For those tennis enthusiasts who like to look at the glass half empty instead of half full, it would be easy to trash Women’s Tennis as we get ready for the Rogers Cup in Toronto in a few weeks time. Too much grunting, too many double faults, too much slugging from the baseline, too many robots that all look the same, too many no-name athletes!
But what about the flip side? Pinpoint accuracy from outrageous positions on the court, enormous talent, no fear on nerve wrecking points, relentless attacking tennis that is beautiful to watch and counter-attacking that is bringing the game to a new level!
Those that see the sport in disarray are misguided and looking for something to berate.
In my estimation, they are completely out of line. The game has never been more interesting than it is now. There are multiple players (anybody in the top 40), who can win a major as we get ready for the upcoming North American hard court season.
If you were taking bets for the final major of the season in Flushing Meadows, New York – who would be the favourite: Wozniacki, Clijsters, Zvonareva, Azarenka, Sharapova, Li, Kvitova, Schiavone, Bartoli, Stosur? One could make an argument for any of these players. All of these Top 10 players can win a major championship at this point in their career. The better question is – when all is said and done – will all of these players have a major championship beside their name?
This sport has never been so wide open. And what about the former #1s who have been off the radar for most of the season: Kuznetsova, Jankovic, Ivanovic and Safina. Can they still be counted as potential winners? My guess is yes absolutely, because nobody stands out as the dominant performer in this circle of players.
Then there are the emerging stars like Julia Goerges (2 wins over Wozniacki in the early part of 2011) and Sabine Lisicki (Wimbledon semi-finalist) who have to be considered major threats. What about Cibulkova, Hantuchova and Petrova? We know they have immense talent, but should they be considered threats to the top 10?
So far, I have mentioned 19 players as potential winners in the second half of the 2011 season, and have not mentioned the Williams sisters. That is almost absurd. But it just goes to show you how much talent is out there on the Women’s tour. The depth is, by far, the best it’s ever been. First week matches in the slams can now be barn-burners, like Schiavone and Kuznetsova in the 4th round of the 2010 Aussie Open. The longest match in Women’s history lasted 4 hours and 44 minutes. Not quite Isner/Mahut-like, but considering it was only best of three sets, this is a remarkable achievement for both players. This match was not the boring lob-fest match we used to see in the 70’s and 80’s in women’s tennis. This was a blistering groundstroke affair that had everything right to the final point.
Was there a better story than Li Na winning her first major championship at 29 years of age? Li became the first player from an Asian nation to win a grand slam singles title when she beat last year’s winner Francesca Schiavone in early June at Stade Roland Garros. She was previously runner-up at the Australian Open final in January.
LI Na’s French Open triumph is great for women’s tennis and follows a push to develop the sport in China, which officials now want to replicate in India, WTA tour chief executive Stacey Allaster said.
And who could forget Petra Kvitova; the 4th lefty to win the Ladies championship at Wimbledon in the game’s storied history?
The 21-year-old Czech produced a stunning performance of power tennis to defeat the fancied Russian, Maria Sharapova, 6-3 6-4, grabbing her first grand slam title. Kvitova, is the first player born in the 1990’s to win a grand slam. She appeared to have nerves of steel in her maiden final, by swinging freely and crushing winner after winner past the hapless Sharapova, before achieving victory with an ace on her first match point. Kvitova, is the real deal and she’ll be a threat to win many more major championships if she plays with that much courage in future championships.
Allaster said the open nature of the women’s game made it attractive even if there are no big rivalries like in the men’s. “The standard is much higher. On any given day, anyone in the top 40 can win. We don’t have these 40-minute 6-0 and 6-0 first round matches any more. They are much more competitive, there is much more parity,” she said.
It’s ironic to some extent that Allaster picked anybody inside the top 40 as a potential winner. Our own Canadian female superstar is Rebecca Marino who currently sits at #39 in the latest rankings. Some purists would argue this talented lefty cannot win yet at this level. I would beg to differ. She has all the tools to beat any of these giants. All she needs is a little confidence and she’ll be included in this group of potential winners.
