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Scoop’s Tennis Scene: Gulbis beats Isner and Pennetta unretires
31 Comments · Posted by Scoop Malinowski in Bios
Ernests E Train Gulbis pulled off perhaps the upset of the year – as he defeated Big John Isner 64 46 64 in Vienna. Gulbis has had a miserable year, dropping from the top ten to outside the top hundred. Isner is in the hunt for a top ten ranking so you know he was in it to win it…. Flavia Pennetta said she was quitting tennis after her monumental US Open triumph but she’s back on the circuit in Asia, perhaps those fat appearance fees had something to do with her change of mind…Michael Mmoh has injected his name into the Young American Armada conversation with his comprehensive 63 62 first round win over Ryan Harrison at the Las Vegas Challenger this week – Eighteen year old Mmoh is an IMG product who has been developed patiently in Bradenton, one of his IMG coaches David Red Ayme said that the plan was to not rush through the process and to take it slowly and expose the young player to the different levels of the pro game. Mmoh recently won an ITF $15,000 event and was awarded a wildcard into the Vegas draw where he downed Harrison in what appears to be the biggest win of his career. Mmoh has junior wins over highly touted Andrey Rublev and Reilly Opelka, among others…I just did an interview with a local New Jersey player (and former tournament opponent of mine) who bought a charity raffle one hour tennis lesson with John McEnroe – and let me tell you, his memories and anecdotes of this unique experience which happened at South Street Seaport are going to be one of the many highlights of my forthcoming book “Facing McEnroe.” … I was hitting with one of my students Helen last week – an 8th grader. She uses a Babolat. After about 45 minutes I suggested she try my old Volkl Tour 8 which was made in 2001 (the same racquet model that Taylor Dent used in winning his first ATP title in Newport). Helen proceeded to make far fewer errors with the Volkl, it was astounding to see. Her comment after using it was even more astounding: “Is this racquet legal?” I sent this anecdote to the Volkl Facebook page and they posted it on the wall… This weekend I’m in the quarterfinals of a USTA Eastern mens open tournament at Sutton East located under the Queensborough Bridge in NYC. If I win the quarter match on Friday night, I will either play a Venezuelan Davis Cupper who was once ranked 957 in the world – or an Australian model actor who played college tennis in Missouri. Stay tuned …
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Bryan · October 21, 2015 at 2:58 pm
Gulbis won a match? Shocker. His Apocalypse this season has been comparable to Genie’s. How you go from deep runs at majors to unable to win any 250 matches is incomprehensible.
Moskova Moskova · October 21, 2015 at 3:53 pm
gulby !…another talent wastoid…
@ scoop – what’s your defense / excuse for gubly ?….too much money ??!! puhaha
Moskova Moskova · October 21, 2015 at 3:55 pm
did dent use a volkl ?…..a wilson sponsored player, no ?
scoopmalinowski · October 21, 2015 at 4:23 pm
Gulbis just had a down year. Lots of points to defend. Some tough losses to young guns. Lost confidence. It became a depressing grind. Credit to E train for persevering. Dent used volkl when he won newport. I have the magazine cover with photo… Tennis Week cover. I asked taylor in sarasota if he remembered which racquet he won newport with and he didnt know. ) guessed wilson.
Rob · October 21, 2015 at 8:06 pm
Byran, I am not sure this is the forum for a chat about Bouchard. But Scoop et all – what is your take on that show?
Scoop Malinowski · October 21, 2015 at 8:32 pm
The whole slip and fall and then suffer a concussion episode @usopen seems very fishy to me – and then the lawsuit on top of it adds even more intrigue – Bouchard is creating a lot of drama and controversy which is good for tennis – we all know the maxim: Controversy sells – I like Bouchard, and the way she’s going about her career, she can become a transcending figure – I actually liked her move at Fed Cup refusing to shake the hand of the opponent – I like that she thinks for herself and isn’t afraid to rock the boat, non-conformity is always interesting and Bouchard is pulling it off nicely in my opinion — how the lawsuit against the USTA (for leaving the slippery floor which caused her fall), plays out will be very interesting –
Dan Markowitz · October 21, 2015 at 8:40 pm
Pennetta is retiring, but she said at the US Open, she was going to carry through the till the end of the year. So she hasn’t changed her mind as far as I can tell.
