2016 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters…ATP 1000…Monte Carlo, Monaco

[maxply]

....This is Federer's big chance...

Federer's big chance to:
Drop a pair of Spanish trinomials,
Get a few battles against some top tenners.

Hoping for a steady recovery and some confidence going into RG and Wimbledon.

[don_budge]

The Old Coach...

Ny dear old coach used to tell me that you play five tournaments in preparation for the ones that you want to peak for. I have the distinct feeling that Roger is pretty well satisfied with his performance at Monte Carlo.

As far as the tournament goes…it's up for grabs. Which is a good thing. Murray should have at least a 50/50 shot against Nadal which does wonders for the audience. The top half is a crap shoot as well…The Amazing Mr. Monfils or the Baby Bull who just escorted Roger out of the stadium. Either way it makes for an interesting tournament…far more interesting than the Miami Open.

Roger will be using all of the remaining time with one thing in mind. He is most likely preparing for Wimbledon. One last shot…one last hurrah. He'll be a long shot in any case. The best of five over the course of two weeks. But if there is one place he might just pull it off…it would be Wimbledon. If only they would add something to the fertilizer to speed up that damn grass.

Clay before grass as is the case. He is using the remainder of the European clay court season to get ready for Wimbledon. As far as Monte Carlo goes…for once I hope that Andy Murray wins. I never thought that I would ever hear myself say such a thing. Anything to stop Nadal.

[klacr]

So the Monte Carlo semis are comprised of Monfils, Tsonga, Nadal and Murray. Ummm, no thanks. Not interested. I'd rather stick my genitals in a meat grinder.

That last line may have been a bit harsh, but you can understand my frustrations. With that said, who am I kidding? I'll still make myself watch it, for the love of the sport.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

Ummm, no thanks. Not interested. I'd rather stick my genitals in a meat grinder.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

No match can be that bad....

[maxply]

Sad day for the Swissyboys.
Out of respect for the LaCroix family jewelry...
How ecstatic will the Francophone crowd will be if one of les frères français (the frenchbrothas) can take down either Hrrafa or muzzer?

Allez les gars!

[gzhpcu]

Come on Kyle, Monfils, at least is an entertaining, happy-go-lucky guy... Give your family jewels a chance...

[don_budge]

2016 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters…Semifinals

So the Monte Carlo semis are comprised of Monfils, Tsonga, Nadal and Murray. Ummm, no thanks. Not interested. I'd rather stick my genitals in a meat grinder.

That last line may have been a bit harsh, but you can understand my frustrations. With that said, who am I kidding? I'll still make myself watch it, for the love of the sport.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

A bit harsh? Not at all. A bit out of character? A welcome deviation. I have a lot of respect for those willing to speak their minds. I'm gong to try and watch both matches and it will be interesting as to just how much I will actually see of them.

Andy Murray versus Rafael Nadal…

Most significantly Andy Murray came into this tournament as the number two seed and Fafa Nadal the number five. Things have changed noticeably the past year and both of these members of the elite "Big Four" have undergone some rather radical changes in their respective standings in the tennis world. Murray had the back surgery which he has been making his way back from for the better part of a year and Nadal is making his way back from some undisclosed issues that we may never be privy to.

Nadal's play has been rather spotty to say the least. He has been losing to players than in the past he would have gladly had on the lunch menu. They used to be cat food to him. At his tournament he has handled himself somewhat differently and the results are becoming to look like what may have been expected of him in the past. The thumping of Stan Wawrinka may at first glance appear to be significant but Wawrinka is always a question mark in my book. Which Stan is going to show up? The "other" Stan showed up yesterday against Nadal as I made a vain attempt to watch the match. Stan didn't show much fight and this has become sort of his trademark. Peter Fleming in the booth identified this as well. Fleming being a true commentator…or at least as close as it comes these days.

