Notes from the Red Bird House

When I was playing a lot of singles, as a junior, in college, and beyond, I always despised playing players that got everything back. They call them counter-punchers, defensive specialist, grinders, backboards. Regardless of the name (I preferred "pusher"), I hated them. Sure, some of it had to do with me not being able to get everything back, but it just wasn't my game. Who wants to stand back at the baseline, retrieve every ball, and just get it back? I certainly didn't. It was so boring and frustrating to play against; I couldn't imagine playing that way every time I took the court.  I'd rather flame out big than ploop it back and hope for the best. What would people rather watch? And, really, what would I rather play? I realized early that I wanted a game with some entertainment value. I grew up watching tennis on TV and there was nothing worse than long baseline rallies. Pop, turn head, pop, turn head. On and on. That's probably why I was so attr...

The U.S. Open starts tomorrow and for the first time in more than a decade, I'm excited about it. I've checked the draw and I know who my favorites are playing, much like I used to do with Steffi and Gabriella back in the late '80s and early '90s. Thanks to a well-placed and largely self-promotional Facebook post, I also know that my favorite-favorite opens the tournament at 10:00am CDT on the Arthur Ashe stadium court. Yes, social media and the Internet are going to make this U.S. Open impossibly easy to follow. And if ESPN follows through with their promise of complete coverage, I'll watch as many matches live as I can around work, school, and my re-burgeoning tennis career. It's funny what you don't miss until you miss it. Years passed and I never gave tennis a thought. Players played and matches were won and lost. Rankings held, rankings fell. Grand Slams came and went. If I saw a score on ESPN I may have paid attention, but then again I probably igno...

The women's pro tour is in Cincinnati this week. I've never understood Cinci as a major tour stop. After all, what's in Cincinnati? Apparently a big tennis venue if nothing else. In any case, as I stated in a previous blog, I'm back to following  professional tennis and, as I stated above, the women (and men, incidentally) are in Cincinnati this week. Serena Williams is back in action after taking a week off after the Olympics. Wait for the blasphemy because it's coming.......... And I'll be rooting for her. Oy. Is this what it's come to? Thanks to Sam Stosur and The Jinx, I feel that I have no choice. I've never been a fan of the Williams sisters. Good players yes, but they always seemed to garner too much media attention and much of the hoopla was created by them. Historically, I like players such as Steffi Graf who quietly go about the business of kicking ass without saying 'Hey, hey, heeeeeey! LOOK AT ME!!!!' In their day, the Williams si...