Clijsters goes all Petrova on Safina

3rd seed Kim Clijsters, the favorite to win the 2011 Australian Open, gave the crowd a taste of her focus during her first round on the second day of the event. Clijsters defeated 2009 finalist Dinara Safina 6-0, 6-0 in just 44 minutes.

Clijsters knows what it feels like. Last year, she was beaten down 6-0, 6-1 by Nadia Petrova in the third round of the Open.

Prior to the match, as some of us were discussing earlier today, the commentators on ESPN chatted for some time about Safina's history of mental collapses, and need to do something about her mental strength. And while that discussion is relevant, it is simply not the whole story. For one thing, the big collapses occurred only in major finals. Also, the commentators--led by Patrick McEnroe--failed to mention the former number 1's career-threatening back injury that took her off the tour twice, and caused her to miss months of play. (In contrast, the same commentators were telling us every five minutes that Juan Martin Del Potro may struggle because he was out for so long with a wrist injury.)

A memorable match was played between 12th seed Agnieszka Radwanska (who Tennis Channel commentators forgot to mention--until the last mintue--has not played since September because of surgery for a stress fracture in her foot) and Kimiko Date Krumm. They each won a set, and the third set was a see-saw of momentum. It was impossible to predict who would win. Date Krumm went up 4-1, but then Radwanska had to take a medical break because her back was bothering her. After that break, Date Krumm was never the same, and it surely didn't help that the usually burning hot Melbourne court temperature was pleasantly cool. Still, it was hard to determine who would prevail, and toward the end, Radwanska inadvertently supplied some first-rate comic relief. Then she won the match, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5.

Ekaterina Makarova upset 19th seed and 2008 finalist Ana Ivanovic, Alicia Molik won an entertaining match against Roberta Vinci, Ayumi Morita upset 27th seed Alexandra Dulgheru, and Jelena Jankovic hit ten aces. Among those saying goodbye were Australians Anastasia Rodionova, Sophie Ferguson and Sally Peers. Melanie Oudin, Patty Schnyder and Auckland champion Greta Arn were also among the defeated on day 2.

Melbourne miscellany

Tennis Australia's Louise Pleming is acting as Jelena Dokic's temporary coach at the Australian Open. I reported recently that Dokic had hired Glenn Schapp to be her coach, but apparently, that didn't work out. Dokic said she "didn't feel that click" with Schapp.

The Tennis Channel commentating team waited until Agnieszka Radwanska was down 1-4 in the third set of the first round before casually mentioning that she had had foot surgery in October and wasn't sure, until the last minute, that she would play in Melbourne. Radwanska hadn't played since September, and not discussing her injury and surgery felt like a major omission. (She did win the match, but that's another story.

One more time: Alla Kudryavtseva did not make a disparaging remark about Maria Sharapova's tennis dress when she upset her in the 2008 Wimbledon tournament. She made a sarcastic little joke as a response to what she thought was a less-than-intelligent question from a member of the sports media. It shocked her that dozens of journalists didn't get that she was being ironic. It didn't exactly shock me.

While I'm on the subject of the tennis media....ESPN's Australian Open commentators' discussion of the "great cloud" concerning Serena Williams' foot is beyond tiresome. A drunken, irresponsible person threw a bottle and cut Williams' foot. It was a significant injury. She had to have two surgeries. Great cloud.

Vania King is walking, shopping in Melbourne's Chinatown, singing, and preparing to play Australian Open number 1 seed Caroline Wozniacki.

This is one of the funniest things I've ever seen occur in a professional tennis match:

On their knees, begging the question

For years, many of us have written about the sports media's refusal to promote women's sports, an act made worse by their then turning around and saying "But no one wants to watch women's sports." Obviously, if the sports media promoted women's sports the way they do men's sports, women's sports would be more popular. In some cases, people would learn for the first time that women even play certain sports.

The latest member of the media (albeit one who does promote women's tennis) to parrot this argument is Jon Wertheim, writing in the July/August issue of Tennis. Says Wertheim: "...here's the reason women tennis players should be paid less than their male counterparts: simple economics. That is, the market has spoken and it says, unmistakably, that the product simply isn't worth as much."

I agree with that, on its face. But the market has been manipulated by a strong cultural bias toward males. Shouldn't we fix the market before declaring the sanctity of its results?

Miscellaneous

Chelsey Gullickson, sister of Carly, has won the 2010 NCAA women's singles championship. Gullickson, a sophomore at the University of Georgia, is the third woman from her school to win the title.

