Got to enjoy the men’s quarter-finals live in Wimbledon and here are some likely incoherent thoughts: You could see in the training that Gasquet is doing something differently. I watched for a good 15 minutes and I don’t think he missed a ball. And it’s not like he was slicing them over either. The guy seems to have a plan and looks more focused than before. Enough for Djokovic? No, I don’t think so. Talking about Djokovic. Cilic is now 0-13 in matches against him. You knew before the match that it wasn’t about to change and Cilic’s body language …
Richard Gasquet
It’s kind of fitting, I think, to give who many used to call “Baby Federer” a Take That-inspired headline. I and hopefully and most probably a big chunk of the tennis world wants Richard Gasquet to stay in the top and keep playing well. If only for that beautiful one-handed backhand of his. His two recent wins against Federer and Berdych in the Rome Masters, both coming after losing the first set, is an indication that Gasquet is starting to get his head back together after years of self-doubt, a cocaine-kiss scandal, and a lot of pressure from the very …
Yesterday we were again reminded that Roger Federer has entered a new era in his career, the one where he is human. He showed that in many ways losing against Richard Gasquet 6-4 6-7 6-7 in a pretty gripping encounter. The big difference between Federer now and the magical Federer of old is that he doesn’t seem able to bring out the best when the matches get tight. Maybe because he doesn’t WANT to win them enough? This is what Federer himself said about the match: “I should never have lost this match. He knows how close he came to …
I love the one-handed backhand. It is a beautiful stroke and great players can make it look effortless. Among the strongest on the tour are Gasquet, Justin-Henin (WTA, but who cares, it is spectacular), Olivier Rochus, Federer, Wavrinka, Ljubicic, Kohlschreiber and I probably forget someone. Sadly, I can’t hit it as well myself but today I could look forward to two backhand greats in Olivier Rochus and Richard Gasquet battle it out. Gasquet was once called Baby Federer because of his great all-court, all-shot game, but now he is just potential never unleashed and known for kissing a girl who …