What a crazy day at Wimbledon with upsets galore.
I should give credit to all three underdogs for staying composed and getting the job done.
I didn't think Roddick played especially well in his first round win over Schwank, and today he never was able to break Janko's serve which was a surprise. Roddick seemed to serve well with 27 aces, hitting 73% of first serves with his faster at 142mph, but in the rallies he's just looks very below average and the pace of his shot appears lacking.
Blake just doesn't really know what to do on grass, so not as big of a surprise there. But James still has to win that match especially when he's up two sets to one and a break in the fourth against a guy like Rainer.
And Maria has had service problems now for quite some time. So much for being the favorite to win Wimbledon.
As for the winners, Rafael Nadal looked better than he did in the first round. Today Nadal had a rough go in the first set against Ernests Gulbis but his toughness and experience won out. And he'll need to keep improving going forward with Nicholas Kiefer and either Radek Stepanek or Mikhail Youzhny on the horizon. Nadal's tricky draw is really much trickier on closer inspection, but I think he's still looks enough good to get through, especially with what looks to be really slow courts this year.
Richard Gasquet has been very strong, and I look forward to a possible clash in the fourth round between him and Andy Murray.
I'll also stick with Dmitry Tursunov as my semifinal pick. That Roddick quarter has really opened up and I have to give Dmitry the best shot of getting through a very suspect field.
On the women's side, Venus remains my pick even though she's not been anything but dominating. Ana Ivanovic's playing with house money so that should take some of the pressure off her game.
For tomorrow, it looks like business as usual. I like Federer cruising, Hewitt struggling but winning. I also like Mario Ancic, Micha Zverev, Marcos Baghdatis and Feliciano Lopez to get in the win column. The Tomas Berdych-Fernando Verdasco is a real toss-up. If Spain wins their Euro Cup today then Verdasco should win.
Exciting stuff the last two days. I just hope it continues and the weather holds.
Wow, what an opening week… and it isn't even over yet!
jane, yes, our pet peeve. Pressers are dangerous on oh so many levels.
Von, I'm glad you could appreciate the humor in that. And I also think it's probably best to have one's children whip themselves; it avoids so many potential complications and resentments. Funny stuff.
Man, I like Gulbis more and more by the moment. I'm not sure what his true level of ambition may be, but I'd love to see him on the up and up for a long time to come.
I'm sad for Andy R., but I'm thrilled for Andy M… Could this maybe just maybe be his year? Tall order, I know, but still… And if he and Gasquet should meet and play their best stuff, that'd be a dream match.
Sean, I agree that Nadal's road is a bit tricky. If he should face Stepanek, I see a major possibility of an upset there. I mean, Nadal could potentially just school him, but they've had some close ones and have never met on grass. If Nadal's serve isn't all there or if Radek's returning is particularly on, he should have a lot of potential opportunities to break at net.
Maybe it's all Safin's fault; one Serb falls another must rise? lol. I don't know, but lots of crazy upsets so far this year.
When Maria crashed out I started to think that maybe her and Novak had a rendevous planned?! again, lol.
"Man, I like Gulbis more and more by the moment. I'm not sure what his true level of ambition may be, but I'd love to see him on the up and up for a long time to come.
Bummer. I thought Roddick had mis-spoke when, in his interview with Gimel-slob, he named himself among the 5 favorites to win Wimbledon. He normally says he takes things "one matches at a time" and keeps talk about himself as favorite to a minimum – so adding himself to the mix publicly on the air was, in my opinion, a bad idea. It's much better being under the radar.
Blake, interestingly, said he couldn't look past Schuettler, and he was right!
Can't phone in the results…bad loss for Roddick, bad loss for Blake.
Although Tipsy's serve may seem unimposing, it has a lot of pop considering he's a smaller guy; Fed couldn't get a lot of breaks against him at the AO either.
I am sad for Andy; I'll miss his presence here at the tournament. Yet, I am happy for the tattoed, Dostoyevsky-reading Janko: he's nothing if not a character.
However, Fed did beat Tipsy at 2007 AO.
I really like Tipsy and hope he can advance further. I liked his interview. He seemed very pleased.
It is hard to root against a guy who reads Dostoyevsky, but I feel bad for Roddick. Sharapova is a real enigma – she steamrolls her way to the 06 U.S. Open title only to take bad beatings and early losses in 2007. She steamrolls her way to the 2008 Australian Open title and then takes strange early losses … I do not know if it is a health or psyche issue, but sometimes she humiliates and other times is humiliated. It is very hard to figure her out. Stepanek, Youzhny, Murray, and Gasquet all still loom, but Rafa is so mentally tough that these guys have their work cut out for them to get past him.
I watched the match in entirety and very closely and find this passage not to be an accurate observation of how Roddick played and lost.
In total, he just missed 3-4 shots (safe shots overhit in agitation) more than he should have (read my posts in the other thread) to win the match, and that was enough to lose the match. About rallies, he played only one really bad rally, in which he tried to play safe and waited Tipsy to make error. Actually, I was impressed by the way he performed in the rallies. One big mistake behind his loss was his over-preparation for returning Tipsy's weak 2nd serve, which resulted in wrong/confused selection of shots.
Overall, it was a praiseworthy performance by both players, and there was nothing "terrible" about Roddick except the loss. Well, at the end, what matters most is win, and you can characterize the loss any which way you want.
Maybe, you were showing some love for Roddick in your observation, which I may have missed it. If that is the case, my apologies.
Every one speculates that Fed's day is over. What about Arod? I think his day is passed.
Before the start of the tournament I said Federer would be the champion.
Now I see it even clearer.
I said as well that only Nadal could beat him if he gets to the final and plays great, but honestly, he has a long road to go.
Kiefer is a very talented player (though a bit crazy as well) and extremely dangerous on grass.
If Nadal wins that one, then he would face Youzhny or Stepanek. Both them can beat him on grass.
Youzhny has powerful groundstrokes and a good serve, and has given trouble to Nadal more than once in the past.
Stepanek plays great at the net, has a good serve and his style could harm Nadal.
But even if Nadal wins that one too, he may face Gasquet or Murray or Hass, all of them extremely dangerous players on grass that could trouble him a lot.
I know Nadal has won his last seven matches on grass, but to get to the SF he must win three consecutive tough matches.
He can do it, but only if he plays great.
If he has a "bad day", he'll be out in one of those three matches.
But if he wins them all and gets to SF, I see him beating whoever gets there (Tipsarevic or Cilic or Tursunov or…) quite comfortably, and so reaching the final.
In the top half of the draw I can't see anyone defeating Federer. Not Hewitt, not Ancic, not Berdych, not anyone else.
best of all, the rest of the tournament can be enjoyed without the smug mug of novak leering out at me. no doubt he's back in serbia plotting his next disastrous PR move. heck, he and borg should start working together before the US Open to see what kind of drivel, i mean predictions, they can come up with.
as much as i have never liked roddick on court, off court he has always been an entertaining interviewee. i don't think of him as a threat anymore; although i did think he'd make it past the second round.
janko is one of those guys that can just hang around. his match against federer earlier this year was unreal.
What would happen if Maria spent less time fussing about her outfits and hired a real coach instead of her dad? I think if she could ever acknowledge the need to accept advice from an unbiased expert and spent a year working to add depth to her one-dimensional game we might see a player far less prone to meltdowns. Currently she has no back-up plan to turn to when her game falls off the rails. Maybe a mature version of the raw promise that surprised and delighted us that first Wimbledon would resurface. Maybe the dreadful shrieking would disappear in the process. Will it happen? Doesn't seem likely. Sad for the game, and sad for her.
I know how it feels. I just went through that. Let's get over it and move on. Roddick has a lot left and is capable of doing some wonders. I am fully convinced that he will live up to his promise.
What a very cruel headline!! How did they "stink" up wimbledon? If they did, what about the others who had prior losses, and those who wil fall tomorrow and the day after, and after, and after ……?
Yours is a more accurate description of the match in its entirety as opposed to the writer's. I saw the entire match, and except for A-Rod's frustration and lapse at the end of the second set, I think he played very well. Tipsy got stronger as the match progressed; while A-Rod's urgency and restlessness got the better of him. I'm sad that he lost but did not really hold out much hope for him going very far at Wimby due to his lack of match play coming into the tournamnet and his existing back problem. He gave his best effort and as a fan that's all that matters.
I agree with a few others that Tipsarevic once again was really tough. I saw the match and believe it is a matter of Tipsarevic being great as much as Roddick being terrible.