Ernie G and Bouchard are different stories because Gulbis was hurt at the beginning of the year and I don’t think injuries ko’ed Genie. Hubris did her in.
Scoop Malinowski · October 21, 2015 at 9:01 pm
Gulbis was done in by a bad start and losing some painful matches – to Thiem again, to Kokkinakis in 5 at Aus Open, to Coric, – as johnny mac once said, “It’s been scientifically proven that everything hurts more when you’re losing” — Bouchard is not well liked by the other players, and she has a big target on her back, as most glamour girls in tennis do, the added pressure to do better than last year all added together to cause her to have a down year this year — also affecting her was all the pressure and expectations on her to become the new IT girl of tennis — Capriati went through the same difficult process –
Dan Markowitz · October 21, 2015 at 9:25 pm
Difference was Capriati wasn’t nearly as attractive as Bouchard, but a much better player.
Andrew Miller · October 21, 2015 at 10:28 pm
Wertheim at si has a fair take on Bouchard. Basically: In tennis everyone is an independent contractor. So if you get injured you sue. If you were employed you get compensation , but as your own business you have no other option.
Based on the case material they will hash it out there. Presumably in favor somewhat of Bouchard given the optics according to Wertheim.
Assume she wants to play. Maybe her endorsement money stops if her ranking foes south or she doesn’t play enough tournaments.
Moskova Moskova · October 21, 2015 at 10:36 pm
Bouchard is a flake…..saw her wear a Japanese kimono (with a straight face) to one of her post match interviews…yes a kimono !
I prefer muguruza in both looks and game.
Scoop Malinowski · October 22, 2015 at 8:40 am
That’s debatable Dan – Capriati did not reach a major final as early into her career as young Bouchard did last year – JCaps first major final came at a much more advanced age – no doubt Cap was pretty good player – but so was Bouchard last year, though this year she has tailed off –
Harold · October 22, 2015 at 10:23 am
Cap had much tougher comp getting to Major finals. There were better players than Halepino, Radwanska, The Woz and even Bouchy’s arch enemy Sharapova.
Graf, Seles, Hingis, Clijsters and Henin were big time. The girls of today quake in their panties as soon as they see SW. Usually takes some fearless nothing to lose player like a Vinci or a Pironkova or Cornet to have the day of their life and come up with a big upset.
Rob · October 22, 2015 at 12:13 pm
Call it growing pains or that ‘sophomore blues’ moniker. I get that the play was slipping but the lawsuit has a different story to it – different feel. I read that SI article and one question was posed by the author that seems appropriate to through at you guys – would we be saying all this anti Genie stuff if the fall came at the 2014 US? What would the difference be?
Scoop Malinowski · October 22, 2015 at 7:16 pm
Rob – I think there would be more sympathy for Genie B, she lost a lot of fan approval this year with some of her controversial actions – the refusal to shake hands, late pullouts of tourney, prima donna aura, firing coaches, maybe she will regain sympathy from this US Open accident –
Rob · October 22, 2015 at 7:49 pm
If this is an IMG construct that is pretty lame. I’m in Canada and here there was an interview (I’ll post it shortly, got to dig it up) about how in December of last year her agent told her to loose weight so she could be on the cover of Vogue or some such thing. She did and made cover after cover. I find that kind of horrifying. Look, she was already a beautiful young woman that is the first thing. Secondly, as a role model to young girls what message does that send. And they are in the public eye these things do matter. She forgot she was an athlete and was wowed by the Beebs re tweeting her posts. All this stemmed from the end of the 2014 season, the firing of long time coach, alienating Tennis Canada and others. While a head injury is a serious incident and likely should be investigated with diligence – here in the Canada not many in the Tennis community have sympathy for her.
Scoop Malinowski · October 22, 2015 at 8:44 pm
Good points Rob – maybe the weight loss – which is noticeable – has hurt her tennis and power – I think it’s really disturbing how Hollywood and entertainment industry order/recommend young women to lose weight or get plastic surgery for their nose lips chin or boobs or whatever – accept them for what they are — the plastic surgery industry is insanity – what difference does the cover of Vogue make if Bouchard is ten pounds lighter or her nose isn’t perfect? No person is perfect — I would presume a lot of people in the fashion modeling industry must be extremely shallow and superficial —
Dan Markowitz · October 22, 2015 at 8:56 pm
This is why I’m not a big Genie fan. I didn’t know that exact story, but you can see she sold her soul to the devil so to speak and becoming the next big blonde–and I think she dyes her hair, no?–superseded her quest to be the no. 1 player in the world.
