Monday Net Post

By TW Contributing Editor, Ed McGrogan

Last Week's & This Week's Tournament

Sony Ericsson Open (ATP & WTA - Outdoor Hard - Miami, United States)

• Men's Singles Bracket
• Men's Doubles Bracket
• Women's Singles & Doubles Bracket

• Television Schedule
• Website

By the Letter

T...our awards were given out this past week in Miami for the ATP and the WTA.
E...ngland's BBC has retained the broadcasting rights of Wimbledon until 2014.  The BBC has shown The Championships since 1937, but the current contract was set to expire in 2010.
N...omenclature for WTA Tour tournaments will be changing again, says CEO Larry Scott.
N...o television will be required if you want to watch the finals of upcoming WTA Tour Tier I events - they will be streamed free online.
I...nflamed right knee of Justine Henin's hurt so much that she considered surgery after the Australian Open. The Belgian star made the revelation at her Wednesday press conference.
S...afin is 1-5 so far this year, and he'll try to improve that record in the coming months, beating down repeated talks of retirement.
W...illiams sisters will not be joining Lindsay Davenport in the United States' upcoming Fed Cup tie against Russia.
O...ffered a wild card for his abilities on the court (he was a finalist at Miami in 2000) and off (he remains a popular player with fans), Gustavo Kuerten played in Key Biscayne for the last time, losing to Sebastien Grosjean in the first round, 6-1, 7-5.
R...iding a 54-match losing streak, Pacific University of Forest Grove ended their lengthy skid by getting a much-needed win against Lewis and Clark College. 
L...as Vegas' Tennis Channel Open is in jeopardy of being sold (and skipping town), says South Florida Sun-Sentinel tennis reporter Charles Bricker.
D...own match point, Svetlana Kuznetsova won the all-important point - and then the next ten games - to beat Victoria Azarenka in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open 1-6, 7-5, 6-0.

McGrogan's Heroes

ATP

Kevin Anderson couldn’t have been further off the mainstream tennis radar just a few weeks ago.  The towering 6’7” South African had spent the bulk of his young career battling away in Futures and Challengers tournaments, and he had never before won a match at the ATP Tour level.  But at the beginning of March, Anderson made an unlikely run to the finals of the Tennis Channel Open, before eventually losing to Sam Querrey in a closely contested final.  Under normal circumstances, Anderson would have been named a McGrogan’s Hero for this impressive achievement (Las Vegas was only his third ATP Tour event), but in the same week, Andy Roddick defeated both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on his way to winning Dubai.  It was a tough decision, but I sided with Roddick after he took out both the world’s No. 2 and 3 in straight sets.

This week, Anderson made another splash on tour, this time in a much more prestigious event, the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.  After winning two matches early in the week just to qualify for the main draw, Anderson won a close contest against Agustin Calleri in the first round, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6.  Already, it was a fine week for Anderson, but there was much more to come.  His next opponent was the third-seeded Novak Djokovic, fresh off a convincing victory in Indian Wells.  Pegged by many to have a great shot at pulling off the difficult Indian Wells/Miami double, Djokovic’s first match of the week appeared to be nothing more than a formality.  Instead, Anderson continued his magical March, upsetting Djokovic 7-6, 3-6, 6-4.

The tiny college of Davidson captured the hearts of many sports fans this month with a string of upsets in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.  In the world of tennis, Anderson has played the part of this North Carolinian school in not one, but two different events.  And although Anderson lost in the third round to Igor Andreev (4-6, 7-6, 4-6) his play this week is certainly significant in its own right, even if he didn't reach the final eight like the Cinderella Wildcats.

WTA

Last year at the Sony Ericsson Open, a little-known player from Estonia, Kaia Kanepi, sent the No. 11 seed Patty Schynder home in one of the bigger upsets of the second round.  In their first ever meeting, the veteran Swiss was blitzed in 6-1, 6-4 rout.  This year, their paths crossed once again early on in the same tournament.  Surely, the veteran Schnyder remembered that day, and would be ready to exact revenge. Instea, it was deja vu, as Schnyder was again trounced by Kanepi, this time 6-0, 6-1 (!).

The remarkable score line that Kanepi posted on Sunday is the result of both a strong start to the 2008 season, as well as strong play in Key Biscayne.  After going 20-23 in matches last year, Kanepi came out of the gates quickly in January, winning three matches in qualifying, and then two more in the main draw to reach the quarterfinals of Sydney, before she lost to eventual champion Justine Henin.  Other positive results soon followed, including a quarterfinal in Vina del Mar, and a semifinal in Acapulco.  From a macro perspective, Kanepi has shown versatility on different surfaces, and has kept her play at a high level throughout the young year.

Looking at Miami from a micro perspective, Kanepi is peaking at the right time.  In the opening round, she dropped the opening set to qualifier Petra Kvitova, but won the next two sets each at 7-5.  She then faced Alona Bondarenko, a player primarily known for her doubles abilities, but still ranked No. 21 in singles.  In another close match, Kanepi emerged on top, winning 7-6, 1-6, 6-3.  Then came the Schynder match (after that result, I'm sure Kanepi can't wait until they meet again).  Kaia's next opponent should provide a stiffer challenge, however - it's the defending Miami champion, Serena Williams.

Tennis Theatre

I haven't shown a highlight reel video in a while - mainly because I don't want to overdo them - but this one is in great quality.  I also like that the original commentary is left on these, instead of music playing in the background.

The above video was partially inspired by this rabbit-out-of-the-hat earlier in the week, courtesy of Andy Roddick:

Beyond the Bracket

"Courture"

In 2007, Nike produced a "Heritage" line of clothing that was different than most of their previous tennis wares.  For each Grand Slam tournament, Nike manufactured a hat, jacket, and pair of shorts, all of which were tied together by a madras-like pattern that appeared somewhere on each article of clothing.  A different mix of colors were used for each Slam, in order to distinguish each season of the Heritage line.  In my opinion, they were a pretty nice trio, and many others evidently thought so as well, as I discovered at last year's U.S. Open.  Every time I turned my head, I saw someone wearing these shorts or the matching hat.

The shorts seemed to be the hottest item amongst the three for two reasons.  First, the bright, checkered pattern was quite a deviation from the look of most tennis clothing on the market, and buyers responded to this.  Secondly, the shorts were reversible – one side was madras, and the other side solid, and they featured a emblem that Nike uniquely created for each Grand Slam tournament.  For example, look closely at the solid blue picture here, and you'll see a crest which features the Statue of Liberty, signifying New York as the host city. The shorts had something for everyone from a fashion perspective, and utility as well because they were reversible. They were a winner in my book, and yes, I bought a pair of these at Flushing Meadows as well.

Nearly a year later, it's getting much more difficult to find these shorts from the earlier Heritage lines. Every so often, you'll see a pair pop up on eBay, but because there's still demand, you're going to have to pay top dollar if you want them. I just didn't think it would be this much (these retailed for $40):

Exhibit A
Exhibit B

$150 for shorts?  Expect another Heritage line from Nike this year.

if...

the Tennis Channel Open in Las Vegas doess move (see letter "L" above), where would you move it to and why?