I just saw the picture and I must say that it's the best Roger's outfit pre GOAT-debate.
And those shoulders....

Now I'm going to read the article.

Why a flood of Federers?! Why not a flood of Henins?! Le sigh

ION, Sauraj Ernie...USO here we come!!!

Pete, could you please correct the attribution re: Agassi/NB? It was Pam who asked you for elaboration, not me.

Very interesting, Pete. I need to let this one soak in a while. :)

I'm looking foward to the responses. Slice? Todd? Dunlop?

My apologies, Peg. I'll fix it right away.

Interesting post, Pete. I'm very conflicted with the Nick Bolletieri issue, but I'll just say this about volleying technique. Many tour level players, both men and women, look like they just plain do not know how to volley. How many times have we seen an important point lost with a botched volley or an overhead ? Nerves might definitely play a part here, but if they had practiced this shot, confidence might work to their advantage, besides adding variety to their game with an extra arsenal that could be used sometime to finish a point early instead of slugging it out from the baseline all day long. My $0.02.

Greenhopper, these players practice everything, from Day 1, although as their games mature, they tend to develop practice routines that emphasize certain things. And there's a whole school of thought that says practice your strengths, not your weaknesses - counter-intuitive as that may sound.

Pete Thanks for a great post.

I concur with your thoughts "you cant teach people is talent",Any coach has to nuture the talent that is before him or her.

"Tell you what: You take a dozen promising juniors and try to shape them into Federers and Henins and check in when they're 16 to let me know how the project is coming along."

I wonder if the issue there is that the academy approach, which seems to focus on improving your best weapons and ignoring the others, can't nurture a multi-weapon game, or if it's just a ridiculous lottery to develop a Federer or Henin anyway.

Not to go OT so early on Pete's post, but I'm still curious about all the missing posts on the previous thread. CL had a bunch of posts disappear.

Fair points all, Pete, but there could be points in a match where a player is forced to do something even if they aren't ultra-comfortable with it. A little improvisation goes a long way, when you see matches get turned around with one shot at an important point. Weakness becomes a liability when an opponent has "figured" a player out, to repeated beat downs/losses. I don't know, may be I just get bugged when commentators mention for the 100th time that player A has no backhand or all player B has to do is draw him/her to the net.

Nice post, Pete.

On NB's contributions, does any1 know how much of a role he played in codifying modern groundstroke technique? Seems like the manual has gradually changed over the years, and
now most shots are completely different to how they were taught in the late 80s/early 90s.

'hopper, on the volleys etc, I dunno. Novak is one example of a player trying to improve his volleying/transition skills. It's lead to a lower confidence in his baseline game (according to him). And, it's prolly hard to be ending points from the baseline most of the time, and then suddenly having to make a volley on a pressure point. Presumably, they need to warm-up those shots, just like the groundies.

Anyways, a good portion of the players are working their way to net these days. So, hopefully, that we'll see better volleying in the next couple of years.

That was an interesting post, Pete.
My tennis-playing abilities make it hard for me to judge, so i'll be waiting for the more experienced players in this forum to give their opinions. I just play for fun.
Anyway, it makes sense to me that you cant say that it was Bolletieri who took down the classic s&v game by himself. He's just trained a number of players these years, and the general evolution towards the baseline game all over the world suggests that it's a general thing, amybe as a result of the changes in surfaces and technology.
About the way players are raised in other parts of the world, i was gonna say that there are many more Corretjas than Balcells here in Spain, but the truth is that there are many more Corretjas than Balcells all around the world, so i can see your point.
Although i like to cheer for Spanish players because they are from my country. I guess i still see some nationalistic matters in tennis, but that's mostly the way we're raised here.
Oh, and i dont think you can get a kid and teach him to play like Fed. That level of talent cant be taught. Unless the kid has an enormous amout of talent himself, he will probably find himself shanking almost every ball. Federer, and i think Nadal too, is a one of a kind player, according to his style. My only concern with Bolletieri would be if he wouldnt allow those special players to play their own way, but i dont have proof that he does that.