It’s similar to my story when I tried to become a model as a young man. The recruiter asked me if I had hairy legs and I said I didn’t and that was a problem, but I refused to take leg hair-growing cream. I would not sell out for the modeling industry and neither should Genie.
Rob · October 22, 2015 at 8:58 pm
Think of Bouchard’s tactics: generally going for early balls on the baseline, power – this style benefits from a more athletic frame.
Scoop Malinowski · October 23, 2015 at 7:39 am
Dan that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve read all month, sounds extremely weird — I guess a girl gets an offer to be on Vogue cover and she’ll do anything those creeps tell her to do – as most anyone would — how many beautiful girls butcher themselves up because fashion creeps tell them to?
Scoop Malinowski · October 23, 2015 at 7:40 am
Rob – but loss of bulk and physicality would soften her shots — imagine Li Na or Serena minus some of their bulk and strength —
Andrew Miller · October 23, 2015 at 10:14 am
Selling out is completely unnecessary.
I’ll agree with Harold that today’s WTA at the top is…not yesterday’s.
Always surprised when the door is open, as it is now in the WTA, that players like Camilla Giorgi, who absolutely hits the stuffing out of the ball, doesn’t run through it and win some titles.
Doesn’t happen that way.
Dan Markowitz · October 23, 2015 at 11:43 am
I was just kidding about the hair-growing cream, but the model guy did ask me if I had long hair on my legs.
Giorgi will never win big. I think her father/coach is bad for her and I also know she plays stupidly. She only has one gear.
Rob · October 24, 2015 at 10:45 am
To be clear guys. I agree with your take on Genie s game and see the weight loss in exactly the same light. Yes today’s WTA is not yesterday’s but what will tomorrow s be? Will you be writing an article dedicated to tomorrow s young women?
Reece · October 24, 2015 at 6:41 pm
Bouch has noticeably dropped but I think we are also forgetting that the U.S. Open run this year was looking like one of her best for the year. I feel sorry for her that people think she shouldn’t sue. Of course she should. I actually bought she had her mojo back at this u.s open and it was cruelly cut short.
Scoop Malinowski · October 25, 2015 at 9:12 am
Reece; you are right if all the facts are true – I just have a hard time believing the US Open locker room would be so sloppily maintained, that there would be a slippery wet floor with the lights turned out — I have been in the mens locker room countless times and it’s always perfectly maintained – with a large staff doing their duties and practically spoiling the players, no way this would ever happen in the mens locker room — it just sounds a little fishy and strangely hard to fully believe –
Harold · October 25, 2015 at 11:25 am
Lets play rumors:
Maybe Bouchy and Kyrgios were doing ” something” they shouldnt have been doing, when the fall happened.
Mixed Doubles shennagins
Reece · October 25, 2015 at 4:44 pm
Scoop, have you been in there at night, perhaps as the play for the day winds into the wee hours of the night the cleaning staff are less diligent and less of them. It was a late night fall wasn’t it.
Scoop Malinowski · October 25, 2015 at 6:06 pm
I have been in the mens locker room at night and they do not turn off the lights to save electricity, and there are a lot of workers there cleaning up, washing players clothes, attending to the players still there who need anything – I specifically remember the staff saying they work past midnight regularly – to read that it was dark and with wet floors in the women’s locker room seems far fetched to what I saw in the mens locker room –
Bryan · October 26, 2015 at 4:07 pm
“Gulbis was done in by a bad start and losing some painful matches – to Thiem again, to Kokkinakis in 5 at Aus Open”
Kokkinakis loss at AUS keyed the decline. I stayed up late watching that match. He wasn’t the same after. Fingers crossed for 2016.
Bryan · October 26, 2015 at 4:12 pm
“December of last year her agent told her to loose weight so she could be on the cover of Vogue or some such thing. She did and made cover after cover.”
WTF? Never mess with a winning combo. Genie’s fitness was better at a higher weight, strong and healthy.
BTW I didn’t intend on drawing the conversation away from Gulbis. I just noted his fall from great heights hasn’t gotten ink like Genie but his ranking and Slam performances year over year were similar.