So the man from Switzerland as won two grand slams this year and been to the final of the other two. Not bad for any player to be able to do that.
But in Federer's loss to Del Potro - he had chances to finish it off in the fourth set, which he failed to do. I am sure the Federer of old wouldn't have allowed that. Instead he let the hungrier Del Potro win through his sheer force of will and size of shot.
After the match, Federer seemed almost happy, and almost happy for Del Potro. He was seen saying that Del Potro 'deserved it'. Strange for a man who is desperate to cement his legacy as the 'best of all time'.
It is also in stark contrast to the end of the Australian open where he cried after losing, and that was less than 12 months ago. There could be reasons for that; such as Federer's frustration is his rivalry with Nadal.
But Federer's recently aqquired status as a father seems to have made him mellow. He seems more at peace with the world. This isn't good I say, we can't be made to sit through see our sports players with no fight in them.
People only ever get to the top through immense dedication and desire. It seems a shame to see Roger resigned to not winning them all.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Exciting sporting moments this week.
Serena Williams went absolutely mental and threatened to shove a ball down the throat of a small female Asian line judge with her racket, after having been given a foot against her. Unbelieveably this happened on match point so she lost the game after a penalty point, unfortunate for the defending champion.
here is some of the action
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bPstWxGZU0&feature=related
Also - Manchester city football player Adebbayor also went a little crazy this week. He was playing against arsenal - his old football team, and he tried to stamp on some of his former team mates. After scoring the winning goal, instead of not celebrating (a custom normally adhered to by players when scoring in their former employees), Adebayor runs the entire length of the pitch to celebrate infront of the Arsenal fans. This caused a semi riot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChiYOnxz0qc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHwXBRNGdGs
Hardly sports - but Kanye's outburst for the Beyonce video also lacked some class.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfIw0GJEC4Y
here is some of the action
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bPstWxGZU0&feature=related
Also - Manchester city football player Adebbayor also went a little crazy this week. He was playing against arsenal - his old football team, and he tried to stamp on some of his former team mates. After scoring the winning goal, instead of not celebrating (a custom normally adhered to by players when scoring in their former employees), Adebayor runs the entire length of the pitch to celebrate infront of the Arsenal fans. This caused a semi riot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChiYOnxz0qc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHwXBRNGdGs
Hardly sports - but Kanye's outburst for the Beyonce video also lacked some class.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfIw0GJEC4Y
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Hello sports fans.
I once read a book (very recently) called 'letters to a young poet' which was sent to me by a very kind and thoughtful friend in Los Angeles. The book was a series of letters (you would never believe) to a young poet on how to fulfill his artistic potential as a writer. Enjoyable and elegant as the letters were, I wouldn't help but notice how half of the letters were devoted to the subject of elegantly phrasing excuses for not having written sooner. This is not the style that I wish to use while writing my sports blog so I from now on will not apologize for my far too infrequent updates of this blog.
What a summer it has been though and I hope that you too have been keeping tabs on what has been happening. From an unknown Korean upsetting the great Tiger Woods at the US open, to England winning the ashes, Usain Bolt running faster than the scientists could predict to the 16-14 final set at the wimbledon final.
As I was writing this blog I was not sure as to what the subject was to be but I see it all to clearly now. It is the unknown.
Sports is truly the ultimate unwritten theatre. Even as a small boy I was always obsessed with stadia, and it is only in my later life that I have begun to understand why that is. Despite the fact that on every corner there is a famous relic, no buildings capture the imagination more in Rome than the coliseum and the circus maximus. There were no amphitheatres built in that great empire to show theatrical productions that could compare with the size of these buildings. Why is this we ask?
If not one person was to attend a film that was showing in a theatre - it would always be the same. If the actors in a play were in very different moods from night to night - the plot would never change. But thousand of people turn up to watch sporting event (many thousands more than would fit in a the worlds largest theatre) to see what will happen.
Sports are unwritten scripts that unfold before the eyes of the public. The reason that the bookies make so much money is that noone knows the outcome and people love to visualise, but the reality is always so much stranger. Even the most celebrated gladiator dies, the greatest team sometimes looses, golf balls hit in an identical fashion lie many yards apart.
The unknown draws people in, and spits people out and leaves the back pages of the mornings newspapers to recollect the action.