Martina Navratilova, with partner Jana Novotna, is into the second round of the French Open's Women's Legends doubles competition. Navratilova and Novotna defeated Mary Joe Fernandez and Conchita Martinez. Navratilova is also working as a commentator for Tennis Channel, and--in her spare time--receiving breast cancer radiation treatment in Paris. Also winning their first round were Iva Majoli and and Nathalie Tauziet, who defeated Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva.

Anna-Lena Groenefeld says that her goal is to be able to play at Wimbledon.

Saying that women who manage homes and take care of children "don't work" is a common insult made to thousands of women; it's a shame that it's repeated by Chris Evert in the June issue of Tennis. Evert is at least "fair" in her put-downs, though. In the same article in which she says that a lot of women in the 70s "didn't work," she goes on to take a sideways swipe at women who do work outside the home and utilize the tennis club as "something to occupy a child's time." Fathers, of course, get a pass. I have complained in the past about this magazine's ongoing (sometimes really nasty) sexist content, as well as content that has been both homophobic and ageist (the latter in an issue "dedicated" to older people). Publisher Evert needs to do some clean-up, starting with herself, and outgoing editor-in-chief James Martin also bears some of the responsibility. (For those who may be wondering: The magazine arrives in our mailbox because of a USTA membership; I would not otherwise spend my money on it.)

When the new rankings come out, Serena and Venus Williams will be ranked number 1 in doubles.

Top junior girls seed Monica Puig is out of the French Open in the quarterfinals. Puig was defeated 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 by Silvia Njiric.

It's "unorthodox" only if you have no frame of reference

It amazes me how many sportswriters--now that they have been forced to notice Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez--are describing her playing style as "unorthodox" and even "weird." It is neither. "Throwback" I'll accept, and more the pity that there's truth in that. Martinez Sanchez, when she was a very little girl, used to watch Martina Navritalova on television. Therefore, as a child, she used to run to the net right after she served the ball. That's called "aggression," and it is a very useful tactic.

I even saw a fan on the Web express doubt as to whether Martinez Sanchez was playing tennis at all--after all, she's supposed to be engaged in hitting the ball. No, she's supposed to be engaged in winning points. I think there are a lot of people who need to sit down and watch some Navratilova and Evonne Goolagong matches.

And while I'm on the topic, what Martinez Sanchez does is not "junk"--it's spin variety, cleverness, aggression, and great use of the volley. It wins points, and it's a lot of fun to watch. I thought the game was more intersesting when players used wooden racquets, and it's nice to see a player who is willing to use a contemporary racquet for power, but not neglect touch and volley. That would be the Rome champion.

Miscellany

The new Tampax ad featuring Serena Williams is one of the worst commercials I have ever seen. "Mother Nature" is a kind of 1960s club lady, and the entire thing is inane. Serena is actually kind of funny, but, really--what were they thinking?

IMG has signed Li Na as a client.

For those who enjoy irony: The latest issue of Tennis--which is devoted to issues involving older readers and tennis players--manages to insult older citizens by referring to an older chair umpire as "senile." Having already insulted women and the LGBT community, the magazine's slur toward people over 50 comes as no surprise, and I suppose the editors' lack of insight isn't exactly shocking, either.

Melanie Oudin and John Isner will represent the USA in the 2010 Hopman Cup competition.

For the first time in 18 years, there are three British women in the world's top 100--Anne Keothavong, Elena Baltacha and Katie O'Brien.

Tom Perrotta says Kim Clijsters may dominate Justine Henin next season. Steve Flink says Henin will dominate Clijsters, but that Clijsters will make it harder for her to do so.

U.S. Open miscellany

I'm probably in the minority, but I liked Edina Gallovits' somewhat retro tennis outfit. I also really like Venus's latest ELEVEN ensemble, though I'm sure it isn't everyone's cup of tea, either.

I eventually had to turn the sound off while Jeff Tarango and Al Trautwig called the Lisicki-Rezai match. The sexism was hard enough to bear, but the almost total lack of knowledge of the players and the endless yuk-yuk blathering was too much for me. U.S. Open Live--please inflict these two on the men's tour. Or even better--get them off the air.

Speaking of the U.S. Open livestream--the glitches aren't out of the system yet. This morning, the commentary for the Tsonga match was broadcast when Kuznetsova played Goerges.

Thanks to Colette for pointing out that I wasn't getting all of the doubles draw in my browser. Some of the bottom section was cut off. Correction made.

The current issues of both Tennis and USTA magazines feature some good articles on the U.S. Open. The former contains a preview, and the latter focuses on history.

Note to ESPN commentators: Keep up!

