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| US Open - 2009 | |
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| Topic Started: Aug 29 2009, 02:03 AM (522 Views) | |
| tim | Sep 15 2009, 01:03 PM Post #31 |
BART GET OUT IM PISS
  ![]](http://209.85.122.85/static/1/pip_r.png)
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he's only 16 ffs. he's already a beast and he's still got more growing to do. his serve will get faster as he puts on muscle and continues to grow. there aren't many 16 year olds who have enormous serves... |
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| Phat | Sep 16 2009, 01:47 AM Post #32 |
Reporters I like: Joel Duffman, the Newsly Times
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24 grand slams without an American winner. Great stuff rest of the world. Re. Federer, I can't believe he is still held up as this almighty beacon of grace and sportsmanship. He is a relatively nice guy, granted, and a lot better sport than many of the others out there, but Christ almighty he can sook, and does a lot more regularly than people realise. |
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| keyip | Sep 16 2009, 05:25 AM Post #33 |
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Straight
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Don't know why you would include Novak in there, he's only won the one. And Tim's right, Tomic doesn't have a big serve but he's a stick at the moment. I can't wait to see him play once he's fully developed physically. |
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| Mao | Sep 16 2009, 08:26 AM Post #34 |
Hyper Beam, Thunder, Dragon Rage, Ice Beam
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Only coz it extends that streak.. Novaks was slightly random Yeah i think Tomic will have a big serve fo sho. It looks like he will.. tallness..gunnish action etc. |
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| Mao | Sep 16 2009, 08:27 AM Post #35 |
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Hyper Beam, Thunder, Dragon Rage, Ice Beam
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Thats a fair point lol..hes so grumpy atleast he didnt cry like in Aus :agree: Edited by Mao, Sep 16 2009, 08:27 AM.
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| tim | Sep 16 2009, 08:29 AM Post #36 |
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BART GET OUT IM PISS
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phat, i think it comes more from his success than his failures. while he has a subtle arrogance in victory, i think people have the impression that his astounding level of success probably entitles him to a bit more arrogance and cockiness. and to be fair, he is the greatest player in history, so it's not entirely surprising that people expect him to be a bit more of a show off... |
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| Phat | Sep 16 2009, 10:30 AM Post #37 |
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Reporters I like: Joel Duffman, the Newsly Times
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I can handle him being slightly arrogant about his victories - he is a freak after all, I can tolerate the "I sometimes amaze myself" sort of stuff he says as I don't think he intends it to be a big f*ck you to everyone. But yeah it sort of off-sets his sooks a fair bit IMO. Tiger woods still has plenty of sooks, but I can't recall him being openly arrogant too often with what he says. |
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| Mao | Sep 16 2009, 11:46 AM Post #38 |
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Hyper Beam, Thunder, Dragon Rage, Ice Beam
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if u look at the past past... like world war era...it is filled with aussie flags :clap: |
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| alien | Sep 17 2009, 01:23 AM Post #39 |
ftw
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DETAILS have emerged of a rift between former world No.1 Lleyton Hewitt and his Australian heir apparent Bernard Tomic following a practice snub at Wimbledon. Hewitt and Tomic have not spoken since the incident, confirmed yesterday by Hewitt's manager David Drysdale and considered by a furious Hewitt to be a lack of respect. Tennis Australia's tennis director Craig Tiley said yesterday he was aware that Tomic's father, John, who recently asked TA to spend vast sums on his son, had declined the practice invitation on his son's behalf on Wimbledon's middle Sunday, as Hewitt prepared for his fourth-round match and Tomic to contest the junior event. But it has been neither forgotten nor forgiven, with Drysdale describing as ''interesting'' any scenario in which the pair was selected in the Davis Cup squad for Australia's first tie next year. ''I don't think Bernard should expect much from Lleyton, that's for sure,'' Drysdale said. ''To say that we were less than impressed would be an understatement.'' As Team Hewitt tells it, several phone calls were made to Tomic, his father and an IMG agent on the Saturday evening, asking if Tomic would hit at 1pm the following day. There was no response, but the 16-year-old was present when Hewitt arrived to practise, his physiotherapist Ivan Gutierrez making the approach to the Tomic entourage. ''We turned up and saw the Tomics around and we thought, 'Oh, maybe they got our message, and they were there to hit with Lleyton','' Drysdale said, ''so Ivan went over to Bernard's trainer at the time, Rudy [Sopko] and said 'Is Bernard here to hit?'