I've read the article. First impressions and apologies in advance for mistakes. It stands to reason that this is a two way discussion.
If a (child)player doesn't like the style of tennis taught in Bollettieri's academy will he go there no matter how famous/succesful this academy is or has been?.
OTOH, would Bollettieri's accept a pupil who refuses to follow his instructions, for instance to execute a DH-backhand?. I think the answer will be negative to both propositions.

Federer has always said that he owes his pristine, flauwless technique and style to Peter Carter. Roger’s first sports hero was Boris Becker and he recalls watching Becker play Stefan Edberg in the 1988 Wimbledon final. Roger was almost 7 years old at that time. Roger trained with Carter from the age of 10 to 13. He spent more time with him that with his own parents. In 1994, at the age of 13, Roger decided it was time to leave home and accept an invitation to Switzerland’s national training center in Ecublens, near Lausanne. How many parents would give a child of this age the liberty to chose what to do next?. I mean Roger is a talented genius but his parents are out of this world. I don't have any other words to describe their parenting guidance.
Three years later, Roger left Ecublens and re-enrolled in a new training facility in Biel, where Carter had been put on staff. Reunited with his coach, Roger began a steady rise to the world’s top junior ranking.

In 1997, when Roger was 16 years old, Peter Lundgren, who had once coached Marcelo Rios, joined the staff and worked with Roger on occasion. He helped to refine Roger’s already-silky strokes and hammered home the self-control message on which Carter had made such good headway.

The following year, Roger earned the ITF’s #1 world ranking, capturing the Wimbledon junior singles and doubles titles, as well as the Orange Bowl (versus Guillermo Coria) in Florida. Instead of tabbing Carter as his coach for his first full pro season, Roger chose Lundgren instead. Lundgren had insights into the pros that Carter did not. Roger still consulted frequently with his former coach. And the rest is history. And a tragic one at that because Peter Carter died so young.

You have to have Roger's talent, Roger's parents, Roger's karma and Roger's circunstances to produce a "flood of Federers".

Interesting post. I don't have a solid opinion on why volleying standards have dropped across the board, but there are some interesting arguments there.

This is the most interesting line for me :

"The bar for playing effective serve-and-tennis has been raised to a dizzying height, partly because of the superior athleticism of today's baseline players."

We see some great athletes preferring to playing their game from the baseline nowadays (Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Monfils etc.). Maybe in a past era, the more athletic players naturally gravitated towards a S&V style of play as it was the shortest route to ending points quickly and efficiently. Edberg and Sampras were both outstanding athletes who chose to S&V, they were among the best of their generations from an athletic standpoint. Agassi, on the other hand, could not have attained success without maximising his hand-eye coordination, so he preferred to hit the ball on the rise from the baseline.

"ION, Sauraj Ernie...USO here we come!!!"

Beckham,
Delray Beach, maybe but USO, chances are slim and none with none at 99.99%.

Pspace, good points, but when has trying something new midway in your career given results right away? Besides Nole is a unique case and he has also changed racquets among other things. Just to be clear, I'm not saying everyone should start serve and volleying (that would be swell, of course). That technique might not be that effective today, but it might be good to have a plan B to your game when your strength is not working on a given day and/or season. (See Ivanovic, Ana).

Nice post, zenggi. Interesting to read about the early years of Federer's formation.

On the strengths-weaknesses discussion, I believe Roddick's career also adds weight to the argument that maximizing your strengths is a better idea. Many people still believe he was a superior player when he pushed Federer to four tough sets in the 2004 final than the one he turned into after trying to add new layers into his game, hiring and firing so many coaches.

Sherlock, CL fell into the Spam bucket and so did Antoinette.

'hopper, as an example of a player who's added stuff while improving all the time -- Rafa! ;-) Anyways, I'm not sure why volley is the alternative on a day when groundies are not firing at full steam. You have other options like playing with more spin, more slice, and more defense. As for Ivanovic, if you can't toss the ball, it might be good to take a short "retirement".

