“Tell me how old your champions are, and I’ll tell you how healthy your sport is,” said an East German coach, at a time when his nation lorded over international sports.
With 19-year-old Leylah Fernandez and 18-year-old Emma Raducanu—whose combined age is still younger than Serena Williams’—and 25-year-old Daniil Medvedev, tennis is looking pretty healthy.
With all due respect to the greats, how many people mentioned the absence of Serena, Roger or Rafa?
After talking and talking about the next gen, the kids have finally arrived thanks to Medvedev and Dominic Thiem last year. Now, Fernandez and Raducanu, Félix Auger-Aliassime, Carlos Alcaraz and Jenson Brooksby have got us thinking about the next-next gen.
Looking forward to next year!
After hearing the Billie Jean King quote that pressure is a privilege on repeat, Novak Djokovic ended up letting said pressure get to him and dropped the proverbial ball on the first calendar Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969.
We all saw it. By the end, he was sobbing in his towel. And we felt it when they handed him his silver plate.
“I was glad it was over because the build-up for this tournament and everything that mentally, emotionally, I had to deal with throughout the tournament in the last couple of weeks was just a lot,” he confessed. Before he collided with Medvedev, Nole was coming off a 27-match winning streak at the Slams.
Leylah Fernandez charmed and impressed the Big Apple until the very last minute and beyond.
“I know that this day [September 11] is especially hard for New York and everyone around the United States. I just want to say that I hope I can be as strong and as resilient as New York has been the past 20 years,” she told the crowd.
Like Lady Gaga, Pink or Madonna, Leylah set Arthur Ashe Stadium on fire.
On Monday morning, she stopped by Today and then joined Félix Auger-Aliassime at the Met Gala.
Even in retirement, Louis Borfiga, who dedicated 15 years to engineering the Canadian breakthrough, doesn’t miss a match.
“I’m thrilled with the success!” he said from his home in France.
There was another winner in the Big Apple last week, and that’s Tennis Canada.
“They’re hockey players, not tennis players! Wow!” exclaimed John McEnroe on ESPN, dazzled by what’s going on in Québec and especially the National Tennis Centre in Montréal. That’s some great hype!
What’s next for Canadian tennis? There’s a suggestion.
The health measures and busy tournament schedule certainly complicate things, but how about some exhibition tennis starring Fernandez, Auger-Aliassime, Andreescu, Shapo and friends this winter? An event like that could spell a lot of profit for Canadian tennis.
The Bell Centre is thinking about it, and the Vidéotron Centre is in.
