LIQUID SUNSHINE NADAL’S DAY AT THE FRENCH OPEN @ROLAND GARROS IN PARIS BY CHERYL JONES

Written by: Staff on 26th May 2014

French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros

LIQUID SUNSHINE NADAL'S DAY AT THE FRENCH OPEN @ROLAND GARROS IN PARIS BY CHERYL JONES

epa04226861 Rafael Nadal of Spain serves the ball during his first round match against Robby Ginepri of the USA at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 26 May 2014. EPA/CHRISTOPHE KARABA |

Rain is oozing into the schedule at Roland Garros. The forecasters had called for clouds, but no rain. It’s obvious that the meteorologists neglected to take a peek out their windows. Since early in the morning, it drizzled – not hard and not constant, but all day. The players look soggier than usual. Drops of moisture falling from the sky have overtaken the perspiration that usually soaks their shirts. It appears to be an annoyance rather than an issue with the playing surface. But still, they played on.

Rafael Nadal walked between the raindrops and appeared after six in the evening on Court Suzanne Lenglen. He faced American Robby Ginepri who has been trying to make a comeback. It has been a long journey for the aging player (another of those over thirty). An off the court arm injury has cost him the better part of three years of competition. Of late, he has tried to up his game by participating in Challenger events. But luck has not been on his side, and it couldn’t have been a worse omen for his chances in Paris when he got word of the draw. He faced Rafael Nadal in the first match after receiving a wild card entry. Seeing him across the net must have shaken Ginepri’s resolve to the core. (His wild card came about when he won the USTA Pro Circuit Wild Card Challenge. He gained entry via the Player Development division of the USTA after chalking up the most points at three major ATP Challenger tour events that were held in Sarasota, Savannah and Tallahassee.)

As expected Nadal played his usual brand of wait and then hurry-up tennis. He often has been accused of violating the time constraints allowed between points. He has so many rituals that it is impossible to list them all, but anyone who has watched him in competition can name at least a few. He pulls at his underwear; he makes certain his hair is properly constrained by his bandana, (It has been rumored that he takes more than forty-five minutes to install the band, so it’s just right); he makes absolutely sure that his water bottles have the proper placement in front of his chair; and this year, he has a new set of moves. He touches his shirt on each shoulder, his headband, his hair, his nose, and then the front of his shorts. It is almost comedic to see him make those moves, but many opponents are annoyed. His playing style is particular to the Spaniard, but now his brand of tennis has been emulated by a plethora of young players. He has won more titles at Roland Garros than any other individual in the nearly ninety-year history of the tournament. His game, replete with rituals and exciting snapping shots to anywhere on court has served him well. He is looking to win a ninth title here, which will have him in the record books for many years to come, and he isn’t even 28 yet.

Unless one has been out of touch with the tennis world, Nadal’s meteoric rise began when he became a professional at the age of 15. His demeanor then was one of genuine shyness and an appealing “new kid in class” hesitation. He is still shy, but after twelve years on the circuit, there seems to be, not an internal comfortableness, but an experience based confidence that bolsters his demeanor at every bob and weave of his on-court presence.

Ginepri bowed to the Spaniard, 6-0, 6-3, 6-0, and must believe that he should head back to the drawing board, (perhaps an Ouija board might work just as well) for his next foray into the pro circuit. Nadal spoke of his hopes for the tournament, saying, “Important thing is go on court, try your best every day, and try to improve a little bit in every practice day and every match day, and that’s what they did a lot of times during this tournament. That’s why I had that success, and I gonna try to do it this year.” It seems as if that is sound advice for a player at any level, no?

There were other matches and other winners and losers. The shortened day, that began at noon, rather than the usual 11:00 a.m. was made even more brief for many others when a fair amount of evening matches were cancelled completely. It was a sure thing that a few other players were wishing they had been included in those cancellations. Australian Open champ Stanislas Wawrinka, (the other guy from Switzerland) suffered an upsetting loss when he was trounced by another of the oldsters – a thirty-year-old Spaniard, named Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 6-0. After the match, Wawrinka said, “It’s a tough loss, for sure. But it’s like that. Sometimes you need to have some tough ones to see exactly where you want to go and how you’re gonna do it.”

Novak Djokovic’s name has been thrown into the discussion of likely Roland Garros winners this year. He had a great start when he defeated Joao Sousa of Portugal, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4. After the match, questions about Djokovic’s gluten free diet were more prevalent than those regarding the match. He finished up his interview with, “I pray for the rain to stop.” And, most folks would agree that that about sums it up.

There will be tennis a-plenty over the next two weeks; let’s hope that the rain comes around only during the darkness to moisten the flowers that surround one of the most beautiful tournaments in the world!

Topics: Cheryl Jones, France, French Open, Novak Djokovic, Paris, Rafael Nadal, Roland Garros, Tennis, Tennis News

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10sBalls_com says:

May 26, 2014 at 4:56 pm

LIQUID SUNSHINE NADAL’S DAY AT THE FRENCH OPEN @ROLAND GARROS IN PARIS BY CHERYL JONES – http://t.co/YmP8TspxNN @RafaelNadal @rolandgarros