Zenggi - It really is erroneous to assume Bollettieri has a specified, rigid teaching methodology. As I tried to make clear in the post, he works with the clay he gets and he doesn't do anything different from what most other coaches do (see the bit near the end on Nadal). None of it is rocket science. You get a kid; you look at what he does well; you look at his natural tendencies; you try to maximize his/her assets, and minimize his/her weaknesses. Players are "created" (style-wise)in a very gradual, open kind of way, even by Nick. It's that old thing they said of Michaelangelo (and this applies to all coaches); they try to find the spirit in the stone and then chip away all the surrounding stuff.

I'm actually totally on board with the last two posts by Pete (and not just because Sharapova is my favorite WTA player by an extremely large margin) (with the exception of the "long knives" allusion). With all the examples of people who had nothing to do with Nick B playing just like his students, it doesn't stand to reason that the vastly predominant style of tennis follows from his influence. Couldn't it just be that, with new technology and the differences in surfaces, Nick and almost every other coach on the globe has found that the most successful style of play is the baseline bashing power game?

Pete, did you ever read Mike Agassi's comments on Nick Bolleteri? I think you can find them in that book he wrote - is it still in print? Anyway, he was furious w/ Nick for letting Andre's serve/volley game whither and die. Obviously Andre was quite successful w/ the style he had, but I wonder if he might have been better had his dad continued to coach him?

Out of curiosity, and to avoid it happening to me in the future, what's exactly falling into the Spam bucket?

"Delray Beach, maybe but USO, chances are slim and none with none at 99.99%."
Thank you, Master Ace. You tell her.

spam bucket? hmm...

maybe because I was posting a lot because I was trying to provide a Baggy/Berrer match call for Anna?

or maybe not..

Yeah, I'm not sure exactly how NB got the bad rap of forcing every1 to be ball bashers. Oh well...I guess it's partly 'cos his most famous alumni are -- Agassi, Courier, Seles, and Sharapova. Haas plays more like Federer...it's just that players who can play in that way are rare.

Mr. X,
Should you be with Hott Wozz finding a way to get her season kick-started?

In my oppinion every player has his own talent and style to win. Maybe this is not the best american era like years ego and doesn't show great players. But to be a great one you don't have to play like Federer or Hennin, just try to improve your game, your style and beat the guy at the other side of the net

The fortuitous accident.

Bollettieri didn't ruin American tennis, or world tennis for that matter. He did, however, promote a syllabus for learning tennis that profited from a concurrent shift in racquet technology: for anyone other than Harold Solomon or Eddie Dibbs, playing like Solomon or Dibbs was never a ticket to the big time until the racquets made it possible to crack groundies like they'd never been consistently cracked before.

Junior baseliners who'd found it tough to pass junior volleyers had new arrows in their quivers – powered forehands and backhands, real topspin, plus topspin lobs – and junior volleys had, what, and extra 20 square inches of string bed?

Insisting on being exclusively a serve-and-volleyer was like bringing a knife to a gun fight.

Further changes to technique, as the racquets made semi and western grips valid in a way they weren't with wood, made it only easier to hit groundstrokes, and easier to hit them well at a young age. At that point, only the rare teaching pro could tell a junior and their parents to wait until the kid's s&v game came of age after they'd lost yet another match.

No, the shift in tennis strategy and technique wasn't Nick's fault (he was Brian Gottfried's pro, remember, and no one ever accussed of Gottfried of staying on the baseline ad nauseum), but the academy setting did profit from the change in the game; juniors got to hone their more simple games in a more intense environment, and they saw results. The new-ish game became a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Except for this: "Every coach I've ever observed at work has paid attention to the volley game"

Pete, that may be true in that they've all had their students hit volleys, but if the dearth of comfort in the forecourt on both pro tours is any indication, those pros gave the volleying game pretty short shrift. I'd suspect you'd agree, really, given that much the same is true of the serve on the women's side of the ledger. Are there really so many weak serves on the WTA tour *in spite of* coaches paying attention to it, or because they paid poor attention to it? I think it's the latter, and that the same's true of volleying.

