2016 Shanghai Rolex Masters...ATP 1000...Shanghai, China

[stroke]

What really needs to happen in pro tennis is an immediate 6 month ban for Kyrgios. Then if he comes back and acts the same again, a 9 month ban. He will either change his ways or quit tennis at that point, either outcome being good for the game. His situation at that point would not be lost on Tomic or Fognini either, a positive residual effect so to speak.

[don_budge]

A Sign...of things to come.

What really needs to happen in pro tennis is an immediate 6 month ban for Kyrgios. Then if he comes back and acts the same again, a 9 month ban. He will either change his ways or quit tennis at that point, either outcome being good for the game. His situation at that point would not be lost on Tomic or Fognini either, a positive residual effect so to speak.

Oddly enough...Nick "The Jerk" Kyrgios may have been the second most interesting moment in the tournament. Zverev's near takedown of tennis' prima donna boy being the highlight. It's a perfect suggestion...in a perfect world. But it is "Big Time Wrestling" now and anything goes. Win one week...tank the next.

Djokovic versus Roberto Baptista-Agut. Andy Murray versus Gilles Simon. Djokovic versus Murray in the finals. This is what it boils down to. It's a sign...of things to come. Just like Nick Kyrgios is a sign.

[stroke]

Obviously, Novak and Andy are the favorites to advance, but Simon and Bautista Agut are great competitors that give there all out there. Their professionalism is the antithesis of Kyrgios. I always felt the French made an error in not selecting Simon to play singles in that Davis Cup Final vs Switzerland. I think Simon, clearly not anywhere close to the most talented of the French players, is the best competitor.

[don_budge]

Obviously, Novak and Andy are the favorites to advance, but Simon and Bautista Agut are great competitors that give there all out there. Their professionalism is the antithesis of Kyrgios. I always felt the French made an error in not selecting Simon to play singles in that Davis Cup Final vs Switzerland. I think Simon, clearly not anywhere close to the most talented of the French players, is the best competitor.

Bautista-Abut defeats Novak Djokovic...6-4, 6-4. Novak smashes racquet after losing the first set...tears his shirt and receives a warning when he goes to change it on a very big point. Gamesmanship...then he argues about it with the umpire. More "Big Time Tennis". There is something missing in Djokovic's game. Zverev almost unseated him yesterday and Bautista-Agut manages to get the horse in the barn today.

The behavior sends a message to young players.

[stotty]

Is it me or has Murray's forehand got significantly better over the last 6 months? He's becoming very difficult to beat for sure.

Stotty

[stroke]

Bautista-Abut defeats Novak Djokovic...6-4, 6-4. Novak smashes racquet after losing the first set...tears his shirt and receives a warning when he goes to change it on a very big point. Gamesmanship...then he argues about it with the umpire. More "Big Time Tennis". There is something missing in Djokovic's game. Zverev almost unseated him yesterday and Bautista-Agut manages to get the horse in the barn today.

The behavior sends a message to young players.

sounds like good umpiring to me

[don_budge]

When the Meteor becomes a Fallen Star...

sounds like good umpiring to me

He sort of had his hands full trying to ignore or manage the behavior of the world number one tennis player who acted like a complete asshole. He's apparently struggling with his game and having a difficult time coming to grips with that fact. His serve was much less effective that what we are accustomed to seeing in the past. His backhand was erratic and his forehand seemed to be less punishing. Overall...he is not performing up to snuff. Bully for him. He has very quickly become one of my favorites to watch lose and it was very gratifying to watch Bautista-Agut seal the deal.

Is it me or has Murray's forehand got significantly better over the last 6 months? He's becoming very difficult to beat for sure.

Stotty

Andy Murray has lifted his game in more ways than one. His overall physical conditioning seems to be improved. Particularly when you factor in that he was coming back from back surgery not much more than a year ago. It makes me wonder if he has been granted a pass to use otherwise banned substances.

The forehand may be better too. If you ask Gilles Simon he would tell you that there was absolutely nowhere to go with Murray. You wonder about the "Ashe Tactics" or some semblance of. Playing short...drawing him in. He seems to be much more comfortable than Djokovic for example in the forecourt. After watching Novak that last couple of matches I become even more convinced that he is a rather ineffective volleyer...particular off of the forehand side. His approach game elementary.

I wonder if Bautista-Agut has any answers for the questions that Murray will be asking of him tomorrow. He looked pretty sharp against the world number one today...but so did the world number 110 yesterday. If Murray pounds Bautista-Agut into next week tomorrow we have to begin to calibrate our finding with regards to Djokovic. Once I wrote that he was looking "Meteoric" (remember that) right before he took off on his launch. Now he looks to be folding it in a bit.

[stotty]

When the Meteor become a Fallen Star...

The forehand may be better too. If you ask Gilles Simon he would tell you that there was absolutely nowhere to go with Murray.

Yes there was nowhere to go, absolutely nowhere in the end.

