Tennis Random, Random (On Court)

[ponchi101]

And let's not even mention how one feels after your SP pick loses 8-10 in a fifth set TB

[Deuce]

I am going to try and put a kids(teens) view on this Emma no pressure thing.

Teens have this happy go lucky way of thinking or everything is a complete doomsville attitude when it comes to just about everything. I think you can all relate if you have raised a teenager like me who at one minute can be bouncing around the house with no cares in the world and then the next minute it is like the world is ending. I think it is just the way we are wired.

Emma, Leylah & Coco although they have a lot more responsibilities than me but still they all have parents and families taken care of a lot of the crap that goes along with the pressures of being a professional tennis player. Yeah they still have to go out on the court and play the matches and that has to be normal pressure like any sports competition is but it also has to be a blast being a teen and playing a game at the level they play it at and in many ways I think they see it that way.

I love the attitude that Emma has and if it makes her feel awesome going into these tournaments than more power to her.

Well... whatever and however Emma is feeling, it's not working when it comes to her tennis.
I don't know her, and so I don't know if she needs to take her tennis more seriously, or if she needs to be more loose and 'have no cares'... but something definitely needs to change if she is to have further success in pro tennis.

If she doesn't care whether she achieves more success in tennis or not, that's her right, of course, and is perfectly fine. But if that's the case, she should get out of pro tennis and make room for someone who wants to compete and improve.

[Deuce]

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With a Throwback Style, He’s Charging Forward

We’re well past the glory days of the serve-and-volley style that took John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova and Pete Sampras to the Hall of Fame. Maxime Cressy is on a one-man revival mission.

By Matthew Futterman
June 29, 2022
WIMBLEDON, England —

“My butt is killing me.”

That was Maxime Cressy, a little more than an hour after his four hour, 10 minute marathon win over Felix Auger-Aliassime on Tuesday in the fading light of the No. 3 Court, the steeple of St. Mary’s Church in sight just above the tree line. The little-known Cressy, a 25-year-old American who was born and raised in France, only recently cracked the top 50, but he has already achieved something no player ever will, and few aspire to, because, well, as Cressy said, it’s rather painful, and maybe not so smart.
To watch Cressy play and win a match on the Wimbledon grass is to take a journey back in time, to the glory years of serve-and-volley tennis, to the days of John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg and Pete Sampras.

It was a time before professional tennis became much more uniform and far friendlier to camping out on the baseline and blasting groundstrokes. Before ever-lighter and more powerful rackets and next-generation polyester strings made passing shots on the run from the deepest corners possible with a wrist-flick. It all turned rushing the net on too many points into a foolish, anachronistic mission, like stuffing 30 wooden rackets in the bag before taking the court.

“They don’t really know how to volley that well, so they don’t want to come in even when invited,” Navratilova said this week of the modern generation of players.

Even Reilly Opelka, who is nearly 7 feet tall and possesses one of the deadliest serves in the game, won’t consider it, despite having the wingspan of an Andean condor. Too tough to move, he explained, especially on soft grass, and especially for anyone who takes big strides like he does.

Maria Sakkari is one of the most aggressive players in the game. But she has long been somewhat allergic to the net, so much so that her coach, Tom Hill, has set a goal for her to go to the net 20 times in a match, though not by serving and volleying, which she rarely practices.

“Whether I can do it or not, that’s the goal,” she said.

She got there 10 times on Tuesday in her straight-set opening-round win over Zoe Hives of Australia.

Carlos Alcaraz is still trying to figure out how to play on grass even though he is the game’s hottest rising star and one of the fastest players. He possesses some deft touch at the net, too.

“I lost every time,” he said. “I didn’t want to try again.”

And yet, amid all this net-play pessimism, there is Cressy, all 6-foot-6 of him, plus the mop of dirty blond curls that gives him an extra inch or two. He comes in behind his first serve, his second serve and on his opponent’s serve, whenever he senses a chance. He comes in after every shortish ball he sees and even after his opponent passes him on three consecutive points. He believes in serve-and-volley with the fervor of a cult member, even if it is a cult of one.

