Benoit Paire has turned into Superman, pulverizing Pablo Carreno Busta 76 61 60, winning 16 of the last 17 games. The talented French powerhouse has suddenly instilled a new weapon into his formidable arsenal – emotional adrenaline. Paire dominated the court with his power and his presence, often flexing a “I am the king of the court” fist pump or uppercut. Paire is in a different zone now, a different world and thus he’s a different player. If only Richard Gasquet is taking notes. Lucas Pouille is attempting to give France the commanding 2-0 lead home court lead vs Spain’s Agut. The two have split sets.
USA has been trounced in day one singles in Croatia, with Steve Johnson and Frances Tiafoe going down in flames in straight sets. Tiafoe was dominated by Marin Cilic 61 63 76 while Borna Coric was too much for Steve Johnson 64 76 63. One can’t imagine John Isner, Jack Sock or Sam Querrey faring any differently. It’s another disappointment for Captain Jim Courier who has enjoyed minimal success at the helm.
Home court has been a key advantage in Davis Cup history but that will change next year in the new format, much to the dismay of Lleyton Hewitt who crusaded to maintain the Davis Cup’s 16 team World Group draw. Hewitt’s Australian team is down 0-2 in Graz to the Austrians with his combatants Jordan Thompson losing to Dominic Thiem in three sets and Alex deMinaur falling in four sets to Denis Novak.
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« Previous 1 2catherine · September 22, 2018 at 6:05 am
I read Osaka’s deal with Adidas is worth $8.5 million. No wonder Simona switched to Nike, where her contract however is worth a measly $1.5 or thereabouts.
Adidas know where the future’s going 🙂
Hartt · September 22, 2018 at 8:32 am
Adidas knows the Asian market is huge, and the upcoming Tokyo Olympics makes a Japanese player even more valuable. For example, in the past year Kei has earned over $34 million in endorsements, and the poor guy did not play for a big chunk of that time. He even has Japan airlines as a sponsor.
Naomi doesn’t seem to care much about $, but she will soon become the highest paid female athlete.
Scoop Malinowski · September 22, 2018 at 9:26 am
Osaka also is in a unique position in that she is seen by many as the conqueror of the greatest of all time. In a sense, Osaka is like now the world heavyweight champion of womens tennis. By dominating Serena twice in a row this year at US open and Miami Open, Osaka in a sense has dethroned the queen and like a boxing champion, absorbed all the star power of the former champion. The value of the star power Osaka has gained from this US Open title is immeasurable. On top of that there is the good will for having slayed the wicked witch. There definitely is a Dorothy vs wicked witch aspect to the Osaka vs Serena rivalry. Not surprised Osaka is hitting all these jackpots now, they will continue too.
catherine · September 22, 2018 at 10:45 am
I don’t think Serena will enjoy being knocked off her perch as the highest paid female athlete 🙂
Hartt · September 22, 2018 at 1:26 pm
According to Forbes, in a piece published in August (so before the USO) Serena brought in $18.1 million over the past year, most of it in endorsements and business ventures. It won’t be long before Naomi surpasses that. Especially since Naomi likely will win more prize money, to go along with her endorsements.
Am sure you are right, Serena won’t be pleased!
Scoop Malinowski · September 22, 2018 at 4:59 pm
Osaka is a much nicer and more appealing personality than Serena. Osaka can become bigger and more popular and beloved than Serena.
Hartt · September 22, 2018 at 5:46 pm
I hope that Naomi can keep that natural charm. She said she isn’t going to change, that she doesn’t know any other way to be. It took me a while to get used to her “upspeak”, sounding like she is always asking a question, but other than that, think she is great.
Scoop Malinowski · September 22, 2018 at 6:08 pm
Yes let’s hope she can stay true to herself. All the handlers and marketers will try to whisper in her ears to say this and say that. Let’s hope she is strong enough to just be herself and keep it real.
catherine · September 23, 2018 at 1:45 am
Well, that was a surprise. Pliskova in SS. However, maybe it’s best that Naomi doesn’t sweep all before her at this point in her career. This match watched closely no doubt by a few players in Wuhan 🙂
Ka hasn’t had a particularly good year so a good result for her.
I imagine everyone’s following the Laver Cup but one of the reasons I prefer tournaments is the narrative and here’s a new one in the WTA.
catherine · September 23, 2018 at 1:58 am
Naomi told Sasha during coaching that she felt she was in ‘a mid-life crisis’ after dropping the first set. Wait till she hit’s the real one 🙂
BTW – if you see this Scoop – I wonder if you picked the right winner at Wembley last night. Like a tennis match, it’s the last blow that counts.
Hartt · September 23, 2018 at 8:03 am
Catherine, I posted about this match on another thread before I saw your post. As I wrote, I watched the match and was very impressed with Pliskova. Her serving was outstanding. Although Naomi was not at her best, it would have been very tough to beat Ka yesterday.
If Karolina can play nearly this well in Wuhan she should have a successful tournament. Naomi has withdrawn from Wuhan, citing a viral illness. That may have played a role in their match.
Scoop Malinowski · September 23, 2018 at 8:07 am
Catherine, no one is beating Joshua for years. Povetkin was tough as expected but Joshua is the clear King of this era. Fury and Wilder are a pair of clowns who do nothing but discredit and bad mouth Joshua because they are jealous and their plan is to not fight him. Just try to beat him with words and talk but no action.
catherine · September 23, 2018 at 8:20 am
Hartt – I think Naomi is exhausted, there was a lot of pressure on her in Tokyo, the kind she’ll have to get used to, and Karolina had the right game – heavy serve, good tactics and cool mind. And just sheer experience. Naomi couldn’t hit through her or intimidate her. But Wuhan might be different story for Ka.