I have to admit that it's been quite a while since I've really gotten into a tennis match. With "A-Rod" rarely making it to a grand slam final these days, my interest in tennis over the past few years has waned A LOT! Since there weren't any baseball games to be found this morning on TV, I decided to have some "Breakfast at Wimbledon." As it turned out, the finals match today pitting Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer went into my lunchtime and boy was I glad that I tuned in!
The match was truly remarkable as each player hit some remarkable shots under the intense pressure of a worldwide audience... Nadal took the first two sets 6-4, and then the rains took over in the third set. When play resumed a couple of hours later, Federer made a heroic comeback, winning the third set in a 7-5 tiebreaker. The five time defending champ then staved off two match points in the fourth set after being down 5-2. Federer came back to win that set in a second tiebreaker by a 10-8 score.
The fifth and final set was epic as well. The rains came again to further extend it. The players both held their serves though the first 14 games. Nadal finally broke through in the 15th game to take an 8-7 lead (there is no tie-breaker in the fifth set). Nadal then held his serve to capture the championship in the longest match in Wimbledon finals history - four hours and 48 minutes. What a match! You can't really say there was a loser today as both players were champions in every sense of the word. Well done, and congrats to Nadal on winning his first Wimbledon!
-----
Showing posts with label Tennis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tennis. Show all posts
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Garret Anderson EN FUEGO!
Another day, another Garret Anderson home run, another Los Angeles/Anaheim Angels win! It's beginning to sound like a broken record, but this is good news if you happen to be an Angels fan or where fortunate enough to grab "G.A." in your fantasy league when he first started getting hot. With a 4-3 win last night, the Angels have now won seven of their past nine games and opened up a 7 1/2 game lead in the American League West race. Over that nine game stretch, G.A.'s been nothing short of amazing - 6 home runs, 17 RBI's, 10 runs scored, and even a stolen base to go along with a .438 batting average!!! If you go back to cover his past 14 games, he has 8 home runs and 27 RBI's!!! Actually, G.A.'s been an absolute RBI machine for about the past month and a half - in his 45 games beginning July 19th, he has hit .293 with 11 home runs and 52 RBI's to go along with 27 runs scored. For those of you other numbers fiends out there, that's a 187 RBI pace!!! - Incredibly, that RBI pace is still short of the 191 that Hack Wilson put up in 1930 in only 154 games! Just shows you how truly great that 1930 season of Wilson's was.
-----
After a very difficult stretch where they lost 11 of 12 games, the Los Angeles Dodgers have suddenly seen their fortunes change. Brad Penny bobbed and weaved through seven innings at Wrigley Field in Chicago, allowing only one earned run despite giving up seven hits and three walks. Penny was clearly not at his best as he only struck out two batters, but he made good pitches when it counted, inducing the Cubs to ground into three double plays. Matt Kemp continued his hot hitting, going 4-for-5 to raise his batting average to .344. Jonathan Broxton and Takeshi Saito contined to pitch masterfully in the closing innings, each pitching a scoreless frame to secure Penny's 16th win on the year. Broxton now has a 2.13 ERA on the year, while Saito's ERA is a microscopic 1.31. Saito has a reasonable chance of breaking Eric Gagne's Dodger record ERA for a closer of 1.20 which was set in 2003. With their 13th win in their past 19 games, the Dodgers are now within just three games of the Arizona Dimaondbacks and San Diego Padres for the National League West division lead and Wild Card spot. The Dodgers looked hopelessly out of things just three weeks ago... Now, they look like they just might indeed be the playoff team we saw during the early part of the season.
-----
Meanwhile, back on the other coast, the Washington Nationals continue to demonstrate the resilency which has marked their first season under manager, Manny Acta. After a horrific second half of August, which saw them lose 12 of 15 games, including the final seven, the Nats came into yesterday's game against the Florida Marlins in the midst of a three game winning streak. Shawn Hill pitched an effective 6 1/3 innings for the Nats, allowing three runs and eleven hits, walking none and striking out six. Unfortunately for Hill, he left the game without a chance to win as Dontrelle Willis kept the Nats in check for seven innings, only allowing single runs in the first and third innings. Willis got into trouble in the bottom of the seventh as with one out, Nook Logan doubled and Felipe Lopez singled. Lee Gardner was then summoned from the Marlins pen and promptly got Ryan Zimmerman to hit a line drive right at the second baseman Alfredo Amezega, who doubled Lopez off of first...
