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Vahaly is a breath of fresh air Posted: Monday March 17, 2003 2:53 PM
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. -- Random jottings from the desert: Our annual Player of the Week award goes to the Lleyton Hewitt-Kim Clijsters axis. After their respective singles titles at Indian Wells, we can only surmise that they are sharing some well-deserved junk food. Following his disappointing Australian Open, Hewitt suddenly has reeled off two titles in two weeks and is pretty much a lock to stay at No. 1 through the spring. He dismantled a tired Gustavo Kuerten in the final here, 6-1, 6-1. ... Clijsters, who beat Lindsay Davenport for the trophy, looks as ready as ever to avenge her disappointment in Australia and give the Williams juggernaut a run next week in Key Biscayne. ... Hewitt deserves boatloads of credit for what he does on the court. In his first-round dustup against Younes El Aynaoui (his foil in Melbourne, of course) Hewitt was down three match points. Tagging the lines, he staved them off, won the match and more or less rolled the rest of the week. Hewitt may be petty at times and he may, inexplicably, have a chip on his shoulder the size of Ayer's Rock. But if his contemporaries like Marat Safin, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Roger Federer had a fraction of his heart, the men's game would be the better for it. ... In doubles, Davenport exacted some revenge on Clijsters. Davenport teamed with Lisa Raymond to beat Clijsters and Ai Sugiyama in the final, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1. On the men's side, Samuel Gompers, er, Wayne Ferreira and Yevgeny Kafelnikov beat Mike and Bob Bryan in three sets. ... The WTA's search for a CEO was in high gear last week. Sources say the leading candidate remains Steve Simon. ... Factoid of the week: Safin is a non-practicing Muslim. Who knew? ... About this "death of U.S. men's tennis" business: Take a look at how many Americans are suddenly in the top 50, both in the Champions Race and the entry-system rankings. Not since 1996 had five Americans reached the quarters of a Masters Series event, before it happened here. That neither Andre Agassi nor Pete Sampras played the tournament made the milestone all the more significant. ... Told that a college graduate (Virginia alum Brian Vahaly) had preceded him in the interview room, Andy Roddick (who is pals with Vahaly) asked, "Did he use a lot of big words?" More on Vahaly below. ... Speaking of Roddick, he hit a 149-mph serve (out) and a 147-mph screamer (in) during his run to the quarters. ... This from the ATP newsletter: "Always game for a laugh, Andy Roddick played a prank on the media following his first-round victory over Thomas Enqvist at the Pacific Life Open. Knowing that the journalists would ask him about the ankle injury he suffered last week in Delray Beach, Roddick put a golf ball in his sock, making it look like he had swelling around the ankle. When asked if the ankle was going to be OK for his second-round match against Feliciano Lopez the next day, Roddick pointed to the ankle and laughed. "It's a little swollen," he said. "We're going to try to get that down tonight. I'm OK to play tomorrow. I think that's one of my tendons or a couple rolled up. It's killing me." ... Midway through the third set of a first-round match between Todd Martin and James Blake, Martin hit a spin-laced volley that did a pirouette on Blake's court and then bounced back onto Martin's side of the net. Blake chased it down, reached over, and slapped a winner, but his momentum carried him into the net. Point to Martin. But Martin turned to the chair and said "Explain it to them." The umpire then told the confused crowd why Blake lost the point. ... North Carolina grad Don Johnson played in Scottsdale last weekend, flew to Chapel Hill for the UNC-Duke game and then headed back out to Indian Wells. (Who says there is no rallying in men's tennis?) ... We like those Pacific Life ads with Mark Philippoussis and Tommy Haas playing underwater. And