Fernando Verdasco would'nt lie down against Davydenko 'the machine' (as he was now being referred to in the media). Personally I had my eye on a more powerful machine in Federer, but time would tell. Nando took Davydenko to 5 sets, obviously spurred on by our mild mannered cheering, but couldn't finish it off. Carlos our Spanish friend was dissapointed, but there was still one big Spaniard left in the draw: Rapha!
Much like her sister Venus, Serena took care of the last of the Aussie girls. Sam Stosur was blown away by Serenas power and serve. Another lift ride with Oracine, but the sisters were not pleasing the Aussies so far, so I wasnt feeling chatty :-S.
It was Monday night, and the BIG Federer V Lleyton showdown was a sell out at Rod Laver. I had to miss most of the match to return to the station for the show, but I left early, as I knew this would be my last chance to see Hewi this Open. I had put myself on the 'Lleyton waiting list' to get into the match, as it was high priority and popular. I arrived when it was almost over, and thankfully our desk girl let me go up to watch the last two games! It was enough time to tell that that Hewi had done everything he could to take down the man. Apparently our little dude had put up a good fight the whole game, but he was no match for the perfect, clinical Roger, who was on a mission.
It was my last chance to ask Lleyts a question, but this was a losing match. I could feel his pain and dissapointment, and decided to leave him be so he could exit quickly. Will I get it together in time for the king of Tennis?..I will get one more chance with my last Roger day approaching, 2 from now. To ask Roger a question? Or to not ask Roger a quesiton? That is the question!
To finish the night Zvonereva and Azarenka took to the court in battle of the annoying names. After a great performance by Zvonereva, she crumbled and is steamrolled by Azarenka. Little does Victoria know, that she has Serena in the next round. It is even more ironic, after Azarenka takes on the foot fault judge during the match! The judge climbed the umpires chair and reports Azarenka swearing. She is awarded a code violation and kindly reminds the foot fault judge to do what he's supposed to do, pointing down to her feet.
Tsonga wins the award for longest set of the Tournament over Almagro with a massive 5th set. And yes he is still furiously pointing at himself when he wins. Just in case you werent paying attention, and you could'nt tell who won ;-). So all in all, it was a big day for pointers.
Day 9
This was our first taste of serious entry problems of the Tournament. Nadal was on court and so the waiting list was well into its 80's. On top of that, half the media were from Spain, and werent about to give up their prime time seats till the games end. We were on the Murray/nadal waiting list. Sitting underneath Rod Laver Arena, we felt like imigrants waiting for the call to get onto the boat. It was becoming more and more like Schindlers list as the minutes grew.. would we make it?!..Would I see more than 2 games this time?..No!..It's a good thing the Australia day fireworks arrived to keep us company. After we finally hear our names called, and celebrating like it's X'mas, I see two games with someones head covering most of the court. With that, the entertaining Rapha had retired, and he had heard his last VAMOS!..The knee was gone, and we had no idea how long he would be out of the game. And as Rapha proteseted: it had only been half an hour since retiring, so neither did he!
*Hey-ohh do ya like it like that!*:
Everyone was excited for the Roddick Cilic match. Marin looked down and out as usual, but the big Croat was just following the game plan. Play dead in the 4th set, lul them into a false sense of security, then blow them away in the 5th! I'd seen it a couple of times this tournament. He did it to Del Potro in the previous game to knock out the seed. I was onto Marins tactics!...Again, he looked finished against the A-Rod in the 4th set. And my media friends were telling me I was Loco!..'he's finished'...I assured them it was all part of the plan. And it was'nt long before Cilic had won, and I announced I was accepting appologies for the rest of the evening.
The A-Rod insisted that he had caught up to Cilic, after losing the 1st 2 sets. He seemed quite proud, but then it looked like reality hit him and he realised, he did'nt actually win!..
The night finished with doubles, and the Bryans nearly got rolled in 3 sets, but pulled it together in the end for the win. It was a brave effort by Butorac and Ram, but we really wanted to see the Bryans trademark celebration!
Day 10
I thought it would be my last day in heaven, but I was granted a day pass for Thursday, so I would see one more day of Tennis. I didn't realise though, day 10 was about to be the best day of he Tournament! It started out as a normal Tennis day. Serena Williams was on court against an equally as abrassive Azarenka, in battle of the angry ants. The Queen ant wasn't about to get knocked out by the apprentice. Serena out-grunted an equally loud and offensive on court squealer. Hennin had knocked out the giant killer Petrova and was looking in stunning form, to eventually run into Princess Serena. The only thing standing in her way were the two Chinese girls: Jeng jie and Li Na.