. Rudy knew nothing of it but said 'Look, Bernard's looking for a practice partner and I think Bernard would like to do it', but then the agent came in and said, 'No, he's not hitting with Lleyton, Lleyton's not good enough'. ''They were his words: 'Lleyton's not good enough' and we just about dropped on the spot. We were pretty dumbfounded. Lleyton just could not believe it, and the more he thought about it the angrier he got about it.'' Salting the wound was a subsequent conversation with Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero at courtside. ''Ivan asked if he was available to practise at one o'clock and Juan Carlos said, 'No, no, I've got a practice partner, but that young Australian kid Tomic, he just came and asked me to hit, why don't you ask him?','' Drysdale said. ''Then we told Juan Carlos what had happened and his coach said that if a leading player in Spain asked a junior to practise and the junior said no, that he would never get to hit with a senior player again, they would make sure he had all his funding and support from the national federation cut and that he would be, in the coach's words, 'strung up from a tree by his balls'.'' Tomic's agent, Lawrence Frankopan, denied one of his colleagues had denigrated Hewitt and stressed the dual grand slam champion had been an inspiration to his Davis Cup squadmate. ''We've been in the industry for 50 years, so the idea that an IMG agent would say that a multiple grand slam champion was not good enough to hit with a 16-year-old, that's just ridiculous. It's laughable,'' Frankopan said. ''The situation was that, one, Bernard has the most respect for Lleyton and is the reason why Bernard became a tennis player. And, two, from what I understand that the kid he was playing the next day had a different style to Lleyton and Team Tomic felt that by playing Lleyton it wasn't beneficial for the next day's match. Not that he did not want to hit with Lleyton Hewitt … they just felt that it wasn't beneficial, and that's just a call from the coach and from the tennis team that is around Bernard.'' Drysdale said they had taken up the matter with Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald, who was apparently told by John Tomic, among other things, that Hewitt should previously have ''done more'' for his son. ''That's absolutely ridiculous, but it was the manner in which they went about it,'' Drysdale said. ''I know it's John Tomic who made the decision; we can't completely penalise Bernard for it. I think maybe if Bernard was there by himself Bernard would have done it, and I hope that [new Davis Cup coach] Todd Woodbridge can sort all this out …'' |
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| leaguegod | Sep 17 2009, 02:01 AM Post #40 |
Back2Back
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i fear bernard is gonna be another jelena dokic |
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| Mao | Sep 17 2009, 03:42 AM Post #41 |
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Hyper Beam, Thunder, Dragon Rage, Ice Beam
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Thought of that as i was reading it a bit |
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| Renegade | Sep 17 2009, 04:50 AM Post #42 |
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Sheffield United 1 Arsenal 0.
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serbs and trouble are never far from one another. |
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| keyip | Sep 18 2009, 03:10 AM Post #43 |
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Straight
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I was hoping that the father would have calmed down a bit after he apologised for getting his son suspended by the ITF. I'm still hoping *fingers crossed*. Anyway, here's a more encouraging article : IF Nick Bollettieri had his way, Bernard Tomic would remain in Florida and the legendary coach would make Australia's young gun "one hell of a player''. But Tomic will return home to the Gold Coast next week less than four months into what Bollettieri hoped would be a long-term stint at his Bradenton academy - which in the past two decades has helped produce no less than 10 world No.1s, including Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Jim Courier, Serena and Venus Williams, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis and Maria Sharapova. "We were delighted that he wanted to come to us,'' Bollettieri told AAP at the US Open in New York. Not so delighted he is leaving, Bollettieri nevertheless understands Team Tomic's decision to move in a different direction and still believes the Stuttgart-born 16-year-old can be a huge success. "I think Bernard has the ability to do just about anything,'' he said. "The location doesn't matter. Whether you go here, back to Australia, Germany, whatever, the location's not going to make any difference. Believe me.'' What will make a difference, according to Bollettieri and indeed others with high hopes, is how Tomic is handled from here on in. Ever since buying Bernard a 50 cent racquet from a garage sale nine years ago, John Tomic has coached his son. Coached him to the point where is now far and away Australia's hottest tennis prospect after a record-setting junior career which has yielded innumerable trophies, including the 2008 Australian Open crown and the 2009 US Open junior title on Sunday. At just 15 years and three months, Tomic became the youngest junior grand slam winner in history in Melbourne and now he is the first player since Andy Roddick - and one of only five ever - to complete the Australian Open-US Open grand slam double. There are concerns, though, that his immense talent could amount to nothing in the pro ranks if Tomic is not very carefully nurtured as he now makes the switch fulltime. Bollettieri has urged John Tomic to be more supportive in his coaching. "I get along well with the dad. Maybe the relationship has got to be a little bit more inspiring from dad,'' Bollettieri said. "Bernard's a really nice boy, a very nice boy; never rude, and dad has got good intentions, but I just think the relationship with his dad at least needs to be a little bit more positive. "The dad wants a lot for him, which is fantastic, but it's the way you come across ... dad is trying but you get that father-son relationship and you have to be a little careful.'' With John Tomic very much a hands-on coach, Bollettieri was careful not to encroach during Tomic's time at the academy. "I go out on court and give a few little tips, and that's why I get along with dad,'' the legendary mentor said. "I'm a happy medium. I can sort of be the negotiator. But I don't think dad's going to step back, so you deal with that and you make