It's impending wedding bells for Andy Murray and Kim Sears, daughter of British tennis leader Nigel Sears. Plus, the Russian Tennis Federation's chieftain who spoke poorly of Serena and Venus Williams is having a go at an appeal. That and more in the Spin's latest installment of the Fourhand series.
LOVE MATCH It's been a fall to remember for Murray, who won three titles en route to qualifying for the ATP World Tour Finals in London (let's not mention what happened there, though, when he played Roger Federer). And now there's this: After nearly a decade of hits together, Murray and Kim Sears are engaged. The two met in 2005 and make a fetching pair. Kudos to them.
AN APPEAL It's easy to harp on Shamil Tarpischev, and the Spin has done so already. But the seriousness of the WTA tour's one-year ban and $25,000 fine levied against him are nothing to joke about. Now the Russian tennis figurehead is appealing his suspension, which remains in place so far despite his confirmed written apology to the House of Williams. Says here he will be denied; the WTA leadership would be made to look weak, and surely Stacey Allaster won't stand for that.
FAKE BOOK Must-follow Ricky Dimon has penned some chortle-inducing fake Facebook comment threads for Tennis Grandstand for some time now, and his latest, catalyzed by Switzerland's Davis Cup win last weekend, is sure to inspire guffaws from even the most cynical of tennis fans. Give this piece a chance. (And for those who relish that one, here's the full lineup of his posts under that rubric. Enjoy.)
SERENA GETS INTIMATE In the wide world of Serena Williams news, she has posed for a lingerie line with an Australian company, Berlei, and certainly looks comfy in her own skin. Which makes sense, as she's no stranger to zoomed-in bikini photos on her own Instagram account. Now an Aussie brand gets to profit from that as well.
BONUS The Australian Open and sponsor Kia are teaming up to bring the world an X-Men-inspired vehicle to be revealed in mid-December. It's said to be aligned with one of four characters—Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, Jennifer Lawrence's Mystique, Halle Berry's Storm, or Michael Fassbender's Magneto—appearing in the superhero franchise's forthcoming film. Rafael Nadal is involved in the reveal just ahead of the holidays. Because, with poker out of the way now, what else has he got to do?
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