Rafael Nadal Gets Secondary Treatment On Court Suzanne Lenglen Court

There wasn't any shocking moment in the first round of the French Open when it opened on Sunday, except for one: world number one and reigning champion Rafael Nadal has to kick off his campaign in the secondary Suzanne Lenglen court instead of the Philippe Chatrier court. Nobody saw that coming. To put it simply, it is easier to predict the favoured Wimbledon 2014 odds than the French Open organiser's snub.

The organisers decision to host Novak Djokovic versus Joao Sousa and Stanislas Wawrinka versus Guillermo Garcia-Lopez instead of the eight time champion versus Robby Ginepri, has prompted a furious reaction from fans on social media and amongst tennis players.

"That's really bizarre," American John Isner, ATP world ranking number 11 told AFP.

"I mean, how many times does the guy have to win the tournament to be able to have his first match on Chatrier?"

“It doesn’t go week by week. I don’t know who’s talking all the time, but Rafa is the favourite, and then Novak, and then the rest, you know. It’s very clear,” Roger Federer insisted.

Personally, the organiser made a huge mistake by making such a move. Not that it's disrespectful to Nadal but also to the fans who have bought tickets to watch him play on Philippe Chatrier. But I'm quite sure that if Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu made it to the second round to play against Nadal, they will definitely get to play on that main court.

(Image via FFT)

Simon, Ginepri, Isner go barefoot & shirtless for Muay Thai fun

I've been neglecting other tournaments lately to provide exclusive coverage on the Malaysian Open.

So here's a little bit of updates regarding the PTT Thailand Open.

Gilles Simon, Robby Ginepri and John Isner attended a promotional/traditional event for the tournament yesterday.

They did a Muay Thai (Thai kickboxing) demonstration guided by Thai Olympian Somjit Jongjorhor.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga did the same thing last year.

I hope the other guys take good care of Simon. He and his 'chicken legs' look too fragile for this sport :P

Here are more pictures at the event.

By the way, if you haven't know yet, Sam Querrey had a freak accident earlier this week while practicing for the Thailand Open.

Querrey was said to have sat on a glass table after practice on Monday and fell through, cutting his right forearm. The injury required immediate emergency surgery.

(Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)

Rendy Lu Yen-hsun serves up some love & chicken instead of pork

It's been awhile since I blog about Rendy Lu Yen-Hsun.

All_is_onUSA from menstennisforums.com scanned a recipe card that he got at the Indianapolis Tennis Championships recently.

These recipe cards were supposed to be printed in book form and published under the title "Serving Up The Love".

Now, in the end, the publisher only printed 3 cards - featuring Rendy, Robby Ginepri and Devin Britton and their favourite recipes.

So, not only that the recipe book project failed, it seems like the publisher not serious in getting their recipe correct too.

Rendy was supposed to share his favourite "Sweet and Sour Pork" recipe but he ended up serving chicken!


(Images by All_is_onUSA via menstennisforums.com)

Roger Federer's the biggest gainer but here are the weekend winners...

A slightly late update but here's the list of the weekend winners.

It's a pity that German Open Hamburg, an ATP 500 event, has lost its crowd and sponsors due to the non-participation of top tennis players and well, bad timing.

But it's certainly not bad timing for Nikolay Davydenko who won his first title of the year, beating Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-2 in the German Open final.

The second-seeded Davydenko captured the 15th title of his career and became the first Russian to win the clay-court tournament.

Mathieu, the 13th-seeded Frenchman, was playing his first final of the year.

In Indianapolis, Robby Ginepri, ranked no. 95 in the ATP rankings, won his third career singles title on Sunday by upsetting no. 3 seed and fellow American Sam Querrey, 6-2, 6-4, in the final of the Indianapolis Tennis Championships.

Dinara Safina thinks she needs more confident boost.

She gets what she wants by winning her 12th WTA tournament on Sunday, rallying to beat defending champion Sara Errani 6-7 (5), 6-1, 7-5 at the Slovenia Open.

Earlier, Andrea Petkovic bagged her first WTA Tour title, beating Ioana Raluca Olaru 6-2, 6-3 at the Nuernberger Gastein Ladies in Austria.

(Via AP, Images via Yahoo! Sports)

Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic advances at Madrid Masters; Nikolay Davydenko stumbles

I'm not sure if it's only me. I thought Roger Federer look pale. Hope he's not sick or experiencing fatigue still.

Last night, Federer returned from a 5-week break to beat Radek Stepanek 6-3, 7-6 (6) in the second round of the Madrid Masters.

“Happy to be back on tour,” Federer said.

“Happy with this first round. it was always going to be tough against Radek and he played a great second set.”

Federer, playing his first ATP event since winning the U.S. Open last month, will face Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

“I’m excited. He’s had a rocky season with injuries this year, so I feel for the guy,” Federer said of his French opponent.

“He’s probably one of the guys you wanna be playing out there.”