Without sports my life would be far easier - I would no longer have to worry that my beloved Manchester United would perhaps lose. But where would be the fun if we all know what was going to happen.
Thank you all for reading,
Love always
Rory
What a summer it has been though and I hope that you too have been keeping tabs on what has been happening. From an unknown Korean upsetting the great Tiger Woods at the US open, to England winning the ashes, Usain Bolt running faster than the scientists could predict to the 16-14 final set at the wimbledon final.
As I was writing this blog I was not sure as to what the subject was to be but I see it all to clearly now. It is the unknown.
Sports is truly the ultimate unwritten theatre. Even as a small boy I was always obsessed with stadia, and it is only in my later life that I have begun to understand why that is. Despite the fact that on every corner there is a famous relic, no buildings capture the imagination more in Rome than the coliseum and the circus maximus. There were no amphitheatres built in that great empire to show theatrical productions that could compare with the size of these buildings. Why is this we ask?
If not one person was to attend a film that was showing in a theatre - it would always be the same. If the actors in a play were in very different moods from night to night - the plot would never change. But thousand of people turn up to watch sporting event (many thousands more than would fit in a the worlds largest theatre) to see what will happen.
Sports are unwritten scripts that unfold before the eyes of the public. The reason that the bookies make so much money is that noone knows the outcome and people love to visualise, but the reality is always so much stranger. Even the most celebrated gladiator dies, the greatest team sometimes looses, golf balls hit in an identical fashion lie many yards apart.
The unknown draws people in, and spits people out and leaves the back pages of the mornings newspapers to recollect the action.
Without sports my life would be far easier - I would no longer have to worry that my beloved Manchester United would perhaps lose. But where would be the fun if we all know what was going to happen.
Thank you all for reading,
Love always
Rory
Friday, July 24, 2009
Twitter-mania
So despite the fact that Manchester United lost in the champions league final - it still seems that people still love them. In Korea so many people are trying to get near the players that the fans are charged just to watch them train. The striker Berbatov likened playing for Manchester United to being in the Beatles. It seems that no longer are football players the working mans heroes but they are athletes who are hidden behind closed doors and protected for their own protection.
What do they do? Who are they? Well I have read a few of their autobiographies and it seems as though the modern day footballer just relaxes at home and in the words of Wayne Rooney 'watches DVD's'. This is of course when they are not on official functions, but when they are it is not really possible for the fan to get close to their heroes, other then perhaps the odd autograph.
But what is it that Wayne Rooney is really thinking? What does he think about Cristiano Ronaldo going to Madrid. Well I know. And I know because of Twitter. With twitter one can follow people, for example millions of people follow Ashton Kutcher and his life with Demi Moore. They say that Twitter helped Barack Obama get elected through simply updating what people are doing when they want to.
My twitter account is a homage to sportsmen of all walks of life. Whenever Gerrard, Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Andy Murray, Ronaldo want to share something that they are feeling - I am there to get the message. I know that Wayne Rooney has been in contact with Ronaldo since, and that he has faith in Sir Alex, and he's enjoying training etc etc etc.
I also followed Andy Murray during Wimbledon and he was talking of his preparations and how he was going to go to sleep and what he was eating, when he was going on jogs, even when he was pranking around. Sadly he didn't get to the final and his 'tweets' were significantly reduced by his dissapointment, but in some ways it was interesting to hear what someone who seemingly has zero personality gets up to.
Perhaps this is useless information, but twitter also gives you a chance to message these people. Its not like Steven Gerrard gives out his email address to people, not even those kids whose bedrooms are a shrine to Liverpool (god forgive their souls). But the kids can have a chance to email them with Twitter. There is even a chance that the athletes will email them back, especially if they email them enough.
I was desperate that Andy Murray should drink coconut water, I twittered him throughout Wimbledon, sadly I don't think that he got the message and he couldn't deal with Roddick either.
Infact I think that there is going to be a rorys sports twitter.
Love you all
Rory
What do they do? Who are they? Well I have read a few of their autobiographies and it seems as though the modern day footballer just relaxes at home and in the words of Wayne Rooney 'watches DVD's'. This is of course when they are not on official functions, but when they are it is not really possible for the fan to get close to their heroes, other then perhaps the odd autograph.