Chris Schroeder pitched a scoreless ninth for the Nats, and the Marlins would then bring on their closer Kevin Gregg. Gregg has been a pleasant surprise for the Marlins this year, closing 28 games in 30 opportunities. Given his 93% success rate, the Nats chances at winning seemed slim at best. Gregg immediately got into trouble though as he walked leadoff man Dmitri Young. Ryan Langerhans (yes, he cleared waivers) then pinch ran for Da' Meathook... After an Austin Kearns strikeout, Wily Mo Pena singled to put Nats at first and third. Ronnie Belliard then fouled out weakly to first, and that set the stage for Jesus Flores. Earlier in the game, Flores dropped not one, but two foul pop-ups. While they didn't have any impact in the game, they did force a few extra pitches to be thrown. Flores then lined a ball deep to left field chasing home both Langerhans and the slow footed Pena to give the Nats an improbable come-from-behind 4-3 win!
-----
In other sports news, Phil Mickelson announced he will not play in this week's FedEx Cup event - Tiger Woods and Ernie Els had missed prior events. Perhaps tour commissioner Tim Finchem needs to listen to the tour's players a little more - it's a huge revenue and ratings loss when one of the big names isn't there. Maybe next year he will cut back on the pro-am tournaments that are part of the series and also spread out the tournaments so that the players can have a little more time with their families as their children begin the school year.
At the U.S. Open tennis championships in New York, there will be no "battle of the sisters" as Serena Williams was ousted by #1 seed Justin Henin by a 7-6, 6-1 score... #3 seed Jelena Jankovic takes on the 12th seeded Venus tonight, the winner will get to take on Henin... On the men's side, #2 Rafael Nadal was upset by #15 seed David Ferrer in four sets by a 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 score. Tonight, the much awaited feature match pits #1 seed Roger Federer against #5 Andy Roddick. We all hope A-Rod can win, but he's been unable to do much against Tiger's buddy Federer the past several years...
-----
-----
After a very difficult stretch where they lost 11 of 12 games, the Los Angeles Dodgers have suddenly seen their fortunes change. Brad Penny bobbed and weaved through seven innings at Wrigley Field in Chicago, allowing only one earned run despite giving up seven hits and three walks. Penny was clearly not at his best as he only struck out two batters, but he made good pitches when it counted, inducing the Cubs to ground into three double plays. Matt Kemp continued his hot hitting, going 4-for-5 to raise his batting average to .344. Jonathan Broxton and Takeshi Saito contined to pitch masterfully in the closing innings, each pitching a scoreless frame to secure Penny's 16th win on the year. Broxton now has a 2.13 ERA on the year, while Saito's ERA is a microscopic 1.31. Saito has a reasonable chance of breaking Eric Gagne's Dodger record ERA for a closer of 1.20 which was set in 2003. With their 13th win in their past 19 games, the Dodgers are now within just three games of the Arizona Dimaondbacks and San Diego Padres for the National League West division lead and Wild Card spot. The Dodgers looked hopelessly out of things just three weeks ago... Now, they look like they just might indeed be the playoff team we saw during the early part of the season.
-----
Meanwhile, back on the other coast, the Washington Nationals continue to demonstrate the resilency which has marked their first season under manager, Manny Acta. After a horrific second half of August, which saw them lose 12 of 15 games, including the final seven, the Nats came into yesterday's game against the Florida Marlins in the midst of a three game winning streak. Shawn Hill pitched an effective 6 1/3 innings for the Nats, allowing three runs and eleven hits, walking none and striking out six. Unfortunately for Hill, he left the game without a chance to win as Dontrelle Willis kept the Nats in check for seven innings, only allowing single runs in the first and third innings. Willis got into trouble in the bottom of the seventh as with one out, Nook Logan doubled and Felipe Lopez singled. Lee Gardner was then summoned from the Marlins pen and promptly got Ryan Zimmerman to hit a line drive right at the second baseman Alfredo Amezega, who doubled Lopez off of first...