In an earlier match, Novak Djokovic advanced after Victor Hanescu retired because of an apparent groin injury while trailing 6-7 (8), 7-6 (8), 3-1.

“It’s a big relief to win … this is a big boost up for upcoming matches,” Djokovic said.

“He used his biggest weapon which was his serve. I couldn’t find any rhythm in return, so he used that wisely.”

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal pulled out of doubles with Carlos Moya on Tuesday because of a slight upper leg injury.

“Every match is important, including doubles, but I’ve got priorities,” said Nadal, who will face Richard Gasquet of France in singles tonight.

“You can’t win everything.”

American qualifier Robby Ginepri had the biggest upset of the day, beating fifth-ranked Nikolay Davydenko 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Andy Roddick had little trouble getting past Spain’s Tommy Robredo, 6-3, 6-4.

The 8th-ranked American’s booming serve was never seriously challenged by Robredo and Roddick used breaks in each of the sets to pace out his win.

David Nalbandian won his sixth straight match by defeating Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-1.

Updates:
6th seed Ferrer suffered a shock defeat to fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in straight sets, recording a 6-4 7-6 triumph.

There will be an all-Argentinean clash in the next round when Nalbandian will meet his Davis Cup team-mate Juan Martin del Potro, who was 6-4 6-2 ahead when his Finnish opponent, Jarrko Nieminen, retired.

(Via AP, Images via Yahoo! Sport)

All-Star Tennis Smash: The Bryan twins following the lead of the altruistic Andre Agassi

Andre Agassi's philanthropic ways inspire Bob and Mike Bryan to establish their own foundation.

The 30-year-old twins held their inaugural charity event for their Bryan Brothers' Foundation on Saturday at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks and got the man himself to headline.

Agassi made a rare appearance to help raise money for the foundation — in the All-Star Tennis Smash — which benefits at-risk kids in Ventura County — and was joined by American tennis stars James Blake, Robby Ginepri, Justin Gimelstob, Paul Goldstein and Lindsay Davenport.

"I have been privileged to lead a privileged life with this sport and my choice to give back and do what I decided to do was something I felt deeply for a long time," Agassi said.

"For others to be inspired by it is one thing. But the truth is, they are doing the hard hours every day. You can't just wake up and say this is what I want. You have to earn it every day, and these guys are doing it."

The Bryans knew from the moment they began planning their foundation they wanted Agassi to help kick it off.

"He knows we idolize him and still have his posters up in our garage and are the reason we have rackets in our hand," Mike Bryan said.

"Out of the goodness of his heart, he did this for us and really made this event happen. We'll never forget it. We are his slaves for life."

Agassi became the pioneer for charity in men's tennis when he established The Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation and Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy in Las Vegas.

"We know that if we band together and commit to support each other that is the best opportunity to affect change," said Gimelstob, who started the Justin Gimelstob Children's Fund in 1998.

"We have all been very loyal to each other and the Bryans do so much for so many people and are always the first to promote tennis, so for them to ask is a no-brainer. Just tell me where and when to be there."

Last year, Blake established the Thomas Blake Sr. Memorial Research Fund to help support cancer research.

The fund is named in memory of his father, who died of gastric cancer in 2004.

"If you have a voice, you might as well use it for a positive change," Blake said.

"That is the way we have all felt and I have been fortunate enough my parents instilled that in me and it seems like this generation has a great group of parents to lead them and teach them the right way to be a role model."

Ginepri remembers struggling to finance his tennis career while growing up in Georgia.

Once he turned professional, he began working with the Atlanta Youth Foundation for underprivileged kids.

"If you can give a kid a racket and reach out to them and help them pursue their dreams that is what matters," Ginepri said.

"We all realize that and will always be there to help each other's causes."

The giving nature even crosses over to the women's side, although it might not be as apparent, says Davenport.

"You probably don't see it as much because we don't have tons of Americans up there playing," she said.

"Obviously, the Williams sisters and I know Maria (Sharapova) has her own foundation, but there are not as many Americans doing so well at the top like the guys have to help each other out."

The Bryans raised $285,000 in pre-sale tickets alone for their event, and figured to raise much more through an auction.

After seeing the turnout at Sherwood, Bob Bryan knew he could rest easy at his Spanish Hills home.

"At 30 years old, it's not all about tennis," he said.

"It is about what helps you sleep at night and doing stuff like this makes you feel good because you know how many lives it will impact."

Updates:
Thanks to Adam for this extra piece of info and photos.

Later that evening, at a Gala Dinner, the brothers feted Agassi for his charitable endeavors in front of a star-studded audience of players and celebrities, including Maria Sharapova and Kaley Cuoco.

The evening began with an incredible auction featuring autographed tennis racquets, an evening with Bob and Mike Bryan, and a day with Maria Sharapova, and was capped off by performances from a host of musical guests, including acoustic singer/songwriters Evan and Jaron and a surprise performance by Columbia Records recording artist Brandi Carlile.

(Via venturacountystar.com, Image via zimbio.com)