories always emerge; be it Andy Murray’s next step towards the top echelon, Marat Safin (up 35 places to 40), Rainer Schuettler (up 55 to 39) and Arnaud Clement (up 73 to 72) all made themselves relevant again, the two-week siege and double wins for the Sisters, Britain’s obsession over 14-year-old junior champ Laura Robson and her marvelously refreshing attitude over new fame, and the continuing presence of so many former champions at the AELTC.

* The roof can’t arrive fast enough. Sunday’s final ended about 10 minutes before a nightmare encounter would have occurred. The Club, understandably, wanted play to continue until 9:30-9:45 p.m.. They, like everyone, wanted a result. The money and disruption for Monday play, perhaps as little as two games, would have been wasteful. Yet, there was a point at which the players would have said, understandably, that a Championship, particularly from a match so superior, couldn’t be decided in darkness. Thankfully, we were spared the moment. A match for the ages had a proper ending in the dusk of Centre Court.

And traditionalists need not weep. Centre Court will still be open. Remember that grass needs light. The roof will only close once it rains, a 12-minute process. Thus, the courts will be still be covered for a short period. The benefit of the roof will be to guarantee play after a short stoppage and thus never again the drama of Sunday night.

* Major consensus in London was that the Williams Sisters success was due in part to the weakness of the WTA Tour. This is a debate for another time but the perception must be countered by the Tour.

* Start perhaps with Aggie Radwanska, the most impressive of the game’s young women. She has a Martina Hingis-like presence on the court that adds conviction to less-than-punishing shots. She simply doesn’t beat herself. Her lack of serve may hinder the hopes of a Wimbledon title, but the women’s game needs a player like Aggie to rise.

After all, this week’s rankings still feature Patty Schnyder, a career fourth-round player with one Slam semi to her credit, at 13 in the world. Lindsay Davenport won one round at Wimbledon and rose to 23. Tough to explain that to the sporting public.

* While we’re on that point, Serena passed Venus on the computer (reason 5,742 why I hate the concept). But my colleague, SI’s Jon Wertheim, poses a terrific question: has Venus’ career eclipsed Serena’s?

* Now we move to the hard courts and wonder whether Donald Young, John Isner (both of whom fell and are close to being out of the top 100) and Sam Querrey can make a move. Can Bethanie Mattek continue her momentum from the spring/summer and make a Robby Ginepri-like charge through the summer?

And can Rafa play well in the States, particularly the Open? Will his knees, the ones that Uncle Toni admits are so tender that the family wants Rafa to play LESS on the hard stuff, allow him to show New York his greatness?

And does Roger, whose performance at Wimbledon showed he is certainly not done, feel a little pressure to win Slams sooner rather than later?

As Novak Djokovic fell to Marat Safin, my thoughts veered to one of tennis’ more astounding streaks: Roger Federer’s current run of 16 consecutive Slam semis.

It’s not as impressive as 10 straight Slam finals or 12 Slam titles (both at the top of Fed’s Greatest Hits) but it speaks to the dominance that Djokovic and Nadal have threatened but can’t match.

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Novak had the early makings of a run (five straight semis) but he fell victim to what Federer has avoided since 2002 Wimbledon (before he was a champion) in the early-round KO.

If you didn’t see the match, Safin had the day which all opponents fear when he plays like a contender and not a good-time Charlie. Yes, it was windy and likely contributed to Djokovic’s 10 doubles. But, Novak didn’t show the champion’s fight, especially in a flat third set, when things were going against him.

Contrast that to Rafael Nadal’s breakthrough Wimbledon win – his 2006 second-round over Robert Kendrick – when Rafa rallied from two sets down against a young American who was in a serving zone.

Or Federer’s classic 5-set win over Janko Tipsarevic in this year’s Aussie when, it turned out, Roger was afflicted with mono.

Djokovic actually gave a small glimpse at the truth in his post-match intro when he said there was no physical fatigue, but admitted to a shred of mental fatigue.

There’s been the adjustment to his first Slam, the pursuit of Fed and Nadal that has succeeded in creating a separate race for the Big 3, and the challenge that those 3 have accepted in taking places on the ATP Board.

The last point is the huge story within men’s tennis – the actions of ATP Chair Etienne de Villiers that have angered the game’s best players to the point that they felt compelled to “overthrow” the current leadership.

This is not an exaggeration; the Big 3 have learned of the methods employed by the ATP in creating a new 2009 schedule, forcing more participation by the players in a 19-tournament series (eliminating the freedom to schedule that the 3 feel they have earned and is essential to their continued success) and led to the potentially explosive Hamburg lawsuit (ATP legal fees are said to have exceeded $10M.)

More on this to come in the fortnight, but suffice to say that when Djokovic copped to some mental fatigue, I understood.

So much on this Thursday, but the highlight was simultaneous play from Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the first time I can recall that at any major. Rain caused the overlap with the 2 greats occupying the show courts in the late afternoon; both had similar results, although Federer had a small glitch, dropping the first set tiebreak to scrappy Albert Montanes. Too soon to project the final weekend, but Federer is hitting his backhand well and seems healthy with his normal movement. It’s not enough to beat Nadal when Rafa is on, but it is more than enough to keep Federer #2 in the clay court world.