Chris Schroeder pitched a scoreless ninth for the Nats, and the Marlins would then bring on their closer Kevin Gregg. Gregg has been a pleasant surprise for the Marlins this year, closing 28 games in 30 opportunities. Given his 93% success rate, the Nats chances at winning seemed slim at best. Gregg immediately got into trouble though as he walked leadoff man Dmitri Young. Ryan Langerhans (yes, he cleared waivers) then pinch ran for Da' Meathook... After an Austin Kearns strikeout, Wily Mo Pena singled to put Nats at first and third. Ronnie Belliard then fouled out weakly to first, and that set the stage for Jesus Flores. Earlier in the game, Flores dropped not one, but two foul pop-ups. While they didn't have any impact in the game, they did force a few extra pitches to be thrown. Flores then lined a ball deep to left field chasing home both Langerhans and the slow footed Pena to give the Nats an improbable come-from-behind 4-3 win!
-----
In other sports news, Phil Mickelson announced he will not play in this week's FedEx Cup event - Tiger Woods and Ernie Els had missed prior events. Perhaps tour commissioner Tim Finchem needs to listen to the tour's players a little more - it's a huge revenue and ratings loss when one of the big names isn't there. Maybe next year he will cut back on the pro-am tournaments that are part of the series and also spread out the tournaments so that the players can have a little more time with their families as their children begin the school year.
At the U.S. Open tennis championships in New York, there will be no "battle of the sisters" as Serena Williams was ousted by #1 seed Justin Henin by a 7-6, 6-1 score... #3 seed Jelena Jankovic takes on the 12th seeded Venus tonight, the winner will get to take on Henin... On the men's side, #2 Rafael Nadal was upset by #15 seed David Ferrer in four sets by a 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 score. Tonight, the much awaited feature match pits #1 seed Roger Federer against #5 Andy Roddick. We all hope A-Rod can win, but he's been unable to do much against Tiger's buddy Federer the past several years...
-----
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Phil Thrills @ Deutsch Bank!!
The last time that Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods were paired in the final round of a tournament it was a truly epic battle - a "mano a mano" effort at the Doral Open in March 2005, as Tiger prevailed over Phil by one stroke. In that tournament, Phil took a two stroke lead into the final round. Tiger and Phil exchanged the lead several times before Tiger pulled away at the end for a 2-stroke victory. Tiger shot a 66 to Phil's 69. On Labor Day, the fans finally got their wish... and believe me, it more than lived up to the hype!!
There was a little bit of an added twist in yesterday's final round of the Deutsch Bank tournament in Boston though as neither of the world's top two players took the lead into the final round. They were chasing Brett Wetterlich and Arron Oberholser. Wetterlich began the day at 13-under-par, carrying a one stroke lead over Oberholser, a two stroke lead over Phil, and a three stroke lead over both Tiger and Aaron Baddeley. Oberholser birdied the first hole and Wetterlich bogeyed the second hole to flip-flop positions. Most of us watching though just knew that it would only be a matter of time before Phil and/or Tiger would take over the lead. Sure enough, that would happen. A birdie on the 2nd, consecutive birdies on the 4th and 5th, followed by yet another birdie on the 7th pushed Phil to 15-under-par and a three stroke lead over Woods, Oberholser and Wetterlich. Tiger would then bogey the 9th hole to fall four back.
Phil's margin would grow to four strokes as he birdied the 10th hole. Olersholser would quickly answer with his own birdie on the 10th to get back within three. Tiger was now five strokes back and the tournament was now seemingly Phil's to lose. There's a good reason why Phil is often called "Phil the Thrill"... twice this weekend we got examples of this. On Friday, he was cruising along at 3-under-par before an errant tee shot and a couple of ill-advised hacks out of the rough left him with a triple-bogey 7 on the par four 9th hole. Yesterday, Phil's approach shot on the 12th hole was short and right. After a penalty drop, he nearly holed his 4th shot for a par as the ball hit the pin and rolled eight feet away. Phil would miss the bogey putt and suddenly his lead over Oberholser was down to one. Tiger lurked three back as did the steady Wetterlich who had a stretch of 12 straight pars after his early bogey.