The homogeneity of today's game is due to the fact that young kids can learn a punishing game very much earlier today with modern racquets, grips and swing technique than they ever could with wood, and it has nothing to do with any nefarious machinations of Sir Nick. He was just in the right place, at the right time, with the right idea.

Bolletieri's most famous pupils may be "ball-bashers" (If you want to call them so, i would only call Andre "great"), but they are not the only ones. Not only Haas, as Pspace mentioned, who during last year's grass "season" was basically the only guy playing serve and volley (or close to it), but also JJ, who isnt exactly a ball-basher, mainly because she doesnt have the firepower, so she relies on other parts of her game.

Master Ace,
Actually, i think you would do better rephrasing that question without the last 8 words:)

Pspace, VC, I see your points. There's winning matches and gaining confidence over it, and then there's feeling good about your game after a close win/loss. Players must be feeling these emotions quite often and am just curious what they do with it. I guess I prefer the ones that are not overly complacent.

[Spacie, stop trying to push the 'volleys are useless' idea on my face, okay? Thanks.]

Pete,

Question for you because you know NB better than anybody on this forum. Do you think that Nick would accept in his academy a 10 years-old Swiss (foreigner)kid who shows some potential but who doesn't speak English and like many kids his age is often out of control on the court?. What would Bollettieri do? I don't critisize NB at all for not producing one Federer or a flood of them. You have to work with what you've got.
I just think that Roger was very lucky to find Peter Carter who dedicated a lot of time not only to develop Roger's game but also his mental strenght issues as well. And I'm praising his parents to heaven for their insight in Roger's soul to let him follow his instincts. That's why I said that Roger's circunstances are probably irrepetible.

Interesting comments, everyone. I disagree, Skip, with your thoughts on the weak serves of the WTA. There's only so much you can do with a serve. Once a coach has an idea of the natural limits of a player's serve, he tries to make up for whatever liability exists with assets - like the return. I just don't think there are a lot of unrealized Brenda Schultz-McCarthys running around on the tour. Everyone must realize that each player, good as he is (at the pro level) is still a combination of strengths and weaknesses. It isn't as if pouring a lot more work into one aspect of the game is going to yield a comensurate result, and thank Godot for that. Otherwise, we'd have 128 Federers in every GS draw.

Hey, maybe that's not such a bad idea after all. . .

I don't think Bolleteri has anything to do with a decline in AMerican tennis. Lack of a strong all-court game is what kills american tennis players. In mens tennis you have to be dangerous on both wings. A good serve and forehand will not win majors anymore. For years Roddicks backhand has allowed many players to pick him apart. The same thing applies to James Blakes, Sam Queery and John Isner. Until American players develop the total package game, the major-less drought will continue.

Zenggi: I think Nick would accept him if he saw the talent. But I also think he might throw him out if he didn't meet some basic standard of conduct, at least on the court. And note I said "might." But that's okay, too. Not everything is cut-and-dried, or proceeds according to formula in a predictable fashion. That's the magic of it - in everything. People - including tennis coaches - just aren't robots, or robot programmers.

Brian - that's a great comment. The irony here is that Americans are way behind Europeans in the all-court power baseline game, not that they invented it.

VC - that is a really good point about Roddick as well. It is kinda chicken/egg when it comes to coaches - though obviously that is different when the egg is really young. It seems like that any good coach can give even a modestly talented and willing to learn kid the foundation of a good game; i.e. effective and efficient groundstrokes; a dependable serve with a motion that puts the least strain on the shoulder and knowledge of volleying technique. The truly amazing thing is that how many of the tops pros, both men and women, get and stay at the top minus one and sometimes two out of those three things. Among the top ten on both the women's and men's side we have wacky serves that threaten limb and sanity, terminal fear of the net and enough GS shanks, strange grips and weird motions to fill a 'how not to play tennis' dvd.

