Hey Steve! Great article, man, and cool to see my name in it too. ;) Yeah, I really can't believe the end has come to an epic career for Rafael Nadal. You nailed it when you talked about, as amazing and great he was on the court, his humility and also caring for a fellow, injured player, Sascha Zverev, after he went down with a bad injury, really shows how great he was off the court. I'm glad we got to see him play Diego Schwartzman at the 2019 BNP Paribas Open, an event which has been awesome to attend with you in the years we've gone together. It's rare when you see someone who's been consistently great in an athletic endeavor for two whole decades, and in such a physically and mentally demanding sport as tennis. Here's to Nadal, an incredible athlete and human being. It's gonna be Raf not seeing him play! ;)
Great piece, Steve, pulling in things from so many parts of your life (and psyche). Re. Rafa: I think it's a blessing that he had two rivals (Novak and Roger) who were as great as he is. Maybe he would have won 40 majors if they hadn't been around, but the mythology would not be nearly as powerful. We learned to take for granted the utter dominance of those three, for such a long time, that we lose sight of how absurd it is. I think they drove each other to heights none of them would have reached without the others. Again, great piece!
Yes, the big three constantly pushed each other to get better and work on their weaknesses. I don't think any of the 3 would have won 40 majors, as they would likely have not improved to the level they did. Maybe Djokovic might have. I really hope he gets to 25 as I want him to wipe Margaret Court off the court. I had hoped Serena could do it, but alas. It's crazy that the three won 66 major together. That's 16 and a half years of no one else winning. I'm glad Wawrinka and Murray got some scraps, but that's about it. One for Cilic, one for del Potro, and I'm probably forgetting another one. That's it before Fed retired. I see Sinner as pulling away on the men's game now, but Alcaraz should be able to keep up. But no one else is at the level as those two.
I have thoughts on the women's game too, but I'll leave it there. I am glad that I got to see Seles and Graf and a few of the other greats of the 90s. I go to Indian Wells tournament every year and it's like Disneyland for me.
Yes, I think Stan and Andy got 3 each--I always thought it weird that Andy was sometimes grouped with the Big 3 to make the Big 4, but Stan wasn't. Of course, Del Potro ended Roger's only shot at the Slam.
Big Williams sisters fan. I can't imagine the pressure they had to live with every day, and they just powered though it. Most American sports fans are big homers--they reflexively root for Americans against people from other countries. But so many made an exception for the sisters. The hate and venom directed at them by American fans who rooted openly for their Russian and Eastern European opponents just made me ill. Gee, I wonder if racism had anything to do with it.
Didn't know you play tennis. I regret not pursuing it more-it's a great game for maintaing a network of friends and for getting some exercise. Good for you!
This is a bit of a tangent, but your comments about tennis made me think you might like this video from Adam Savage (Mythbusters) talking about his experience playing pool (and how one of the books that he found most helpful for developing his pool game was a tennis book) -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHFREqSS2qE
Thanks for this! I had never heard of Timothy Galloway the tennis player or writer. I'll check out his book. One of my tennis bibles is "Winning Ugly" by Brad Gilbert. It also focuses on the mental aspect of the game.
You know … despite its pedigree and my 80s memory of it, my initial reaction to the song in the car this afternoon was that it’s actually not that good. 🤦♂️ But then Spotify decided to follow it with ‘Ah! Leah’ so it worked out OK!
Yes! Loved it. Even if it was clearly manipulative. Sorry that they cancelled it. There’s a series on Amazon called Top Class Tennis that I really enjoyed too.
A post about tennis and “The Karate Kid”!?? Who are you? My Irish twin? Well, next iteration, include some pickleball and I’ll consider you a brother from another mother. Seriously love all of these things. And oh, hello there Steve!
I am your Irish twin. Though I was born a decade before you. But I'm often described as childish (I hear childlike), so I think I'm probably the younger twin.
And, hello Beth! I'm on a bit of a Substack break due to stuff going on that needs my attention (and writer/Notes burnout). But couldn't pass up this opportunity to repost this piece.
I kinda want to keep the younger sister/older brother dynamic because I so rarely get to be playful and silly like that anymore with sibs. I’m responsible and a listener. I want to be bratty and careless again
“Wash on, wash off” should be a song. 🎶
It could be an instructional kids' song about how to take a bath. A song about soap.
