Another timewasting thread!

[carrieg4]

As there is no tennis currently being played it is a bit on here. I have therefore decided to write an entirely pointless but tennis related article .

What are your earliest tennis memories? Which rivalries did you grow up watching and what was it that drew you to tennis and kept you watching?

Personally, my earliest clear tennis-watching memories are the Becker / Edberg years. Mainly this was just Wimbledon as we are talking pre internet so the most you could hope for from other tournaments was the teletext live scores. I loved the rivalry and the contrast in personalities between Becker and Edberg and watching Wimbledon provided plenty of opportunities so see the other greats (Borg, McEnroe, Connors etc.) through the numerous rain delays! lIt was also great to watch Navratilova, Evert and Graf among others on the women's side. From then on I was hooked.

So over to you...............

[hawkeye]

carrieg4

I too can remember watching teletext live scores. I only saw my first FO in 2007 (on tv unfortunately not live). We are spoilt now days in some ways although I think the womens game at the moment is not so good. For a while I was bored by mens tennis and thought there were more interesting players and matches in the WTA.

I don't think your article was pointless (well only as pointless as they all are...). Why talk yourself down?

[carrieg4]

Thanks hawkeye. I remember many an hour spent staring at the numbers on a 14" CRT television waiting for them to change - agonising on match point! Now I get annoyed if the live feed isn't high def - very spoiled

[noleisthebest]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

Tennis has always been the world "out there" for me. My first memory was of our family friend sneaking out of the Sunday lunch at HIS house to watch a Borg playing McEnroe. The rest of the party sent me to find him so I did: in the TV room glued to the match.
I remember his booming voice telling me it was Boorrrrrg! I was quite little and that memory etched itself strongly.
Unfortunately, our bliss was soon ruined by his less understanding wife and my parents who "joined" us chattering loudly about some boring stuff.
Ever since then, I've had this extraordinary fascination with a tennis ball, and generally was hugely attracted to tennis: it has always had this unexplainably strong (and ever stronger) pull on me.
Wimbledon was something I could only see on TV and dreamt all my life of going there thinking it would never happen.
That is why it is beyond words to describe how happy I was in there on the 3rd of July, even if it was just for an hour or so.

When I was in my teens, my mum came back from work and brought me a tennis racquet: a wooden Dunlop; she found it on the way to work.
I was beside myself. I really thought I could win Wimbledon. I was 18 and had never hit the ball.

I could easily write a book on all the things tennis brought into my life and how it was weaving itself in and out in all kinds of magical ways.

The story continues

[Manojchandra]

My earliest memories of DC ties between India and Australia in late 1960s. TV was out of question. Newspaper articles describing exploits of R Krishnan, Newcombe et al are fresh in my memory.

[Mad for Chelsea]

earliest matches I can remember with any clarity are

Edberg beating Chang at the FO the year Kafelnikov won it. 96 I think. Edberg was a joy to watch and I instantly fell in love with his tennis.

Also Graf winnings that epic three hour final against Aranxta Sanchez in that same tournament. She was to repeat the performance at wimbledon a month later. My first tennis love, what a beautiful forehand she had!

[Tenez]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

Tennis has always been the world "out there" for me. My first memory was of our family friend sneaking out of the Sunday lunch at HIS house to watch a Borg playing McEnroe. The rest of the party sent me to find him so I did: in the TV room glued to the match.
I remember his booming voice telling me it was Boorrrrrg! I was quite little and that memory etched itself strongly.
Unfortunately, our bliss was soon ruined by his less understanding wife and my parents who "joined" us chattering loudly about some boring stuff.
Ever since then, I've had this extraordinary fascination with a tennis ball, and generally was hugely attracted to tennis: it has always had this unexplainably strong (and ever stronger) pull on me.

Coud you have imagined that 2 decades later a serbian woman woudl be number 1 and 1 decade later a Serb woudl be number 1 in the world?

I could not.

Strange things happens!

[wow]

My earliest memories of DC ties between India and Australia in late 1960s. TV was out of question. Newspaper articles describing exploits of R Krishnan, Newcombe et al are fresh in my memory.

A very few Indian tennis fans know about R Krishnan Sr and his exploits in tennis. He was competing with the top during his best days.
I too started watching when Becker/Edeberg rivalary stared around 85-86 Wimbledon. Wimby was the most popular tournament then as well. I also remember Steffi's emrgence to tennis scene and her exploits over Navaratilova. I also remember Lendl and that time he used to play for Czechoslovakia

I started watching it quite early so will not be able to weave a story like NITB but I liked Becker initially then Federer mainly. I started watching tennis again because of Fed. TMF rules..