I think that for the top pros, it really is more about karma and luck and that whole sui generis thing. Rafa is a one off. Fed is a one off. Roddick's serve is a one off. DelPoro's power, etc.

I always hated the boring serve-and-volley game. Today's baseline play is far more exciting.

It's been a while since I read it, but if memory serves, Monica Seles's book devotes a chapter or two to NB offering her a spot at his academy and what subsequently did and didn't work for her. (IIRC, in her case, matters were complicated first by extreme homesickness and later by disagreement between NB and her father.)

zenggi, on the not speaking too much English -- I believe NB worked with Kei Nishikori despite his problems, and on the code of conduct -- Agassi.

Anyways, on Federer, IIRC, there was a divided opinion on his talent. Cahill didn't think too much of him in his early days against Hewitt.

'hopper, I'm just trying to help your tennis ;-). It's prolly a discussion for another day, but really don't think a heavy reliance on volleying skills is a pliable trade. I'd disagree with JMac/Navs' opinions that if you're not getting passed 20 times, you're not coming in enough. Passing shots really are much easier than they used to be. I look through takes of JMac and Edberg, and feel like several of their volleys would have lost the point in today's game. Even with Pete-Andre, while Andre had great passers from set positions, his shots on the run are not even close to what Rafa, Djokovic, and Murray can hit

Of course, once you get beyond the top ten you have a whole lotta other people making at least a portion of a living playing tennis and for them the importance of a coach... the 'right' coach at the right time may actually increase. And one of what maybe be several 'right' times in a players' life, is for sure, when they are young.

I have occasionally wondered if there was any tennis player who had a decent pro career who didn't take up the game, didn't even pick up a racket until they were in their mid or late teens? How crucial is it to get 'em when they're young?

Pete,

Thank you for answering my comments. May I conclude that NB hasn't produced a Federer and will not produce a flood of Federers unless a new Federer is born?. Peter Carter must be smiling in heaven for those precious years and I sincerely hope Roger remembers him once in a while. We will never know how a tennis coach can develop a Federer from a 10 year old kid.

What will the Federer's twins do in the future?

zenggi - btw - agree about Fed's kit...love the color combo.

OT from this topic, but still tennis (and TW) related:

Tipsarevic was sick and ate two whole heads of garlic to repel the sickness, no wonder he beat Lestat!

*“I came here with fever and being completely sick, but I’m feeling better with each passing day,” Tipsarevic said.

“Last night, I ate two big heads of white garlic, because Novak (Djokovic) told me I’m going to feel better. Actually, I did.”*

The most important aspect of the volley is the approach shot,thats where most players fall down.

Pspace - yeah on the code of coduct/Andre. As F. Scott almost said, ' the very talented are different from us...'

Pspace - agree 100 per cent on your volley thoughts to Hopper. And Peg, the Seleses were always extremely careful about how much credit they gave Nick, for a variety of reasons, some not so obvious, or noble.

"What will the Federer's twins do in the future?"

Probably pick a different sport.

crazyone - not to rain on your garlic parade, but that is old news...many vampire/garlic jokes ensued. Well, okay, maybe just one.

'Afternoon y'all...

I just saw the whole Rafa/Shaki video, and...wow. I need a shower.

Gotta tip my hat again to Shaki. So, so, gangsta. :)

"really don't think a heavy reliance on volleying skills is a pliable trade."

There's always doubles.

"Tipsarevic was sick and ate two whole heads of garlic to repel the sickness, no wonder he beat Lestat!"
If i owned a garlic-selling company, i would run to market to ATP players "the magic formula to beat Lestat (assuming your name is not Roger Federer, of course)"

On that topic, that looks like Nole's tournament to lose, and is till think he wont win it, because a)he has never succesfully defended a title, and b)he's having a lot of trouble to keeop advancing, and things are not gonna get easier with him facing Baggy next.

AM! didja see that Richie's going to be backup for French DC?

