by Pete Bodo Somehow, we all knew, or hoped, that sooner or later it would come down to this—sooner being the Madrid Masters, later the Italian or French Open. We could have predicted it when Novak Djokovic tagged Rafael Nadal in the final at Indian Wells, we became convinced when,

A few minutes ago, I started to write a comment in response to some of the observations made about this blog in the Hewitt post below and elsewhere. The subject gets into the kind of writing I’m doing now, as opposed to when I was writing profiles and long features

NEW YORK—The success of Chinese women in recent years often raised the question: What about the Chinese men? How come the ATP tour doesn’t have three, four, or five Chinese players who regularly appear in the main draw at the majors? The topic is a little too broad to broach

[Ed. Note: Peter Bodo is on vacation until March 5th. In his absence, we are proud to present TennisWorld's Greatest Hits. We hope you'll find these entries as relevant today as when they were originally posted. --S.] DATE: 10/18/2005 A few minutes ago, I started to write a comment in

NEW YORK—In what might someday be remembered by those who witnessed it as “The Game,” the two warriors in short pants stood in the late afternoon sunshine as wave after wave of adulatory noise cascaded over them in Arthur Ashe Stadium. They were blanketed in sound as dense and rich

We’re about to embark on a month-long celebration of tennis on red clay, so what better time to flex the curmudgeon muscle than now, before all the whoopin’ and hollerin’ begins? We all know that at its best, tennis on terre battue is a delight to watch, even though it

By Pete Bodo Not like anybody's counting or anything, but Rafael Nadal hasn't won an individual title in 11 tournaments. Okay, I guess I'm counting. Rafa's last triumph was at Roland Garros last June. Since then, his main rivals, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, have each collected a fistful of

With the ATP Finals just over six weeks away, the race to see who will make up the field of eight at the year-end championships is heating up. Already, four spots have been clinched by 2019’s Grand Slam champions Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic; Wimbledon finalist Roger Federer; and US

The Davis Cup pre-draw press conference transcripts contained no bombshell revelations or coded messages that are apt to change our basic feelings about this tie, although there were some moments of warmth and mirth thanks to the fraternal make-up of the U.S. squad. At one point, James Blake, responding to

Pic by Pete Bodo In years to come, pundits and students of the game will be justified in asking, as they look back on 2011, "Was this the greatest year, ever?" A few weeks ago, that question would automatically would have been taken to mean, Did Novak Djokovic have the

Mornin', everyone. This is a Your Call thread so feel free to range widely in your conversation, although tennis, and commentary on this post, the events of the day should take priority. I take the pain to note this because while the Your Call and Crisis Center formats are popular

This is going to be very Inside Tennis (Business Division), but it seems to me that Lever 2000 coming on board as an umbrella sponsor for the U.S. Open Series is a significant development. It’s a sign of the times, a testament to the intrinsic appeal of the “series” concept,

It was a very cold, damp night in New York yesterday, so what could be more fun than going to hang out with a bunch of jocks to play a high-octane game of tennis and general-sports trivia? The natural venue for this kind of thing is a sports bar awash

Nick Kyrgios is one of the most exciting young players to break out of the ATP pack in a long time. Nick Kyrgios is also the first exciting new player to call a timeout and withdraw from tour play just when his momentum has him poised to break through to

• Picby Pete Bodo* Roger Federer has his work cut out tomorrow, no doubt about it. Both he and his semifinal opponent Novak Djokovic dodged large-caliber bullets in the quarterfinals, and neither of them has played with overpowering confidence and focus during this second week of the French Open. And

We may be in the process of something special, something we get to see in tennis once or twice in a generation—if we’re that lucky. We may be witnessing the emergence of one of “the Chosen,” that select group of players who are not just destined to eclipse their peers,

by Pete Bodo Almost two years ago, I was working on a story with Andy Murray and his coach at the time, Brad Gilbert. Over lunch in Bradenton, Fla., Gilbert told me he felt tennis players were underpaid. This is not the kind of thing people like to hear about

Question: What’s the toughest assignment you can give a professional tennis player from the United Kingdom? You might be right if you rolled your eyes and muttered, “winning Wimbledon.” On the other hand, champions including Pete Sampras have said that the only thing more difficult than winning a major is

by Pete Bodo Okay, I am not going to speculate on Roger Federer and the implications of his pending fatherhood, honest. We have Viktor Hanescu going up against Jeremy Chardy and Virginia Razzano butting heads with Kaia Kanepi today at Indian Wells, right? And how 'bout that Massu/Schwank throwdown?

By TW Contributing Editor, Ed McGrogan (Hey everyone - sorry for publishing this so late, but this Monday 'Night' Post will be added as the evening progresses. Just the core this week though - last week's/this week's tournaments, an "if..." question, and of course, the McGrogan's Heroes selections. Thanks -