[wow]

[quote="Tenez"]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

(]

Coud you have imagined that 2 decades later a serbian woman woudl be number 1 and 1 decade later a Serb woudl be number 1 in the world?

I could not.

Strange things happens!

Tenez, tennis always have no. 1s from different countries other than a lot of them coming from America. Lendl was from Czech, Nadal from Spain, Safin from Russia, Moya from Spain, Muster from Austria not sure if Guy Forget was no. 1 too. Rafter, Hewiit from Australia.

[time please]

Remember watching Chrissie Evert playing Martina Navratilova when I was quite young, and Borg and Connors and McEnroe were the first male tennis superstars I remember watching play regularly every year. My father is a complete sports fanatic and so every major sporting event was a 'must' in our house. Chrissie Evert and John McEnroe were the first of my tennis 'allegiances', though I loved to watch most of the matches. I spent the latter years of my teens and early twenties queuing most years for a Wimbledon ground ticket and then generally getting lucky at around 4.30 with either a CC ticket or Court 1 ticket that was being resold after the original occupant of the seat had posted it in the resale box. My sister, brother, his friend and I once spent an idyllic summer evening on C 1 watching McNamara and McNamee playing some other doubles pair (ashamed I can't remember who) - M and M were either No 1 in Doubles then or second to McEnroe and Fleming I think, and they were brilliant and very entertaining.
I suppose my other strong allegiances pre 2003 and Federer, were Steffi Graf who remains my favourite ever female player and then Agassi because he was so very watchable. I loved the Edberg/Becker years but I was never quite so caught up in the drama or the sense of time in history of the game as I was with Graf, or have been with Federer, if that makes sense?

[noleisthebest]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

Tennis has always been the world "out there" for me. My first memory was of our family friend sneaking out of the Sunday lunch at HIS house to watch a Borg playing McEnroe. The rest of the party sent me to find him so I did: in the TV room glued to the match.
I remember his booming voice telling me it was Boorrrrrg! I was quite little and that memory etched itself strongly.
Unfortunately, our bliss was soon ruined by his less understanding wife and my parents who "joined" us chattering loudly about some boring stuff.
Ever since then, I've had this extraordinary fascination with a tennis ball, and generally was hugely attracted to tennis: it has always had this unexplainably strong (and ever stronger) pull on me.

Coud you have imagined that 2 decades later a serbian woman woudl be number 1 and 1 decade later a Serb woudl be number 1 in the world?

I could not.

Strange things happens!

I couldn't but I never thought about it in that way. I have a very deep and personal "relationship" with tennis

[wow]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

Tennis has always been the world "out there" for me. My first memory was of our family friend sneaking out of the Sunday lunch at HIS house to watch a Borg playing McEnroe. The rest of the party sent me to find him so I did: in the TV room glued to the match.
I remember his booming voice telling me it was Boorrrrrg! I was quite little and that memory etched itself strongly.
Unfortunately, our bliss was soon ruined by his less understanding wife and my parents who "joined" us chattering loudly about some boring stuff.
Ever since then, I've had this extraordinary fascination with a tennis ball, and generally was hugely attracted to tennis: it has always had this unexplainably strong (and ever stronger) pull on me.

Coud you have imagined that 2 decades later a serbian woman woudl be number 1 and 1 decade later a Serb woudl be number 1 in the world?

I could not.

Strange things happens!

I couldn't but I never thought about it in that way. I have a very deep and personal "relationship" with tennis

Why not? Didn't Slobodan Živojinović, Miroslav Mecir, Goran Ivanisevic came from Yugoslavia?

[LuvSports!]

for me it was in 2003 henman vs llodra i went to that game funnily enough i remember my parents made an excuse for me to leave school early when i was 11 good match i was just in awe of everything about the wimbledon grounds was one of the best days of my life.
I started to learn to play tennis after that and it is now my favourite sport despite not playing it in3 years because of my injuries but even so that has actually made me a bigger fan!

[Jahu]

[quote="wow"][quote="noleisthebest"][quote="Tenez"]

I have many "early" tennis memories.

Why not? Didn't Slobodan Živojinović, Miroslav Mecir, Goran Ivanisevic came from Yugoslavia?