*frowns at Dent/Harrison taking first set off Cerretani/Chardy*

Grant - one sincerely hopes so. Field hockey is nice.

aussiemarge - totally agree about the importance of the approach shot...the right shot at the right time in the right place in the court...but the thing is, even if you get all those rights right, because of the changes in rackets, grips, strings, training, etc, you are STILL gonna be passed more than in the...er...past.

Sigh. Okay, I give up. In the words of JMdP, "you and my coach, you're all just the same". I may not have "soft hands", but I still gonna try.

Pfft. Where are my manners?

Rafa/Shaki vid link: http://tinyurl.com/yeo3oqhAussiemarg - You may want to avert your eyes. :)

Trying Rafa/Shaki again: http://tinyurl.com/yeo3oqh

Aussiemarg - Avert your eyes!

Well, there may be many players coming from academies or being coached by parents.

But it might be a long time before we find a player becoming No.1 and ending the year No.1 (2004) coachless and having his girlfriend as his hitting partner. Sometimes, i do wonder what motivates Federer. Nadal has Uncle Toni to give him pep talk...Roddick had Gilbert in 2004 Wimby..but I would really like know what Roger talks during the rain delay. There was no Luthi in 2004 and no coach.

About NB,i think he has cemented his place in history..parents with young kids who aspire to be professional tennis players know where to go if they want to become GS champs. Maybe NB will get in next year.

Mr. X - now that Marin is out I am pinning my hope on ***glances nervously about*** Youzny. I would just love for him to have this level of a win. It has been an injury filled while for him.

Although, Novak strikes me, despite everything, as being pretty confident. Maybe not up to 'my mother can beat up your mother' confident, but seems to be getting some focus back...despite today's first set.

Funnily enough, there was an interview with Rafa published in the paper here where he was asked what he SHOULD have done differently in tennis and he said "play more like Roger Federer". But it was a light hearted piece and his tongue appeared to be in his cheek.
My quibble with Bolleteri's boot camp approach is what happens to those who don't make it in what sounded like a brutal system. Agassi was scathing about the education he got there, so what would the "also rans" be good for?

Peg Yes I did.I think thats great for Richard.

sblily I have my eyes shut.Thanks for the prior warning

"the Seleses were always extremely careful about how much credit they gave Nick, for a variety of reasons, some not so obvious, or noble."

Interesting. The theme of giving/getting credit where due seems to be popping up lately -- can't remember where, but I came across something last week about one of Oudin's earlier coaches feeling somewhat miffed that he wasn't getting props in her current press.

"You may want to avert your eyes."

I went with averting my ears instead, and I'll stand by that decision.

Pspace,

I don't know how much English Kei Nishikori knew before going to NB's academy. I know his highest ranking was 551. He is now 898.

ladyjulia - Fed has Mirka of course! More baubles and /or babies is plenty of motivation. When he was behind to Roddick at Wimby 06 or 07 and there was a rain delay, I'm pretty sure it was just he and Mirka talking things over while waiting for the rain to stop. Maybe a physio as well. But whatever combo, they figured it out and Fed turned things totally around.

Grant,

The Federer's twins can play any sport they want except curling. I'll strongly protest.

While i agree that probably s&v wouldnt make it against the passing shots some of today's top guys are able to produce, it's a very valuable weapon to have, if you know when to use it. The most recent example i can think of is the big number of very important points Muzz won in the AO QF by surprising Rafa and playing serve and volley.
Volleys might not be able to be used as the single dominanat weapon in a players' game these days, but they are certainly very valuable.

Well I just marvel at Venus's net game.Ok she does have those long wonderful arms and wing span.Though its how she positions herself not just with the racquet head but her feet as well.Its just great to watch.

"The Federer's twins can play any sport they want except curling. I'll strongly protest."

No danger there. You're not even allowed to play the sport until you've demonstrated the ability to chug a pitcher of cheap draft beer, and the Feds seem like more of a champagne family.