Players hate it when people comment without being qualified players themselves, but I thought Roddick appeared basically content to just volley right back at Tipsarevic. There didn't appear to be any strategy to win a point. It was just keeping the ball in play and hoping for the best…count on aces to hold serve.
On the other hand, Roddick was no pushover, and Sharapova and Blake are among the world's best, so I don't appreciate the unwarranted snark in the title to this article. I think it is more an issue of players struggling on grass, others better suited to that surface.
Some players are overrated just because they are Americans or just because that had some success in the past. There are many has-beens that get more press than they deserve. Sometimes this is all more entertainment than sport, but that's where the prize money comes from, right? If it's kind of dry, we invent some drama.
Taking Tursunov seriously is a joke. All I ever see him do is lose, lucky to get past a first round in other touraments. What was his last success?
andrea – your arrogant gloating & smugness is a little much. funny that you criticize novak for the same thing. pot calling kettle black much?
in the last thread you made some snippy remark about arod, in previous umpteen threads you've made barbs about novak.
it's obvious you're a fed fan to anyone with eyes, and that's fine; roger has a lot of them.
but do you have to repeat over and over again how much you hate novak or how much you dislike borg just because he predicts something you don't like? i mean the guy is a tennis legend and you make disparaging remarks about him repeatedly. does it make you feel better to put others down or kick others when they're down? i guess i just don't get it.
but you can bet roger would never speak that way about borg, b.t.w. and since you love rog so much maybe you should try emulating his behaviour? just a thought.
rogers twin sister – you're correct that Fed did beat Tipsy, but I assume you mean AO 08. my point wasn't who won or lost, but just that Tipsy is a tougher player to break than he seems to be.
It was delightful to watch her win this thing at 17; reminded me of a certain Boris's run. I'd like to see some of that back in Maria, but she needs something / someone new.
It is sad to see her implode like that.
Try watching the match instead of polishing each other's knobs.
Roddick played like garbage, lost his head, choked, and Tennis-X called him on it.
Yours is a more accurate description of the match in its entirety as opposed to the writer's.
just to echo jane … I agree with her previous post to andrea.
I posted on the other thread to andrea — Be careful what you wish for others, it might come back to haunt you — you could choke on your own gloat. Now wouldn't that be a tasty morsel? Your stupid barbs shows the level of your intelligence. They're childish!
I might not like Federer but I do not gloat when he or any other player loses. It's in poor taste. The player has enough to ponder; why make it worse adding trite nonsense? That's just my thinking anyway, no one has to follow me. Carry on smart-ly!!
You say to-may-toes, I say to-mah-toes. I felt he played a good match, you don't. Tennis.X loves to lambaste Roddick. You'd never see such a headline if the top 2 lost — like when fed lost in Dubai. He didn't stink up anything, eh?
Only Roddick played like garbage? Blake could not take out Shuettler who has not won a title for aeons. He's over the hill!
Tipsarevic is one of those players who's very persistent when playing a top seed — he gives it his all, and then goes down in the next one or two rounds. Isn't that what most lesser ranked players like to do? Secure a big scalp.
Thanks, Sean, for now jinxing Dmitry. He's sure to go out in the third round now.
Aww.. just when he was making in roads on those 5 set matches. I thought he was getting the hang of them.
I have no qualms with being echoed. Especially since you're always on top of giving credit for that sort of thing.
I don't know if you ever saw my point by point response on the "Serb Shocker" page. Anyhow, it's there for you to see.
Andy needs a new coach.His brother needs to do him a favor by stepping aside.Andy holds the best serve in tennis.Lets get serious Andy.Its time for a change.Times tickin……..
Andy does not hold the best serve in tennis. He has the biggest serve, but not the most effective. He doesn't serve the most aces.
The best serve is either Karlovic's or Guccione's. It's not just about power, but placement and accuracy also, plus what you do after the serve.
Federer always outaces Roddick despite having an inferior serve.
Could not agree more Aaron. I hope John Roddick will employ a good psychologist to get to the bottom of Andy's choking habits!
Well one good thing is that Andy's shoulder appears to have healed, he was serving exceptionally well today.
Andy's arm has been shot for at least 2 years now. Saw him live about 3 years ago, and his forehand was blistering. Then saw him live again last year, his forehand is average speed. Although he can still crank the odd serve at over 140 KMH, his serve has dropped velocity too- substantially. He's lucky to still be in the top 10. He'll be ranked in the 20's by next year.
You seem to take great umbrage with what andrea said but its obvious that all she is doing is speaking her mind. We are a motley group of people on a random discussion group and we have different styles. Just because Von, Shital and you are cute to each other doesent mean that others have to be too. I for one find that tendency to be 'gracious' and sweet annoying but so what? Thats my problem really innit? I think its great that people speak their mind here and are offensive and sarcastic in good measure. Disparate styles make for more interesting discussions. If everyone was as 'civil' (As Shital put it recently) as the three of you, it would drive me nuts and I would surely abandon this site.
Wrong – I don't take great umbrage with what she said per se, just that she's been saying it ad nauseum lately – the stuff about Borg in particular.
As for people having different opinions, that's great and I am all for that. When I came on this site it was pretty unilaterally a pro-Federer website, but now it seems to be more disparate, with plenty of different fans and opinions.
That said, I don't see a reason for crudeness, insults, ad hominem attacks, etc., even in the context of disagreement.
Expressing your likes or dislikes does Not show your level of intelligence. Thats ridiculous. And besides you dont know the player, you are not his best friend, you are a fan (presumably). Your devotion to him and this rabid defence seems rather more childish.
Thats your choice, it seems a bit much to expect everyone to take your lead.
Von, Are you kidding? He's Not reading this discussion and this thread is not the subject of National Television so its irrelevant. Do not make a mountain of a mole-hill. Its just an opinion.
Making ad hominem attacks on players is rather different than making them against others in the group, unless of course it gets too offensive. I think the former is well within the norms of discussion in this group. I am just saying that attacks on players are hardly the cause for personal concern, at least to the extent that you (and Von) seem feel.
You like andrea's style, fine, I don't. She's annyoing and unfair in her criticisms. Try speaking your mind too much and you'll be eaten alive by the vultures — especially the majority of the Federer fans. i used to speak my mind freely, but they didn't like it. I have one behemoth who loves to give me an evaluation every 4 wweeks or so concerning any comments I utter about Federer. Consequently, I refrain from saying too much about him, unless it's provoked. Is that fair? No, but it's a means of survival. I could certainly crank up some not too sweet' comments, but I won't — it's not worth the trouble.
Speaking one's mind freely is different from someone consistently behaving like a bufoon. How many times do you have to lambaste anyone for your words to sink in? I like being friendly to people, but I'm not condescending. You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. You stick to your style, i'll stick to mine. I don't get into most people's comments because there are parameters. Hence, i won't get into yours and I ask you to do the same for me. However, I'm glad that you're so very open-minded, but I can assure you, that's not the norm on these threads. Perhaps, eventually you'll understand what I mean if you consistently read the commenrts, and then maybe, you won't be so judgmental, and will understand why it's better to be nice than nasty, or fully speaking one's mind.
I'm at a disadvantage here because I don't know which player you support. If it's Federer, then you're OK since you won't say anything anti-Federer. However, if you're not, then try making some impartial anti-Federer comments and then you'll find out what it really means to speak your mind.
I agree that if you express your likes and/or dislikes does not show your level of intelligence, but you have to consider the source, and then you'll understand what's a reflection of whom. What we write and/or speak is a reflection of who we are. You can't make bread out of stone.
I don't care that you missed it – no biggie. Usually I ignore the "barb-ers"; it's their prerogative to come along and make insults. But when it's utterly repetitive, sometimes I take issue. I'm entitled, I figure. I actually like what andrea has to say when she's not insulting other players and/or their comments.
It's good that you instigated this discussion about style. If you hate our "cuteness," find us sickeningly annoying, what can I say? You're entitled. Maybe you should take a page from "hiding behind our keyboard" (another poster) and imagine Brundlefly puking on our keyboards. LOL. I hate some posters' rudeness similarly.
BTW, I am a Rafa supporter, though I disapprove of his annoying modesty in interviews. Also, I think Fed's excuses in the AO regarding his mono are hokey. Its a wonderful card to pull out in the face of his declining dominance.
You ve got to be kidding me!
PRECISELY. Thanks – you just reaffirmed (to a degree anyhow) my point to andrea in the first place. It's not a bloody crime to get predictions wrong, and shouldn't mean the tennis champ Borg has to be sullied because of it – sheesh.
I'm outta here – still gotta watch some taped tennis.