“This style can take me to the top,” he said after a first-round loss at the French Open, and when he says “the top,” he means the No. 1 ranking. After all, that loss was on clay, which has long been kryptonite to serve-and-volleyers.

Cressy has been battling conventional wisdom for a decade, trying to master the serve-and-volley since he was a promising junior player in France. France’s tennis federation basically told him to cut it out, as though he were goofing off during practice. If that was the way he was going to play, they didn’t want much to do with him. Cressy would not budge.

“I loved it,” he said Tuesday night after knocking off Auger-Aliassime, the sixth-seeded Canadian and a fashionable dark-horse at Wimbledon, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6 (9), 7-6 (5). He will play another American, Jack Sock, in the second round on Thursday. “If it is something I love, I might as well do it and make it as efficient as possible.”

Cressy trained at an academy during his last year in high school and was recruited to play at U.C.L.A., where coaches saw some potential for him in doubles. They were correct, and he became a collegiate doubles champion in 2019.

But Cressy never stopped believing in the idea that his sport was ignoring a style that could be incredibly efficient for a singles player with a big serve, an ability to move, unflappable confidence and a willingness to sprint, scurry, bend, crouch, squat and stretch for balls before they land. Hence the sore rear end after Tuesday’s match.

Lately, something has clicked. In December, Cressy was ranked 112th. He played into the final 16 at the Australian Open in January, had a rough patch in the late winter and early spring, then got on a roll that has sent him up to No. 45, one of the fastest rises in the sport this year.

The elevation has come after years of studying film of Sampras and McEnroe and all the other great net hounds. His three years as a professional have been a process of trial and error, especially trying to figure out how to best use his cannon-like serve. At some point, he’s not sure when, there was an epiphany — the most effective and reliable serve was not the perfectly placed, overpowering 140-mile-an-hour ace. Too often, that is a low-percentage shot.

Rather, it’s the serve that produces an easy volley. His first serve averaged 123 miles an hour on Tuesday; his second 119. Many players, even the best ones, lose 20 miles per hour or more from their first to second serve. He did not lose a service game.

“It’s very difficult playing someone who is basically hitting two first serves,” a frustrated Auger-Aliassime said of Cressy after the match.

Cressy has experimented with different serve patterns, trying to spray them across the service box, but he ultimately settled on using just two — one wide and the other down the middle of the court, though he mainly uses the latter just to keep his opponents from focusing fully on his wide serves. Most often, he hits a high, kicking serve out wide. It goes in a lot. If it comes back, it’s often in his volleying strike zone.

After the serve, he sprints to the net and instinct takes over. He never has a plan for where the volleys will go. In a split second, he sees the ball, the court and the opponent. A pulse from his brain to his hands says punch, or drive, or cut, or slice or drop volley.

The ball crashes into his strings. And it goes from there. So many of his volleys land just inches from the baseline. Even the lost art of the deep volley, something lamented by many, including Dick Gould, the retired Stanford tennis coach who helped turn McEnroe into a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, lives on in Cressy.

It is a lonely way to play, Cressy said: so many doubters telling him serve-and-volley is a relic and no one over his shoulder when he looks back to see if anyone will join his cause. There is, though, the joy and cockeyed logic that only the iconoclast understands and figures out how to use for his benefit.

“It is a bumpy road to be unique on the tour,” he said Tuesday, “but that helps my confidence.”

[Cuckoo4Coco]

I am going to try and put a kids(teens) view on this Emma no pressure thing.

Teens have this happy go lucky way of thinking or everything is a complete doomsville attitude when it comes to just about everything. I think you can all relate if you have raised a teenager like me who at one minute can be bouncing around the house with no cares in the world and then the next minute it is like the world is ending. I think it is just the way we are wired.