Hey Steve! Great article, man, and cool to see my name in it too. ;) Yeah, I really can't believe the end has come to an epic career for Rafael Nadal. You nailed it when you talked about, as amazing and great he was on the court, his humility and also caring for a fellow, injured player, Sascha Zverev, after he went down with a bad injury, really shows how great he was off the court. I'm glad we got to see him play Diego Schwartzman at the 2019 BNP Paribas Open, an event which has been awesome to attend with you in the years we've gone together. It's rare when you see someone who's been consistently great in an athletic endeavor for two whole decades, and in such a physically and mentally demanding sport as tennis. Here's to Nadal, an incredible athlete and human being. It's gonna be Raf not seeing him play! ;)
Great piece, Steve, pulling in things from so many parts of your life (and psyche). Re. Rafa: I think it's a blessing that he had two rivals (Novak and Roger) who were as great as he is. Maybe he would have won 40 majors if they hadn't been around, but the mythology would not be nearly as powerful. We learned to take for granted the utter dominance of those three, for such a long time, that we lose sight of how absurd it is. I think they drove each other to heights none of them would have reached without the others. Again, great piece!
Yes, the big three constantly pushed each other to get better and work on their weaknesses. I don't think any of the 3 would have won 40 majors, as they would likely have not improved to the level they did. Maybe Djokovic might have. I really hope he gets to 25 as I want him to wipe Margaret Court off the court. I had hoped Serena could do it, but alas. It's crazy that the three won 66 major together. That's 16 and a half years of no one else winning. I'm glad Wawrinka and Murray got some scraps, but that's about it. One for Cilic, one for del Potro, and I'm probably forgetting another one. That's it before Fed retired. I see Sinner as pulling away on the men's game now, but Alcaraz should be able to keep up. But no one else is at the level as those two.
I have thoughts on the women's game too, but I'll leave it there. I am glad that I got to see Seles and Graf and a few of the other greats of the 90s. I go to Indian Wells tournament every year and it's like Disneyland for me.
Yes, I think Stan and Andy got 3 each--I always thought it weird that Andy was sometimes grouped with the Big 3 to make the Big 4, but Stan wasn't. Of course, Del Potro ended Roger's only shot at the Slam.
Big Williams sisters fan. I can't imagine the pressure they had to live with every day, and they just powered though it. Most American sports fans are big homers--they reflexively root for Americans against people from other countries. But so many made an exception for the sisters. The hate and venom directed at them by American fans who rooted openly for their Russian and Eastern European opponents just made me ill. Gee, I wonder if racism had anything to do with it.
Didn't know you play tennis. I regret not pursuing it more-it's a great game for maintaing a network of friends and for getting some exercise. Good for you!
This is a bit of a tangent, but your comments about tennis made me think you might like this video from Adam Savage (Mythbusters) talking about his experience playing pool (and how one of the books that he found most helpful for developing his pool game was a tennis book) -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHFREqSS2qE
Thanks for this! I had never heard of Timothy Galloway the tennis player or writer. I'll check out his book. One of my tennis bibles is "Winning Ugly" by Brad Gilbert. It also focuses on the mental aspect of the game.
Yep. New earworm added to today’s playlist!
You know … despite its pedigree and my 80s memory of it, my initial reaction to the song in the car this afternoon was that it’s actually not that good. 🤦♂️ But then Spotify decided to follow it with ‘Ah! Leah’ so it worked out OK!
Ha! Well, nostalgia has a way of propping up some less than stellar songs. Glad it was paired with a higher quality vintage!
Have you watched the Netflix series “Break Point”? A fantastic behind the scene look at the struggles and successes of some of the top players.
Yes! Loved it. Even if it was clearly manipulative. Sorry that they cancelled it. There’s a series on Amazon called Top Class Tennis that I really enjoyed too.
When it comes to inspirational sports-related tunes, I'm partial to Nelly's "The Champ," which he wrote for ESPN's Bowl Week https://youtu.be/xhoj43vXGas?si=IvPFmRx50U8YMnL4
Thanks for the Nelly share, Rick! I had never heard it before. I'll add it to my 'inspirational' playlist that is evergrowing.
A post about tennis and “The Karate Kid”!?? Who are you? My Irish twin? Well, next iteration, include some pickleball and I’ll consider you a brother from another mother. Seriously love all of these things. And oh, hello there Steve!
I am your Irish twin. Though I was born a decade before you. But I'm often described as childish (I hear childlike), so I think I'm probably the younger twin.
And, hello Beth! I'm on a bit of a Substack break due to stuff going on that needs my attention (and writer/Notes burnout). But couldn't pass up this opportunity to repost this piece.
I kinda want to keep the younger sister/older brother dynamic because I so rarely get to be playful and silly like that anymore with sibs. I’m responsible and a listener. I want to be bratty and careless again
Shut up, you brat! No you! I’m telling Mom!
Music to my ears