Obviously with what has been going on with me my input on here regarding wimbledon did not stretch further than the first couple of days, and I may well find future wimbledons a little difficult to stomach now as it is, unfortunetly, associated with what happened.. Therefore i'd just like to go through what I thought of this years championships.

Firstly, i'd better say that I went to SW19 twice myself. On the middle Saturday I got to see just 55 minutes of Venus struggling against Morigami on court two before the rain finished the day off completely. At least i'll get a full refund! :D

On the second Friday, I then got a huge bonus on court one with two men's singles quarters out of the top drawer, both five-set epics!
That was Djokovic beating Baghdatis and then Gasquet sensationally dumping Roddick out! Fabulous entertainment for 9 hours in brilliant sunshine!


The men's tournament really emphasised the gulf between the top two and the rest of the field. no-one could touch Rafa or Fed, and I have to say that I thought that Rafa was the better player in the epic final, he was sensational and was the first person i've seen largely out-hit Fed on centre court! Having said that destiny was for Fed to win and i'm delighted he did! :D

Otherwise, though, although Djoko and Gasquet had good runs, you never felt they'd have any chance of troubling the big two. And Hewitt and Roddick flattered to decieve. Roddick, to be honest, would be nowhere without his serve, he doesn't penetrate with his groundstrokes, he just relies on keeping the ball in and waiting for errors. How many clean winners does A-Rod really hit in his matches? not that many. Gasquet putting in his all-out attack on Roddick was sensational and possibly the best tennis seen in the tournament, he looked like Federer! And what a backhand!

The women's event didn't really ever get going for me. Venus was my tip for the title at about the 4th round stage, I knew she'd beat sharapova, who seems to be fading as a wimbledon threat (mobility issues are the main factor for me), and I thought she would be able to get stuck in to the draws top brass.
Obviously, Bartoli getting to the final was a huge shock, particularly at the expense of Henin! Well done to her, I think she's had her 15 minutes in the spotlight though, not expecting her to be a fixture in the top ten really!
And then there's Serena :rolleyes: . Was she as bad as she made out against Hantuchova? I don't think so! I think she just had cramp, towards the end of the 3rd set she was moving pretty smoothly for me! An it was certainly a good excuse for her to have locked away before the Henin match, which I always thought she would lose!
Ivanovic also had another very good run, I never saw her as a threat to win the whole thing but her star is definitely rising!

As for Britain's first triumph in 20 years with Jamie Murray - I thought it was wonderful! He and Jankovic looked like they were having so much fun and brought some genuine light to the end of the championships! I wonder if he got lots of, er, kisses all over from Jelena afterwards! :D

And then there was the weather chaos! why no play on the middle sunday when the forecast after that was patently so bleak? Yes we got through and miraculously got the finals in on time, but it wasn't ideal for the players was it? Having said that I wouldn't have seen those epics on the second Friday if they hadn't been so inept so maybe I should shut it! roflmao

Oh yeah, also had a smashing experience with a very foxy Aussie blonde on the packed tubes back up to stanmore who had come to see the tourny, but hey! :D

And the bloke who I coach with went on the second thursday and collided head-on with none other than Rafa Nadal in the grounds! He got his picture with him and his autograph, and also said that Rafa is only about 5 ft 11! 10 seconds later a scrum of about 30 press apparently charged in so he was dead lucky!

Anyway, roll on next years championships, hopefully with a better job done of the Centre Court "roof"! :D

sorry if i've clogged up the "latest news" as a result of this thread... :unsure:

Obviously my thoughts are entirely correct :P

I think you're a bit harsh om Serena Sam, she obviously in excruciating pain at the time of the injury, even crying at one point. I dont think it was a stall tactic, as she'd worked her way back from 2-5, so there was no point in her trying to stop her own momentum. She was my hero of the championships that day for gutsing that out. Such a warrior :bow:

I agree that the women's event didnt take off like it has in recent years( most notably 2005), but the rain and inspired play of Venus really added to that. She was just unplayable from maria onwards. She's just a mountain to climb on grass. She's so amazing :D :bow:

The shock defeat of henin, was quite a highlight though. I think everyone was willing her on. Held her nerve so well.

I totally agree with Roddick. His ground-game is very ineffectual, his volleys lack court positioning and his movement is pretty exposed. His serve is his only weapon really, he's a sitting duck when people get into the rallies. I thought matieu could've beaten him in round 4, as he was hitting some fantastic groundies but could hold onto his 3rd set initiative. Gasquet played a brilliant match though, such effortless winners and broke down Roddick's game in the end. Look on the bright side Andy, Richard spared you another Fed thrashing roflmao

Nadal played his best Wimby to date, he really has improved a lot of areas to his game. He got to the final last year really because of his superb movement. This year, he was firing big serves and hitting so many winners. It's amazing how Nadal can switch to an aggressive style at Wimby. He really put on a spectacle in the final. I just think Fed served better on crucial points, because as you say Sam in other areas, i think nadal was the better player.

Of course the mixed was a real treat. First there was Boggo/South's amazing run and then Murray and Jankovic's title win. jUst great stuff :D

Hey dl!

We'll agree to disagree about Serena - she cramped up yes, but that was all. I'm very dubious that there was any muscular tear, which means (apart from the injury to her hand which stopped her playing proper backhands) she was fighting fit against Justine.

Richard Williams made me laugh, trying to say she had a slight tear on her calf but was still going to "bravely go out". If that had been true there is no way in the worl she could have played and competed with Henin!

Can't knock Venus's performances though - she is one of the greatest women ever at wimbledon now, and I can't disagree that her game is unstoppable on grass when it's working, even for Serena or henin!