Emma, Leylah & Coco although they have a lot more responsibilities than me but still they all have parents and families taken care of a lot of the crap that goes along with the pressures of being a professional tennis player. Yeah they still have to go out on the court and play the matches and that has to be normal pressure like any sports competition is but it also has to be a blast being a teen and playing a game at the level they play it at and in many ways I think they see it that way.

I love the attitude that Emma has and if it makes her feel awesome going into these tournaments than more power to her.

Well... whatever and however Emma is feeling, it's not working when it comes to her tennis.
I don't know her, and so I don't know if she needs to take her tennis more seriously, or if she needs to be more loose and 'have no cares'... but something definitely needs to change if she is to have further success in pro tennis.

If she doesn't care whether she achieves more success in tennis or not, that's her right, of course, and is perfectly fine. But if that's the case, she should get out of pro tennis and make room for someone who wants to compete and improve.

Emma certainly has the ability to go very far in the game of tennis. I think she also cares about the game of tennis because like almost all of these players they have dedicated a lot of their time to the game since they were very little and I don't think you just do that unless you care about something quite a bit.

I have been playing and learning the game of tennis since I was 5 years old. Now I am not at the level of Emma or do I think I have ever trained probably at that level like Emma, Coco, or Leylah. I do know though I have dedicated a lot to this game over all those years and now I am 16 years old and I still love it. I still train 5 to 6 days per week up to 2 hours per day. 1 of those days is not on the court and just a cardio/workout day. Sunday I never do anything tennis related unless I am in a tournament.

[Deuce]

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Judy Murray on Emma Raducanu

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[ponchi101]

Serve and volley tennis disappeared because of the racquets (and strings), and then a circular reasoning: the racquets got more powerful, so it became easier to pass, to people stayed back and concentrated more on ground strokes, so they stopped S&V.
Murray and Djokovic are the perfect examples. You hit a very good volley on them and they only need to get to it and bunt it back, and the racquet will give them the power and control to pass the man at the net with ease. In the past, players like Borg or Connors needed to take full swings at the ball, or it would not go over the net.
And having played with a Babolat Pure Drive once, I say Babolats are the perfect racquets to spray balls all around. Cressy's S&V is even more impressive because he uses the Aero, a racquet clearly designed for power from the back. His preferred choice, obviously, but a difficult racquet to practice his craft.

[Cuckoo4Coco]

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Judy Murray on Emma Raducanu

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I understand that sponsors want to be visible in as many tournaments as possible but they cannot force a player to play in a tournament especially if they are having some sort of setback from an injury can they? I would think the decision to play a tournament in those cases would come down to the player, trainer/doctor/coach & parents.

[meganfernandez]

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Judy Murray on Emma Raducanu

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I understand that sponsors want to be visible in as many tournaments as possible but they cannot force a player to play in a tournament especially if they are having some sort of setback from an injury can they? I would think the decision to play a tournament in those cases would come down to the player, trainer/doctor/coach & parents.

Can they? Yes. Do they? Probably. Should they? No way. It’s a gross contradiction of “we support you.” Of course the sponsor is in it for the exposure, but they would also say they care about the athlete, that the relationship is important. And the on-court exposure isn’t the only type of exposure. They could decide to pull the sponsorship if it’s not working but pressuring the person to do something potentially unhealthy would be pretty low and short-sighted.

And I bet it happens.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Cuckoo4Coco]

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Judy Murray on Emma Raducanu

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I understand that sponsors want to be visible in as many tournaments as possible but they cannot force a player to play in a tournament especially if they are having some sort of setback from an injury can they? I would think the decision to play a tournament in those cases would come down to the player, trainer/doctor/coach & parents.

Can they? Yes. Do they? Probably. Should they? No way. It’s a gross contradiction of “we support you.” Of course the sponsor is in it for the exposure, but they would also say they care about the athlete, that the relationship is important. And the on-court exposure isn’t the only type of exposure. They could decide to pull the sponsorship if it’s not working but pressuring the person to do something potentially unhealthy would be pretty low and short-sighted.