Tonight, Mary Carillo, Pam Shriver and Chris Fowler had a lengthy conversation about whether it is fair for the women to always get the first night match at the U.S. Open. The discussion went on and on, but the problem is--the procedure has already been changed. As of this year, the women will not automatically play the first night match.

I'm sure I'm not the only fan who knows this, but why, oh why, don't the commentators know it?

Speaking of commentary, there were numerous glitches this morning with the new U.S. Open website live streaming. Most of them appear to have been fixed, however, and the video is crisp and easy to watch. So far, the commentary is very good, too.

It was hard to believe that live matches were shown on both ESPN2 and Tennis Channel most of the day. In the U.S., one generally has to have Direct TV or ESPN 360 to be able to watch several different matches during a major. My problem today, however, was limiting the number of matches I could realistically watch.

Useless stat of the year

"No mother has knocked off a number 1-ranked player since Evonne Goolagong Cawley beat Chris Evert in the finals of the Virginia Slims of Boston in 1978."

Associated Press

Pardon me for saying it again, but...

NBC is evil. Nothing has changed since the French Open. ESPN does not show women's matches unless someone named Williams or Oudin is playing in them. In many cases, they do not show even parts of other matches. This morning, in the U.S., we were able to watch most of Oudin and Radwanska, and Williams and Hantuchova. That was it. No Petrova and Azarenka, no Wozniacki and Lisicki, no Razzano and Schiavone.

In my time zone, ESPN's non-broadcast (I did get to see Federer) ended at 9 a.m. But NBC's broadcast did not begin until 10 a.m. It didn't matter. While live matches were taking place, NBC showed the third set of the Federer-Soderling match, then went directly to the Williams-Ivanovic match. And once again, there are matches that ESPN is not allowed to show, so people who want to see them are forced to watch them after the fact on NBC.

This viewers' nightmare is almost identical to what we had to go through during the French Open. I say "almost" because it is worse: ESPN and NBC also conspired to deny U.S. viewers the right to purchase Wimbledon Live. When we had Wimbledon Live, a great service, it didn't matter what kind of shenanigans ESPN and NBC were up to--we could watch good matches. I like Radio Wimbledon, but it would be nice to actually see Wimbledon matches.

Wimbledon miscellany

So-called journalists continue to ask inane/offensive questions:
It looked like mirror images. You had your left leg all taped and she had her right leg all taped. Is this for the cripple's championship or what?
Do you think about the girls ahead of you? Steffi Graf has seven; Martina has nine.
Unfortunately, players very rarely call these people out. It would make a difference if they did.

9th seed Christina McHale was upset in the first round of junior girls competition today.

128 people had to be treated for heat illness at Wimbledon today--128 if you count Jelena Jankovic. And one had to be taken to the hospital. The temperature went up as high as 28C, which--where I live--would constitute a mercifully cool day right now. I remember, decades ago, traveling to London in the summer, and feeling so relieved that the temperature was much lower than it was here. Imagine my surprise when I saw heat wave precautions posted everywhere.

Here's a unique take on Melanie Oudin.

Though I generally try to avoid Sports Illustrated, I was relieved to find someone there who, like I, cannot understand why screaming is called "grunting."

Can someone please tie up Brad Gilbert, put a sock in his mouth, and lock him in a closet until Wimbledon is over? Actually, the sock part would be good enough. There is probably no greater philistine or yahoo on the sports airwaves--and that's saying something. It isn't just his constantly calling the French Open champion "KOOnetSOva" his "Double J" moniker for Jelena Jankovic, or the fact that he calls Tammy Tanasugarn "Tammy Sue Garden." His extreme "masculine" posturing, matched only by his tiny frame of reference, can be maddening.

Today, he was astonished by the idea of moving outer court matches to Centre Court if there is rain and Centre Court is not being used. Seriously, he was amazed that someone suggested this clever probability. And he made a series of lame "Simon says" jokes about Gilles Simon, whose name, of course, is not pronounced "SImon."

He also tried to "reassure" Tommy Haas that it just wasn't so when Haas described himself as emotional. Patting him on the back, Gilbert said in an avuncular tone, "No, you're not." It wasn't irony--he needed for Haas to stop thinking of himself as "feminine," I suppose.

If you've ever been to a gathering--maybe just your office--and noticed there is one man who just has to blurt out anything, no matter how inane it is, then you know what Gilbert is like. Several of the commentators are annoying, but next to Gilbert, they're all class acts.

