Laurie's Tennis articles

So, I’ve enjoyed the Open GDF Suez so much in the last two years I decided to attend for a third year in a row!   In 2012 and 2013 I witnessed a German winner but that wasn’t to be this year. But like 2012, there was a special occasion.   That year, a special exhibition took place to commemorate 20 years of the tournament.   This time a commemoration to honour Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, in a special presentation made by WTA Chief Executive Officer Stacey Allastar.   I stuck to the format of attending quarterfinals day on Friday and the final on Sunday.   Friday had some interesting matchups.   The first match took place between 2012 champ Angelique Kerber and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.   I knew it was going to be a good match and could go to three sets.   Anastasia was someone I identified in my preview of the 2012 season to be a talented player who could challenge at the top of the game.   Since then Anas...

The 2014 Australian Open has proved to be the most interesting in many years, resulting with two first time winners. Yesterday’s ladies final between Li Na and Dominika Cibulkova was an intriguing match, and had Cibulkova sneaked the first set tiebreak, it could have well have been a surprise victory.   But in the end Li’s greater experience and incredible shot making ability saw her take the 2nd set 6:0.   The victory speech was probably the best part of the night, classic Li Na and as BBC commentator Jonathon Overend said, a post tennis career of stand-up comedy would not look out of place! Today’s mens final between Warwinka and Nadal proved just as intriguing.   The big question was always going to be how Warwinka would deal with the nerves of being in his first major final and play a guy who he never even took a set off in twelve tries, a very tall order indeed. But as the first set developed it was clear Warwinka was ready to have a go at Nadal. ...

In its long history, the Australian Open has a tradition of throwing up surprise finalists.   And that has proved to be the case in 2014 with Stan Warwinka of Switzerland making the mens final and Dominika Cibulkova making the ladies final. Cibulkova will play Li Na of China in a final that guarantees a first time winner of the event from either China or Slovakia.   For Slovakia, it would be a first as Slovakia have lived in the shadows of the Czechs for such a long time.   Cibulkova is indeed the first major finalist since Miroslav Mecir got to a US Open final back in the late 1980s when he lost to Ivan Lendl. Daniela Hantuchova got to the semifinal of the Australian Open in 2008 but lost out to Ana Ivanovic (that match being famous for Ivanovic’s “squeaky” sneakers). Meanwhile Li has already played in two Australian finals and lost both to Kim Clijsters and Victoria Azarenka in 2011 and 2013, each time in three sets.   Li will see this as a great o...

Over the past few years I have noticed a massive decline in girls playing tennis and when I go to local club level tournaments, there are very few competing. If I am only to look at our club coaching programme I notice that there are only about 20% girls. The concern for woman’s sports is regularly asked but there is no simple answer and governing bodies / sporting organisations have been confounded by this issue for a while. Boys and girls sport at primary school is virtually identical but then a large number of girls decide to ‘opt out’ before secondary school. Girl’s involvement also decreases at a more rapid rate than the boys through their teens and beyond. But why? There are many potential reasons why girls drop out of sport but surveys have shown that sport is seen by society as turning ‘boys into men’ and that it is a significant form of male socialisation. Sporting prowess gives males a status amongst both male and female peers where girls receive the message f...