One of the things I didn't get to do during my break was to make a timely comment on Wimbledon. With Sharapova out to Kerber, Canada's Eugenie Bouchard had a chance to definitively make herself "the next Sharapova", with a win in the final. Unfortunately that didn't happen, as veteran savvy and strength from Kvitova prevailed. Nonetheless, we can still assess Bouchard's claim to the throne:
She definitely has a chance. Now she has to win a major.
On the men's side, I didn't expect Murray to lose short of the final. And nobody (including me) expected Nadal to lose short of the final. And thus, when the final came down to Djokovic v. Federer, I expected youth and determination to prevail over the elegance of the incredible veteran. And in fact I was pulling for Federer, unlike the times (like against Roddick) when I wanted his perfection to slip a gear. And in the 4th set, it looked like his time had come to bow out gracefully from what would probably be his last realistic chance at a Grand Slam title -- not that he needs any more of them.
But his comeback in the 4th set showed why he was great, and how close he is to still being great. Djokovic managed to get ahead and stay ahead in the 5th, resulting in his win (well-deserved, and showing a significant amount of mental fortitude), but Federer reminded everyone of how remarkable a player he is. (And his serving was from another planet.)
Great tournament, lots of surprises. And perhaps signals of the guard changing to a new and unpredictable period.
Now, if we could just revive the U.S. tennis professional program...
No comments:
Post a Comment