I got this impression midway through the second set (I missed the first set) when Giles went for an acute angled forehand in the middle of a long rally. It wasn't the shot to play, Giles was out of ideas...nowhere to go. He did do one lovely steal attack in the second set where he pulled Murray out wide then snook in from the baseline to hit a deep punishing volley to the corner. I think when you play human walls like Murray and Djokovic, these sneak attacks, and other net tactics like them, become essential, because if someone can track down your best shots and can rally for longer, you're in terrible trouble. It's a horrible feeling when you cannot dent your opponent...I've been there.

I didn't see the Djokovic match. He hasn't been the same since the Bollywood star tickled his fancy. Women have been the undoing of many a man over the years...left them ruined. "Fanny can lead you further than gunpowder can blow you" is an old saying we have over here.

Stotty

[don_budge]

Boys and Girls...Who wrote the Book of Love?

Yes there was nowhere to go, absolutely nowhere in the end.

It's a horrible feeling when you cannot dent your opponent...I've been there.

I didn't see the Djokovic match. He hasn't been the same since the Bollywood star tickled his fancy. Women have been the undoing of many a man over the years...left them ruined. "Fanny can lead you further than gunpowder can blow you" is an old saying we have over here.

Stotty

I guess celebrity has a way of attracting the babes. Guys being what they are...guys have notoriously had a difficult time sorting it out since day one. To go or not to go. Should I stay or should I go? Looking back in hindsight there may be times when it is better to go. I have an interesting life with regards to members of the opposite sex...the ladies. Married twice now and divorced 17 or 18 times. Relationships of two years or more...it feels like a divorce even if you aren't officially married. Railroad tracks on my heart. But I never could buy into the marriage paradigm. Women...who can figure? If it doesn't work out and you have children with them...hell hath no fury as a woman's scorn. t managed to stay single until the age of fifty and I maintain that I may have gotten married too young. If I were to run for President of the United States I wonder what might come out of the woodwork...let's just say it ain't never gonna happen. Although I think I could do a commendable job.

The timing of this apparent dalliance of Novak's seems to line up with his vulnerability. Every man has an Achilles heel and most of us are vulnerable to one in particular. The battle of the sexes will never be won...there is too much fraternization with the enemy. Poor Novak...he seems to have fallen victim to the old "honey trap".

Talk about feeling like there is nowhere to go. A broken heart is like that...marital troubles. You cannot dent an opponent...but she can make you suffer. There is an old saying all over the world...its all about the fanny. Its all about the ass. Ferdinand Celine wrote that. When you are a celebrity...there is all kinds of ass that makes itself available to you. Somebody ends up grabbing somebody by the you know what...and voila, there you have it. Love...ain't it grand! The game is to try and measure it so that both grab at the same time.

But these are the facts of life that my dear old father told me about so many years ago as I was becoming a man. A young man. He so gently laid it on the line. These are the birds and the bees...without the window dressing so to speak. Boys and girls...who wrote the book of love?

[stotty]

I wrote a letter to Djokovic last night that ought to make him feel as guilty as a person can feel. His outburst at Shanghai was violent, aggressive. How the hell am I supposed to be able to teach children moral ethics when the world number one shatters his racket to pieces in such a frenzied way? The very least an athlete like Djokovic can do, who enjoys such a lavish lifestyle on the back of tennis, is behave decently in front of children.

Stotty

[don_budge]

A Letter to Novak...Going to the Dogs

I wrote a letter to Djokovic last night that ought to make him feel as guilty as a person can feel. His outburst at Shanghai was violent, aggressive. How the hell am I supposed to be able to teach children moral ethics when the world number one shatters his racket to pieces in such a frenzied way? The very least an athlete like Djokovic can do, who enjoys such a lavish lifestyle on the back of tennis, is behave decently in front of children.

Stotty

Interesting. Interestingly enough Novak Djokovic shows us that he is no more than a human being. I guess we are all somewhat imperfect. But this is what he has been trained to do...win and lose tennis matches. Tennis is a real mind fuck sometimes...you have to suck it up sometimes and hide your feelings when they get hurt. Roberto Bautista-Agut was putting a hurt on the petulant, prima donna celebrity boy. These guys get that celebrity status and it goes to their heads...its inevitable. They are human. Roger Federer spoiled us somewhat but he is closely guarded as well. His moments don't get much airtime. I have seen him get pretty testy as well. They are all human. It is what we share in common with each other. Beyond that though...I am not so certain.

Bautista-Agut went on to lose to Andy Murray in straight sets although he managed to make a tie-breaker out of the first set. Somehow the match wasn't quite as interesting as the Djokovic-Bautista-Agut match. But Novak quickly became one of the two or three players that actually make me feel good when they lose. Seeing Nadal lose again was a pleasure. Murray isn't a favorite of mine either. Man...his mouth was motoring the whole time. Screaming...bitching and complaining. You might want to send a copy of your letter to him as well. Oh...fuck it. I tell my boys to not idolize anyone...then you aren't let down when they take that plunge into behavior abyss.

Tennis is a real head game. Two competitors going for the kill. Golf is a real head game to. The difference is that you are fighting to not beat yourself. That's a funny game...psychologically speaking. Life is a head game too. Novak apparently is taking a couple of shots as well. I didn't know that it was the Bollywood Babe he was sniffing around. Men are dogs...so they say. Women can be real bitches too...dogspeak. Why is it with the dogspeak regards men and women? I guess it only takes a little common sense to figure that out. Without factoring in the politically correct thing...just looking at things for face value.