the best of it.'' During the US Open, Australian Davis Cup coach Todd Woodbridge took on the role of "negotiator'' between coach Tomic and Tomic the star pupil. What was initially a difficult situation for Woodbridge, with John Tomic reticent to have the doubles great brandishing too much influence on his son, ended with all parties happy. Tomic junior finished the event not only holding trophy aloft but also with renewed belief he was ready to step up against the pros and Tomic's newfound respect for Woodbridge was such that he even claimed to be ready to step aside for someone more qualified to take his son to the next level. In what would no doubt hearten Bollettieri, John Tomic - after his eye-opening dealings with the vastly experienced Woodbridge - declared he was ready to take a back seat, despite the perception he is too controlling to let go. "I know my limits,'' Tomic senior said. "I can stop because when I see that Bernard has more maturity, is more ready for professional people, he is ready. Why do I have to be there? "I am flexible, of course. With two great people, two experienced, positive people, why not? "But we have to find the best coach in the world. We can't find Mickey Mouse; we have to find the best - the best fitness coach and the best coach.'' John Tomic remains bullish in his demand that Tennis Australia invest heavily to secure the right coaching team because he believes Bernard will only convert his immense potential with the aid of an internationally respected trainer who can improve his 194cm son's on-court agility. "I said to Todd (Woodbridge) and to (TA boss) Craig Tiley, if Australian tennis wants Bernard from 20 to 27 to make 10 to 15 grand slams, like Federer, we have to now concentrate on Bernard,'' he said. "After Rod Laver, John Newcombe, came Rafter, Hewitt. We have to do something, we have to make strategy. I said it will cost but we will get paid. "But it has to happen now. It is time. Australian sport needs some like Roger, a legend.'' Woodbridge says "one (slam) would be nice'', but agreed with John Tomic's thinking. "That's ideal. It's right on track for Bernard what he needs to do because the physical part is obviously the one part that he doesn't have in his arsenal at the moment,'' Woodbridge said. "He's got wonderful feel, a great ability to get his way out of matches and, if he can work on that, then he's got a chance of really cracking it big time. "All of those things are exactly what you want to see done. "What I'm here to do now is to oversee that he gets the right package put together.'' Bollettieri believes Tomic's prodigious height could ultimately prove advantageous, as long as - again - the teenager is managed properly on the practice court. Bollettieri urged John Tomic to learn from his ``smart as hell'' son in the same way he himself learned from his most successful pupil of all, eight-times grand slam champion Agassi. "Bernard works his arse off, but I see this boy doing less practice but high-quality practice, rather than keeping him out for five or six hours,'' he said. "It isn't that he can't move, but it's saying to himself 'I'm going to move.' "Sometimes you've got to understand the idiosyncrasies, and that's what I learned - and Andre helped me - learned what makes each student tick. "I don't believe quality and quantity of practice is for this boy. I think you've got to go out and say 'hey coach, this is what I want to do'. "Then you've got him by the arse. Understand. Then follow his lead a little. "I learned a lot from Andre and I think students, especially in this day and age, they should lead the practice a bit more. "Then you can argue a little bit if you don't agree, but I don't think he should be told what to do. He's at a point now (where) he's got to take over the ship.'' Bollettieri agrees the next year or so will be crucial for Tomic, currently ranked No.308 in the world. "He's got all the qualities (to be a grand slam champion),'' he said. "But next couple of years he's got to get big balls and he's got to get out there and he's got to be a little bit more aggressive, and on the second serve a little bit more heat. "Right now, if you look at his strokes, he's got a good serve; without using his legs, he's got a very good serve. "He's got good hands. I mean, for (almost) 17, you can't ask for much better than that. "He's smart as hell. Probably smarter than most juniors, I would say. And he's got all the shots, but he's got a lot of things that he'll have to change to be a professional. "But he can do it.'' For all his junior successes, Tomic is still some way behind in his development to where Lleyton Hewitt - who, at 16, beat Agassi en route to winning his first ATP title in Adelaide before becoming the sport's youngest-ever world No.1 at 20 - was at the same age. "At this point, at 17 (next month, Tomic) wasn't an Agassi and he wasn't a Courier and he wasn't a Seles,'' Bollettieri said. "But it isn't that he can't be as good as the lot that we've had. Remember today it's a lot more difficult to be those guys at that age, playing professionals ...I think it will all work out.'' http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,26086556-12428,00.html |
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| Drummond | Sep 19 2009, 03:25 PM Post #44 |
Straight
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Have you seen his serve now? Extremely abbreviated, it's average at best. |
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| keyip | Sep 22 2009, 03:56 AM Post #45 |
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Straight
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Hey Drummond, did you read the article I just posted?
High praising coming from Nick Bollettieri. You also have to remember he went through an awkward period when he had his last growth spurt. It may have knocked his serve technique off a bit. Anyway give him a few years to develop his body and shots, I'm anticipating his serve will eventually develop into something fairly special *fingers crossed*. Edited by keyip, Sep 22 2009, 03:56 AM.
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12:39 PM Sep 4