It is a fact that Bollettieri does not require his students to play a baseline game. Indeed, this article about American Devin Britton proves the point: http://tennisworld.typepad.com/tennisworld/2009/06/rod-laver-dont-fish.html

Regarding Britton's serve and volley style, the article states, "Although Bollettieri, via his protégés, has been one of the leading exponents of the baseline game, Britton says that Bollettieri and his staff recognized a natural style when they saw one, and never tried to discourage him from attacking."

CL, the rain delay was 2004. I think Federer's childhood friend (who is a banker ) or something was there. And ofcourse Mirka i guess.

Federer says that match was very important in his career...he was behind..and turning it around gave him confidence. It created the "snowball" effect for him...where more confidence helped him play better, better play got more results, more results gave more confidence etc...it was in some documentary.

Ofcourse, Roddick has paid dearly for losing that match.

Yeah...true...one can find inspiration in many things.

Grant,

By the time the twins may enter a curling competition, Corona will be banned from planet Earth. The twins will start with Ovomaltine (Ovaltine in the US) and then when Roger and Mirka are going out with friends will jump on the Absinthe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absinthe

ladyjulia - 2004!!!! Good heavens how time flies...!

Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder.

Leroy: Thanks for your 6:07; I was trying to rmeber devin's name, and the old brain wasn't cooperating.

zenggi: Could Roger's youthful on court (mis)behavior have been any worse than that of Andre whom NB put up with for a long time? Not from what I've read.

Is anyone watching Monaco/Verdasco? What's the temperature on court right now?

Ruth,

From what I've read from Roger's interviews, Roger described himself as a “hothead”. He erupted after hitting dumb shots. His parents were mortified when they saw their son’s behavior during tournaments. Roger was never rude to umpires, linesmen or opposing players. His anger was reserved for himself.

Roger seems to me like one of those profoundly gifted high-IQ kids who needs to find the right tutor to start suddenly "flying".

zenggi, Federer still invites the Carter family to the player's box at every AO. He remembers.

GH - I'm watching but haven't heard probably because I'm switching between that and Canada/US hockey. If I hear anything, I'll let you know.

JohnC,

I know. It shows how much impact on Roger's life Peter Carter has had.

Master Ace and Mr.X, why the haterade of all things Ernie, eh?! Don't hate, appreciate and congratulate the future USO champ!!!

lol, thanks, jan. I just meant both guys are pretty (and) hott. ;)

Too subtle for me ;)) and neither are my cup of tea so I'll leave it to others to give you a reading. ;))

Pete, if by "coach" you mean the person shepherding a pro's game then I agree with you; the coach takes what the player has and helps make the most of it. On the other hand, if we're talking about young kids learning the game, I see the serve as a shot to be built like any other.

Of course everyone can't be Schulz-McCarthy, and if Jimmy Evert had tried to teach Chris to be a serve-and-volleyer we'd never have heard of her; success at a style of play is as much a function of temperament as it is a function of technique or coaching.

But it's hard to believe, if not impossible, that in the midst of all the athletic talent and millions of hours of practice represented by the WTA top 100 that only Serena, Venus and Sam Stosur are capable of top shelf serving. (And even then the Williams' 2nd's pale in comparison with their 1st's).

GH I went back to the site where it gave out the Spainish players for DC tie.It stated Verdasco has a "nerve injury to his leg"?

GH,
Thanks for the laugh.
Pretty much like Jan I actually thought you were talking about the atmospheric temperature :)

Not sure what to say about the Shakira video, hmmm....

Beckham Yes those two will be eating crow after young Earnest holds up that beloved USO trophy.It will probably go down as the "Greatest Tennis Miracle Of The Decade" methinks.

zengii: Yes, I've read about Roger's hotheadedness. In fact, recently I mentioned how amused I was (since I wasn't his parents, I guess) by his saying that once, when his parents tried to scold him about his behavior from the sidelines, he told them them to leave him alone and go get a drink. I'm sure he was quite a handful; but I think that young Agassi sounded as if he was even more "trying," to put it mildly, probably because he was so unhappy to be at NB's academy.