Wimbledon and the media

I have already discussed the extreme sexism of the British press with regard to Wimbledon (and everything else, for that matter). In the U.S., on both ESPN and Tennis Channel--and I'm sure NBC will be no exception--the mispronunciation of players' names continues, with Pam Shriver taking this offense to new depths. And I also continue to hear those lazy, tennis-demeaning other-sports pseudo-metaphors almost all the time.

Today, describing himself, Darren Cahill used a pseudonym for a word that--in the context in which he was speaking--meant that he was weak and scared--like a woman. Since I hear people more intelligent than Cahill using the same term frequently, I certainly wasn't surprised, but doesn't anyone ever stop and think about what s/he is actually saying? (And yes, I realize that many people actually believe that weak and scared = woman.)

Among the mispronunciations, sloppy tennis-insulting metaphors and the sexism, there often isn't a lot to like about television commentary. But I would be willing to tolerate at least some of the nonsense if ESPN could just remember that women are playing tennis at Wimbledon. I no longer have access to Wimbledon Live--the U.S. is now excluded from using the service--so if a match isn't on ESPN (or NBC on the weekends), I cannot watch it. And women's matches have been few and far between on ESPN so far. If we're lucky, we get to see a segment of a women's match. The exception, of course, involves matches in which Venus and Serena Williams play.

The Williams sisters are very important people at Wimbledon, and one can understand ESPN's preoccupation with showing their matches. But who wants to watch an entire match consisting of Serena plowing over an opponent when there is a really interesting WTA match going on at the same time? I don't. But for now, it's lots of Williams sisters and only snippets--if we're lucky (not a moment of the Vesnina-Cibulkova match)--of other women's matches.

NBC is....what's the word?...oh, yes--evil

Readers of this blog know that I am quite restrained in public expression, but it is all I can do to keep from letting loose a string of invectives regarding the National Broadcasting Company.

We have already discussed how frustrating it was that those of us who live in the U.S. did not get to see the Nadal-Soderling match live. And today, we were deprived of seeing both the Gonzales-Soderling and Federer-Del Potro matches live.

At least one (and perhaps both) of these matches were available live on ESPN 360, but I cannot access ESPN 360 because my ISP is Charter, another entity that that has occupied a top slot on my hate list for some time.

I am so sorry, NBC, that Andy Roddick and James "the fake" Blake were not in today's semifinals. They weren't, and they probably never will be, but perhaps you have heard of Roger Federer? Here were two of the biggest matches imaginable, and I have to follow them on an electronic scoreboard, and watch them on television after the fact.

Tennis magazine does it again

Some time ago, I was very disappointed to read a Tennis feature in which the writer made a gender double-standard "joke" about Martina Hingis's sex life, implying that having more than one partner made her morally questionable.

In the current issue, there is a photo feature on the hair styles of players' mothers. This is a pretty desperate reach for feature material from the get-go, but the real problem is a pair of photos of Dinara and Marat Safin's mother and Andy and Jamie Murray's mother. Captioned "Short But Not So Sweet," the copy reads "We wouldn't want to run into these mothers in a dark alley," and the writer calls their hair styles "practical and intimidating." The message is clear.

Chris Evert--after all the insults you've endured, do you really think that sexism and homophobia are "funny," and that they have a place in your magazine?

More debate about the future of U.S. tennis

Though we have heard most of this before, there is an article in Saturday's New York Times about the future of U.S. tennis. Depending upon with whom you speak, U.S. tennis development is either very promising or it is in real trouble.

Ford speaks out about the Dubai situation

Bonnie D. Ford, writing for ESPN about Shahar Peer's visa denial, has taken to task everyone from cowardly officials of the United Arab Emirates to the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour leadership to the players themselves. Ford interviewed ESPN commentator and former tour star Pam Shriver about the situation. Says Shriver:

The tournament should automatically lose the right to exist. I know that carries unbelievable financial and political ramifications, and sometimes you have to be willing to live in a two-faced environment. But if this tournament is going to send out invitations and only ask who they want, if that's the way they want it to be, then they're an exhibition.

According to Ford, Sony Ericsson WTA Tour chairman and CEO Larry Scott said he has been concerned about the situation for more than a year. "I saw firsthand that there were some issues," Scott said. "I met with government officials and I told them I expected Shahar Peer would want to play the following year, and that whatever issues they had needed to be solved."

Says Ford:

If we question the United Arab Emirates' ethics, the WTA's decision to invest in Dubai in 2003 and the tour's judgment in allowing the event to go forward without Peer, we probably also should question why the 55 players on site didn't caucus when they found out she was on the other side of the barbed wire and try to imagine how it would feel if it happened to them on the basis of race, religion or passport.

Hot news tip for CBS

Women are playing in the U.S. Open.