we hear they'll be airing on CNN and other networks after the tournament ends. ... In the men's draw, five players retired as a result of food poisoning. All of them ate at the same hotel restaurant within an hour of each other. Tournament organizers ordered the locker rooms sterilized on Wednesday night. ... Amelie Mauresmo -- who was even money to win the tournament -- had to pull out with a virus prior to her quarterfinal match against Davenport. An announcement was made that Mauresmo's throat was so swollen she was unable to speak. ... Look out, Michael Buffer. The incomparable Wayne Bryan (father of Bob and Mike) was the on-court announcer here. Among his ring introductions and sendoffs: "Let's hear it for Lleyton Hewitt, the kid who's too tough to die." ... The breakaway players' group known as is the International Men's Tennis Association (aka the Wayne Mutiny) trolled for support in Indian Wells. Some of the bigger guns rumored to be behind the group were less than unequivocal in their backing. But Hewitt didn't mince words. As he told me last week: "I support them, absolutely. Anything that can improve the tour and the administration of the tour is definitely a step in the right direction" ... The IMTA will meet with players in Miami for a is-you-in-or-is-you-ain't session before going to the ATP. The pending showdown worth following, however, will be between the ATP and the ITF (read: Mark Miles vs. French Tennis Federation head Christian Biemes) over the percentage of prize money the Slams disburse. ... If you want a glimpse into how balkanized and fractured the professional game is right now, check out this Q&A with Charlie Pasarell. Some of Pasarell's points are much more tenable than others, but all credit to him for being so candid and outspoken. Can't all the various and sundry alphabet-soup members go to the Azores (or Yalta or Potsdam or Trent) and work this out? ... Nice tournaments for both Amanda Coetzer and Conchita Martinez, two players thought to be long past their primes. ... Head-scratcher, Part I: Particularly when Indian Wells is an IMG event, why didn't IMG clients Taylor Dent and Mardy Fish (two young Americans, two of the hotter players on tour) receive wild cards over Mario Ancic? ... Head-scratcher, Part II: ESPN offered Michael Chang the opportunity to play Carlos Moya in Monday's featured night match. In addition to the TV coverage, the network had planned a treacle-filled retrospective. Inexplicably, Chang demurred, muttering something about being tired from taping a commercial that afternoon. Instead, organizers put the match on a back court early Tuesday. In front of a few hundred fans, Chang was tuned 6-0, 6-3 and left with little fanfare. ... Surprise quarterfinalist Vera Zvonareva lists her most memorable moment as losing to Nadia Petrova 6-0, 6-0 -- when Zvonareva was 8. Presumably, entering the top 40 at age 18 (or taking a set off Serena Williams at the French Open) is second. ... Speaking of double-bagels, the winsome Vahaly reminded the world that barely 18 months ago he was beaten 6-0, 6-0 by the formidable Noam Behr while trying to qualify for the U.S. Open. Today Vahaly is on the fringes of the top 50. ... Inside Tennis publisher Bill Simons -- not to be confused with the California politico nor the Jimmy Kimmel Show writer -- will be inducted into the Northern California Tennis Hall of Fame this summer. Though he is entirely too modest to take credit for it publicly, Simons was instrumental in the christening of Arthur Ashe Stadium. ... Speaking of Bay Area awards, congrats to Claire Ross, last week's Marin County Prep Athlete of the Week. ... More congrats go out to British journalist John Parsons for the distinguished-service award award he received at Indian Wells. A full report and pic can be seen here. Question time ... Can Brian Vahaly be this generation's Todd Martin -- a smart, college-educated, solid player who'll post some good results in Slams -- or is his Indian Wells showing merely a matter of the stars aligning just right? Or is it too soon to tell?