BTW Apolgies for not seeing and, therefore, repeating the Andre-Roger comparison that Pspace had already mentioned at 5:35.

AM, he's a puzzle. He was allegedly suffering from that injury in San Jose. Expected him to withdraw from Memphis, but he asked for a WC in Acapulco and withdrew from DC.

CL, happy to see you. Since I supported you, I'm surprised I didn't get spammed. Seriously, I obviously don't understand the "rules" and as Mr. X noted - "Out of curiosity, and to avoid it happening to me in the future, what's exactly falling into the Spam bucket?" I would like to know.

so this is where everyone is. wondering what happened after i took my nap.

I know virtually nothing about NB 's teaching techniques - so I cannot place the blame on him for the change in tennis away from serve and volley . Seems to me that Tommy Haas has been a very successful Bolletieri pupil - and he serves, volleys and hits a one handed backhand -
Agassi had a different game . His vision , which was purportedly much better than the average human , and thus a gift he used on the court in seeing / taking the ball early , did make his game different from that of Haas . And Nick taught them both , bringing their careers to a very high level.
The monster baseline game that so many of the ladies have now is as much a product of Lansdorp and his teaching , as it is Bolletieri .
What do I think caused the switch then ? I would go with Slice's suggestion that string and racquet technology made it easier to play a baseline winner game . Why come to put the shot away at the net when you can do it from the comfort of the baseline . Ever stand up close when these folks are really hitting the ball ? And by "folks " I mean a talented junior ? It is a pretty scary proposition . They hit the ball a ton.
Also - kids start playing so much earlier these days. And it is easier to teach them a forehand and backhand than it is a volley . Net coverage when you are under 5 feet tall is not easy in a competitive setting :)
And once they have learned to win from the backcourt - it is hard to get them to switch up their game. Why change a winning formula?
I have seen junior coaches work on volleys - they do it every lesson . It is not completely a lost art . And they try to get the kids to use the volley /overhead when they play doubles.
Why so many pros are so deficient at volleys , I don't know - maybe , with them all things are relative . I am sure even the most inept pro at the net is better than I am up there :)

and I liked the video
thanks for the link

Well, i expected it from Beckham, but you too, AM? Do you really want me to answer back?
OK, i will, just for you. Here's a link to an article that indeed, refers to Gulbis:
http://tinyurl.com/yeo3oqh
Be sure to check it.

About Verdasco, i'm very surprised that he entered Acapulco. I would understand it very well if he had just taken a pass on DC because he had some physical issues, and besides, he hasnt played on clay this year, but then i dont really get why he went to play Acapulco. Well, anyway, i think the best 2 men to play singles in this particular tie, considering all the current situation, were Ferrer and Ferrero.

sorry to go OT here but I've seen the video and think rafa's absolutely to-die-for sexy and gorgeous in it. I do however think shakira has pulled out all the stops. It's three minutes of her finest seduction. But rafa's got nothing to be embarassed about. no siree.

"Master Ace and Mr.X, why the haterade of all things Ernie, eh?! Don't hate, appreciate and congratulate the future USO champ!!!"

Beckham,
What year when Ernests going to be USO champion?

Beckham Watch it.This is a "trick question"

Oh, Sauce. :( Maybe he got distracted thinking of how to top 'Gypsy.'

Verdasco vs Monaco is surprisingly boring so far. Comfortable holds on serve until Monaco breaks for the first set.
Verdasco just looks pissed at everything, cellphones in the crowd, his forehand, his backhand. His ball toss is also failing for him. Not pretty.

Annie,I am 100% in agreement about Rafa*fans myself*I hope he does more in the future,if time allows it;)

Mr. X,

Those last few seconds are going to cost Rafa a lot. I tell you. I bet somebody at RG will shout "Isabel Mebarak Ripoll" during a match. No more "Nadal, will you marry me?" as they did at the AO.