Don't know if you saw my response this your comments about the players' attitudes on the other thread, but I liked what you said. I also think Rafa can be too self-deprecating and Djoko too self-aggrandizing (or at least vocal) – both largely in relation to Fed! The two need to find a happy medium.
Apology accepted. I'm glad to know you understand.
I can hold the world record on that if I'm provoked, but I've learnt that it ain't worth it — I now harness my tongue.
Von you talk to much sometimes you should shut your big mouth…just shut it please woman.
Why am I not surprised you would say such drivel. You run true to form. Any and everything anyone says about Federer that you dislike you vent. Why not attack Kroll, or is it because you're afraid to — I'm easy target.
This is some comment thread. I am trying to understand this, we can't criticize Federer? Why is he immune? I personally think Rafa is really that shy, and the language barrier perhaps accentuates this. Novak is a breath of fresh air, I like his arrogance and his impressions. He is funny and entertaining to watch. Roger is wonderful, this is his worst year, he is human. Do I have to pray to the Roger ideal to speak hear. I love watching him play, but Nadal is awesome too, I like them both. Shoot me.
My thoughts exactly. I like all three of them, too – but particularly Djokovic and Federer.
In any case, it seems to be a case of Federer fans taking these criticisms personally. What I find most perplexing is these *certain* fans' inability to adopt an objective viewpoint – it seems they are compelled to defend Roger vigorously while constantly denigrating other players, particularly Djokovic.
I see it as hypocrisy of the highest degree when they accuse others of being unfair to Federer, when they are simultaneously and completely unjustifiably labelling Novak a cheater, wimp, cocky, whatever it may be. It really speaks volumes about the character of these people – extremist and capable of both unwarranted loathing, and double standards.
I've only just realised that I used a couple of words repetitively in my above post. If there was an edit button, I'd change it!
Try not to call someone arrogant in an arrogant way. It's arrogant.
Although it's preferable to the insipid nice-nice. It bugs me almost as much as Novak snogging his little brother in that youtube video.
he got from Rafa this time (thank god for that!) with his fans left with quips like "Andre won it when he was 29 so Fed might too". He might be the GOAT I admit but his dominance was getting tedious and the eulogies directed at him, cloying. I for one will be happy enough if he doesen't win another slam.
Every player has good fans and bad fans. To single out one player's fans like all the "victim of fed's fans" club members above is a bit childish.
Von, if a 1000 people tell you you hate federer maybe it is time for you to take a look within yourself. Obviously it will be only Fed fans who take offense at your repeatedly biased statements going as far as to accuse him of lying about the mono. Your pals Shital and Jane will obviously not call you on that because they share the Federer dislike to some extent. (Definitely not as pathetic as you.) I will throw in this Kroll too with those other two. Kroll ofcourse would have seen the choice words a poster used for him if the people who moderate this site had not deleted those comments. Before you moral police crucify him as a Fed fan, let me tell you it is a novak fan called MD!
Anyway, Von you are hurt when Sean says Roddick stinked up the joint(something Roddick himself admitted in his press conference yesterday.) Yet you had no qualms in accusing Fed of lying about mono. If you have the right to deny Federer had mono which 99% of the media has no problem with, then surely Sean and everybody here is right in claiming Roddick choked especially since he himself claims so?
You deserve what you get. People who are fair and respect other players and their fans will get fairness and respect. Obviously you cannot in anyway even claim you have done so.
And another thing, stop lumping people as Fed fans. If you are human enough, take up the issue with which ever poster you have problem with. To paint Federer fans as some monsters is totally juvenile, especially when you are no Saint yourself.
As for the matches yesterday, I did not have great hopes for Blake anyway. His game his so high risk you just donot know when it will prove his undoing.
Roddick, we all knew this was a tough match. There is no doubt that roddick choked this match, but let us face it, we all knew this was a tough match going in. Much like the safin-djokovic match (which definitely had the biggest upset potential) and the gulbis-nadal match. That 2 of those 3 fears materialized and that nadal lost the 1st set only tell you how deep men's tennis is. Federer's dominance the last 4years might make people claim that men's tennis does not have depth but that is far from the truth.
Tennis is still the MOST competitive sport in the world and it is as dog eat dog as it has ever been. It is just that people dont yell and scream at each other like the uncivilized morons that connors and mcenroe were. More people are diplomatic and civilized in the borg, sampras and agassi (in his later stages). Thank God that the Good still inspires people even though there is a lot of cleansing of the bad and learning to be done in tennis and this world.
Another thing that was against Roddick was the slow courts of wimbledon. He will definitely be much tougher to handle on the faster courts later this year. If you look at the last two years, he has lost only to Federer at the open. US open is the new wimbledon (in the sense that big serving based games are better rewarded there). It might be time for Wimbledon officials to use heavier balls to restore the pendulum which has definitely swung towards making the conditions slower.
Another important thing regarding roddick is he needs a great coach like gilbert/cahill to be in his camp. The biggest misfortune both andys – murray and roddick have had is not being able to hit it off with a great coach like gilbert. I donot know what went wrong there but the price these two may pay might be humongous. All the more so in murray's case. He has no way he can stand upto players like nadal and djokovic mentally without an expert like gilbert who seems to not only be a great strategist but a manly version of Dr.Phil – a motivational guru that is.
If murray ends up underachieving like he has done thus far he will certainly regret not being able to work things out with gilbert!
As for sharapova, looks like she has begun her customary walkabout after winning a grandslam like she did with her prior grandslams. I like her fighting spirit and the effort she gives but her shrieking and yelling like a mating moose on the court means I am not terribly sad she has lost.
Does he routinely get whipped by huge underdogs? It's a sincere question because I've never noticed it.
Jack – just checked Rafa's playing activity: so far this year Rafa has lost to Youz (after lengthy semi); Tsonga (who plowed through at AO); Roddick; Djoko; Davydenko; and Ferrero (due to blisters).
The only huge underdog I see in this years results is maybe Seppi, who beat him in Rotterdam. All the others I listed seem reasonable enough losses: 3/6 are top-teners and the other 3 arguably had favorable circumstances or momentum (in Tsonga's case – you can't argue the guy didn't play phenomenally at the AO).
So maybe you mean previous to this year or on a particular surface? I just don't see Rafa as being "routinely whipped"; he's the leader in wins this year.
I dont dislike Federer, I enjoy his matches and I think he is the GOAT (as I ve mentioned once before) but that does not mean that I worship him or am a fan. Life thankfully is more nuanced than you see fit to imply. I do think however that Fed has been making excuses about his fading dominance, with the mono being a perfect crutch.
Thats my opinion, but does that mean that I hate him? Please! Part of growing up is understanding nuances and I have no idea where you are in that process.
Its entirely likely that I am wrong about Fed and he was in fact right about the mono, something that would easily be proved if he gets back to his dominance of recent yore(Though if he doesent, there is little to say one way or another). If that happens, will I curl up in shame about the terrible accusations I made about the great champion. No. Its just an opinion, I havent spent countless hours researching or mulling over ever statement he's made and I woudlnt lose sleep if I was wrong. So judge me as you seem fit.
To continue – in 2007, Rafa lost to: Fed, Nalby, Ferrer (injured USO), Djoko, Mahut (Queens finalist); Youz (Dubai finaist); Gonza (AO finalist). All, again, reasonable losses. And most of them top ten players. I don't think we can call top tens or even top 20s underdogs, since as you mention above, tennis is very deep so in the top 20, on any given day, no one is a clear underdog.
Before the 2007 AO he lost to Malisse – the only noticeable underdog; and he wasn't whipped. It was a tight two set loss.
Jane, Rafa could very well lose to Kiefer, Stepanek/Youzny or Gasquet. I don't think Murray would beat him but any of those other fellas could do it. Of course I would bet against it happening but the way it looks now Federer has the much easier path to the final than Rafa.
With Andy, his baseline and return games are really in retreat. With a serve like he has he really should be more offensive when returning. Gulbis I thought was playing offensive return games and it paid off, at least for a little while. That's what Andy needs to get back doing and I think he will this hard court season. And as some suggest, a new coach my be in order.
Von, they stunk it up by playing like garbage. Garbage smells. At least mine does.
JCF, you may take Guccione's or Ivo's serve, but I'll stick with Andy's as still the best in the game. It may not be as lethal as it once was but it's still a tough nut to crack.
Sampraszzz, because of his serve Andy will be in the Top 15 I'd say for at least four more years depending on his health and how much interest he has in tennis as he nears 30.