Andy is 6-16 against Rafael and one of those victories came as a walkover…it was gifted to him by Nadal. In two matches in 2015 they split…Nadal winning at the World Tour Finals in a round robin match and Murray winning at Madrid. A big time clay court win for Murray as he was making his comeback from the surgery I believe. Let's look at this match as an even match going into the warmup. But if Nadal should get the upper hand and start to play like his former self…the question of Murray's manhood comes up. Does he have the intestinal fortitude to fight it out…can he reach deep down and pull it together or does he go screaming and whining at his box?

I watched a little of his match against Raonic…in fact I have seen quite a few bits and pieces of the matches…and his match against the lumbering Canuck was no different than any other. It was boring. Milos didn't look to be present and accounted for and one has to wonder if he may just be injured again. His physique doesn't look to be one of the modern day backcourt grinder but that is exactly what he did for years on the tour. The damage may have been done structurally in spite of some efforts to retool his game and play more at the net. But there wasn't much to take away from that match about Murray unless we are to believe that he was than invincible.

Nadal on the other hand has a lot to prove and what better stage for him to do it on. His success here in Monte Carlo is a historical precedent now and he should be brimming with confidence. But is he?

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga versus Gael Monfils…

That is "The Amazing Mr. Monfils" to you. Monfils has had some pretty good form recently and although he is reputedly an "iffy" competitor the last couple of years he has found himself in the light more and more. Part of the reason is he is a big showboat and the game has become so predictably dull he has been catapulted into the scene as one who just might be able to generate some interest. Any interest he generates might be rather temporary as as amazing Mr. Monfils is…he is even more inconsistent.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on the other hand is one of the useful guys on tour. Not quite good enough to qualify as one of the "Big Four" but his presence is large enough to occasionally take down one of the big names. Case in point in this tournament he has taken down a slightly less than match tough Roger Federer as he more than should have.

While the match itself may never materialize into anything of real substance there may be some highly "entertaining" moments. Moments engineered to take the audiences eye off of the ball and to lead them to think that there is something redeeming to this modern game of tennis afterall. Here are a couple of really good athletes with really impressive physiques and I want to say skill sets. But why is it if they are so athletic that they are both using two handed backhands when one would do so nicely. Moreover than the two individuals you have the entire French Tennis Federation being represented in this semi-final. Out of the ten or eleven French participants who began this tournament and more importantly seven were in the second round…one of the French losing to a fellow French player. Five French players were left in the round of sixteen and now we have this all French semi. What are the French doing so well?

Eleven Spanish players were in the first round of this tournament as well. The Spanish had a very successful tournament as well with three players playing in the quarterfinals. It's to be expected right…it is clay afterall. But you have to wonder…what is it about the French and the Spanish these days. It's sort of ironic that the French have been accusing the Spanish of participating in illegal activities such as doping and the like.

Without Novak Djokovic and without Roger Federer this tournament is transformed into something other than the promoters dream tournament. But the funny thing is…it just may work out better that way. The tennis isn't going to any more interesting…or is it? By the sheer contrast of the competitors we just might get a chemistry that works in favor of the tournament. Interesting…n'est pas?

I still savour that view from atop the Eiffel Tower…dreaming of Borg and McEnroe.

Every point in this epic was a masterpiece. That is not to say there weren't mistakes and mishits. But taken as a whole the match must nearly be described point by point. I had to watch the match several times to come up with the words to describe the action. The points were like single brushstrokes that make up a great masterpiece. It reminded me of the moment only a couple of months ago when I stood at the very top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris looking down at that classic and old traditional city in Europe. Each building from that height looked like a single brush stroke and put them all together you had the wonderful visual whole that makes up the city of Paris. Like a beautiful painting every single brush stroke adds up to make up the whole.

The individual buildings on the ground were masterpieces of architecture as well. You walk along the streets admiring the craftsmanship and beauty from the ground level in the micro view as opposed to the macro view from the top of the Eiffel tower.