But what is it that Wayne Rooney is really thinking? What does he think about Cristiano Ronaldo going to Madrid. Well I know. And I know because of Twitter. With twitter one can follow people, for example millions of people follow Ashton Kutcher and his life with Demi Moore. They say that Twitter helped Barack Obama get elected through simply updating what people are doing when they want to.
My twitter account is a homage to sportsmen of all walks of life. Whenever Gerrard, Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Andy Murray, Ronaldo want to share something that they are feeling - I am there to get the message. I know that Wayne Rooney has been in contact with Ronaldo since, and that he has faith in Sir Alex, and he's enjoying training etc etc etc.
I also followed Andy Murray during Wimbledon and he was talking of his preparations and how he was going to go to sleep and what he was eating, when he was going on jogs, even when he was pranking around. Sadly he didn't get to the final and his 'tweets' were significantly reduced by his dissapointment, but in some ways it was interesting to hear what someone who seemingly has zero personality gets up to.
Perhaps this is useless information, but twitter also gives you a chance to message these people. Its not like Steven Gerrard gives out his email address to people, not even those kids whose bedrooms are a shrine to Liverpool (god forgive their souls). But the kids can have a chance to email them with Twitter. There is even a chance that the athletes will email them back, especially if they email them enough.
I was desperate that Andy Murray should drink coconut water, I twittered him throughout Wimbledon, sadly I don't think that he got the message and he couldn't deal with Roddick either.
Infact I think that there is going to be a rorys sports twitter.
Love you all
Rory
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Why did Manchester United lose the Champions League?
Still no club has won the Champions League twice in a row. Manchester United should be proud of coming so close but it was not to be. Barcelona were great and I guess that they deserved it.
So where did it all go wrong for Manchester United. One of the main problems were the errors. Manchester United simply didn't play as well as they can. Vidic who has been player of the season was the one who missed Eto'o! Evra's mistake led to the second goal. It is had to criticise these players as they have been so good for Manchester over the years.
Manchester were playing well at the start, but after Vidic made the mistake it allowed Barcelona to maintain possesion. Everyone knows that Barcelona love to do this. Even when they took corners they would pass it back rather than cross it in the hope of scoring.
This is all very well, but Manchester panicked and then chased the ball. The reason that Chelsea got the better of Barcelona was that they just sat back and waited for Barcelona to play into the danger areas and took the ball of them. Because of the eagerness of Manchester to win and the fact that they fell behind, they chased and tried to get the ball back and then opened up a lot of spaces.
The other error of tactics from the manager was the introduction of Berbatov. I have no complaints about a manager who has brought 11 league titles, but this time he got it wrong. I can understand the idea of wanting to attack more, but having 4 strikers is not attacking. The attack comes through the team, from the defense up, it can even start from the goalkeeper. For a team that was getting overrun in midfield, one cant afford to have 4 strikers. After that Barcelona were free to do as they liked as Berbatov is hardly going to win back the ball.
In the end the time of possession was fairly even, and Ryan Giggs felt that Manchester had more chances, but it was just not their day. Congratulations though to Barcelona, it is very difficult to win the trophy, even though they won in very dubious circumstances against Chelsea - to win the European cup takes a lot of good fortune as well as skill. Also congratulations to their midfield of Xavi and Iniesta who were absolutely superb, but it will be a different story next year we hope.
The thing about sports is that someone has to lose. There can only be one winner. Fortunately in life things are not so absolute.
So where did it all go wrong for Manchester United. One of the main problems were the errors. Manchester United simply didn't play as well as they can. Vidic who has been player of the season was the one who missed Eto'o! Evra's mistake led to the second goal. It is had to criticise these players as they have been so good for Manchester over the years.
Manchester were playing well at the start, but after Vidic made the mistake it allowed Barcelona to maintain possesion. Everyone knows that Barcelona love to do this. Even when they took corners they would pass it back rather than cross it in the hope of scoring.
This is all very well, but Manchester panicked and then chased the ball. The reason that Chelsea got the better of Barcelona was that they just sat back and waited for Barcelona to play into the danger areas and took the ball of them. Because of the eagerness of Manchester to win and the fact that they fell behind, they chased and tried to get the ball back and then opened up a lot of spaces.
