Top Spin Blog » Roger Federer

“Vamos, Del Po!”

Joe Samuel Starnes — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:25:23 +0000

“Vamos, Del Po!” says Bill Tilden’s ghost. “My record of six in a row will live for 100 years and more.”

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Bill Tilden’s Record of Six Wins on the Shoulder of a Tall Argentine

Joe Samuel Starnes — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:51:05 +0000

Roger Federer broke Pete Sampras’ record of 14 grand slams this summer, but today has the chance to tie a major American tennis landmark if he wins his sixth straight U.S. Open. William T. “Big Bill” Tilden II won the U.S. Championships six straight years, three times at Forest Hills in 1920, ‘24 and ‘25, and three times at the Germantown Cricket Club, a block from his home in Philadelphia, in 1921-23. Federer looks poised to win his sixth, but Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina stands in his way this afternoon.

In Tilden’s 1920 win in New York, a small plane crashed next to the court during the fifth set, killing two, but after a break they played on. The Sept. 7, 1920, headline in The New York Times read: 10,000 SEE PLANE KILL TWO IN CRASH AT TENNIS TOURNEY.

It is a shame that this story and others about Tilden are rarely talked about. The McEnroes, Mary Carillo and others act almost like Tilden never existed, instead fawning like mindless children excited about the celebrities in the crowd. Tilden’s tennis victories are on par with what Babe Ruth did in baseball and Bobby Jones in golf. His tennis accomplishments deserve more discussion as his record teeters on the verge of being tied.

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Britton Falls to Federer In Three in U.S. Open First Round

Joe Samuel Starnes — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:38:49 +0000

Devin Britton had a few chances, but couldn’t capitalize. If he watches the replay, will hear John McEnroe bemoaning his failure to attack the net on every point. Here is a link to a good story about the match by Howard Fendrich of the Associated Press, but if you want some really entertaining reading, check out Britton’s blog from this year’s Wimbledon where he finished in the semifinal in the juniors.

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Former College Standouts Isner and Devvarman Shine on Monday

Joe Samuel Starnes — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:27:12 +0000

Reigning NCAA champion from Ole Miss Devin Britton played the big match in the spotlight on Monday, losing in three to Roger Federer on the Ashe Court, but it was former two-time champ Somdev Devvarman and one-time runner up John Isner who came through with the big wins.

Isner, a former University of Georgia star ranked 55 in the world and rising, held off an amazing 10 set points in his three-set win over the 28 seed, Victor Hanescu of Romania. Isner next plays a Turkish qualifier, Marsel Ilhan, ranked 231 in the world.

Devvarman is a native of India who despite winning the NCCA men’s singles in 2007 (beating Isner in the final) and again in 2008 was snubbed by the USTA and did not get a wild card bid to the U.S. Open in either year as Britton did this year. Devvarman came into the tournament this year ranked 162 and had to win three matches in the qualies last week to make the main draw. On Monday he won handily, besting 106-ranked Fredirico Gil of Portugal in straight sets. Devvarman’s next match is against No. 23 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany. I’m pulling for him to go a few more rounds, maybe even farther, and show the NCAA that he deserved wild card bids the past two years, the omission of which was an insult to college tennis.

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U.S. Open Schedule Posted, Federer-Britton Not Prime-Time

Joe Samuel Starnes — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 20:38:10 +0000

Launching a campaign for your sixth straight U.S. Open to tie Bill Tilden’s epic record apparently does not merit a prime-time match. Roger Federer and Devin Britton will play the second match of the day on Arthur Ashe on Monday, meaning I’ll have to get out a video tape to record it and much of America will miss Federer and the young Mississippian who is this year’s promising junior. The night men’s match instead is Andy Roddick and Bjorn Phau. I’m disappointed it’s not Federer-Britton in prime time. Check out here for the daily U.S. Open schedules, and here for scores during the day.

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The U.S. Open Draw is Up, and Devin Britton Plays a Dude Named Federer

Joe Samuel Starnes — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:20:20 +0000

If you need any proof that the USTA doesn’t fix the draw for promising Americans who get wild cards, 18-year-old Devin Britton of Mississippi, the youngest NCCA champ ever, ended up in line two of the draw. He plays that dude who was on the cover of this month’s Tennis magazine, poised like an angel in designer tennis clothes with a personally monogrammed belt flying up into heaven above the caption “The greatest of all time.” At least all of America will get to see Britton’s serve and volley game in prime time. Here is hoping for the greatest upset of all time, but I ain’t going to bet money on it.

Fellow American Scoville Jenkins of Atlanta — who has won his first two qualies matches and can win his way into the tournament today with a victory against the No. 1 seed in the qualies – can relate to Britton. He’s had a history of brutal first-round draws in the main bracket at Flushing Meadows, and has drawn Federer and Roddick in opening matches in the past, and played Nadal a tough four-setter in the second round in 2005. Jenkins, who turns 23 in September, is now ranked 256 in the world, and the highest he has been is 187. (UPDATE: Jenkins would still surely trade places with Britton — he lost to Thomaz Belluci of Brazil 2 and 4, falling one win short of making the main draw.)