Women’s tennis may also be feeling the effects of age inflation – but this is a good thing. Having teenagers battling for the games top prizes is not healthy in my estimation and the older generation is much better equipped to deal with the pressures of today’s stress. This year, the ages of the four Australian Open semifinalists were as follows: 20 (Wozniacki), 26 (Zvonareva), 27 (Clijsters) and almost 29 (Li Na). Ten years ago, the ages of the semifinalists were 20 (Hingis), 20 (V. Williams), 24 (Capriati) and 24 (Davenport). And twenty years ago the ages were younger still: 17 (Seles), 19 (Fernandez), 19 (Sanchez-Vicario) and Jana Novotna was the senior in the bunch at age 22.
One thing’s for sure: the door of opportunity is wide open for any female player who decides to step through in the second half of this season. As the WTA knows well, the “next big thing” might be right around the corner.
Written By Michael Emmett
1. Sleep. Excess storage around the midsection is usually as a result of too much cortisol, which is your body’s stress hormone. One of the best ways to bring your cortisol levels under control is to get a good night’s rest. Being well rested will also help you cope with the demands of your workout program and leads to better food choices. They call it “beauty rest” for a reason. Make it a priority to get enough sleep.
2. Use interval training. Long periods of sustained activity (e.g. jogging) teaches your body to hold more fat in those “hard to lose” areas. Short bursts of high-intensity exercise with intermittent periods of active rest have been shown to be helpful in mobilizing fat stores from “stubborn” areas like the belly. Ever seen an elite sprinter with a flabby waist?
3. Experiment with Green tea extract. Green Tea extract is stimulates the metabolism during weight loss phases. Be sure your Green Tea extract is high in EGCG, the most active component. A recommend dosage is 400mg 1-2x per day. Do your research on what dosages are safe and work best for someone of you gender and bodyweight. WARNING: If you suffer from hypertension or diabetes, or any other health concerns, check with your doctor first.
4. Do AM cardio workouts. I like the mornings for burning belly fat because of the elevated growth hormone levels you experience upon waking. The time of day doesn’t matter, just how recently you woke up. Don’t eat before the workout. Eat a complete breakfast when you’re done. Try combining this with #’s 2 and 3.
5. Choose anti-inflammatory foods. Too much inflammation in the body can interrupt hormones which are important for regulating metabolism and burning belly fat. People with excess belly fat tend to have more inflammation. A leading cause of inflammation in the body is Glycation. Gylcation occurs when there is a high amount of sugar in the blood and causes the binding of sugar molecules to protein molecules. The Gylcation of proteins causes decreased biological activity of proteins and has been linked to premature aging, altered vision, Kidney disease, joint pain and arthritis. Bit of a vicious cycle. Replace red meat with fish, 2-3 times per week, cut down on starches and grains (replace with sweet potatoes or yams), get plenty of green veggies, nuts, mixed berries, and a extra virgin olive oil; you will begin to see a difference in the fitting of your clothing.
Written by Jason Ferreira (Mayfair East’s Fitness Manager)
It was truly a breathtaking upset. One the tennis community will be talking about for a long long time.
With many big events still on the horizon, tennis has seen its one defining moment in 2011. Nothing will supplant the memory of Roger blowing his first ever 2-set to love lead in a major championship in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon yesterday.
No matter what happens in the remaining matches at Wimbledon, or this year’s US Open or our own Rogers Cup – the loss yesterday from what seemed to be an insurmountable lead will stay with me for as long as I’m a tennis fan. And I hope it’s not the way Roger will be remembered when he finally hangs up his racquet.
The sporting community has a terrible habit of isolating certain events (good or bad) and labeling them to the athletes forever. Bill Buckner’s horrific mistake cost the Red Sox the World Series in 1986 and he will never be able to erase that memory. Jana Novotna had a Hall of Fame career but she is only remembered for blowing a 4-1 third set lead against Steffi Graf.