I would be curious to see what you wrote Old Boy. I have a lot of respect for what you say and how you say it...you know. stroke had a good idea as well for the misbehaviors.

[stotty]

A Letter to Novak...Going to the Dogs

I would be curious to see what you wrote Old Boy. I have a lot of respect for what you say and how you say it...you know. stroke had a good idea as well for the misbehaviors.

I wrote to him directly from his website. I didn't keep a copy. You just click the button and send it. You have to write your message within a range of 300 characters. I wanted to say a lot more, but, on refection, the concision I was forced to use turned out to be more powerful than anything more lengthy I might have written. He'll get the message all right if it makes it past his team who do the vetting.

Yes we are all human. Some less or more so than others....in an emotional sense. It could also be the culture of our sport. Some sports are devoid of bad behaviour while in others it's rife. Maybe a sport sets its own culture of behaviour in many ways. Tennis is quite lax in many regards. Many parts of tennis etiquette aren't taught well enough at the outset, nor in a meaningful enough way.

I think the more money that is involved in sport, the uglier it is likely to get. Players become richer, egos hit the roof, and the sport itself becomes lenient to athletes due to their money-making pulling power. Djokovic could get away with anything. He's a ticket seller.

Stotty

[klacr]

Djokovic didn't do anything that hasn't been done before. But not giving him a free pass either. May split with Becker as well.

Murray won Shanghai, as expected for any event sans Djokovic. Murray won an ATP 500 in Beijing last week. A Masters 1000 this week. Interestingly, He did not play a single player ranked in the top 10.

The Stockholm Open begins this week. Fun, Fun, Fun. One of my favorite events. Let the wooden bleachers and ball striking fill the Kungliga Tennishallen creating great acoustics.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

Fun, Fun, Fun. If you are not having fun...Novak, Rafael, Andy listen up. Stotty speaks!

I wrote to him directly from his website. I didn't keep a copy. You just click the button and send it. You have to write your message within a range of 300 characters. I wanted to say a lot more, but, on refection, the concision I was forced to use turned out to be more powerful than anything more lengthy I might have written. He'll get the message all right if it makes it past his team who do the vetting.

Yes we are all human. Some less or more so than others....in an emotional sense. It could also be the culture of our sport. Some sports are devoid of bad behaviour while in others it's rife. Maybe a sport sets its own culture of behaviour in many ways. Tennis is quite lax in many regards. Many parts of tennis etiquette aren't taught well enough at the outset, nor in a meaningful enough way.

I think the more money that is involved in sport, the uglier it is likely to get. Players become richer, egos hit the roof, and the sport itself becomes lenient to athletes due to their money-making pulling power. Djokovic could get away with anything. He's a ticket seller.

Stotty

Good for you. It won't hurt the celebrity to get a little tiny dose of reality if it somehow filters through to him. He has been putting on these displays pretty much the whole of his career. He is clever as to not to draw too much attention to himself such as shouting obscenities in a language that 99% of the audience do not understand. The money does change everything. Celebrity does change moral standards and ethical considerations. So much money and celebrity inevitably leads a flawed human being to believe that they are above the herd. Sometimes a little bit of intelligence gives a person that lofty feeling as well.

Be that as it may...role models should not be images that one sees on the television or the computer for that matter. Role models must begin at home and that is where we are really losing the battle in 2016. The family is under attack under the guise of feminism. Make no mistake about it. It's a war alright.

Djokovic didn't do anything that hasn't been done before. But not giving him a free pass either. May split with Becker as well.

Murray won Shanghai, as expected for any event sans Djokovic. Murray won an ATP 500 in Beijing last week. A Masters 1000 this week. Interestingly, He did not play a single player ranked in the top 10.

The Stockholm Open begins this week. Fun, Fun, Fun. One of my favorite events. Let the wooden bleachers and ball striking fill the Kungliga Tennishallen creating great acoustics.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Always great to hear from klacr. It seems that he has the inside track when it comes to the "insider dope" things. Andy Murray not playing a player in the Top Ten sort of paves the way...doesn't it? Without the "Big Four" any longer in vogue or in charge things are left a bit wide open which may lead to some rather interesting matchups. Watching Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic go down in flames is just fine by me and if Andy had followed suit...all the better. But what does that leave us with? Next Generation stars? More one dimensional tennis.

The Stockholm Open. They used to say in my fraternity at Ohio University during "hell week"...fun, fun, fun. If you are not having fun...it's your own fucking fault. People do talk that way in real life...you know.

[stotty]

What really needs to happen in pro tennis is an immediate 6 month ban for Kyrgios. Then if he comes back and acts the same again, a 9 month ban. He will either change his ways or quit tennis at that point, either outcome being good for the game. His situation at that point would not be lost on Tomic or Fognini either, a positive residual effect so to speak.

Two months and a fine...better than nothing I guess. Six months would have been better...and a way bigger fine that gets redirected and ploughed into Australian junior tennis.

Stotty