By Chris Oddo | Friday February 12, 2016
Here’s what’s Happening around the tennis world on Friday, February 12:
Video: 18-year-old Alexander Zverev talks about his big win over Gilles Simon in Rotterdam on Thursday.
Fatherhood Good for Murray’s Game? Will fatherhood help or hinder Andy Murray’s quest for more Grand Slam hardware? Becoming a father certainly hasn’t done much damage to Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer, so why should it be any different for Murray. Simon Briggs of the Telegraph debates.
Here’s a snippet:
It is an interesting detail that only five men in the top 20 are fathers (as far as we know), and four of those occupy the top four places: Djokovic, Murray, Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka. (The odd man out is France’s Gilles Simon at No. 15.). Could we see this as further evidence of a positive correlation between procreation and performance?
Brad Gilbert’s Latest Nickname: We’re happy to report that Brad Gilbert has christened 18-year-old phenom Taylor Fritz as “Fritz Carlton.” Love that name. In other news, Fritz is bidding to become the youngest American to reach an ATP semifinal in 27 years today in Memphis.
Serena the philanthropist: Serena Williams was down in Jamaica building a school last week.
Wozniacki Jobbed by Bad Call: Caroline Wozniacki shouldn’t have lost this point. And instant replay should be available in cases such as this so that a chair umpire doesn’t have to rely purely on memory to solve such issues.
Tweet of the Day (Stay cool, Birdman):
Nadal Returns with a win in Buenos Aires: Nadal was a bit rusty, had a stomach issue early, but he was tough and focused from the start in his 6-4, 6-4 victory over Juan Monaco. Details, photos and more from Nadal News here.
Hingis and Mirza’s Streak Hits 37: Team #SanTina is into the quarters in St. Petersburg and they’ll look to make it a clean 40 before the weekend is over. What’s made Hingis and Mirza’s streak truly remarkable is the fact that they’re doing this in an era of match tiebreaks, where doubles results can be a lot more random. More on their streak at WTATennis.com.
It’s Very Fashionable to Call for the End of Federer’s Career Right Now: With Federer rehabbing from Meniscus surgery, many writers are calling for the end of Federer’s career. This piece from Chris Chase at Fox Sports wonders if the Rio Games will be Federer’s last competition. We don’t think so. What say you?
Kyrgios and Tomljanovic Training Together The Daily Mail is all over Nick and Ajla as they train in Australia. And love the Harlequinesque writing in this piece:
It has been two weeks since they confirmed their relationship but Nick Kyrgios and Alja Tomljanovic have been unable to leave each other's sides. The tennis players Nick, 20, and Ajla, 22, were spotted sipping on juice beverages after a vigorous training session on Tuesday. Beaming broadly, the couple put on an affectionate display as they made their way out of the training facility.
18-year-old Kasatkina in the St. Petersburg Semis : Taylor Fritz in Memphis. Alexander Zverev in Rotterdam. Belinda Bencic and Daria Kasatkina in St. Petersburg. Man, it has been a good week for 18-year-olds in tennis.
Delpo’s Return Set for Tuesday Fingers crossed that Juan Martin del Potro becomes the feel good story of 2016. Set your calendars—he’ll make his first appearance on Tuesday in Delray Beach.
Have a great day!