I decided it was time to face Serena in my first press conference. I knew this would be my last chance to ask Rog Fed a question, so I thought I would warm up with the toughest task around. The room was quite empty, nobody packs it out like Rog. I wanted to ask Serena: after threatening a lines woman at the US Open, was she getting any support from the crowd? But the old Pro Clive wisely advised wording it different. Instead I went with: 'how are you finding the support from the crowd this year?' She paused, cautious, I think she was onto me...'Um yeah, It's good every year..I can hear a couple of people calling stuff out from the back, so thats good'...hrmmm yeah, the 'BACK' Serena, thats as good as it gets now..ooops.
Meanwhile the man was on centre court vs the machine (Davydenko). The Aussie crowd were on his badwagon and we had good laugh when the odd person would yell out 'Davydenko, you beauty!'...Jesalenko would've been proud. After losing the first set convincingly, everyone was shocked. But after a week of watching Roger, I was sure he could recover. The game almost went to 5 sets after Roger missed a match point, followed by an extremely long game. But in the end R-Fed took it in 4 sets.
This was it, my last chance to ask the greatest ever tennis player a question. The room was packed as usual, and you practically had to cut the great man off to get a question in. It was time to step out of my comfort zone and dive in. 'Roger'...see you have to say his name 1st out of respect, which is possibly why I didnt use Serena's when talking to her. I was trying to be cool but I could feel my heart about to beat out of my chest. And I hoped he would'nt notice how red my face was!..'Roger. Now that the defending champion is out, are you feeling a little bit less pressure?'..He looks confused, eek...'Who's the defending Champion?'...I froze on the inside. I was sure it was Rapha, but this is Roger Federer, so he made me second guess myself. If Roger doesnt know, what chance have I got! I choked and tried to say Rapha, but was almost too scared to spit it out. Some others called out the answer so I confirmed trying to sound confident. Maybe the great man was testing me cause he didnt like my question? He replied 'No..only at the French...it was a relief Rapha was out cause I'd never won it...but I've won the Aussie open before...and I knew I had my hands full watching Davydenko'....Again I noddoed as If I was listening, but the freak out inside me meant I didnt hear a word, and therefore, had no follow up questions. But who cares. The whole interview was typed up for the Worlds media to see, and I was so proud I was ready to frame it. I did it, I had arrived. And the old pro Clive nodded in approval of my question. Again I thought the highlight of my day had passed.
I was also granted a free spot to go up and watch Tsonga V Djokovich. I thought I'd wander into Davydenkos Press conference (PC) first. What I stumbled upon, was the best comedy acts of the Tournament! The Russian cracked us all up with his deadpan act, and had us in hysterics. 'Maybe Roger was lucky today' he quipped. Someone then asked 'so what was going thorugh your mind when you were losing all those games?'....'...Im pissed off..what else?..Pissed off on my serve...it's like, everything was shit'. Man this night just keeps getting better.
Due to lack of interest in the Djokovic/Tsonga match, I not only get to watch, but in a great seat! I walk down the steps to my prime seat, when a lady from another network notices all my Geelong gear that I have on. She tells me shes a Cat fan so im in good company. 'Did you know Gary Abletts here?' she said. 'WHHHHHHAATTTTTTTTT?? R U SERIOUS!' Could this night get any better!? Yes it can! Hrrm, how can we corner hin and get a picture. Gary disapeered for an hour and chances started to look slim. Was he coming back? We conceded and walked down to grab a photo with A-Mack who was sitting with Gary.
As we head back up to our seats, I do a double take as I block the isle for none other than Junior Himself! My face turned to 'shocked fan mode', as I try to act cool again, knowing full well I look like a stunned mullet. 'Hey mate how u going?' My nervously hard tap to his left shoulder could have damaged his valuable arms. Right this is it, time for the ambush. Gary is in the front row. He can't possibly escape! My friend has her shot, and then Gary goes to sit. *Ru serious man? Im dressed head to toe in Cats gear, and you think I don't want one?*..Few, Gaz complys after I ask nicely.
This night has peaked right?, surely? Two questions to 2 of the best ever tennis players and a photo with Gaz. Is it time to take a breath and reflect?..Nope. Only about a second after I sit down, to come back to earth, my media pal turns to me "Oh by the way, Lilly Allen is two rows back'..'What!' Am I that dopey that she was sitting there for an hour and I didn't notice?. Not really, kind of, but she does look like the girl nect door, so shes easy to miss.
My French friend with the camera asks Lilly for a photo. I step on about 10 ice creams to get passed Lilly for the shot. I appologie and Lilly is like 'its alright'. The french girl asks her who she supports.:'Novak' is the sure reply. Our French friend is not satisfied with Tsonga on court. I thank Lilly and slink off to my seat. Lilly moves further into the row to avoid the cameras. With bad lighting the French girl wants another snap, but Lillys manager wont have any of it. Most people don't even seem to notice her. Michael grabs her on the way out, up the isle at the end of the match. We waited till the end of the 3rd and 4th set to make our move and then pounced in case she left. We learnt our lesson with Gary. We didn't need anything more from the day, even though we kept saying this. Joe took the game in a big 5 setter so we are happy, and so is our French firend 'Alay!'. Lilly looks pissed off and lets out a few choice words. Now lets see what the PC's will hold.