Fed’s loss to Tsonga is on par with Rafa losing to Soderling at the French Open in 2009. Both results were jaw dropping moments that will be remembered as some of the greatest upsets in tennis history. However, for me the Federer loss is more stunning because he comfortably led two sets to love and looked in complete control 90 minutes into the match. Roger blowing a two sets to love lead just doesn’t happen – he is the greatest front-runner the game has ever seen. Very similar to his good buddy Tiger Woods. El Tigre had never blown a lead entering the final round of a major championship until he was shockingly caught by Y.E. Yang in the PGA championship in 2009.
Absolutely mind-boggling! Almost impossible given the circumstances – here are the factors that made Federer’s loss such a stunning result:
1. Roger was 178-0 when leading 2 sets to love – the odds of a Federer loss to a player ranked well below him (with a 2 set lead) would have been .005%
2. Rogers is a 6-time champion at Wimbledon and was the favourite this year based on his stellar play in Paris leading up to this championship.
3. Grass is supposed to be his favourite surface – although with back-to-back losses in the quarter-finals (last year he lost to Berdych) and the lawns playing like a fast clay court – this may no longer be the case.
4. Roger had massive motivation to win his 7th title and tie the all-time record with Pete Sampras.
5. Roger owns Centre Court at the All-England Club – this court has meant as much to him as Stade Roland Garros has meant to Rafa.
6. Tsonga was on the ropes after playing a horrendous second set tie-break. The commentators, viewers, patrons and players (maybe not Tsonga) had already started talking about a French Open semi-final rematch with Djokovic.
I keep coming back to the fact that Federer was playing so beautifully at the French Open…..how does one explain how lethargically he looked in the last two sets vs. Tsonga on grass – his best surface in the world? I’ve seen him look this way, at times, on clay vs. his nemesis Rafael Nadal. But never before on grass! He looked passive, slow, indifferent, and, at moments resigned.
His serve returns were sitters for Tsonga to tee off on. His first serve percentage dropped drastically. He seemed to lose his will to fight. It’s hard to write – but the greatest player of all-time looked feeble, withdrawn and outclassed in his own backyard. We expected more from the 6-time champion. Yes, Tsonga played great. But if Federer played the way he had been playing in the first 3 matches and maintained his intensity the match would have been over in straight sets. Federer never complained of an injury in his post match press conference – however, mental fatigue seemed to be a major contributor to his unexpected collapse.
It’s worth repeating – for the first time in his entire career; Federer lost a match in which he had won the first two sets. (He had been 178-0). But Tsonga outlasted him 3-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Tsonga had a fantastic match – undoubtedly the best of his career. His serve was superb. But, still, no one felt Federer would lose yesterday, especially after winning the first 2 sets.
The big three — Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Federer — have dominated men’s tennis in recent years. They’ve won 25 of the past 26 majors. Across the pond, in Great Britain — exploiting that home-court advantage — they factor in Andy Murray and call them the big four. They all made the semifinals at the French Open, and until Wednesday, they were part of a stately, almost royal procession into Wimbledon’s final four.
Never before have the top 4 players made it to the semi-finals in back-to-back grand slams – all 4 stampeded their way to the semi-finals in Paris and they were one win away from repeating the feat in London – but Tsonga ruined the party and kept that remarkable stat alive for yet one more season. I guess there’s a reason why the top 4 players in the world can’t make it to the semi-finals in consecutive grand slams – because there is so much depth on the ATP tour.
Federer’s 16 Grand Slam singles titles place him ahead of all others, but he clearly is no longer playing at that level. He was playing in his 29th consecutive quarterfinal — a monumental achievement — but he’s lost in three of the past six (two in a row at Wimbledon).
At one point in his career he had made it to 23 consecutive semi-finals in grand slam events – a record that – in my opinion – will never be broken. Federer like Tiger Woods is all about history – winning major championships is all that matters at this point in their respective careers. Tiger has 14 and Roger has 16! The big question is – can either one of these two iconic superstars win another major and shut up the critics who believe they are both finished? I don’t know the answer to this but I do know that it will be fun to keep watching.
Written by Michael Emmett
A Fitness, Tennis, Squash & Sports Blog by Mayfair Clubs 