On the 14th hole, Tiger rolled in a long birdie putt to draw within two. On the par-3 16th, Tiger hit a very nice shot to within eight feet of the hole. Mickelson came right back with an approach to within five feet. Both made their birdie putts. Oberholser would answer with a birdie of his own on 16 to get within a stroke again. Wetterlich broke his drought with a birdie of his own at 16 to get into a tie with Tiger.
Finally, the marquee pairing made it to the 18th hole... the ovations were loud and thunderous - as you'd expect for the tours two most popular players. Tiger would reach the green in two shots, while Phil's approach found some heavy rough to the left of the green. All day long - actually all week long, Phil was able to extricate himself out of trouble without any damage other than the two aforementioned occasions. Phil hit a brilliant pitch to within four feet of the hole. Tiger's long thirty-foot eagle put would stop a foot short of the hole. He tapped it in to temporarily pull within a stroke of Phil. The flatstick was Phil's friend all day as he only needed 23 putts on the day, sealing the effort by making his putt to close out his round of 66. Oberholser would have to eagle the hole to tie Phil, but his approach found the left rough and he settled for par. Wetterlich would birdie the hole to wind up in a tie for second with Tiger and Oberholser.
For the two stars that many used to call adversaries, there is now clearly a mutual respect in both camps... Tiger was quoted as saying "I think it was fun for both of us" while Phil made mention that he'd love to give the fans what they really want - a battle between the two in the final round of a major. Hopefully, next year we will get that wish. In the meantime, we will have to settle for showdowns such as yesterday's... and that isn't all bad!
-----
The other big story yesterday - well of course it was the return of Pedro Martinez for the New York Mets! In addition to notching his 3,000th strikeout yesterday, Pedro would make 76 pitches and go five innings. Pedro scattered five hits and walked three, giving up two earned runs while striking out four. The Mets would give him plenty of offense and the bullpen was more than adequate as Pedro's historic day was also a victorious one in a 10-4 decision over the Cincinnati Reds. Afterwards, Pedro was just happy to "feel healthy." For those like me that have followed his major league career since day one, it was very satisfying to see Pedro back and pitching effectively!
-----
Time for a little tennis now... Roger Federer had a little scare yesterday at the U.S. Open before he won an incredible 35 straight points over a nine game stretch on his serve. Federer lost the first set to Feliciano Lopez 6-3 before rallying and taking the final three sets. Federer will face the 2003 Open champion and America's best player, Andy Roddick in tomrrow's quarter finals. A-Rod won a tough first set tie-breaker against Tomas Berdych... Berdych then started having breathing problems and was forced to retire while down 2-0 in the second set. In today's feature matches on the men's side, #2 Rafael Nadal takes on David Ferrer, while #3 Novak Djokovic faces Juan Monaco. The women's side of the draw remains interesting in spite of the early exit of Maria Sharapova. #1 Justin Henin will take on Serena Williams, while #3 Jelena Jankovic takes on Serena's sister, Venus. If the two sisters happen to both pull off upsets, they would meet in the semi-finals.
------
There was a little bit of an added twist in yesterday's final round of the Deutsch Bank tournament in Boston though as neither of the world's top two players took the lead into the final round. They were chasing Brett Wetterlich and Arron Oberholser. Wetterlich began the day at 13-under-par, carrying a one stroke lead over Oberholser, a two stroke lead over Phil, and a three stroke lead over both Tiger and Aaron Baddeley. Oberholser birdied the first hole and Wetterlich bogeyed the second hole to flip-flop positions. Most of us watching though just knew that it would only be a matter of time before Phil and/or Tiger would take over the lead. Sure enough, that would happen. A birdie on the 2nd, consecutive birdies on the 4th and 5th, followed by yet another birdie on the 7th pushed Phil to 15-under-par and a three stroke lead over Woods, Oberholser and Wetterlich. Tiger would then bogey the 9th hole to fall four back.