There is some truth in what Jack says about Rafa. As you ve pointed out, he hasnt lost that much to underdogs this year but he is vulnerable on hardcourts to a lot of players you wouldnt expect he would lose to based on ranking. Thats because he is still rather lacking on hardcourts. Besides Tsonga was playing fabulous tennis and I thought Novak was impressive in taking him down in the final.
Rafa does have a tricky draw and if he gets through, he ll really have affirmed his grass credetials. One would think that winning Queen's has already done that but two of the prominent players he beat there(Djoko and Rod) are already out of Wimby! I think its only fair that he has a trial-by-fire this year. After all, his fabulous final performance last year notwithstanding, he got through his draw with considerable amount of good fortune.
You've written so much that it's difficult to answer everything, but I have one question for you, just show me where I've written that Fed didn't have mono. Perhaps you're using the quote I used to quote Kroll in his post to me, or a quote from another psoter. I'd just like for you to find my statement where I've stated that of which you're accusing me.
More like 4 or 5 of the Fed worshippers. However, they're like a militia, speaking for the whole gang. You're just getting ahead of yourself here. I can name them for you if you'd like.
At any moment there are top dogs and under dogs. From 2005-07 it was Federer and nadal, before that federer, roddick, hewitt and safin. 08 it is federer, djokovic and nadal.
The point is Nadal loses routinely to players he is not expected to on hardcourts. These are not mere losses. He gets the wallop of his life-time. You can explain away or qualify the losses in any which way you want – that he was tired against youzhny, surprised by tsonga or gonzalez on a hot streak or blake playing the match of his life, nadal is young etc, etc. If you start doing that no player ever has lost a match. I for one would not do that.
Maybe if nadal keeps continuing his miserable run on the hardcourts, I wouldn't be counting him as a top-dog on hardcourts much like what happens with roddick on clay now.
When it gets proved that Federer did lie about the mono, i will curl up in shame at the accusations I made against you. I am surprised you cannot see that given that you are nuanced enough in life? Till then I will brand you a moron who spreads rumours against great champions. If you have not researched well enough on what Federer has said before you start making your oh-so-logical conclusion that Fed is using his to his declining abilities then you are just being a dumbass.
Isn't also obvious to you that aside from myself there are fans of other players who see that the Fed group take umbrage to any and everything stated about him. Some of the Fed fans behave as if they are personal family members expressing deep hurt. That said, where am I being the chief offender?
I've just given a cursory look at all of your comments, but in gist I have to say that you have appointed yourself judge and jury of anyone who has written anything you deem unfitting toward Federer, e.g., Kroll, calling him a "dumbass". Maybe you have a psychological problem and are using this site to vent some displaced anger. I believe you need to look within yourself and ascertain what it is that's really the problem here, defending Federer or just your need to vent. Don't you think calling someone a "dumbass" is going a bit too far just becuse you disagree with their opinions? This is a classic case and exactly the form of abuse to which I refer when I say that one cannot speak freely on these threads because they are subject to abuse and tirades. Are you any better Jack? Reverting to name calling is a bit low and childish, don't you think? Rise up out of the mire, please. it's unbecoming and unnecessary.
So you have NEVER suggested that Federer faked mono?
If the Fed fans are militia, then what are you, jane and shital? Atleast that fed fans share a "like" of federer. What is common to a Djokovic fan and a roddick fan? You know the answer.
Are there any Federer fans who think you are a fair and objective poster when it comes to Federer? Anyways you dont have to prove anything.
I agree with all that Rafa's most vulnerable surface is hardcourts; that's reasonable enough. He stands too far back, though seems to be working on this – he's smarter on clay and grass in adjusting his game in the moment. I don't see it as much on hard – the adjustments. But he's still gotta be one of the best players at making adjustments as a match proceeds. And this year his results on hard have been darn good. Semis at AO; quarters at Dubia; semis at IW; finals at Miami.
We'll have to wait and see how he does in the latter part of this year.
Meantime – Sean – I agree Rafa has a tough path to the final here, tougher than Fed now that the draw has opened up on that side.
you've still not answered my question, where did you see a post from me suggesting Federer lied about his mono? Don't give me another question for an answer. You want to make broad statements, then back up your talk with the necessary information. If you can't, then please stop making generalized statements.
I've answered you concerning the Fed posters who are the ones that take umbrage, aside from them the others are open minded and leave room for criticisms, bearing in mind that no one is perfect. If you take the time to read instead of just jumping in mid-stream you'll find those comments where some of his fans do acknowledge certain aspects of his demeanor as not perfect.
You made some crude comments about Sharapova, just try making comments concerning Federer with similar language and then you'll find out how much his fans can come down on you. You'll get away with your comments regarding Sharapova because she does not have the same fan base as Federer on these threads.
Thats what nuance means? I dont see how the first statement leads to the second. Maybe there's a Logic 101 course around that might be of some assistance.
Besides I never said Fed Lied about mono. A famous sportsman cannot lie about a disease and get away with it. I meant that he overstates it and uses it to justify every defeat he has, claiming right till he loses that he's in the form of his life.
i.e. his excuses are hokey, not the mono itself.
Its my mistake really, I assume that people understand the English language and are not normally as linguistically challenged as you seem to be (which is why you have little more to say than 'dumbass', though its probably the pinancle of creative prose by your standards). Words like 'nuance' and 'excuse' are clearly too hard to understand. I assure you that I shall simplify things appropriately in future.
Again, my sincere apologies for this oversight.
As I mentioned in another thread, Ferrer seems to be flying way below everyone's radar. The #5 seed and S'Hertogenbosch winner is precisely the kind of player that has given Federer headaches in the past. That is, players who are very consistent and happen to be there when Federer has an off day. A couple of examples of this were Canas and Nalbandian last year.
Funny that you should mention this point, I remember a recent interview by Fed when he said precisely this, that Rafa is aggressive on grass and defensive on Hard courts. Which is bizarre since hard courts these days are faster than grass.
Just to clarify – I am a tennis fan first & foremost.
Although Novak is probably my current favorite player, I like many other players' games & personalities for various reasons, as I've repeatedly stated as such on these threads: e.g., Rafa, Murray, Roddick, Safin. I also increasingly like Gulbis and Cillic. The former in particular impresses me with his composure and power.
I don't "dislike" Fed; he's just never been a favorite of mine. This may be in part because of his utter dominance for a long while there; I like unpredictability in sport. For example, I appreciate Rafa's amazing play on clay, but even that, with his winning everything on the surface becoming a foregone conclusion, is something I hope will evolve. That others will step up and give it a go against him even on clay. This is one reason why I began following Novak because he really crashed Rafa & Roger's party. I hope more players follow suit and we'll have a top ten of consistent players. Imagine the rivalries.
I thought the Miami final was clear evidence of that; Rafa let Davy step in and dictate in that match, retreating back to old patterns on hard court. To me Novak really has show how key court positioning is – he steps in and is aggressive off the return, and usually it's paid off as he keeps the other player back. Gulbis did a bit of that against Rafa yesterday, but on grass Rafa made the adjustments; we'll see if he'll bring that onto hardcourts this summer.
b.t.w. – I didn't read that Fed interview but it makes perfect sense. Remember when Rafa beat Fed at Dubai? It's because he stepped it up, made the adjustments after losing the first set, and then he won. He can win on hardcourts but will have to adjust his game for the surface.
No, I don't know the answer. I can't see the obvious — I'm not as smart or discerning as you are.
I've been posting on these threads for approx. 6 months, and I know that you've not been a regular poster for that duration, unless you had a different screen name. Hence, you have now become the 'messiah', taken the podium, the one who is going to redeem federer's image, and right all of the injustices. My compliments. What better way to make a grand entrance to grandstand on a subject matter that is so near and dear to the hearts of the majority. Enjoy the platform for as long as it lasts. Your usurpation of the Federer scenario is be applauded in order to engender popularity. Go for it, Jack!! I hope it does not come back to bite you. Remember hero today, goat tomorrow, and I don't mean "GOAT". I mean the animal with the horns.
One possible explanation for Nadal's greater success on Grass and Clay has to do with his "buggy whip" forehand. The fact that he is able to take the ball very late off of the forehand side gives a little bit of extra time to deal with bad bounces. On hard courts this is a non-issue and early ball strikers have the upper hand. Nadal's backhand is not vulnerable on hard courts as its fairly conventional. So the conventional wisdom seems to be to attack his Forehand with hard, deep and flat shots.
I write in very simple language, using small words, but sometimes there isn't a small word to really express oneself is there? However, some of my statements are still misunderstood, ergo, therein lies your answer.
