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I never thought Novak Djokovic would get out of that fifth set of the Australian Open final alive.  Between that and coming back from match point against Federer at last year’s U.S. Open, I now wonder if he’s made any deals more significant than a shoe and racket contract — such as selling his soul.

She’s bigger than the rackets and much more mobile than she was in last year’s picture.

William Randolph Hearst’s home in San Simeon, California, once the site of many star-studded tennis matches, is as close as America has to a great castle.  But on that court even the very rich and famous had to deal with late afternoon shadows that make the ball hard to see.  Fall Line, my second novel, [...]

If  you’ve watched 15 minutes of the U.S. Open by now, you’ve probably seen one of the USTA’s ads about its 10 and under tennis program.   Is this concept really that new?  Perhaps it is in the days of graphite rackets that can’t be sawed off like my first wooden racket (a Jack Kramer), [...]

Zero to nine. The number says it all.  That is the record of American men versus Spanish men in singles during Wimbledon and the recent Davis Cup meeting.
For some well-chosen but dismal descriptions of the state of the American team, check out Jonathan Scott on Tennis.com who concludes his article “U.S. Davis Cup Team Walks [...]

Spain, meet the greatest doubles team of all time (and recent Wimbeldon doubles champs.)

With Mardy Fish’s quarterfinal loss to Rafael Nadal, the American men completed a dismal 0-6 record in singles on the grass against Spanish players over the Wimbledon fortnight (fortnight being one of those words you only hear once a year when Wimbledon rolls around).  Not exactly the confidence boost captain Jim Courier wanted going into [...]

The matches between Spanish players and Americans at Wimbledon have been rough for the home team:  Andy Roddick lost to Feliciano Lopez in straight sets.  John Isner lost to Nicholas Almalgro in four.   Michael Russell and Ryan Sweeting both lost to Rafael Nadal in three.  Ryan Harrison lost to David Ferrer in five sets.
Americans are [...]

According to this blog post on Wimbledon.com, the odds were only one in 127.  Leave it to a Cambridge math professor to sap the life out of something remarkable.   But what were the odds of it happening twice?  Is it two in 254?  My mom is suspicious of the draw — and I agree with [...]

The GOAT discussion reached its most ludicrous point yesterday when John McEnroe’s endless search for an answer to the unanswerable and interminable question landed at Rafael Nadal’s feet after he beat Roger Federer for the 17th time, the sixth time in a Grand Slam final.  (Federer has beaten Nadal only eight times, and only twice [...]