Tennis Prose




Dec/15

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Eddie Herr Day Two

12279239_10206518898704479_4814498360705472134_nAnother action packed day today: Let’s get to it. Watched my friend Shareek’s player Zane Khan who finaled in the 12s last year – this year he is now an aggressive offensive player with a big serve. Last year he was a weak serving defensive grinder counter puncher with an average serve – it’s just remarkable how far he has progressed since last December. Today he beat the No 1 Indian lefty 63 61 but he not only beat he just destroyed the kid. Shareek said it was the best he’s played here – winners all over the court – great defense – clutch serving – volleys – second set was the zone – tomorrow Zane plays the no 2 seed in the 14s – remember Zane is 13.

Talked a bit with Ivan Lendl about hockey – he told some cool stories about once playing in Minnesota in the 80s and the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL were in town – and coach Mike Keenan was not happy with the Blackhawks effort level in a recent game so he ordered the squad to go and watch an entire Lendl practice to see and appreciate how hard he worked. Ivan said he practiced for over three hours that day. He’s also a huge hockey fan who is looking forward to the World Cup tournament in Quebec next year and is going to drive the five hours up for a few days from Connecticut to see the Czech Republic team play.

Remember Andrea Temesvari? The first blonde beauty in the 80s – she is coaching the defending champ and top ranked ITF junior Dalma Galfi from Hungary. She shared her fond Mac memories as she hit twice with John McEnroe – also John let Galfi hit at his Academy during the US Open last year for three days.

Jean Philippe Fluerian is here coaching an American kid who he is friends with the father. An attacking player JFP played John McEnroe three times (0-3) and also beat Marcelo Rios in Monte Carlo. He shared the sad news that Jerome Golmard is in very poor health – Golmard was a solid lefty player from France in the 90s and 2000s

Had a nice conversation with Daniel Vacek who just moved here with his family. Vacek was a big server with good success in the 90s and 2000s including two wins vs Rios. Vacek said he saw Rublev hitting without a shirt on and was surprised how skinny but powerful he is built – no soft spots.

Met Dana Jones the pop of Alexis Jones who is now 19 and on the lower pro circuits – she was a hit prospect years ago as she won an 18s at age 9 and once worked with Navratilova who wanted her to play ice hockey to broaden her athleticism but poppa Jones wasn’t cool with that idea and seeing her daughter get hit with hockey sticks in the head. I didn’t know that Navratilova played ice hockey as a little girl along with her tennis. Jones said that Bouchard is in town with coach Hogstedt but they are laying low and supposedly hitting on public courts to stay away from the public and Media.

Saw my friend Andrei Kozlov’s Russian girls play their matches – one eleven year old played a Thai girl in the 12s – the Thai girl Punnin Kovapitukted and her whole family trekked here all the way from Thailand and she can play some beautiful tennis – sort of like Rios with a very loose relaxed style with the lefty forehand and smooth backhand but also the court sense. Also saw Gabby Price win – she is a hyped twelve year old from Boca Raton and coached by Rick Macci. She is a bit undersized but she plays aggressive tennis. Not sure if I saw anything really extraordinary though – there are just so so MANY great players here and it’s hard to stand out.

Coach Kozlov – here with an array of Russian bloc girls he trains – said Stefan is going to hit for two weeks with Grigor Dimitrov in Fisher Island – Grigor’s dad is supposedly here with kids he coaches. Nikolai Mirnyi (father of the Beast) was here watching as was David Pierce. Players who caught my eye today – Tyra Richardson 12s (tenth seeded tiny black girl with a feisty attitude and steady strokes) – Noa Krznaric (red headed like Molly Ringwalkd #2 seed in 12s with heavy strokes) –

A guy said an interesting quote: “Every kid here has had hundreds of thousands of dollars of coaching to get to this level.”

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9 comments

  • Dan Markowitz · December 2, 2015 at 3:04 am

    Really, Gabby didn’t catch your eye? When I saw her for a short bit at Macci’s she caught my eye with how she’ll stand so close on returns of serve and just blast away. But she is small. Pretty cool you’re talking with Lendl. That is a telling remark, all the $ you need just to make it to be a great junior player. Nothing is guaranteed is it?

  • Scoop Malinowski · December 2, 2015 at 7:38 am

    The word about Rick is he’s a business guy and he knows how to target the $ parents by wooing them about the kid’s potential – Apparently Price is very good but not overly special as she has been hyped – Rick knows how to work the hype up – so I’ve been told down here – and publicity and hype are key factors in his business – who knows?

  • Harold · December 2, 2015 at 8:40 am

    Years ago, I played in a Softball league in Central Park. Frank Hammond, who was in the umpire’s chair for the famous JMac/Nastase fiasco, used to watch the games. We talked a lot of Tennis, great guy.
    One day he told me Lendl was going to show up, they were going to a Hockey game at MSG. Lendl had a little piece of the Hartford Whalers in ghe late 80’s or early 90’s

  • Dan Markowitz · December 2, 2015 at 9:53 am

    Well, Macci also has a bit of a track record with Ho, Roddick, Capriati and the Williams sisters so when he touts a junior there’s a good chance that kid has the goods. But he’s getting up there in age and maybe he wants to get more attention. I know he told me that he teaches more private lessons than any other pro in America and a lot come from the YouTube videos he has and the Tennis Channel segments.

    He also told me he’d look at my son’s strokes for free when I interviewed him and then when I contacted him and told him we were coming down to Boca, he said it’d be $300 for a session. Thanks, Rick!

    With Auger Ali, is he a Muslim? Has that been talked about? There hasn’t been a big Muslim international athlete as far as I can recall since Muhammad Ali.

  • Andrew Miller · December 2, 2015 at 10:23 am

    “Hit harder!” <- advice from the Macci team. Plus popcorn.

    Just kidding. No popcorn.

  • Moskova Moskova · December 2, 2015 at 11:56 am

    @ dan – wat a piece o’sh*t that macci is, huh ?….or he prlly just forgot that he said he was gona review your son’s strokes pro bono. LOL

    btw, safin was a muslim though not practicing nor advertising..

  • Andrew Miller · December 2, 2015 at 2:44 pm

    Go with Lansdorp. The only proven stroke doctor.

  • Dan Markowitz · December 2, 2015 at 4:08 pm

    I don’t know if he’s a piece of dog doo, but he’s definitely a self-promoter to the hilt. When I read his book that’s what I basically said to him: Rick, you’re writing a book so you have to give up the goods. You have to tell the reader how you coach. Instead you just gave mostly your spiel in the book.”

    He didn’t like that and said the book was selling like hot cakes which Randy Walker, the publisher, said was not the case. Anyway, I like Rick. He’s a character and probably does know his stuff, but I can’t see where his lessons are worth $300 a session. And in my mind, the only way lessons work is if you stay with a pro for a long period of time. What’s the sense of paying $300 for one or two sessions?

  • Hartt · December 2, 2015 at 4:37 pm

    Have not seen anything about Felix’s religion. His father, whose last name is Aliassime, is from Togo, and his mother, last name Auger, is from Quebec. Felix grew up in Quebec. So it’s not impossible he is Muslim, Togo has a Muslim minority, but more likely he is not.

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