Novak claims he lost the match cause he had food poisoning and had thrown up in the 3rd set. Michael asks JO Tsonga in the PC: 'Novak talked about having some problems during the match, when did you 1st notice he was having some problems?'...'Oh, bout 5 years ago'..The room cracked up. It wasn't quite Davadenko, but it was a killer line to end a killer day.
I walked to the transport office again to hitch a ride with the Kia's and suddenly, there was Joe in the carpark, limping with 2 ice packs on his knees. I congratulated him and thought, what the hell. Its been nearly two weeks, and I still didn't have a photo with a famous tennis player. He's right next to me, ill ask for a photo no matter what the risk. And the fact that my camera is so crap you can barely see who we are in the photo. It's not hurting anyone. 'Aley, Aley, Aley!' Another new word to my vocab. Who knows how to spell it. Day 10 was sposed to be my last and it would have been a great way to go out. Theres no way tomorrow could top today, but I was coming in anyway. This place is KING!
Day 11
I arrived late and caught the end of Hennin crushing the last of the Chinese contingency. 1st order of business was to get my awesome Lilly Allen pic onto facebook, and brag about it to my media freinds. Those from Sydney, like Yvette, had no idea who Gaz Ablett was. But I sure do!
I wasn't allowed into the big Murray v Cilic game, so I wandered into Serenas PC. For someone who had just won into the finals, she seemed as mad as a cut snake. So business as usual. 'Is there any significance to the earing syou and Venus wear?' said the quiet Asian girl..."I only wear the earings in the singles'....*NEXT!*, the tennis Nazi might have well have said. After her incident with the foot fault judge earlier in the year, Serena didn't seem to be feeling Oriental.
Before I could blink or walk to Magaret Court court, the Williams sisters had won the doubles, and I retired to Grand Slam oval. I finally saw a bit of the touristy stuff I had missed in the Luxuary of Rod Laver Arena. With cold wind approaching, I retired to the cafe to watch the match on TV. I had worked our reception lady overtime, but they couldn't get me into the game.
The angry marsupial in action:
I sat in on Murrays press conference and there was an exciting feeling as the first Brit in about '150, years (as Rog would say), was going for the title. I'd seen enough of Roger to know better, but hoped for a good match. I said goodbye to my remaining media friends, those leaving and those who were lucky enough to stay. It had been such an altered sense of reality, but a good one. How could I return to normal life?
I was invited onto breakfast radio to do a tennis report with Andy and adrian. I declared that Rog would win the mens and that at least it would not be a boring all Williams final this year. I was hoping for Hennin, who had played some tough matches to get there.... And so I could say Aley! I was also going for Murray the Scott, but I knew it would likely be Serena and Rog! Rog to make more glamorous history. I met an old American in the media had been to about 37 US opens and 27 Wimbledons, so I had a way to go yet on 1!
I tried no to get emotional, but saying goodbye to my media family, and walking one more time down the hall so many famous players had, was hard. Pictures on the wall of past Champions and the wall of autographs where players had signed and written messeges was amazing. My last ride in the Kias with all the other drivers on board, was funny. A more superior Kia pulled up next to us and they all swooned 'oh is that the upgrade model?, leather seats ooh yeah, its the Sorento.. no this one is crap, Roger Federer wouldnt get in this one were in, he has his own' . I was not quite an expert, but I was learning. The next day I woke up with serious Melbourne park withdrawl, but I saw it coming.
Sat and Sun saw two amazing finals, but was relegated to TV like most. Hennin and Serena went to 3 sets. Even when she looks down in the slams, Serena always arcs up for the finals. Rog and Murray only went to 3 but had Murray taken the third set, who knows what might have been. It was a tight struggle. Roger march their silverware upstairs to the TV interviews. I even recognised some staff and security on TV after the matches.
I went out that night and saw a guy dressed as Bjorn Borg, not because he had been to the tennis, but because he just liked the attention, as his freind said. A guy on the dance floor had a giant novelty tennis ball. The fever had well and truly caught on with the gays.
I started off with a free bag of Eminems and a dream. It almost didnt matter that I had completely ripped most of the paint off my car, on that stupid tiny MCG car park pole!!!...almost. I finished with the best experience of my life.... And I still cant stop saying: best 10 days of my life!...except for Geelongs 2 Premys of course ;-)
Yes, we get it you're all with Tiger!!!!:
All that n more on the show that goes through more balls than Roger Federer.
Peace out*.
*Disclaimer: The Sports Lounge may contain 2/3 of your daily fibre intake. No this does not mean we will give you the shits. Warning this last paragraph may not be accurate. Conditions apply and portions of this blog have been edited for your discomfort. Spoken by Tan for the Sports Lounge Party Melbourne (say that last sentance really fast).All that n more on the show that goes through more balls than Roger Federer.
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