I'll take a stab at an answer, since Jack's not speaking generally but is referring to three specific posters – Shital and I share the same profession; Von and I have a similar sense of humour. We all like to see our favorites win. I'd say we've developed a kind of friendship that transcends fan-ship. So what of it? Truth be told, we seem to spend more time defending the players we DO like on this blog than saying anything negative about Fed.
I want Jack to answer, but he seems to have taken a sabatical. Probably he has more insight into the situation than you or I have. Jack please answer.
Anyway, you're right that we do spend more time speaking about our players than about Fed, but whenever we do mention Federer, the roof caves in. Lord help us — I suppose it's best to leave the Fed fans together and seek some greener pastures. However, that might make these threads pretty boring — everyone signing the same praises. How sickening. That's similarly to what Kroll mentioned about the nauseating sweetness. I wonder though ….
Can you elaborate on "buggy whip"?
You're explanation is interesting, because clearly Rafa's top/various spins aren't as effective on hard either. But I hadn't though about the unstable bounce on grass/clay. Makes sense though.
Nah, we shouldn't leave. We should continue to talk about the players and game we like. Shouldn't we?
Sure we can do that, at the same time bridling our tongues and/or sitting out any comments pertaining to Federer. Very democratic. Aren't these threads for "constructive" criticism? However, that' not the norm here. Constructive criticism and/or speaking the truth as I see it is what started this whole nonsense with Jack who is now the "behemoth". It's unfair that there's so much liberalism enjoyed by some and so little by others. jack is using this thread to be abusive — there's a psychological component here.
The "buggy-whip" forehand is so-called because it resembles the motion of a driver of a horse-and-buggy carriage cracking a whip. The motion is from low to high and starts and finishes on the same side. Its pretty common for forehands hit on the run (on of Sampras's favorite shots) but Nadal uses it all the time which may be a fairly innovative approach. It also seems to make a big difference in hitting passing shots which curl back into the court…a shot which Nadal is one of the best at.
Excuse me, but you gotta be kidding on this one :) I mean, how many matches these two have played against each other? EIGHT. How many of those did David win? ZERO. How many sets did David win in those matches? No more than ONE.
"My thoughts exactly. I like all three of them, too – but particularly Djokovic and Federer.
I hope that you've all been enlightened from many of the foregoing comments after I responded to Kroll's comment regarding jane, Shital and myself as being "cute to each other". As I stated due to the backlash and name calling, it has been the easier and more pleasant route to take. There's about a 5 percent window on these threads for objectivity, hence, I try to take the path of least resistance, however, even then it doesn't work.
Skorocel – I didn't mean in H2Hs I meant in terms of ranking points; he's gotten closer to those two than anyone else and he's done it rather quickly. We'll see if it lasts; he lost some here losing early and has a lot to defend now. Time will tell.
"Q. How much of a relief was it to actually find out what was going on healthwise?
ROGER FEDERER: I don't know. It wasn't a shock at first, when I found out what it was. It was, okay, fine. Let's find out what that exactly means, you know. Because the news I got first was I had mono. I go, Okay, what does that mean? It's going to take two more days or two more months, you know, I don't know.
They did more tests and they said actually I went through a very strong mono. Only later did they tell me I had it all over and fixed. This was when I was quite relieved. It was just good to know it was something other than food poisoning. I was always joking around in Australia saying I never ate chicken and at the said it came from chicken.
Now, did he Explicitly say he lost because of that? Maybe not. Did he seem to imply there was a reason why he didnt win it? I think so. Maybe he's just making general conversation? Sure, if ur a fan boy.
Just so you know, he gets asked repeatedly about the mono and he always has loads to say about it, no "Sorry I think we ve talked enough about it", that doesent happen does it? He talks ad-nauseum about it which annoys me no end.
You make a fair point but I for one am impervious to name-calling, which usually happens when people have less intelligent things to say. Which means that you are actually getting to them (Not a bad thing). Maybe you shouldnt try and discipline people about it everytime as all they've done then is get a rise out you. So when somebody does that, ignore them. You dont have to right every perceived wrong that people commit, especially at the cost of making you defensive, which is far worse. You just need to let it go and know when to do that.
As an addition to my earlier comment, there is a notion of reference to context that is of essense here. When Rafa was asked about his knee after last year's Wimby final, he said he didnt want to talk about it at all as that would be a percieved excuse. Imagine if he'd reeled of a lengthy monologue on the state of his knee, would you say he didnt use that as an excuse, as long as he didnt Explicitly say it was such? Please!
Annoyed as I am at Rafa's percieved modesty, he does know when to shut up.
Its good that you do some research before making your statements. I just found a whole bunch of news reports from respected publications, all of which seem to conclude the same and by all accounts they believe him. So its hardly the case of "people like me". Besides the "mono" excuse is a staple of fan boys as a reason why his form has dipped, hardly my invention is it? So that would be, People like You.
"When I heard it was mono, I was actually even more happy to have made the semifinals of the Australian Open, because probably a doctor would have said, You're not allowed or can't play," Federer said.
Clearly, nothing explicit about it.
I've tried doing that only to be told that I brush people aside and treat them as unnecessary. As I've stated before there isn't a happy medium.
Wow, that is a brutal headline and a scathing review. It makes me wonder Sean Randall has ever played tennis before. And, if so, I hope he is as hard on himself as his is on those three top pros.
P.S. That Nadal doesn't want to talk about his injuries doesn't automatically mean he's a saint… I'm maybe repeating myself for the 1000th time, but to tell you the truth, what Rafa did in that MC 2006 final was worse than all the bad that Fed did on & off the court in his entire career… Yes, the Spaniard can be humble at times… So humble, that it's not a problem for him to write Fed's name on the camera and then scratch it… But yeah, stating that I had mono is still 1000 times worse than this, isn't it?
Those who are here a long time (I am since 2006) know and remember when Djoko won AO what were being said about Fed, he was being eaten alive out here. He is by far the most criticezed player of these days, but he is n. 1 and it will always be this way.
But these "Fed fans" that, "Djoko fans" this are really starting to became annoying. The main topics of this site always were Fed (n. 1 – target) and Roddick (n. 1 american), since one had more success than the othter off course Rodick will have more "bad news", but so had Fed. What I think is great and fair here is because the authours know when to salute a player when he did a great job, an so are we (at least most of us).
So Can't we all discuss tennis and avoid getting so personal?!
All groups have "xiitas" fans and a lot of us here like several players. I for one am a fan of Fed, Djoko, Safin, Roddick (I always see his matches trying to memorize his serve sequence thinking that some day I will repeat it, silly me!) and now Nadal (whos defensive style wasn't apealing to me. But now I am loving to see him play because he kind of realized the potential he has and decide to go for it! His game is much more agressive, he is now taking risks and is paying off.
Resuming, none needs to live, variety is the essence of a global world and let us all coexist in peace and dissecate every aspect of the game. That is where the fun is!
Its obvious that reason comes hard to you….
If you can do it for Rafa others can do it for Fed so why are you surprised by the numbers?
I would have thought that what people in this forum say is rather less important than what Fed himself says so why are you comparing them? I just dont see what you are attempting to do with these arbitrary comparisons.
Repeat : What the people on the forum percieve is irrelevant, we are after all(mostly) a bunch of fan-boys. The opinion of the world media however is a different issue. The media seems to perceive that Fed lost at AO because of his repeated insinuations. And thats all that counts.
Further, I couldnt care less if Rafa is a saint or not or whether he is much worse than Fed. I like his game and I have no reason to defend him one way or another. I am not a fan-boy like you.
Rafa is about to play Keifer and Haas is playing Murray. Any predictions on Rafa?
Rafa will beat Keifer – that's my prediction. Murray *should* beat Haas too. Which means we could see that Murray v. Gasquet match.
Tipsy & Turs will be a dogfight till the end, I suspect?
Kiefer isn't any kind of threat to Nadal or any top 10 player for that matter. Maybe, if he's on song and his opponent is off, he'll eek out a win. Apart from those two scenarios, he's not a threat. Rafa will straight aet Kiefer.
Murray has been the aggressor in his match v. Haas. I expect Murray to win this one in 3.
Gasquet will most probably win his match against Simon, who is a similar type of scenario as Kiefer and not a threat. Gasquet in all likelihood should win his match.
Tipsy will beat Tursunov. If Tipsy can take out Roddick, then Tursunov should not be a problem. Tursunov's biggest problem is his mental instability. Tipsy should win in 3 or possibly 4 sets.
Murray just lost 2nd set in tiebreak – of course I can't see it though because dumb NBC are playing TAPED coverage of Venus's match – which is utterly irritating and ridiculous! Why can't fans follow what's going on LIVE?