The other error of tactics from the manager was the introduction of Berbatov. I have no complaints about a manager who has brought 11 league titles, but this time he got it wrong. I can understand the idea of wanting to attack more, but having 4 strikers is not attacking. The attack comes through the team, from the defense up, it can even start from the goalkeeper. For a team that was getting overrun in midfield, one cant afford to have 4 strikers. After that Barcelona were free to do as they liked as Berbatov is hardly going to win back the ball.
In the end the time of possession was fairly even, and Ryan Giggs felt that Manchester had more chances, but it was just not their day. Congratulations though to Barcelona, it is very difficult to win the trophy, even though they won in very dubious circumstances against Chelsea - to win the European cup takes a lot of good fortune as well as skill. Also congratulations to their midfield of Xavi and Iniesta who were absolutely superb, but it will be a different story next year we hope.
The thing about sports is that someone has to lose. There can only be one winner. Fortunately in life things are not so absolute.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Is Messi the best of all time?
Someone has finally said it. Antonio Cassano the gifted Italian footballer has been the first one to come out and say it. I know that one of the recent entries to this blog has tried to identify some flaws in Messi-dona, but the truth of the matter is that he is a a phenom.
I have speculated on this subject before Cassano, but when his comments came out recently they did not even raise too many eyebrows. Of course it is impossible to know who is the best - Pele has been retired for many years as has Maradona. Messi has not even won anything, no world cups, no Champions leagues (barring the one that he was injured for), however his level of performances may be of a greater level than we have ever before seen.
When Mill House rose to prominence in the 1960's - people had never before seen a horse like him, he was massive and dark, and was miles better than all the other horses at the time. There is little doubt that he would have probably gone down as the greatest chaser of all time. Sadly for his legacy, Arkle emerged very soon after. They had many titanic battles that were contested miles ahead of the field - but Arkle always won.
We will never know how Messi would have done against these great football players of yesteryear. People say that Roger Federer is arguably the best tennis player of all time. He doesn't look like it now that Nadal has arrived. And they say that he has to win more titles than anyone else. So people say that Pete Sampras is still the greatest. But at some point in his career Sampras had only won a few grand slams, we didn't know he was 'the best ever', someone may have speculated it at the time though.
And so this is me speculating that Messi may be the best ever. I personally dont believe it, but I have never seen such close control. Messi attributes it to when he was a child he was so small that he had to keep the ball close at all times.
For those of you who don't even know who he is!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLW4DKoncvM&feature=fvst
I have speculated on this subject before Cassano, but when his comments came out recently they did not even raise too many eyebrows. Of course it is impossible to know who is the best - Pele has been retired for many years as has Maradona. Messi has not even won anything, no world cups, no Champions leagues (barring the one that he was injured for), however his level of performances may be of a greater level than we have ever before seen.
When Mill House rose to prominence in the 1960's - people had never before seen a horse like him, he was massive and dark, and was miles better than all the other horses at the time. There is little doubt that he would have probably gone down as the greatest chaser of all time. Sadly for his legacy, Arkle emerged very soon after. They had many titanic battles that were contested miles ahead of the field - but Arkle always won.
We will never know how Messi would have done against these great football players of yesteryear. People say that Roger Federer is arguably the best tennis player of all time. He doesn't look like it now that Nadal has arrived. And they say that he has to win more titles than anyone else. So people say that Pete Sampras is still the greatest. But at some point in his career Sampras had only won a few grand slams, we didn't know he was 'the best ever', someone may have speculated it at the time though.
And so this is me speculating that Messi may be the best ever. I personally dont believe it, but I have never seen such close control. Messi attributes it to when he was a child he was so small that he had to keep the ball close at all times.
For those of you who don't even know who he is!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLW4DKoncvM&feature=fvst
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Police have confirmed......
that two Premiership
footballers have had their houses burgled
on the same night last Tuesday.
Ryan Giggs had 70 welsh caps, 11 premiership
medals, 2 champions league medals, 5 FA cup
medals, 1 league cup medal, 2 world club
cup medals, 8 charity shield medals and 1
super cup medal stolen.
Emmanuel Adebayor lost a kettle and a toaster.
footballers have had their houses burgled
on the same night last Tuesday.
Ryan Giggs had 70 welsh caps, 11 premiership
medals, 2 champions league medals, 5 FA cup
medals, 1 league cup medal, 2 world club
cup medals, 8 charity shield medals and 1
super cup medal stolen.
Emmanuel Adebayor lost a kettle and a toaster.
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