The same as this match. Such an intricate tapestry of tennis and all of its nuances. The variety of strokes...the variety of tactics. The infinite number of possibilities...permutations and combinations. Then there is the complexity of the players and their emotions and their tactical acumen and their individual interpretation of THE GAME. THE GAME OF TENNIS as it was meant to be played.

In tennis, in art and in life there is a balance. Even the universe is somehow balanced although theoretically. Equal parts positive and negative. Perhaps the human race has an equal balance as well...the summation of all of our actions and intents equal parts good and evil. But one thing is very clear to me and there is absolutely no way around it because in this very case for once and for all I am right...the game of tennis has been compromised by the actions of the very human hands that invented it. That precious balance that the game had and endured for so many years was compromised by an overabundance of speed in the game. It's simple. What was lost was tennis that was played like on this September afternoon between the last of the great rivalries in tennis...John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg.

[klacr]

Sad day for the Swissyboys.
Out of respect for the LaCroix family jewelry...
How ecstatic will the Francophone crowd will be if one of les frères français (the frenchbrothas) can take down either Hrrafa or muzzer?

Allez les gars!

Allez!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[klacr]

Come on Kyle, Monfils, at least is an entertaining, happy-go-lucky guy... Give your family jewels a chance...

Yup sorry. Was typing under a bit of emotion and duress as Roger falters against Tsonga.

Monfils is entertaining sure...but entertaining does not always mean great tennis. Just means hamming it up for the crowd. All depends which side of bed Monfils wakes up on this morning.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[klacr]

No match can be that bad....

How much of those matches will you watch?

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

Commentatoes…drones by any other name

I wish I could provide a transcript of the commentary by the commentatoes. It borders on the absurd.

[don_budge]

Finally…they have split sets

One set all. A scintillating match. The action is almost unbearable. Commentatoes wild with enthusiasm not to mention the wisdom and insight of historians out of bottle's imagination. Really a sight to behold. Forehands and backhands galore!!!

Finally after over two hours they have split sets. I have split my time between this epic moronathon and Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" that I posted on "Thoughts about Tennis Tradition". Flipping back and forth it is hard to tell which is which…the mind bending commentary is numbing. The rallies hypnotic. You are getting sleepy…very sleepy. You are happy…very, very happy. Baseline rallies are good. They are fascinating in their geometry. Look how Nadal and Murray both understand the angles…the geometry of the court.

If they ever get done with this moronathon…it will be the two French guys next. If they ever get done…ever.

[don_budge]

The End…finally

Almost three hours of gripping baseline rallying. The commentatoes are at a loss of words. Meaningful words…that is. They are trying to fill in the void but it sounds contrived and nonsensical. Masters of drivel.

But it is the end of the match and here are the highlights of the end. On the very last change over Andy Murray was complaining that there wasn't an umbrella shielding him from the sun. Never mind that he had the makeshift tent that they provide with both players that they draw over after they take their seats. There is also an umbrella boy to hold the umbrella…perhaps it was a ball boy that they can further boss around.

In the last game as Nadal was trying to serve out the match…Andy came up with his infamous clutch and grab. He acted as if something radically deviated in the area of his groin. He leaped in the air and grimaced to beat the band…he limped back into position and played out the game without any more signs of injury. On match point Nadal was issued a time warning coincidentally as I was thinking if this was the last time that we had to watch his butt picking preserve ritual.

After Nadal won that match point…he made as if he had conquered something of significance. But he has his place in the finals against one of the French guys. As I type…the commentatoes are droning on and on and on. Waiting for the exclusive post match interview with Nadal. I wonder what light he can shed on this mysterious subject of this match. I wish there was a transcript of these guys. Surely it would look even more ridiculous than it sounds…if that is possible.

I sure hope that klacr hasn't done anything rash…you know…the meat grinder.

[gzhpcu]

Rafa is really back! Beating Andy/Judy...

[don_budge]

The Amazing Mr. Monfils...

…is up one set to zippo on Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.