French Open 2010 Preview (I Don’t Really Care Either)
Posted on 23. May, 2010 at 12:24 pm by 3D in Tennis
I am too big a tennis fan not to write something on one of the 4 grand slam tournaments, even though I believe since nobody really pays any attention to the French Open, there should only be 3 majors in tennis. But I digress, enjoy the preview.
Picking the men’s champion is easy. It’s Rafa, no questions asked. He just tore up Fed last week in the finals of the Masters Series Rome. Fed played way more aggressive than I ever remember him playing on clay, and even when he was hitting it well, Rafa turned it up like 2 notches higher and outclassed him. His spin is so nasty, he’s a grinder, and he’s clutch. Nadal could win the tournament without dropping a set.Â
Roger Federer has nothing to lose the rest of his career. He’s already the best all around player of all time and has the most grand slam titles. And he’s 28, so you can count on Fed to be winning more majors for the next 3 or 4 years. But I’m not sure he will make it to the finals this year. I’m rooting for him to do so, because I would love to see him take out Rafa for the title.Â
The women’s championship will be a metaphor for the women’s tour as a whole and the outlook of its future. The champion will be decided before the semifinals as Justine Henin and Serena Williams will duke it out before then thanks to her 22 seed from the Frenchies. These are the best two players in the world on clay, and they (along with Venus) are 2 of the few who know how to not choke when it’s tight.  It’s been a merry-go-round at the top of the women’s rankings and it’s because none of the young guns can handle the heat. The WTA needs to hold on to Venus, Serena, and Henin because the tennis will be unwatchable when they’re done. Look for Serena to get halfway to the first calendar year grand slam since Steffi Graf in 1988 (no Googling required).
No women’s tennis preview would be complete without mentioning Simona Halep. Picture in the link below says it all.  That and more pics of giant cans in tennis can be found here.
Meerkat
24. May, 2010
1989 Chang vs Lendl, my favorite tennis match of all time.
The never-say-die-baseline-battler Chang against the robotic-villainous-euro Lendl … it was Rocky IV on clay.
Where are you Michael Chang? … America needs you.