Phil's margin would grow to four strokes as he birdied the 10th hole. Olersholser would quickly answer with his own birdie on the 10th to get back within three. Tiger was now five strokes back and the tournament was now seemingly Phil's to lose. There's a good reason why Phil is often called "Phil the Thrill"... twice this weekend we got examples of this. On Friday, he was cruising along at 3-under-par before an errant tee shot and a couple of ill-advised hacks out of the rough left him with a triple-bogey 7 on the par four 9th hole. Yesterday, Phil's approach shot on the 12th hole was short and right. After a penalty drop, he nearly holed his 4th shot for a par as the ball hit the pin and rolled eight feet away. Phil would miss the bogey putt and suddenly his lead over Oberholser was down to one. Tiger lurked three back as did the steady Wetterlich who had a stretch of 12 straight pars after his early bogey.
On the 14th hole, Tiger rolled in a long birdie putt to draw within two. On the par-3 16th, Tiger hit a very nice shot to within eight feet of the hole. Mickelson came right back with an approach to within five feet. Both made their birdie putts. Oberholser would answer with a birdie of his own on 16 to get within a stroke again. Wetterlich broke his drought with a birdie of his own at 16 to get into a tie with Tiger.
Finally, the marquee pairing made it to the 18th hole... the ovations were loud and thunderous - as you'd expect for the tours two most popular players. Tiger would reach the green in two shots, while Phil's approach found some heavy rough to the left of the green. All day long - actually all week long, Phil was able to extricate himself out of trouble without any damage other than the two aforementioned occasions. Phil hit a brilliant pitch to within four feet of the hole. Tiger's long thirty-foot eagle put would stop a foot short of the hole. He tapped it in to temporarily pull within a stroke of Phil. The flatstick was Phil's friend all day as he only needed 23 putts on the day, sealing the effort by making his putt to close out his round of 66. Oberholser would have to eagle the hole to tie Phil, but his approach found the left rough and he settled for par. Wetterlich would birdie the hole to wind up in a tie for second with Tiger and Oberholser.
For the two stars that many used to call adversaries, there is now clearly a mutual respect in both camps... Tiger was quoted as saying "I think it was fun for both of us" while Phil made mention that he'd love to give the fans what they really want - a battle between the two in the final round of a major. Hopefully, next year we will get that wish. In the meantime, we will have to settle for showdowns such as yesterday's... and that isn't all bad!
-----
The other big story yesterday - well of course it was the return of Pedro Martinez for the New York Mets! In addition to notching his 3,000th strikeout yesterday, Pedro would make 76 pitches and go five innings. Pedro scattered five hits and walked three, giving up two earned runs while striking out four. The Mets would give him plenty of offense and the bullpen was more than adequate as Pedro's historic day was also a victorious one in a 10-4 decision over the Cincinnati Reds. Afterwards, Pedro was just happy to "feel healthy." For those like me that have followed his major league career since day one, it was very satisfying to see Pedro back and pitching effectively!
-----
Time for a little tennis now... Roger Federer had a little scare yesterday at the U.S. Open before he won an incredible 35 straight points over a nine game stretch on his serve. Federer lost the first set to Feliciano Lopez 6-3 before rallying and taking the final three sets. Federer will face the 2003 Open champion and America's best player, Andy Roddick in tomrrow's quarter finals. A-Rod won a tough first set tie-breaker against Tomas Berdych... Berdych then started having breathing problems and was forced to retire while down 2-0 in the second set. In today's feature matches on the men's side, #2 Rafael Nadal takes on David Ferrer, while #3 Novak Djokovic faces Juan Monaco. The women's side of the draw remains interesting in spite of the early exit of Maria Sharapova. #1 Justin Henin will take on Serena Williams, while #3 Jelena Jankovic takes on Serena's sister, Venus. If the two sisters happen to both pull off upsets, they would meet in the semi-finals.
------
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