And I bet it happens.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That would be really sucky if a sponsor would do something like pressure a player who they know is injured to play just for exposure. If I were that player I would say you can stick your sponsporship and find something else. Many of the really high profile players give exposure to the sponsors by doing commercials and even on ads in magazines and billboards and stuff like that.

[ponchi101]

Always a delicate balance. Sure, the sponsors cannot force you to play. But for some players, those with top endorsements (meaning $millions), the sponsors are also paying a lot of money for there product to be highlighted. Notice how all players that have a Rolex endorsement walk off the court after a win and immediately put on that $25.000 watch on. It is part of the deal.
I remember the case of Kafelnikov. Surly, petulant during interviews, impossible to get him to do one interview or promotion for any tournament. Not a bad guy and a person with two slams, yet he played for years with no clothing contract because, well, he was an endorsement's nightmare. Sure, his decision, but for other players (and Emma is in that group) it means the difference between an enjoyable life, and financial security for you and two or three generations of your family.
A delicate balance to achieve.

[Deuce]

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Judy Murray on Emma Raducanu

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I understand that sponsors want to be visible in as many tournaments as possible but they cannot force a player to play in a tournament especially if they are having some sort of setback from an injury can they? I would think the decision to play a tournament in those cases would come down to the player, trainer/doctor/coach & parents.

It depends what the contract says.
Important stuff is often hidden in the fine print - and so it's best to have a lawyer read through it. Sponsors have certainly been known to take advantage of inexperienced players - especially in individual sports.

No sponsor can or will say that a player must play while injured... but they can state that the player must make a 'reasonable effort' to play - and that can be interpreted in different ways... and the sponsor could threaten to cancel the contract if they claim that the player isn't making a 'reasonable effort' to play...
The field of business is certainly not the most honest in the world... but it is one of the most greedy.

Top players make enough money from their wins to live a luxurious life for the rest of their life - they don't need the sponsorships.
And so it becomes kind of a pissing contest of players competing with each other to see who can make the most money - money that they don't need.

And this is true of all pro sports today. So much money being wasted by giving it to the already filthy rich, rather than using it to... say... feed and house people who have no home and/or little food.

[Cuckoo4Coco]

Always a delicate balance. Sure, the sponsors cannot force you to play. But for some players, those with top endorsements (meaning $millions), the sponsors are also paying a lot of money for there product to be highlighted. Notice how all players that have a Rolex endorsement walk off the court after a win and immediately put on that $25.000 watch on. It is part of the deal.
I remember the case of Kafelnikov. Surly, petulant during interviews, impossible to get him to do one interview or promotion for any tournament. Not a bad guy and a person with two slams, yet he played for years with no clothing contract because, well, he was an endorsement's nightmare. Sure, his decision, but for other players (and Emma is in that group) it means the difference between an enjoyable life, and financial security for you and two or three generations of your family.
A delicate balance to achieve.

Having that money security is all great but like they say it doesn't bring you happiness. I grew up in a family that has been pretty financially secure with both grandparents being that way. Both my grandparents have helped me and my brothers with whatever sports and whatever we needed for that particular sport. For me it was tennis and for them it was Lacrosse. We never had to worry about equipment, lessons, camps, coaches, whatever. That is all great and everything and I do feel blessed for everything, but what really brings me happiness is when I can volunteer at a tennis camp for little kids who may not have much and just show them how much fun the game of tennis can be and get smiles on these little kids faces. I was once one of these little kids who was 5, 6, 7 years old who was just learning the fun of the game and I love being that person that can share that with little kids.