Mecir is from Slovakia. There is another famous tennis coach and early player from Croatia, Nikola "Niki" Pilic, who was central to 1973 Wimbledon Boycott. Now runs a good academy (Stich, Djoko went through it)

Monica Seles too (Hungarian from Vojvodina, then went USA).

I started watching about late 80's. In '90 watched womans tennis more then mens, Navratilova, Evert, then Graf, Seles, Sabatini etc, a few years it was much more interesting than mens game.

Ah those were the years....

[wow]

Seles represented Yugoslavia.

[Jahu]

That's what the "too" means after Seles.

[wow]

Wiki says she was born in Serbia

[invisiblecoolers]

Sampras - Courier rivalry, even though it was one sided [10-4] most matches were real close, and some how Pete came back from 1 set or 2 set down to win it. I still can't forget those AO and FO, where Pete came back from 2 set deficit to beat Courier, I just hated Pete to core those days coz of those 2 losses he inflicted on Jim.

In Ladies, obviously Seles vs. Graf, was a big fan of Graf and didnt like Seles dominating her on important matches.

The Federer- Nalbandian, Federer= Roddick, Federer-Nadal were the other rivalries that ended one -sided eventhough most of them where technically close matches, and some how my favorite players where always on the receiving end. [Fed -Nalby however wasnt one-sided and Fed recovered to get the scores settled].

Djokovic- Nadal and DelPotro- Nadal [b4 injury when he won 3 matches in a row] and Davydenko- Nadal are the other rivalries that impressed me much.

Murray- vs Djokovic some how never interested me

[Jahu]

Wiki says she was born in Serbia

Mate, there is no need to correct what i said, especially as your're giving a political character to the issue and probably don't understand the issue or are in purpose trying to meddle into politics.

I will explain too: Vojvodina where Seles was born is autonomous region within Serbia, and during 1990's when Serbs got thirsty for making war with everyone in ex-Yu, Vojvodina and Kosovo lost elements of statehood in September 1990.

There is no person born in Vojvodina (apart from serbs) that will say i was born in Serbia.

Let's keep it to the tennis.

[wow]

Wiki says she was born in Serbia

Mate, there is no need to correct what i said, especially as your're giving a political character to the issue and probably don't understand the issue or are in purpose trying to meddle into politics.

I will explain too: Vojvodina where Seles was born is autonomous region within Serbia, and during 1990's when Serbs got thirsty for making war with everyone in ex-Yu, Vojvodina and Kosovo lost elements of statehood in September 1990.

There is no person born in Vojvodina (apart from serbs) that will say i was born in Serbia.

Let's keep it to the tennis.

Jahu u r getting defensive for no reasons. I just stated that what is written in Wiki. Where did I mention politics and legal/illegal boundaries?

[Tenez]

For me watching Borg Vilas FO 1975 and Wimbledon 77 Borg connors.

In 1976/77/78 my older brother is ball boy at RG and comes home every day with bands and racquets of players including Vilas'. At that time Players were almost systematically giving racquets away to ball boys. Our school was a few hundred meters away from RG so at that time nearby schools were invited to elect ball boys.

But my real passion came from my grandparents who were hooked to it from the Musketeers time. My grandmother told me she even saw Roland Garros a few years before his plane crashed in 1918. They followed all the musketeers matches on the radio at the time.


I guess same with you NITB, there is something special about my liking of tennis. Even if my main sport was table tennis young, it was only because in Paris it was not very convenient to play tennis. I was glued to tennis and only played seriously from age 18. I say seriously I mean 2 hours a week. Then I went to a boarding school south of France which had tennis courts and academy but I did not take up tennis there cause it was too late for me. However all my weekends were spent playing with the tennis students.

[laverfan]

But my real passion came from my grandparents who were hooked to it from the Musketeers time. My grandmother told me she even saw Roland Garros a few years before his plane crashed in 1918. They followed all the musketeers matches on the radio at the time.

Cochet, Brugnon, Lacoste, Borotra. You are lucky to have such Tennis lore in your family. Very

[noleisthebest]

For me watching Borg Vilas FO 1975 and Wimbledon 77 Borg connors.

In 1976/77/78 my older brother is ball boy at RG and comes home every day with bands and racquets of players including Vilas'. At that time Players were almost systematically giving racquets away to ball boys. Our school was a few hundred meters away from RG so at that time nearby schools were invited to elect ball boys.

But my real passion came from my grandparents who were hooked to it from the Musketeers time. My grandmother told me she even saw Roland Garros a few years before his plane crashed in 1918. They followed all the musketeers matches on the radio at the time.