NBC does not have any respect whatsoever for tennis. They were supposed to begin coverage at 12:00 o'clock, instead they did sports desk coverage and then began Wimby at 12:03 p.m. taped, without even so much of a meager apology.
The situation with the TV coverage in general has become very exasperating. ESPN engages in a ping pong style of coverage — only showing bits and pieces of each match. There really isn't any method to their match selections that are televised. In order to see a match in its entirety one has to physically sit at their computer and watch ESPN 360.com, which even though it is supposed to be live has about a 30 minute time delay in the matches shown. It has become imperative for The USTA to step in and do something constructive for once, putting forth a loud enough voice on behalf of tennis coverage here in the US, taking an aggressive approach coupled with an active role on behalf of the tennis fans. If something is not done soon, tennis will drop even further behind in sports coverage. It's ridiculous that a country that is so sports oriented is very unbalanced in its TV coverage of Tennis.
At least they showed the end of Murray's match and are going to show Rafa live. But I have no idea why they had to show that bit of Venus's match instead of going straight to live?
So HAPPY Murray is through! I hope he and Gasquet have a cracker of a match; I'd prefer to see Murray go through, but either way, as long as it's a good one.
Yes, they did show some of Murray's match. Murray was in excellent form today. Does he have soft hands! He has so much unharnessed talent which will make his game awesome when he is able to synchronize it.
Glad to see Murray through to the 2nd week along with Gasquet, who is looking pretty impressive at this juncture. They should have a very hotly contested match when they meet, and a tough one to call. It's a known fact that Gasquet does well on grass, but Murray is not too far behind.
Hopefully, we'll be treated to some decent TV coverage next week, beginning with the Round of 16 matches. However, NBC will probably mess it up for sure. All we can do is hope, which is a good thing.
I don't know, eating and breathing are good too.
Told ya he'd win veronicaromm.
All my picks through today – Murray, Gasquet, Cillic (!), Rafa.
Probably would've preferred to see Step through, but Youz is fine; he'll be good test for Rafa, but Rafa will win.
Likely Gasquet will beat Murray though I'd rather see Murray through to the Qs. Gasquet is, I think, even flakier than Murray. But it's a tough call. Gasquet has won both of their previous matches.
Any predictions on that match?
Nadal must be crapping in his pants right now, thinking about his match with youzhny. Nadal fans start getting your excuses ready! And keep praying that youzhny is not fit. If he is ready, nadal is a dead duck.
We shall see about Nadal won't we, be ready with your excuses when Youzhny, tired and well Youzhny faces the POWER of Nadal.


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Lust For Local: The Bay Area Releases That Made Our Musical Honor Roll In 2014
By Emma Silvers Tuesday, Dec 23 2014
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Ah, December: that time of year when music critics everywhere look back through their most-loved records and throw caution to the wind, ignoring everything that's true about the meaninglessness of hierarchy in art and the limits of genre to declare some version of "Hey! Are you not capable of forming your own opinions? Here are my opinions, which are being published because that's my job. Come, fight about them in the comment section."
Truly, 2014 felt like a mammoth of a year in Bay Area music. For an attempt to wrap it all up in a bow, see next week's Year In Review issue. For a seasoned take on the electronic and dance music scene in 2014, check out Chris Zaldua's column in this issue. Just want to get your list on? Below you'll find teasers of SF Weekly music writers' favorite local releases from the past 12 months, in the very academic categories of rock, electro-ish (did literally everyone get a synthesizer for Christmas last year?), and hip-hop. You'll find the complete lists online at sfweekly.com. Come, fight about them in the comments section.
Sun Kil Moon – Benji
It's not right that Mark Kozelek made more headlines this year for talking shit about The War on Drugs than for his sixth solo record, but from the depths of his trolling the past few months (see: releasing an actual song called "War On Drugs: Suck My Cock"), that's maybe what he was going for. Which is a damn shame, because Benji, a gorgeously difficult and deeply personal opus even from a man known for his personal songwriting, is undoubtedly the former Red House Painters' frontman's best work. Between a precise account of his sexual history and stories of family members' untimely deaths, we get snippets of grumpy-about-aging Kozelek, trying to park near the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, or eating ramen as he hears the news that James Gandolfini died. In an overwhelmingly dark record, beauty is in the mundane on Benji, and we only wish Kozelek would let it do more of the talking. Emma Silvers
tUnE-yArDs – nikki nack
Oakland's Merrill Garbus has made quite the name for herself in the indie-music scene. Critically acclaimed, she's also one of the most incredible live performers in the bizness, mesmerizing crowds with live loops of instruments and her signature banshee-like voice. On her third LP, nikki nack, she continues to tinker with the "tUnE-yArDs concept" of complex arrangements of layered sounds. The single "Water Fountain" got serious play as one of the top singles of the year. But for me, this album's crowning moment came on "Wait For A Minute." It's a seemingly effortless production of Garbus not trying to get too intricate with the loops and layers. It's a simple drum beat and Garbus just letting loose and showcasing her divine voice. Moments like these, where Garbus doesn't seem as concerned with the normal twists and turns of her arrangements, allow us to experience the rawest product of tUnE-yArDs and the talents of one of indie's most unique voices. Adrian Spinelli
Ty Segall – Manipulator
Ty Segall is nothing if not prolific: Fans of his work over the past eight years can count on a new project, with a distinctly different feel from a seemingly completely different decade from one release to the next — which wouldn't be that impressive if he didn't tend to release three or more records per year. Manipulator, Segall's longest album yet at 56 minutes, represents a departure from that breakneck pace — it took him 14 months to complete — and the payoff is immeasurably satisfying, with an immersive, '70s psych-tinged mood that swells over the course of its 17 tracks. We're generally game for whatever Segall has up his sleeve, but if this is a sign of things to come, we're excited to watch him keep maturing as a songwriter and guitar player, and we hope he keeps taking his time. (P.S. Segall wrote this record in the months before leaving for L.A., and recorded it a SOMA apartment. So yeah, we're still claiming it as ours.) ES
Cold Beat – Over Me
The resurgence of post-punk in the Bay Area music scene could be portrayed as old hat for some. Enter San Francisco's Cold Beat, a band led by Hannah Lew of Grass Widow fame. This year the band released its debut album, Over Me, on Crime on The Moon (Lew's label) and brought a little more life to the forlorn subgenre. With the airy and fragile vocals some have come to expect from Lew amid punchy, perfectly orchestrated instrumentals, the album serves as post-punk guide for catharsis. Lew's lyrics take you on a ride through loss, anxiety, love, and identity. And shining tracks such as "UV" and "Mirror" are excellent pit stops on that insecurity-ridden ride. Over Me is one of this year's better post-punk albums, and it can be hard for any unsuspecting person who listens to this album to get over. Erin Dage
Chuck Prophet – Night Surfer
If Prophet's 2012 release, the restrained-yet-sweeping Temple Beautiful served as an elegy for a lost San Francisco, Night Surfer, which the ever-articulate singer-songwriter released this past fall, is a wary-yet-hopeful eye to the future: With songs like "Countrified Inner City Technological Man," Prophet takes a piss out of the toy-filled world around him, while the presence of chunky, arena-ready guitar hooks (courtesy of REM's Peter Buck) and '70s Rolling Stones-esque riffs and backing vocals make it very clear he's having too much fun for the record to be intended as straight social commentary. Prophet's pseudo-spoken lyrical style, too, is ripening as he ages; while there have always been Petty-ish undertones, Night Surfer has him sounding like an alternate member of the Traveling Wilburys. Which is to say, timeless. A changing San Francisco couldn't ask for a better musical documentarian. ES
ELECTRO-ISH
Tycho - Awake
Tycho frontman Scott Hansen's first musical instrument was a drum machine. Tycho is a byproduct of the digital age; a producer that embraced the electronic revolution head-on with his debut release Past is Prologue and really made a splash with his second LP, Dive, on avant-garde electronica label Ghostly International. But on his third effort, Awake (also on Ghostly), Hansen introduced more live instrumentation and it brought new life to Tycho. On the album's opening track, "Awake," a simple, yet atmospheric guitar riff opens up into a lush bass groove and we're transported into a comfortable ambient world. The production leads into electronic intricacies, new-form sounds and another continent on Tycho's planet. One of the genre's most consistent innovators, Hansen is leading the charge on San Francisco's lo-fi electronic music scene. AS
Emma Silvers
Emma Silvers is SF Weekly's former Music Editor.