Disappointment for James Blake, who lost a chance to make the second week at RG. With his section wide open, Blake needed a win over a talented teen, Ernests Gulbis of Latvia. A tough draw no doubt, but Blake is still searching for the Slam where he wins a few that he’s not supposed to. James got this match to 1-1, but dropped serve late in the third and never recovered.

Mardy Fish had a chance with a hobbled Lleyton Hewitt playing at 80 percent efficiency (torn hip cartilage). But Mardy, after dropping a tight first set, couldn’t hold a break advantage in the second and went out in straight.

Bobby Reynolds fell in four to the resurgent Nico Lapentti, who made the main draw at 31.

But Robby Ginepri, late in the night, pulled off the stunner, knocking out seeded Igor Andreev in four sets. More details on that match to come tomorrow.

So there are 2 Americans in the third round, Wayne Odesnik draws Novak Djokovic late Friday (around noon ET, 9 AM PT) and today Justin Gimelstob told me of his admiration for Odesnik. This is a rare young player who seeks help, solicits advice and enjoys clay. Wayne is working with Spaniard Felix Mantilla while in Paris and has Francisco Montana, late of Robby Ginepri, at home. But he looks at the French as a challenge, not an obligation. Odds are his stay will end Friday night, but Odesnik has put his name in the mix of American tennis.

Low road comment of this Roland Garros comes from tournament doctor, Dr. Montalvan. Speaking in defense of Richard Gasquet’s withdrawal, Dr. Montalvan said it was “my personal opinion” that Andy Roddick withdrew because clay is not his favorite surface. Why a doctor sees the need to opine is a different story, but Roddick had played the last 7 French Opens and will be in Madrid for September’s Davis Cup semi against Nadal. Roddick’s record on court can be addressed but not his competitiveness.

How open is this men’s draw? One of the following four: Gulbis, Michael Llodra, Simone Bolelli or Lapentti will be a quarterfinalist.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing: the Eurosport commentator said that Nikolay Davydenko’s win over Marat Safin was “huge” for any win over Safin is significant. Davydenko is 4 in the world, and posted a Roddick-Nadal double to win Miami. Safin is 73 in the world. That statement needed a hyperbole check.

Here’s why the men’s game is so terrific: Marat Safin, Aussie champion just 3 years ago, and Marcos Baghdatis, finalist 2 years ago, met in the second round. Yes, I know we just had the Sharapova-Davenport collision but that is an absolute rarity for the women.

Safin, now a noted mountain climber, played like the former #1 for the third and fourth sets. Unfortunately for the Russian, he spotted Baghdatis 2 sets and was no match for the Cypriot in the fifth. Yet, Safin still flashed moments of utter brilliance, such as  serving at 0-3, 0-30 in the fifth and he unleashed a series of jaw-dropping shots to hold.

Baghdatis celebrated his strong 2006 (F Aussie, SF Wimby) off the court and paid a price last year. Maturity appears to have arrived and, if so, he should be back in the Top 10.

One note in the Baghdatis matches is the highly audible crowd support from the significant Cypriot/Greek community in Australia. Sadly, in a match involving a young Greek, Konstantinos Economidis, the Aussies resorted to pepper spray for “crowd control.” Seems rash from a distance, and particularly strange in such a sports-loving and sportsmanlike country.

My favorite tennis setting was the 2001 Wimbledon final, where Aussie and Croat expats jammed Centre Court to cheer Patrick Rafter and Goran Ivanisovic in their Monday fight. It had the flair of a World Cup match in tennis’ most austere setting.

Global growth in tennis means cultural clashes. Proper behavior, often regarded in societies as utter silence, at tennis matches may carry different meanings in different venues.

So, here’s a little third round men’s section: Baghdatis against Lleyton Hewitt (CORRECTION: Hewitt worked late last year with Darren Cahill, but Cahill has made a commitment to broadcasting and Hewitt prepped with Tony Roche) and Sam Querrey against Novak Djokovic.

Querrey had a moment of growth in his second round win over Dmitry Tursunov. Serving at 2-0 in the first set tiebreak, Querrey tossed in a double. Unnerved, he lost the next 4 points. At 2-5, Querrey engaged Tursunov in a long baseline battle, unyielding in his groundstrokes, until Tursunov snapped with an errant forehand. Momentum shifted on that one point and Querrey proceeded to win 5 straight points and the breaker. Tursunov rebounded to win the second but Querrey ripped off the next two to earn his meeting with Djokovic.
 
More props to Vince Spadea, a five-set winner over German Denis Gremelmeyer. Spadea, who proclaimed his longing for Starbucks, earns a longer stay in Australia (he lost 2R last year) and the ranking points that will keep him in tournaments for another year.

And James Blake (straight sets over Michael Russell) and Andy Roddick (meets Phillip Kohlschreiber Thursday night US time) move on in impressive fashion.

Yet another confounding example of the computer: if Rafael Nadal wins the Aussie and Roger Federer loses before the semis, Rafa supplants Fed as #1. Now I know the Slam count would be even at 2-2 in such a case, but Fed’s superiority on hard courts and over the duration of the year would leave at least this observer skeptical of such a ranking shift.