I guess same with you NITB, there is something special about my liking of tennis. Even if my main sport was table tennis young, it was only because in Paris it was not very convenient to play tennis. I was glued to tennis and only played seriously from age 18. I say seriously I mean 2 hours a week. Then I went to a boarding school south of France which had tennis courts and academy but I did not take up tennis there cause it was too late for me. However all my weekends were spent playing with the tennis students.

Yes, tennis has so many facets of attraction, but once you're hooked, there's no way out !
I have played a few sports in my time, watched them as well, but tennis stands out in the way that you can enjoy watching and playing to such levels that you can't other sports. I suppose it must be because it's an individual sport and to a beady eye it offers so much more than following the little ball flying over the net.

I have liked and loved different players and with every one there has been different mechanics of attraction.
When I look back on some of the reasons why I liked them, it makes me chuckle with nostalgia.

With this modern internet present availability of tennis tour, twitter, facebook at what have you, a little bit of that magic gloss has certainly gone, but then again, tennis player are no footballers, so despite the sometimes breathtaking closeness of their lives, my tennis bubble is still sunnily bouncing along, even on this misty, foggy morning

[Tenez]

But my real passion came from my grandparents who were hooked to it from the Musketeers time. My grandmother told me she even saw Roland Garros a few years before his plane crashed in 1918. They followed all the musketeers matches on the radio at the time.

Cochet, Brugnon, Lacoste, Borotra. You are lucky to have such Tennis lore in your family. Very

Yep but unfortumnately, it stops there. My 2 boys have had tennis lessons for years and been watching with me on TV the great finals but that was until they found other interests in life and tennis is certainly not high on their list nowadays and never watch it on TV. At best they ask me during Wimbledon who won the FO?

[Tenez]

Indeed NITB. I was such a bandwagon jumper in my youth. Borg, McEnroe, Lendl, even Connors (I hate myself for that), Wilander (I can;t believe it),....then I became more picky. And of course I only liked one at a time, like real fans.

However I feel my interest for watching will go down after Federer...until we have 2 one-in-a century geniuses in 2 decades.

[legendkillar]

My earliest tennis memory was Becker and Edberg at Wimbledon in 1988. Becker had captivated me back in 1986, but this for me is the memory I remember with clarity. Becker taking the first set and just everything about his game made me want to go whack some tennis balls around me garden, despite the grass being so long it would swallow the balls up!

The rivalry between the two had me hooked. I think it is fair to say that it was the first rivalry for me that begun rivalries where the players as characters were so oblivious to each other and so opposite in terms of game play that you didn't need to stoke the fire between the two. The only other rivalry that for me has that aura is the Federer-Nadal rivalry. When I look back at rivalries such as Sampras-Agassi and Henin-Clijsters, there seems a bit of personal edge, but Becker-Edberg and Federer-Nadal have been the rivalries that I have enjoyed the most and the ones that I greatly anticipate to watch.

Watching Graf at her best was a joy and Seles too, despite the grunting. When the Williams crashed the scene, I wasn't sure what to make of them. At first I was like wow, that is unlike I have ever seen and as time wore on and they dominated more and more I found myself actually disliking their play as it was something that I would never associate with the Women's game and when you have watched women over 15 years slug it out and play with etiquette and style and then turn into just the field being blasted off the court, killed it for me. Henin was throwback to those days, but Clijsters was in more the Williams mould and it always pleased me to see Henin come out on top.

I enjoyed watching Sampras dominating the field. Could never tire watching the man serve. Unlike anything I have ever seen. In an era that boasted big servers like Ivanisevic and Philippoussis, Sampras could easily serve them off the court. His action was so lose. From the ball toss to his arm flying forward and crashing the ball up the T was a delight.

[noleisthebest]

My greatest earliest "earthly" loves were poetry and music and then came tennis, it fitted with the other two like a glove!
I don't even want to think about the times when Nole fires his last backhand down the line, the fire will definitely go, but the coals will remain dormant waiting for somebody new that may even never happen.
Once you self-indulge in those fan passions, you don't want to think of the low, especially if the high is/was sky high

This particular era is just phenomenal whatever others want to say and believe, I'm enjoying it in its fullness as it's happening, I don't want to leave anything to regrets.
There will be plenty of time to reflect and sigh.
People are people and tennis circuit will always be fascinating to follow if nothing then for that Shakespearean stage moment, still, I hope money does not kill it in the meantime.