I think a comparison to Martin is a stretch -- and not just because Todd has close to a foot of height on Vahaly. Perhaps a year ago, we made the comparison between Vahaly and Richey Reneberg, and we'll stick to it. Vahaly is a smart, personable, solid baseliner who may not make us forget Agassi but has the potential to be a workaday top-40 player. He'll make a nice living, pull the occasional upset (his takedown of Ferrero last week was a doozy), get some Davis Cup run here and there, and generally be a credit to the tour. Vahaly takes the ball late but has nice strokes off both flanks. His serve could use an infusion of juice, but it's not bad, either. As long as you brought him up, Vahaly's run did make for a great sidebar last week. At a time when so many players appear jaded and a political squabble is threatening to divide the ATP constituency, Vahaly served as an Altoid. Cool and refreshing, he was genuinely thrilled just to be in the main draw and still pinching himself that he plays tennis for a living. Here's a sound bite after he beat Ferrero: "It means a lot for me to be here right now. I think that's why it was just so emotional for me toward the end of the match. You just have so few people believe in you. It's hard to consistently go through your whole life, play 20 years of tennis, [and have] people still tell you, 'This is the best it's going to be. This is the best it's going to be.' To have a match like today, to win in front of that crowd, on ESPN -- yeah, it just means a lot." Hard not to wish a guy like that well. Will we ever see the Tennis Channel?
For a minute there, it looked as if the Tennis Channel would launch around the same time Axl Rose finished his solo album and Anna Kournikova broke into the win column. Fortunately, the Channel is now (tentatively) set to debut with the Monte Carlo Masters Series event in four weeks. Details to follow. It's nice to see Amanda Coetzer back and getting good results. How far do you think she can go?
Coetzer is indeed playing well lately, reaching the final in Memphis and making it to the quarters in the desert. Her surprisingly easy win over defending champ Daniela Hantuchova at Indian Wells marked the first time she had beaten a top-five opponent in more than four years. Coetzer has been working with her former doubles partner, Lori McNeil, who has encouraged an "aggressive-defensive" style. Oxymoronic perhaps, but it seems to be working. Realistically, Coetzer is too undersized and lacking in firepower to return to top five. But so long as she ranks among the fittest players, she ought to reside comfortably in the top 20. What's the deal with Richard Krajicek? I've always liked his game. Does he have any chance of getting back to the top?
Krajicek's best years are well behind him. While the Dutchman is younger than Agassi, his body isn't in nearly as good shape. Krajicek was granted a wild card for Key Biscayne (which he won in 1999) and is always capable of making some noise at Wimbledon. But for all intents, the odometer is down to its last few ticks. When he does retire, my suspicion is that he'll be a prominent figure in the sport. He is one of tennis' good guys, and as a trained lawyer who is multilingual, he has a lot to offer. He may also surface in conjunction with his 14-year-old half-sister, Michaela, who is one of the world's most promising juniors. By the way, here is a random statistic I once came across and, for reasons unknown, retained: One out of every 16 Dutch workers is on permanent sick leave. Just wondering: Have there ever been any fights in tennis? Real fights, not catfights?
I recently visited (plug alert, plug alert) the College Tennis Hall of Fame in Athens, Ga. Amid an unbelievable memorabilia collection, there is an enlarged picture of Dick Stockton going at it with Ilie Nastase. Others? Irina Spirlea, of course, gave Venus Williams that famous chest-bump. Fortunately for Spirlea and, really, the entire country of Romania, Venus thought it was accidental. Jeff Tarango, upset that USTA personnel allegedly were rooting for his Wimbledon opponent, Paul Goldstein, is said to have put socks on his fists and tried to go after Tom Gullikson. Tarango's wife, of course, slapped umpire Bruno Rebueh, an episode that, even by tennis' exalted standards, was too bizarre. Brad Gilbert and Barry (father of Justin) Gimelstob nearly got it on at the U.S. Open a few years back. Also at the Open, Gimelstob the Younger nearly fought little-known Michal Tabara. Told that the 5-foot-9 Tabara had spat on him after their match, the 6-5 Gimelstob unforgettably said: "Unless he grows about another foot by the time I get back in the locker room, he's in trouble." More recently, I gather that Mardy Fish and Julien Varlet nearly came to blows in Memphis a few weeks ago. (Oh, those Yankee-Franco tensions go so much deeper than the pages of the New York Post.) Why is Yevgeny Kafelnikov still playing tennis? (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) Didn't he say he would retire if Russia won the Davis Cup last year, and didn't Russia do so?