[meganfernandez]

Always a delicate balance. Sure, the sponsors cannot force you to play. But for some players, those with top endorsements (meaning $millions), the sponsors are also paying a lot of money for there product to be highlighted. Notice how all players that have a Rolex endorsement walk off the court after a win and immediately put on that $25.000 watch on. It is part of the deal.
I remember the case of Kafelnikov. Surly, petulant during interviews, impossible to get him to do one interview or promotion for any tournament. Not a bad guy and a person with two slams, yet he played for years with no clothing contract because, well, he was an endorsement's nightmare. Sure, his decision, but for other players (and Emma is in that group) it means the difference between an enjoyable life, and financial security for you and two or three generations of your family.
A delicate balance to achieve.

Having that money security is all great but like they say it doesn't bring you happiness. I grew up in a family that has been pretty financially secure with both grandparents being that way. Both my grandparents have helped me and my brothers with whatever sports and whatever we needed for that particular sport. For me it was tennis and for them it was Lacrosse. We never had to worry about equipment, lessons, camps, coaches, whatever. That is all great and everything and I do feel blessed for everything, but what really brings me happiness is when I can volunteer at a tennis camp for little kids who may not have much and just show them how much fun the game of tennis can be and get smiles on these little kids faces. I was once one of these little kids who was 5, 6, 7 years old who was just learning the fun of the game and I love being that person that can share that with little kids.

That’s really wonderful, C4C. Tennis can be a lifelong gift. I’m in my 40s and still thank my parents for teaching me to play, making it a part of our lives. I’m sure you are introducing tennis to some people who will have it in their lives for a very long time - and they will share it, too.

[ponchi101]

One of what I consider are two sports you can truly can play for a lifetime (the other one is skiing).
My current situation would not allow me to give an unbiased, balanced opinion on financial/monetary security and its relationship with happiness.

[Cuckoo4Coco]

Always a delicate balance. Sure, the sponsors cannot force you to play. But for some players, those with top endorsements (meaning $millions), the sponsors are also paying a lot of money for there product to be highlighted. Notice how all players that have a Rolex endorsement walk off the court after a win and immediately put on that $25.000 watch on. It is part of the deal.
I remember the case of Kafelnikov. Surly, petulant during interviews, impossible to get him to do one interview or promotion for any tournament. Not a bad guy and a person with two slams, yet he played for years with no clothing contract because, well, he was an endorsement's nightmare. Sure, his decision, but for other players (and Emma is in that group) it means the difference between an enjoyable life, and financial security for you and two or three generations of your family.
A delicate balance to achieve.

Having that money security is all great but like they say it doesn't bring you happiness. I grew up in a family that has been pretty financially secure with both grandparents being that way. Both my grandparents have helped me and my brothers with whatever sports and whatever we needed for that particular sport. For me it was tennis and for them it was Lacrosse. We never had to worry about equipment, lessons, camps, coaches, whatever. That is all great and everything and I do feel blessed for everything, but what really brings me happiness is when I can volunteer at a tennis camp for little kids who may not have much and just show them how much fun the game of tennis can be and get smiles on these little kids faces. I was once one of these little kids who was 5, 6, 7 years old who was just learning the fun of the game and I love being that person that can share that with little kids.

That’s really wonderful, C4C. Tennis can be a lifelong gift. I’m in my 40s and still thank my parents for teaching me to play, making it a part of our lives. I’m sure you are introducing tennis to some people who will have it in their lives for a very long time - and they will share it, too.

The people that made it fun for me when I was just a little girl are no longer involved in my tennis other than my family but I remember them so much. They made it really enjoyable for me and I wanted to keep going back to the court. I will never forget them.

Thank You, I hope that I can make it fun for these little kids and someday when they are my age and I am older they will look back and remember me and the fun they had.

When I play in tournaments and I know they are nothing like a pro tournament or even a college tournament if I am not having fun out there and smiling and having fun then I shouldn't be out there. Don't get me wrong I am also intense in a match and will motivate myself with a "Come On" or "Fist Pump" but most of the time I am just out there having a blast. I am playing the game I love so why not.