[Jahu]

Is it just me or Tennis in late 80's -90's was much more interesting both mens and womans. Not getting into golden era etc, but it was much more attacking, chip & charge, superb ladies playing attacking tennis, men jumping and throwing themselves to hit balls.

Now a days its all about standing 4 meters from baseline and hoping the other guy will make a mistake.

[Guest]

I preferred women's tennis in the nineties but generally found the S&V fests of mens tennis at W boring. I do agree that it has gone too much in the other direction and a bit of variety would improve the watchability.

I was a big Graf fan. Also Becker and then Sampras in his later years.

[sirfredperry]

Earliest memories were watching Christine Truman on the telly at Wimbledon in the 1950s. She was harder to watch than Henman at his most infuriating.
First actually-there Wimbledon was in 1968 when it was the first Open-era championship. It had rained heavily in the morning but play started only about an hour late. Saw Laver, Lew Hoad, Pancho G, Bob Hewitt. Absolute magic.
Been to Wimbledon most years over the last 25, including seeing pretty much all the Sampras-Federer match in 2001 - the signifance of which was only apparent in retrospect. Also saw Laver beaten by Rog Taylor in 70 when I was probably the only guy there rooting for Rod.
Will always envy my wife, though, who managed tickets for THAT Rog-Rafa final that finished in the gloom in 2008.

[barrystar]

Watching a doubles match at Wimbledon on the TV. Gottfried/Ramirez won an interminable doubles match with endless last set deuces against the Armitraj brothers. My mother kept on saying how awful Ramirez's moustache was and how sorry she felt for Gottfried because he had to play Borg the next day and did not have a chance.

I already enjoyed watching tennis on the TV in those days - only ever Wimbledon and the occasional tournament like Brighton or Queens - but I have no particular memory of any of the 'classic' matches from that time, i.e. Borg v. McEnroe although I must have watched them. It's the Gottfried match I remember first of all. I also played and got into the school team at the time (3rd pair - not very distinguished).

[Positively 4th Street]

Like a few others, my formative tennis memories are the Becker-Edberg Wimbledon finals. I was the lone Becker fan in my family so it was interesting! I owe my interest to my mother, who is an avid fan to this day and adores Wimbledon. She even texts me score updates from all of the tournaments she knows I am unable to watch or have no internet access. I am hoping to take her to Wimbledon next year for her 70th birthday.

After that I was a big Agassi fan, influenced by my brother originally though he subsequently lost interest.

On the women's side Gabriela Sabatini had a profound effect on me as a boy.

[break_in_the_fifth]

90s tennis was a blur for me, I only used to watch wimbledon. I remember Sampras winning a lot but was too young to analyse the game. I also remember wanting Henman to win and when he took a set off of Sampras one year. I stopped for a while after Ivanisevic won in 2001 and then seeing Feds 2005 wimbledon final got me back into it. I was still a 2 week a year fan though until 2008.

[Guest]

My very earliest memory of watching Tennis on TV...

http://estadium.ya.com/daviscup/images/finalphotos/HewiitandMcMillan1964.jpg

The flat capper McMillan, who had a double handed Fore and Back hand !!!

But earlier than that was watching the Devonshire Park Members play when I was about 6. Later I would ball boy at the tournaments and ball boy for a McMillan lookalike member there, (cap and all) for half a crown.

[sirfredperry]

Jubbahay
Well remember Hewitt and McMillan who had a great doubles record. Really annoyed when McMillan actually beat Britain's Buster Mottram at singles at Wimbledon one year. Mind you, I'd first seen Mottram as a sulky, lumpy 14-yr-old and thought he lacked temperament even then.

[Guest]

SFP....Frew must have been an oldie by then, which prob made it even worse for Buster, so not surprised he may have been a little sulky at his loss.

But then again, I lost a squash match to a 53 yr old when I was 21.

He killed me and I nearly died of exhaustion being thrown around the court by a small ball from the racquet of a very clever man.

[laverfan]

First actually-there Wimbledon was in 1968 when it was the first Open-era championship. It had rained heavily in the morning but play started only about an hour late. Saw Laver, Lew Hoad, Pancho G, Bob Hewitt. Absolute magic.

SFP... Thanks for reminding me of such wonderful matches.

1969 Pasarell-Gonzales (Pancho) @W over two days, is what is etched in my memories. The earlier memories are fading fast.

The earliest doubles memory is the handle-bar mustachioed Tiriac (with Nastase) playing against Rosewall/Stolle @W 1970.

Unfortunately could not see the end of the match, or the Court-King final.

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