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Sub Pop recording artists 'clipping.' brought their brand of noise-driven experimental hip hop to the closing night of 2016's San Francisco Electronic Music Fest this past Sunday. The packed Brava Theater hosted an initially seated crowd that ended the night jumping and dancing against the front of the stage. The trio performed a set focused on their recently released Sci-Fi Horror concept album, 'Splendor & Misery', then delved into their dancier and more aggressive back catalogue, and recent single 'Wriggle'. Opening performances included local experimental electronic duo 'Tujurikkuja' and computer music artist 'Madalyn Merkey.'"
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What stirs up emotional longing within you? You could be an expectant parent awaiting the arrival of your firstborn. Maybe you are daydreaming about or patiently awaiting a new relationship or job. Perhaps you have not taken time for yourself in an awfully long time, and you are planning some time away. Whatever that longing is, stop right now and eagerly consider what sensations are pouring through your body when that longing is fulfilled.
Are you relaxed? Is your heart racing? Are you filled with purpose? Do you feel a fire burning on the inside? I know you have had this feeling before, and I know that you have probably spent a great deal of time and mental energy in your life seeking after those feelings.
So many of the fantastic things in life are mundane. The objects of our greatest longing are often common, but our experience with them is new and so makes them feel unusual for a time. I suspect that a great deal of our unhappiness occurs because we take so many things for granted. And so we set our sights constantly on things that are new or different from our norm. It is as if our heart stops due to boredom, and we must be electrocuted every now and again.
Because fantastic things become mundane, we require frequent reminders. Have you ever considered why you celebrate a birthday? The only thing more common than birth is death. Why must we celebrate one's birth every year? Does it seem odd when you see so many loved ones gathered around an infant simply because it has survived its first twelve months on earth? Many people refuse to celebrate birthdays as they get older, because the celebration has come to mean something different. It becomes a reminder that they are closer to death and thus further from birth. Except for centenarians. I imagine they celebrate every birthday, as it would become a novelty to continue chalking up the years.
The truth is, every year of life ought to be celebrated. Life is the most incredible of all miracles. The newness of an infant's life reminds us of that. That is why we admire so much those who remain in their old age dignified, but young at heart. That is to say, they have kept the good parts of their youth and parted with the negative. Furthermore, we admire this because we are so accustomed to the inverse. Some of the most insufferable children I have ever known have been adults.
The Christmas season is one which produces in many a deep sense of longing. I suspect that most of this is nostalgia. In a time where tradition is so often subverted, Christmas remains (for now) an almost unanimous vestige of folk tradition. This nostalgia is not always associated with warmth. One may even feel nostalgic for the stressful elements of the season. For many, that is the mark of time with their families.
As a sacred tradition, Christmas is a day of remembrance for the incarnation of the Son of God. It is a birthday celebration but an inherently unique one. The Child born that night in Bethlehem would go on to become the very first human in history to conquer death and live forever. Yet we do not celebrate His birth each year out of novelty to tally up the years. There is a sense in which a birthday celebration reminds us of how spectacular is our very existence. Christmas is a birthday celebration that reminds us of something much deeper.
Even this notion of being excited about a Savior, despite the unparalleled magnificence of salvation, has become mundane to us in the present day. But in John the Baptist's day, it was felt as something exponentially more profound. For centuries God had spoken to His people through His law and His prophets. Both foreshadowed the coming of a Messiah who would fulfill them both and save mankind from their sins. Then there was silence for some four hundred years. The people of God were desperate for a voice of prophecy to arrive.
John the Baptist enters as the first voice of prophecy in four centuries. He knew of his role as Christ's forerunner ostensibly before his own birth. I imagine him being nearly overwhelmed with excitement upon seeing Jesus. While his fulness of Spirit and unique role in history may have amplified his excitement, every sinner can look to Christ with the same expectation.
This is the significance of Christmas. God made man. Man became estranged from God through our nature made corrupt by wrong-doing. God prepared a means by which man could know fellowship with God. The birth of Christ is the fulfillment of promise. No matter how typical or insignificant it might feel to us, no matter how much we might take it for granted, we celebrate Christmas to remind us of the kindness and mercy of God toward us.
To know Christ is to remember His work in the past, to seek His work in the present, and to look ahead to His work in the future when He returns. On Christmas we celebrate the fact that He came at all. As we consider Advent, let us ask God to fill us with the expectation of John the Baptist, to be overwhelmed with that sense of longing and excitement. Let us take this season of remembrance as a time to remind us afresh of the magnitude of our gracious God's profound love for us, His people. He gave His Son to bring hope unto the world!


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, 42 (12), 869-883
Cell-Based IL-15:IL-15Rα Secreting Vaccine as an Effective Therapy for CT26 Colon Cancer in Mice
Van Anh Do Thi 1 , Hyung Min Jeon 1 , Sang Min Park 1 , Hayyoung Lee 2 , Young Sang Kim 1
1 Department of Biochemistry, College of Natural Sciences, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea.
2 Institute of Biotechnology, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea.
Van Anh Do Thi et al. Mol Cells. 2019
Interleukin (IL)-15 is an essential immune-modulator with high potential for use in cancer treatment. Natural IL-15 has a low biological potency because of its short half-life and difficulties in mass-production. IL-15Rα, a member of the IL-15 receptor complex, is famous for its high affinity to IL-15 and its ability to lengthen the half-life of IL-15. We have double-transfected IL-15 and its truncated receptor IL-15Rα into CT26 colon cancer cells to target them for intracellular assembly. The secreted IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes were confirmed in ELISA and Co-IP experiments. IL-15:IL15Rα secreting clones showed a higher anti-tumor effect than IL-15 secreting clones. Furthermore, we also evaluated the vaccine and therapeutic efficacy of the whole cancercell vaccine using mitomycin C (MMC)-treated IL-15:IL15Rα secreting CT26 clones. Three sets of experiments were evaluated; (1) therapeutics, (2) vaccination, and (3) longterm protection. Wild-type CT26-bearing mice treated with a single dose of MMC-inactivated secreted IL-15:IL-15Rα clones prolonged survival compared to the control group. Survival of MMC-inactivated IL-15:IL-15Rα clone-vaccinated mice (without any further adjuvant) exceeded up to 100%. This protection effect even lasted for at least three months after the immunization. Secreted IL-15:IL-15Rα clones challenging trigger anti-tumor response via CD4+ T, CD8+ T, and natural killer (NK) cell-dependent cytotoxicity. Our result suggested that cell-based vaccine secreting IL-15:IL-15Rα, may offer the new tools for immunotherapy to treat cancer.
Keywords: CT26 colon carcinoma; IL-15:IL15Rα complex; cell-based vaccine; immunotherapy; interleukin 15 receptor alpha; interleukin-15.
The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.
Fig. 1. Expression of exogenous IL-15 and...
Fig. 1. Expression of exogenous IL-15 and/or IL-15Rα in CT26 colon carcinoma cells
(A) Construction...
(A) Construction of expression vectors encoding IL-15 or IL-15Rα. In the expression vectors, the natural signal peptide sequence (SS) of IL-15 or IL-15Rα were replaced with that of IL-2. TM, transmembrane domain; CY, cytoplasmic domain. (B) Quantitation of IL-15 or IL-15:IL-15Rα complex, secreted from 1 × 106 cells of transfected clones for 24 h incubation by ELISA. The monoclonal antibody used to detect IL-15 (DuoSet ELISA kit; R&D System) did not bind to the IL-15:IL-15Rα complex. The monoclonal antibody to the IL-15:IL-15Rα complex (Platinum ELISA; Affymetrix) did not bind to IL-15 alone. (C) Immunoprecipitation (IP) of IL-15 and IL-15Rα from the culture supernatants of the indicated transfectants. The amount of immunoprecipitated proteins were analyzed by immunoblotting (IB) with the indicated antibodies. Then, the relative intensive was shown in the bar graph. (D) Transfected cell proliferation analysis in vitro by MTT assay. The cell proliferation was correlated with the absorbance at optical density 570 nm. (E) Secreted exogenous IL-15 and IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes stimulated splenocyte proliferation in vitro. Culture supernatants from 1 × 106 cells of each transfected tumor clone were collected after 24 h. The splenocytes from normal BALB/c mice were re-suspended in the medium containing the indicate culture supernatants for 72 h. Then, the proliferation of splenocytes was assayed by MTT assay. Data are mean ± SEM of three independent experiments. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001; ns, not significant.
Fig. 2. Tumorigenicity of CT26 tumor clones...
Fig. 2. Tumorigenicity of CT26 tumor clones expressing IL-15 or IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes
After implantation of...