You're not the only one wondering Y. Here's a snippet from Hewitt's press conference last week:
Hewitt: It was a strange one, wasn't it? I guess he didn't win a match in the Davis Cup final, so I don't know, maybe that's his out. The conventional wisdom -- such that it exists in this case -- is indeed that because Kafelnikov did not win a match in the Davis Cup final, it didn't really count it as a swan song. (What's the Russian word for loophole?) I'm with you though: If he changed his mind and can still keep his ranking up, good for him. What do you think about Robert Kendrick as a new U.S. hopeful? Kendrick recently pushed Jan-Michael Gambill to a third-set tiebreaker. I saw him play in college and thought he had a big game.
Many moons ago, I was visiting a friend in Seattle and saw Kendrick play at the University of Washington. To be honest, I haven't seen him since. Still, you have to be optimistic about his results in Delray Beach. He's a big kid (6-3) with a big game, and Pat McEnroe, among others, speaks very highly of him. You just wish he weren't already 23. Since the retirement of the wonderful French player Julie Halard-Decugis, I've been forlornly searching through the WTA ranks for someone to succeed her as my favorite player. Are there any Halard-esque players out there whom I've missed? Tennis isn't the same without her!
I'd be lying if I said we get a lot of Halard-Decugis questions these days, but your point is well taken. She had a certain flair and a real economy to her game -- almost Miroslav Mecir-like -- that we seldom see. If you're willing to switch your allegiances to the men's game, you can never go wrong watching her compatriot Fabrice Santoro. Otherwise, go with Anastasia Myskina, who plays the most whimsical tennis on tour now that Martina Hingis is a pensioner. I've always thought that Svetlana Kuznetsova was destined for greatness. Her latest accomplishment was a win over rising Russian Anastasia Myskina. What's your take on Kuznetsova?
Zvonareva (who beat the Kooz in a tight three-setter last week) is the current flavor of the month. But long-term, a lot of folks think Kuznetsova might be the best of the bunch. Physically, she has Big Babe credentials (she stands 5-9), and her doubles play does indeed presage some success at Wimbledon. I am a fan of Alexandra Stevenson. She seems to be making steady progress, and until quite recently was ranked in the top 20. What does the future hold for her? Do you see her as a top-10 player or even a Grand Slam winner?
If readers' various communiqués are any indication, Stevenson enjoys roughly the same popularity level as the taxman at the Clijsters household. Week in, week out you all generally trash her, sometimes deservedly, sometimes not. I think you have to give her a fair amount of credit, though. After her Wimbledon breakthrough she fell outside the top 100 and all the while was known (and promoted/exploited) more for her parentage than for her tennis. It would have been easy for her to say, "The hell with this," enroll at UCLA and get on with her life. She stuck with tennis and -- gobbling those IMG-flavored wild cards like Ms. Pac-Man, going through coaches at a Safin-esque pace -- returned to the top 20. For this alone, you must tip your cap. Anyway, top 10 is a possibility; winning a Grand Slam is not. Stevenson has a booming serve and picturesque groundies, but she is still too inconsistent and doesn't move well enough to win majors. Stevenson's other big problem is that she is tennis' answer to the tree falling in the forest. She cleans up at events no one -- at least in the U.S. -- hears about or sees or notices. (That is, she's a demon at those fall indoor events in Europe.) On the other hand, her track record at Slams is abysmal. In fact, she hasn't been past the second round of a Slam since Wimbledon 1999. That's a problem. And until it changes, it's hard to see her as more than a nice top-20 or -30 player with a nasty serve. Long Lost SiblingsBreathe easy. LLS is back. Elena Bovina and actress Reese Witherspoon.
Fernando Meligeni and actor Adrien Brody.
In a giving moodFinally, we received a lot of suggestions for places to donate tennis equipment. First, let me happily make a plug for the Chanda Rubin Foundation, 708 S. Saint Antoine Street, Lafayette, LA 70501. Here are some alternatives. Sincere thanks to those who took the time to write in. I suggest calling your local USTA section office for a response. Someone there would know of a community program nearby that could use the equipment. Or you could try a local school for the USA School Tennis program.
