French Open (Tennis): Tourney Dianetics

[Abishai100]

The French Open, often referred to as Roland-Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France. Named after the French aviator Roland Garros, it is the premier clay court tennis championship event in the world and the second of four annual Grand Slam tournaments, the other three being the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. Roland Garros is currently the only major held on clay, and it is the zenith of the spring clay court season. Because of the seven rounds needed for a championship, the slow-playing surface and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches (without a tiebreak in the final set), the event is widely considered to be the most physically demanding tennis tournament in the world (source of information: Wikipedia).

This year, I'll be following the highly-ranked women Simona Halep (Romania), Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia), and Venus Williams (USA).

The men's side is interesting too, but unless something turns my head, I'm not going to see who wins the usual Djokovic-Murray-Nadal-Federer tug-of-war, but maybe a cool upstart like Marin Cilic (Croatia) might spice things up.

What I like about the French Open is the following:

1. its international feel
2. the clay-court magic (a slower but jumpier brand of tennis)
3. Roland-Garros Stadium (more 'chic' than the fabled Wimbledon tournament at the All England Club)
4. the colorful fanfare (a mix of festivity and class, unlike that seen in any other Grand Slam tourney)

Mostly, I hope this year sees something truly great happen for the gifted Venus Williams who started out as a prodigy but was eventually overshadowed by her monstrous younger sister Serena. Maybe Venus will pull out some 'afterglow' miracle in this tournament!

With all the chatter about terrorism threatening our everyday sensibilities about pedestrian sanity/security, it will be nice to turn on the TV and enjoy French Open games this summer and think fondly about competitive sports and how it contributes to dialogue about international peace too (e.g., Munich).

With that said, what do you like about tennis/France/Roland-Garros, and do you have a favorite titan/underdog in this year's tourney?

My favorite French Open female players are Venus Williams (women's doubles winner in 1999 and 2010) and Maria Sharapova (women's singles winner in 2012 and 2014).


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TRUMP: I better not hear about Roland-Garros terrorism...
CARTER: The world is on eggshells, but as they say/ask, "Tennis...anyone?"
TRUMP: I'm a big Venus Williams/Rafael Nadal fan...
CARTER: They are superstars, and the French Open is very interesting!
TRUMP: Do you have a favorite past champion?
CARTER: Michael Chang (USA).
TRUMP: That's cool, I like Maria Sharapova (Russia).
CARTER: Let the gods of international peace prevail...

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FRENCH OPEN 2017 (Official Website!):

Roland Garros - The 2017 French Open - Official site by IBM

 

[Abishai100]

The Superstar...


The two tennis superstars, Ivan Lendl and Andre Agassi both won the French Open (at least once).

It's amazing to see how media-grabbing sports events in international locations such as Roland-Garros can draw attention to the 'fun' of celebrity...

Serena Williams continues to be the only significant (and consistent) American presence at the major tennis tournaments (in the singles draws at least).


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LENDL: Who do you think should win the men's French Open title this year?
AGASSI: Well, it'll probably be either Djokovic or Nadal (maybe Murray has a good shot).
LENDL: Sounds like the same pool (unless there's a stunning hotshot --- e.g., Michael Chang).
AGASSI: I remember Chang's victory at the French Open --- it was impressive and shocking!
LENDL: Many feel the women's draw is more exciting these days.
AGASSI: The #1 women's seed is already out (Angelique Kerber).
LENDL: There are multiple others in the female-draw who should make the tourney exciting.
AGASSI: That is unless Serena Williams dominates...
LENDL: Serena Williams is a giant, but others such as Kerber and Sharapova have made her run...
AGASSI: There's something about clay-court competition that is conducive to close competition!
LENDL: It's the hopping and nifty clay-play that accounts for that...
AGASSI: The privilege that superstars (e.g., athletes) have is in donating to charities!
LENDL: Yes, such as AIDS organizations and eco-activism organizations.
AGASSI: Philanthropy for celebrity athletes is a function of prize-money inflation.

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[Abishai100]

Day 1 Drama!


Day 1 of the French Open saw a terrific match in the women's draw between Mladenovic of France and Brady of USA.

Mladenovic came back from difficulty and pain to wrestle out a 3-set victory over Brady (with a final score of 9-7 in the final set!) and now faces Sara Errani of Italy in the 2nd round.

This 1st round nail-biter was a perfect clay-court female draw match. I'll be rooting for Mladenovic for the rest of this tourney (as will her other French friends!).

Why don't women's sports get more attention? Go figure!


{this is so much fun!}
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BRADY: I can't believe you won!
MLADENOVIC: It was a tough 3rd set...
BRADY: I'll get you next year!
MLADENOVIC: We'll see...
BRADY: I love clay courts!
MLADENOVIC: Everyone does...
BRADY: Good luck with Errani!
MLADENOVIC: I'll need it...
BRADY: Rest up, lucky girl!

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[Abishai100]

The Women of Dread


Mladenovic (France) and Wozniacki (Denmark) have both advanced (in the Women's Singles Draw) in dramatic fashion, and I'd really like to see these two play against each other...

The women's side continues to entertain more than the much more predictable men's side which has seen Murray, Nadal, and Djokovic all advance, and aside from maybe 1-2 moderately-thrilling underdogs (e.g., Monfils), I see nothing to ward off a bathroom break over.

Venus Williams (USA) and Garbine Muguruza (Spain) are both out, and I was cheering for those two women.

The French Open has always been a terrific brain-teaser for the upcoming grand-daddy of all Grand Slams --- Wimbledon (England). Maybe we'll see Muguruza stand out in Wimbledon...

 

[DGS49]

Unfortunately, "parity" is not good for the advertising revenue of the sport (same with golf). The casual follower only knows a limited number of names, and looks to see how those players do. When they are defeated early by players that "no one has ever heard of," fewer people want to watch the later rounds on television, featuring one unknown player against another.

Also, with its longer rallies and almost no net game in evidence (a more exciting sequence for the viewers), the French Open is considered boring by some people who enjoy the faster pace of Wimbledon.

But the quality of play, especially on the men's side is incredible. Even when one player is beating another badly, the individual strokes displayed by both of them (usually) is often spectacular.

I will watch Rafa throughout, but only tune in for a few minutes of casual observation otherwise. I hope he and the Joker are on opposite sides of the draw.