After implantation of tumor clones (1 × 106 cells/mouse) expressing IL-15 or IL-15:IL-15Rα into BALB/c mice (n = 5) subcutaneously at the right flank, tumor growth and survival of mice were monitored daily basis. (A) Tumor size was measured with a Vernier calipers and the tumor volume was calculated. **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001. (B) Long term survival analysis. Plot of the percentage of survival rate of the groups. (C) The changes in body weight after the tumor cell implantation was shown. Body weight of same age mice (n = 2) without tumor implantation was observed as a control.
Fig. 3. IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes stimulate anti-tumor...
Fig. 3. IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes stimulate anti-tumor cytotoxic effect through CD4 + , CD8 + , and NK cells...
Fig. 3. IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes stimulate anti-tumor cytotoxic effect through CD4+, CD8+, and NK cells in vitro
(A) Splenocytes, obtained from BALB/c pre-immunized with CT26, were mixed and cultured with MMC-inactivated tumor clones expressing IL-15 or IL-15:IL-15Rα. The ratio of splenocytes to tumor clones is 50:1. After 48 h, the morphology of MMC-inactivate tumor clones in the mixed-cell cultures was recorded under a microscope. A representative result was shown from 3 independent experiments. (B) Pre-immunized splenocytes were stimulated in vitro with MMC-inactivated wild-type cells (antigen sources) and culture supernatants of tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes (cytokine sources) for 48 h. The culture supernatant from a parent or mock-transfected clones was used as control. The stimulated splenocytes and CFSE-labeled wild-type CT26 target cells were mixed for at ratio of 20:1 or 50:1. After 6 h incubation, the cell mixtures were collected and stained with PI. The percentage of CFSE+PI+ cells (dead cells) were counted by FACS. (C and D) The activated splenocytes, as described in (B) were pre-incubated with 10 μg/ml anti-CD4 or anti-CD8 antibodies for 30 min before mixing with CSFE-labeled CT26 target cells. After 6 h incubation, the percentage of CFSE+PI+ cells were analyzed by FACS. (E) The activated splenocytes, as described in (B) were mixed with CFSE-labeled YAC-1 target cells (ratio 50:1). After 6 h incubation, the cells were harvested and stained with PI. CFSE+PI+ cells were counted by FACS. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001.
Fig. 4. Therapeutic and vaccination effects of...
Fig. 4. Therapeutic and vaccination effects of tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes against CT26...
Fig. 4. Therapeutic and vaccination effects of tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes against CT26 cells
(A) The schedule of tumor cell injection for therapeutic effect. Normal mice were implanted with wild-type (WT) CT26 cells (1 × 105 cells/mouse) subcutaneously at the right flank, and injected with MMC-inactivated mock or IL-15:IL-15Rα tumor clones (1 × 106 cells/mouse) at near sites after 3 days (n = 5 for each group). (B and C) Tumor growth (B) and survival (C) of mice were monitored. (D) The schedule of tumor cell injection for vaccination. Mice were subcutaneously vaccinated with MMC-inactivated mock or tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα (5 × 105 cells/mouse) at right flank. After two weeks, WT CT26 cells (5 × 105 cells/mouse) were subcutaneously implanted at the left flank. (E and F) Tumor growth (E) and survival (F) of mice were monitored. *P < 0.05.
Fig. 5. Vaccination with MMC-inactivated tumor clones...
Fig. 5. Vaccination with MMC-inactivated tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes, stimulates memory phenotypes in...
Fig. 5. Vaccination with MMC-inactivated tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes, stimulates memory phenotypes in splenic cells of mice
(A) The splenocytes from sacrificed vaccinated mice described in Figures 4D–4F were counted. (B) They were stained to analyze for percentages of effector memory (CD44+ CD62L−) and central memory (CD44+ CD62L+) of CD4+ or CD8+ T cells and NK subsets (total NK cells; CD49b+, effector NK cells; CD49b+ CD11b+, NKT cells; CD3+ CD49b+). (C) The indicated numbers of CD4+, CD8+, and NK cells in splenocytes were graphed. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001; ****P < 0.0001.
Fig. 6. Long-term anti-tumor memory immune response...
Fig. 6. Long-term anti-tumor memory immune response is acquired by vaccination with MMC-inactivated tumor clones...
Fig. 6. Long-term anti-tumor memory immune response is acquired by vaccination with MMC-inactivated tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα complexes
(A) The schedule of tumor implantation. (1st) Mice were subcutaneously primed tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα (1 × 106 cells/mouse) at day 0 on the left flank. (2nd) One month after the priming, tumor-free mice were subcutaneously challenged with 1 × 106 cells of live wild-type (WT) CT26 cells on the right flank. (3rd) Two months after the boosting step, the tumor-free mice were re-challenged subcutaneously with 1 × 106 cells of live WT CT26 cells on the left flank. (B and C) After the boosting step, the average tumor growth (B) and the survival of mice (C) were monitored daily basis. (D-F) After the re-challenging step with WT CT26, the tumor growth (D) and survival of mice (E) were recorded. On day 18 after the re-challenging, mice with tumor growth were sacrificed, and spleens and tumor masses (F) were photographed. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001.
Fig. 7. Challenging with live tumor clones...
Fig. 7. Challenging with live tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα stimulated long-term memory phenotypes in...
Fig. 7. Challenging with live tumor clones expressing IL-15:IL-15Rα stimulated long-term memory phenotypes in splenic cells
(A) Tumor-bearing mice same as Figure 6F were sacrificed, and the total number of splenocytes were counted. (B and C) The splenocytes obtained from the indicated mice were stained with antibodies to analyze the indicated CD4+, CD8+, and NK cell subsets. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001.
All figures (7)
Interleukin-15 and Its Receptor Augment Dendritic Cell Vaccination Against the Neu Oncogene Through the Induction of Antibodies Partially Independent of CD4 Help
JC Steel et al. Cancer Res 70 (3), 1072-81. 2010. PMID 20086176.
Interleukin-15 (IL-15) stimulates the diffrentiation and proliferation of T, B, and natural killer cells; enhances CD8(+) cytolytic T-ceII activity; helps maintain CD44(h …
Vaccination With Tumor Cells Expressing IL-15 and IL-15Rα Inhibits Murine Breast and Prostate Cancer
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A number of antitumor vaccines have recently shown promise in upregulating immune responses against tumor antigens and improving patient survival. In this study, we exami …
IL-15R alpha-IgG1-Fc Enhances IL-2 and IL-15 Anti-Tumor Action Through NK and CD8+ T Cells Proliferation and Activation
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Natural killer (NK) cells-based immunotherapy is one of the most promising treatments for incurable malignant tumors. NK cells in combination with monoclonal antibodies t …
Increasing the Biological Activity of IL-2 and IL-15 Through Complexing With anti-IL-2 mAbs and IL-15Rα-Fc Chimera
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Heterogeneity in Lymphokine Profiles of CD4+ and CD8+ T Cells and Clones Activated in Vivo and in Vitro
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Cannabis Tax Revenues
Billion$ and Thousands of Jobs Go Over the Border, Feds Yawn
American Cannabis Report Editorial Staff
When General Motors announced it was shuttering five automobile manufacturing plants in the US last month, one would think the company had launched a sneak attack on the US economy. (Oh look, it's December 7th, aren't we clever?)
The President unleashed a Tweetage (that's Tweet + Barrage people, try to keep up) at Mary Barra and threatened to take away the company's subsidies. At which we scratched our heads... "One of the world's largest companies still gets subsidies...?"
All the while, our northern neighbors have been reeling in American investor dollars by the boat load, and are also clamoring for workers to fill all the job openings.
The Marlboro Man is in (cigarette giant Altria invested $1.8 Billion in Cronos Group last week), Corona is in (beverage giant Constellation Brands invested $4Billion in Canopy Growth in August).
And while both of those cannabis giants trade on the NY Stock Exchange, Forbes reports that many others are seeking their fortunes in Canada; MedMen, Cresco, and MJardin, to name a few, including Acreage Holdings which counts former House Speaker John Boehner, former Massachusetts Governor William Weld, and former Canadian Prime Minister, on its board of directors.
Jobs? "The marijuana sector will create roughly 120,000 jobs across Canada after the first year of legalization", according to Alison McMahon, founder and CEO of human resources firm Cannabis at Work, in a phone interview with BNN Bloomberg
According to Deloitte, the Canadian cannabis market is expected to be a $22.6 billion industry and the next few months before legalization on July 1st are expected to see a hiring frenzy for everything from growers and trimmers to marketing and tech experts."
Image source: Ottawa Life http://www.ottawalife.com/article/cannabis-across-canada-a-province-by-province-breakdown?c=1