Scoville Jenkins

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Roger Federer Advertising Boycott; The Fed Baby Naming Rights

Joe Samuel Starnes — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 13:19:32 +0000

I’m sick of seeing the Fed in every advertisement during changeovers, and I am embarking on a boycott of Federer-advertised products. I refuse to buy a NetJet or a Rolex watch. At this rate, Federer’s agent might be trying to sell naming rights to his and Mirka’s forthcoming baby: Tiffany or Lexus if it’s a girl, or Mac, Nike or Canon if it’s a boy.

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Media Jinx Knocking Down Nadal?

Joe Samuel Starnes — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:57:59 +0000

First there was the S.L. Price piece in Sports Illustrated detailing “How Rafael Nadal Humbled Federer” that ran in the magazine the third week of May. On May 17, of course, while the magazine made its way to mailboxes, Federer beat Nadal 4 and 4 in the finals at Madrid. A few weeks later Federer won the French Open to have John McEnroe and others declare him the greatest of all time (and also make the Sports Illustrated cover on June 15).

Also in May, the Men’s Journal cover article on Nadal appeared, and this past Sunday, two days after Nadal pulled out of Wimbledon, he made the cover of the Sunday New York Times magazine (coincidentally, both articles begin with a scene from Nadal’s win over David Nalbandian in Indian Wells).

I don’t believe in jinxes — if anything, these are testament to the ridiculously long lead times that magazines require for their copy. At the moment that Federer is poised for the Grand Slam record, it’s his injured rival getting much of the premier press.

But maybe do jinxes do exist. All they hype and coverage for the Centre Court roof, and it hasn’t rained yet (perhaps it’s similar to the likelihood of rain decreasing whenever I remember to take an umbrella).

In other roof news, UK’s star player Andy Murray has condemned its long shadow. Surely there was a better way for Wimbledon to spend 100 million pounds.

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Wimbledon’s Roof Yet Another Unfair Advantage for Tennis Elite

Joe Samuel Starnes — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:06:18 +0000

Sooner or later, Wimbledon’s over-hyped roof will close over Centre Court, satisfying TV audiences worldwide with a live, premier match instead of network time-killing with rain delay replays of last year’s matches, most certainly the Nadal-Federer final, since that’s all we’ll see of the Spaniard over the coming fortnight.

It is possible the roof might not close. London bookies have dropped the odds of sunny weather keeping the roof open during the entirety of the tournament, making it the “great white elephant of sport,” to 6-1 from 10-1. But I wouldn’t bet on it not raining in London until July 6.

While the roof will be hailed by the incessant talking heads, it is just one in a series of bad moves for the pro game, a game that each year caters more and more to the top players, distancing them from the hoi polloi of players outside of the top ten.

A tennis tournament should be equitable in treatment of all players in the draw. Everyone, from the 104-ranked player in the world to the No. 2 seed with 14 Grand Slams should be treated the same. However, when Roger Federer steps up for his much-anticipated coronation over the next two weeks, he will not have to worry about rain delays due to the roof. He also will not worry about bad calls since the premier courts all have the laser precise appeal system. When the roof is closed, he won’t even have to worry about wind or the sun in his eyes. Same goes for the hometown favorite Andy Murray (who, by the way, is my pick to win) who will almost certainly be slotted on Centre Court.

For all unseeded players going head to head in early rounds, and even some lower seeds, they’ll be on outer courts subject to rain, wind and bad calls that cannot be appealed because not every court has the appeal system. They might as well be playing in a different tournament.

There are hundreds of players in the ATP rankings battling every day, traveling the world for a shot to play in one of the 128 spots in the Wimbledon draw. When they finally break through to play a Grand Slam, they deserve better than second-class treatment — favoring the elite players with a roof is increasing the already broad gap.

Hopefully, the men’s game will not take the next and much-discussed move, one that the women’s game has already implemented in some tournaments, by allowing coaching during matches. Who will this help the most? The elite player, of course, as they are the ones who make the most money and have the most to spend on the best coaches. Watch the rich get richer.

Everyone in the draw should be treated the same. The rain should fall on everyone, not just the lower-ranked.

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U.S. Men: Only Odesnik and Ginepri Remain in French Open

Joe Samuel Starnes — Thu, 29 May 2008 19:31:47 +0000

Robby Ginepri overcame losing the first set to best 27th-seeded Igor Andreev on Thursday, lining himself up to play the winner of unseeded players Florent Serra of France or Victor Hanescu of Romania in the third round. Ginepri has the best chance to advance, and is on a course to meet Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. Wayne Odesnik, who plays world No. 3 Novak Djokovic in the third round, are the only Americans left after james Blake, Mardy Fish and Bobby Reynolds all lost.

Going into the tournament, Ginepri, who has been ranked as high as 15 and reached the semis in the 2004 U.S. Open, was ranked 88 and Odesnik 106. Both will be certain to rise after the generous ranking points paid off in Grand Slams.

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