I work for Special Olympics North Carolina and I know that some of our local programs sometimes take those types of donations, so you may want to contact a local Special Olympics program.
I coordinate a program called RePlay which collects used sports equipment (and clothing) to distribute to girls' programs and community groups' sports programs. Bring your used sports equipment to YWCA of the City of New York, 610 Lexington Avenue (at 53rd Street) or New York Cares Community Resource Center in the AOL Time Warner building, 75 Rockefeller Plaza (at 51st Street). Feel free to contact me at (917) 653-5429 or kerryohearen@aol.com.
I highly recommend the MaliVai Washington Kids Foundation, 2933 North Myrtle Avenue, Suite 101, Jacksonville, FL 32209. This wonderful program provides both tennis education/opportunities and quality character-building guidance to underprivileged children. Visit malwashington.com for more information.
I can assure you that many organizations would be interested in donations and/or be able to refer you to an interested recipient. Try the New York NJTL (National Junior Tennis League), the Arthur Ashe Foundation or a local CTAs (Community Tennis Association).
Your local club or parks department usually will accept donations for their development programs, but I know of a great group located in Hilton Head, S.C. Dennis van der Meer's Professional Tennis Registry manages a "racket roundup" that takes used equipment, refurbishes it as needed and distributes it to local grass-roots tennis organizations. My wife received a similar lack of response from the USTA, and the PTR sent her a dozen rackets for her middle-school program at no cost.
If you can't find a sports organization to donate old tennis equipment to, try public schools in your local area. Quite often, middle schools and high schools include tennis as part of their physical education classes. Just as often, the rackets they provide students with are in dismal condition. I'm sure if you call up the athletic director of a middle or high school in your area that has tennis courts, he or she would be happy to accept your hand-me-down rackets.
Contact your local Community Tennis Association. Though a part of the USTA, CTAs are run by local volunteers who are usually happy to follow up and answer any questions. The Northern New Mexico association officers have helped start up a community association in my area, and among the things they gave us were preprinted boxes, to be placed at local courts, which ask for the donation of used rackets for youth programs.
There are a number of ways to donate rackets. Tournaments, like the Mercedes Benz, have racket days where used equipment is collected. Schools, like the Brother Rice School in Chicago, take donations. Many Boys & Girls Clubs also take donations. One might also inquire with the Venus and Serena Williams Tennis Academy, which provides tennis lessons and equipment to underprivileged youth.
A friend of mine recently founded the International Tennis Organization (ITO), which aims to help identify and support talented players who lack adequate financial resources. At this point, it is a shoestring operation and he is constantly seeking donations of equipment.
Donations for used tennis rackets, balls and clothing can be made to Tennis Ministry International. We are Christian-based organization with offices in more than 100 nations. We have a coaches' training base in Hong Kong and a new center in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., to train coaches to start community tennis programs around the world. We currently have 45 developing nations asking us to send tennis coaches to start up programs working with local churches. They need rackets and balls, as does our Tennessee training center. Donations can be sent via a U.S. church, earning a tax deduction.
I work with moderate-risk juvenile boys at Greenville Hills Academy, and we would appreciate receiving rackets and any other equipment. Greenville Hills Academy, Route 4, Box 283, Greenville, FL 32331.
The Dance of Tennis is a nonprofit organization that not only teaches tennis to inner-city kids in Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, D.C., and Boston, we also teach conflict resolution, cooperation, winning regardless of the score and exercises to integrate the right and left hemispheres of the brain. We are always in need of rackets, balls, ball hoppers and money donations. Anyone interested in learning more about the Dance of Tennis or making donations can contact me at tombiolightgroup.com.
For the two of you who read down this far, have a good week and enjoy the opening rounds of Key Biscayne! Sports Illustrated senior writer Jon Wertheim covers tennis for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment.
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